Sure, thats why it only smells like it. In this case only the boy is imprisoned and beaten in jail and his parents are extorted for half a million dollars to get their son back to safety.
You realize that making bail doesn't mean you don't have to go to trial, right?
I think s/he was simply pointing out that a "$500K bail" does not mean that the kid's parents were extorted for half a mill. That is not how bail works.