According to a report from the Associated Press, Karen Cunagin Sypher, a woman accused of trying to extort Louisville coach Rick Pitino, said she feels like she doesn’t have a friend in the world. The 49-year-old former model has been accused by Pitino of asking for cars, a house and $10 million from the star coach in exchange for keeping quiet about “an interaction between Mr. Pitino and an unnamed woman as criminal in nature.”
Sypher pleaded not guilty to the charges, which include lying to the FBI. If convicted, she faces as much as seven years in prison. She’s free while awaiting trial. Sypher stays home and out of sight, scared that if she shows her face, she might end up on the front page of a newspaper.
Sypher said she fears Pitino’s reputation and influence in basketball-crazy Louisville means she’ll be sent to prison. However, she said she was “set up” and that she will “prove my innocence.”
Pitino’s attorney, Steve Pence, refuted Sypher’s setup allegations. “The notion that she is being set up is absolutely ridiculous,” Pence said. “Karen Sypher is charged with a very serious crime and she is looking at very serious time in jail if she is convicted.”
