Two Men Arrested, Accused Of Blackmailing Chicago TV Anchorman

CHICAGO, IL (AP) -- Two men were accused of blackmailing a local news anchorman by threatening to say he had drug abuse problems unless he paid them $5,000.Joseph Cantrell, 25, and James Brown, 22, were arrested Tuesday and charged with felony intimidation, police said.WLS-TV morning news anchor Hosea Sanders, 47, acknowledged substance-abuse problems in a statement Thursday. He is taking a leave of absence, the station said.Prosecutor Lorraine Scaduto said the suspects began calling Sanders and his boss on Sunday, vowing to release photographs that could "have a negative impact" on his career.When Sanders stopped answering their calls, Scaduto said, they went to his house and kicked in the door. Sanders went to police, who arranged an undercover sting and made the arrests.Bail was set Wednesday for Cantrell at $60,000 and for Brown at $40,000. If convicted, each could face up to 10 years in prison.Sanders said he became involved in substance abuse after a series of family tragedies, and he apologized to his family, friends and viewers."I trusted the wrong people, people I thought were my friends, and I was betrayed and hurt by them," he said in the statement, read on the ABC-owned station.