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It looks like the cops are investigating whether Mel Gibson's girlfriend tried to extort money from him in order to prevent the release of those damning recordings where the actor uses racial and sexist slurs and generally reveals himself to kinda wacko.

LA County sheriff's detectives are investigating Oksana Grigorieva at the same time they are investigating her claims that Gibson physically assaulted and threatened her and their child. Gibson's lawyers have strongly denied allegations of domestic abuse against the "Mad Max" and "Lethal Weapon" star. 

The recordings were apparently recorded without Gibson's permission (duh, obviously!). In California, both parties must consent to have a phone conversation recorded. Under normal circumstances, legal experts said, that would make the Gibson tapes unuseable in court and their recording potentially a crime.

Could the Gibson camp have bet that she was bluffing if she did allegedly try to trap and then extort him? Did they assume she would not risk getting jailed?

She's trying to get around that by claiming that she only recorded him because she feared for her safety and that she was not the party who released the audiotapes to Radar Online. Uh huh. Sure... Is that kind of like those "stolen" homemade sex tapes that made Kim Kardashian and Paris Hilton celebrities? These stars really need better security systems because stuff seems to conveniently get taken from right under their noses.

Now obviously, there is no excuse to ever beat a woman or child, no matter how angry their actions might provoke you to be. But what would it say about Grigorieva is she, say, seduced the aging film star, maybe got pregnant so he'd break up his marriage and have to take care of her then possibly used the nuclear option on his career unless he ponied up more cash than he ended up giving her? Not saying that's what happened. Oh no! I'm sure this chick is perfectly innocent in all of this and had nothing to do driving Mel Gibson to the point of frustrated impotent rage.

At least that is the impression she gives in those recorded conversations -- poor little Oksana, trapped in Mel's web. Maybe she is or maybe she's a coldly calculating person. Most women aren't like that, but some are pure poison.

When this story is all done, Gibson's career will no doubt be over. Just watching his movies now gives me the creeps. But it will be interesting to see the end game here for the hot girlfriend who brought him down.

Be careful out there, boys. There's sharks in them there waters!

• Mel Convinces Sheriff to Probe Possible Oksana Extortion Attempt (eonline.com)
• Sheriff investigating Gibson's ex for extortion (pbpulse.com)
• Tables Turning? Mel Gibson's Ex-Girlfriend Eyed for Extortion (abcnews.go.com)
• Detectives examining alleged extortion attempt by Mel Gibson's ex-girlfriend (latimesblogs.latimes.com)