An Acacia Crossings parent seemingly tried to extort millions of dollars from the Maricopa Unified School District in an email to school board members midday Tuesday.

Feleesha Withers, 33, demanded a “tax-free” $2.5 million payment by 7 p.m. that evening or she would publicize a list of false allegations against the district, including that the attorney general had staged a cover-up of its theft from a grieving family, and that the FBI was actively investigating instances of abuse among district teachers.

Though the demand letter threatened to expose Withers’s allegations to the press only if the $2.5 million sum went unpaid, she copied an email address belonging to the editor of InMaricopa onto the email thread.

Withers accuses school district employees of “racial harassment” against her son, an 11-year-old Maricopa Wells Middle School student, while he was mourning the death of a family pet. She also accuses the district of violating federal grand theft laws tied to her son’s cell phone being confiscated.

The loss of the cell phone and emotional distress her son experienced while mourning the death of his pet dog amounted to as much as $5 million in damages, alleged Withers Tuesday. InMaricopa is withholding the name and photos of the child, which were included in the email.

Withers wrote:

“YOUR LAST CHANCE: Wire $2.5M by 7:00 PM TODAY … If not, the following WILL happen at 7:01 PM sharp: FBI Whistleblower Complaint filed, National Press Release sent to TMZ.”

An image of a human skull next to “YOUR LAST CHANCE” could be interpreted as a threat of violence. Withers added that if her family was “forced to go public,” then “the settlement demand DOUBLES to $5M.”

Withers further wrote than an NBA player, board members of an unnamed nursing association and city council members were “ready to rally in a press conference.” According to her LinkedIn profile, she works in Chandler for a Verizon Wireless reseller called My Bullfrog.

MUSD spokesperson Mishell Terry issued a brief response yesterday, saying: “The district is utilizing its normal protocols for investigating parent-reported issues.”

Contacted by email, Withers had nothing to add beyond the content of Tuesday’s letter.

David Iversen contributed reporting.