TAPE! Here is the police tape photo and video interview of Karen Cunagin Sypher. Karen Sypher’s tape was released by police to press prompting Rick Pitino to fume to press thereafter.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE TAPE

Karen Cunagin Sypher Pictures
Karen Cunagin Sypher Photo 1
Karen Cunagin Sypher Photo 2
Karen Cunagin Sypher Photo 3
Karen Cunagin Sypher Photo 4
Karen Cunagin Sypher Photo 5
Karen Cunagin Sypher Photo 6

University of Louisville coach Rick Pitino was furious about the tapes becoming headline news today. Pitino called an immediate press conference.

“If you all showed up thinking I am resigning you are going to be disappointed.  On the day Ted Kennedy died we broke into news here in Louisville with Karen Sypher tapes….Believe me I will suffer for that mistake. My wife and children should not suffer for these lies, and believe me these are lies.”

As reported by LALATE weeks ago, Karen (who was not married to Tim Sypher at the time) met Pitino at Tim Sypher’s condo where she chatted with Pitino and received a $3000 payment. Pitino’s lawyer said recently she got money not for an abortion (as she claims) but for medical insurance coverage. Louisville Metro Police PIO Dwight Mitchell tells ESPN Wednesday that Sgt Abbott who questioned Pitino understood the payment to be for health insurance.

“It was Sgt. [Andy] Abbott’s understanding that the money [Pitino gave Sypher] was for health insurance.”

University of Louisville president James Ramsey issued the following statement thereafter:

“Several months ago, Coach Pitino informed me about the alleged extortion attempt. I’ve now been informed that there may be other details which, if true, I find surprising”.

Reports claim Pitino’s contract with Louisville provides “dishonesty” and “moral depravity” as basis for firing.

For continuing coverage of the Sypher Pitino case on LALATE click here:

http://news.lalate.com/category/rick-pitino.

The affair, which Pitino says was one time and consensual and Karen says was more than once and not consensual, was August 1, 2003. But just recently, Pitino has issued another statement, along with his university, about this story that still is far from clearly explained.

Statement from Rick Pitino, University of Louisville Men’s Basketball Coach:

“I just want to make a statement. I want to say that the past seven months have been very difficult on the people I love. I made a decision seven months ago because of something I’ve preached to my players for the thirty-some-odd years I’ve been coaching. They’ve heard it for thirty-some-odd years and it goes like this: When you have a problem, if you tell the truth, your problem becomes a part of your past. If you lie, it becomes a part of your future. I made a very difficult decision to tell the truth to the federal authorities, the local authorities, the university officials and most importantly, the people that love me the most: my family and friends.”

“A grand jury indictment is a very serious thing and I have not commented on it for that reason. I have not said anything to any of you about any of it. But I am here today because I’ve personally apologized to my family every single day. For all of us, our families — our wife and our children — and mine in particular, make the sun rise for me every morning. They are highly principled people that are very strong morally and very strong fundamentally and I let them down with my indiscretion six years ago. I’m sorry for that and I’ve told them that every single day.”

“But I want to tell more than just them that. I want to tell my extended family, which is all of my players, recruits who believe in me, families who have believed in me, that I’m sorry for that indiscretion six years ago. You as professionals who have covered me for 16 years, I want to apologize to you as professionals for that indiscretion six years ago.”

“Besides my apology to the university — and in particular to Tom Jurich and Dr. Ramsey, who have been very strong with me throughout this period — I also apologize to my extended family, which is all of the fans. I came here at a very difficult time. When 9/11 hit, you needed a community to get you over it. In New York City, it was easy because everybody knew the devastation of that and they got each other over it. In Louisville, the impact wasn’t felt like New York City, but I needed this community to help me get over it. The university officials and my friends and loved ones have helped me through this very difficult time.”

“I will continue to cooperate with the authorities as I have from day one. I believe in the judicial system and I won’t comment anymore on that. I hope that the trial comes quickly and we can do what all of you should be doing at this period in time: celebrating a BIG EAST Championship and a wonderful season where we once again finished in the Elite Eight with very dedicated players who paid the price to reach that pinnacle.”

“The second thing I’m going to do, besides be quiet about the indictment, is that I plan on accomplishing one thing that is very, very important to me. I plan, regardless of how difficult a situation this is, to coach here at the University of Louisville for as long as I physically can maintain the passion I have for the game of basketball, which is still stronger than when I was a head coach at 24 years of age. I love the game. I love my players. I love this university as well as this community. I won’t coach anywhere else. I don’t believe in anything as much as I believe in this university and this state. So, as long as they’ll have me, I’m going to coach here. I’m not a spring chicken, but I’m certainly not over the hill. I intend on recruiting the best athletes and the best people to this program and going a little farther than those Elite Eights in the many years to come. So I thank you as professionals. I know there are much more pleasant things we’d like to talk about, but I do want to apologize once again to my loving family, my wife and university officials, as well as the extended family with all of my players and the great fans we have here at the University of Louisville. So thank you all very much.”

Statement from Dr. James Ramsey, University of Louisville President:

“Rick Pitino is the University of Louisville’s basketball coach. He has been a role model for countless young people and a positive influence on this community.”

“Regardless of the truth or falsehood of specific actions that have been attributed to the coach, he’s clearly made errors in judgment that have come under intense public scrutiny. We can’t ignore these errors in judgment, and they have saddened and disappointed me. As we try to teach our students, when you make a mistake, you admit it and right it as best you can. Coach has done that today.”

“It’s not an easy thing to come before the university community and all of you to admit mistakes and commit to do better. I know this has been difficult on the coach, it’s been difficult on me, and difficult for our university. But as Coach Pitino and I discussed earlier today, this was the right thing for him to do.”

“We hope this closes this chapter; we’re all ready to move on. Our university is recovering from a flood that shut down a large portion of our campus, preparing for the start of classes on August 24th, and getting ready to welcome the most academically talented freshman class in our history. We need to get back to our job of educating the next generation of Kentucky’s leaders.”

Statement from Tom Jurich, University of Louisville Vice-President and Director of Athletics:

“As I said yesterday, Coach Pitino has been truthful with us about this matter all along and we stand by him and his family during this process. He’s been diligent in his work as our men’s basketball coach, despite a number of false rumors, reported inaccuracies and the difficulties this personal matter that happened six years ago has placed on him and his family. I’m a million percent behind him. I have great confidence in the federal court system that this matter will be addressed appropriately. I expect Coach Pitino to be the head coach at the University of Louisville for a long time. “