Who Is 'Todd Black,' Caylee Case Spokesman?

Feb. 4, 2009— -- The investigation into the murder of Florida toddler Caylee Anthony, already rife with drama and confusion, took another bizarre turn this week when a former FBI agent claimed that a spokesman for the lawyer of the accused murderer appeared to be a man who had served prison time for attempted extortion.

The accusation, first reported by the Orlando Sentinel, follows a series of jarring developments in a child-murder investigation that has included a reported suicide attempt by the victim's grandfather, an unusual 911 call from the victim's grandmother and a still-mysterious "nanny" now suing for defamation.

For months, a person calling himself "Todd Black" has been the spokesman for the attorney for Casey Anthony, Caylee's mother, in Anthony's high profile murder case.

But Todd Black is in fact an alias used by three different people who are working on the Anthony case at Press Corps Media, the company said in a statement released Tuesday. The company said the name is used for security reasons. Press Corps Media has been handling media relations for Jose Baez, Anthony's lawyer.

And now a former FBI agent says an audio recording of a person who calls himself Todd Black sounds like a Gil Cabot, who was imprisoned for attempting to extort a journalist.

Jack Trimarco, a retired FBI agent, said recordings of a person calling himself Black sound like Cabot. Trimarco investigated Cabot in the 1980s and says he listened to hours of Cabot's recorded conversations.

"If that's not Gil Cabot, I'll eat my hat," Trimarco said of an audio recording of Black. "That recording sounded to me like none other than Gil Cabot doing his thing again. I had no doubt that it was him."

A Plethora of Plot Twists

The accusation is the latest twist in the case that has attracted international media attention and has left Anthony, 22, on trial for the murder of her daughter. Police searched for months for Caylee after she was reported missing in the summer by her grandmother, Cindy Anthony.

Casey Anthony initially said that a woman named Zenaida Fernandez-Gonzalez, who she claimed was Caylee's nanny, was the last person to see Caylee alive after she dropped Caylee off at her apartment. But police later cleared Fernandez-Gonzalez of any involvement with the Anthony family, and she has since filed a defamation suit.

In October, Casey Anthony was indicted on murder charges though police had not yet found Caylee's body. But Dec. 11, skeletal remains that were identified as Caylee's were found not far from the house she shared with her mother and grandparents.

A heart-shaped sticker was reportedly attached to duct tape that covered the girl's mouth when her body was found, according to police documents.

And last month, Caylee's grandfather George Anthony was found despondent and possibly under the influence of medication and alcohol in a Daytona Beach, Fla., hotel, apparently considering a suicide attempt.

Press Representatives Use 'Security Names'

According to a statement from Press Corps Media, Cabot was a former owner of the company who continued to work as a consultant.

Cabot could not be immediately reached for comment Tuesday, and a former attorney for Cabot did not return a phone message.

"Gil Cabot sold his company in 1996 and we merged our Canada office with a media marketing group to expand our services in 2003, and the fact that Mr. Cabot was retained as a consultant has no bearing on our contracted clients," the statement said.

"We assign security names for insurance and security purposes, as with 'Todd Black' -- a security name, which has been used in rotation by three different staff members on this case, and whether Mr. Cabot also participated in that rotation makes no difference whatsoever. Press Corps Media is paid by a family who took an interest in the case, and is not paid by Mr. Baez."

Who Is Todd Black?

When ABC News tried to reach Black earlier Tuesday, before it was revealed that Black is an alias used by three people, a Press Corps Media employee said Black was on a plane to Chicago and unavailable.

Sabrina Cane, the employee, who also uses an assumed name, said she did not know if Cabot was Black. In an earlier interview, Black told the Orlando Sentinel that he was not Gil Cabot.

Business records show that Cabot has been associated with what appear to be numerous talent and production companies in California and Florida. He has been sued several times over business disputes, some of which allege he used shell companies to hide his assets, according to online court records.

In 1990, Cabot was convicted of conspiracy and attempted extortion, according to California court records. Press reports from the time indicate that Cabot was sentenced to five years in prison for attempting to extort $31,000 from local anchorwoman Jann Carl in return for suppressing sexually explicit videotapes of her that never existed.

Prosecutors said Cabot told Carl that sexually explicit photographs of Carl were to be published in a pornographic magazine and that he needed $31,000 to suppress the material, according to the Los Angeles Times, which described Cabot as a "confidence man."

A Web site that appears to be connected to Cabot -- www.gilcabot.com -- says Cabot was wrongfully convicted.

"He's a very intelligent guy. If he used his God-given abilities for honest enterprise he'd be a very successful man in any area he chose," said Trimarco.

According to the California Department of Corrections, Cabot was paroled in 1993.

In a statement, Press Corps Media said, "It simply DOES NOT MATTER if our company was founded by a gentleman who spent time in prison over twenty-five years ago, especially since that distinction is a key selling point that brings credibility to our services assisting celebrities, politicians and others charged with a crime."

"It simply DOES NOT MATTER that when he sold the company in 1996 he remained a consultant, just like it simply DOES NOT MATTER that security names are assigned to our company staff," the statement said.

In addition to the matching faxing numbers, a phone number for Press Corps Media is registered to Baez. Another number used by the company traces back to a Nashville company called Aim Production and Management.