Ron Welch
Muskingum County Prosecutor
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, June 2, 2026
Local Landlord Guilty of Sex-Related, Racist Extortion
(Zanesville, OH)
Kevin Baker appeared before Judge Kelly Cottrill Monday morning to admit his guilt in extorting a Zanesville-area tenant. The charge of extortion carries with it a potential three-year prison sentence.
He will be sentenced at a later date.
Facts of the Case:
Baker’s crimes began in 2024, when he asked his female tenant to drop her rent money off to him directly at his home. When she knocked, Baker told her to come inside, where she found him naked inside.
During other incidents, he would show up to her home unannounced and call her in the middle of the night and ask her to come outside. Baker then filed an eviction action against her in the Zanesville Municipal Court.
He sent her a message stating that he would drop the eviction if she would provide him with an oral sex act. The victim kept the messages.
In July of 2024, he phoned her leaving a message stating “… I’m all alone out here at the house. I need [an oral sex act]. Or is that just you bull****ing me again? You were supposed to give me that [oral sex act] like a month ago.”
In September, the victim reported Baker’s acts to the Zanesville Metropolitan Housing Authority, who provided her resources on ways to report the abuse. Two days later she arrived to find Baker sitting in her home with a “notice to leave premises” ordering her to be out of the property six days later.
After Baker left, he sent a message to her via Facebook Messenger, stating the following:
“Hey [victim] it’s Kevin your landlord IF you would [perform a sex act] I’ll cancel the eviction. We don’t need to go to court, we can take care of this at my home.” Baker then added, “My grandson is not hear [sic] right now so if you would come out hear [sic] I’ll cancel the eviction and turn your lights back on.”
Baker added a different option, saying, “Of your can let me get to know your daughter [describing her] she 18 teen [sic].”
Baker is 72 years old.
Later, Baker threatened the victim about reporting him, saying
“Do you really thank [sic] any of them public [officials] downtown are going to listen to you”
He continued, “I’m a retired cop I got pull in this town if you don’t do what I say I’m cancelling this eviction You’re just like any other [n-word] N this town you will be over looked you should hear how they talk about you down at the courthouse…”
He went on, “They don’t like your black ass I been begging you over a year too have sex with me and to [perform an oral sex act] and you still won’t your getting out my house thanks for the free rent money.”
Baker learned he did not have any pull with public officials downtown, and the victim was not overlooked, even though she has a history of conflicts with law enforcement and the courts. Zanesville Police Officers took the time to listen to the victim and pursue justice irrespective of Baker’s employment history and prior issues involving the victim.
Search warrants were performed at Baker’s residence, locating large sums of cash and a digital video recorder. The recorder was sent off to be analyzed, resulting in a lengthy delay on the case, and unfortunately no data was able to be recovered from the recorder.
Several factors made pursuing this case difficult, including the victim’s fear of Baker, her concern that Baker would be treated differently because of his prior profession, and that she would be treated unfairly, due to her past difficulties involving the criminal justice system.
This case demonstrates that in Muskingum County any person who has been victimized can come forward and have their case properly investigated and pursued to achieve justice.
“Assistant Prosecutor Connor Dever did an excellent job for the victim in this case and for the safety of vulnerable members or our community going forward,” according to Prosecutor Ron Welch. “Baker’s conduct and words represent the lowest type of behaviors and attitudes, and his conviction shows that Muskingum County will not tolerate extortion and bigotry regardless of your background or position in the community.”
“Baker exploited a vulnerable mother who was trying to keep a roof over her and children’s heads for attempted sexual favors,” said Assistant Prosecuting Attorney John Dever. “Knowing what he was doing was wrong, he tried to exploit his former service as a law-enforcement officer to hide his misdeeds. Him taking responsibility through a plea of guilty is an important step toward justice.”
If you or someone you know has been sexually extorted or victimized by a landlord, please report the event to law enforcement and the Fair Housing authority.
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