Louisville University basketball coach Rick Pitino told law enforcement he had sex with, and paid for an abortion for, a woman named Karen Sypher.
Pitino is not charged with any crime as a result. On the contrary, he came forward to accuse Sypher of attempting to extort $10 million from him.
The Louisville Courier-Journal reports Pitino admits he was drinking and had sex with Karen Sypher in 2003, and gave her $3,000 for an abortion.
Only a month ago, Sypher filed a report alleging the 2003 rape, but Pitino’s attorney said, “Karen Sypher is indicted for extortion. The commonwealth’s attorney has said [Sypher] is void of any credibility on these 6-year-old allegations.”
Sypher only made the rape allegations after being indicted. Prosecutors who have reviewed Sypher’s claims say Pitino, 56, won’t be charged.
Karen Sypher is married to the Louisville basketball team’s equipment manager, Tim Sypher, however the estranged couple has recently filed for divorce.
According to ABC News, Tim Sypher worked as Pitino’s personal assistant with the Boston Celtics from 1997-2001, and followed him to Louisville in 2001.
The criminal complaint filed in the case claims Tim Sypher gave Pitino a list of written demands from his wife, which included college tuition for her kids, money to pay off their house, two cars, and $3,000 … later increasing to $10 million.
Karen Sypher pleaded not guilty to the charges of attempting to extort $10 million from Rick Pitino, who has been married to his wife Joanne for 30 years.
Sypher, 49, a blond stunner who used to model, met Pitino in a restaurant on August 1, 2003. He claimed Sypher walked up to him early in the evening and asked if he would call one of her sons, which Pitino said he did.
Rick Pitino said that Sypher left and returned about closing time. After the restaurant closed, Sypher “started coming on to him and that they had sex.”
Rape allegations surfaced much later, but police found several descrepencies and no evidence that anything other than a consensual encounter occurred.
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