"I'm going to fu**ing choke the sh*t out of you" - Shannon Sharpe's accuser releases audio of allegedly getting threatened by NFL legend
In between the ongoing legal case against Shannon Sharpe, an audio recording was released on Tuesday morning. It allegedly features the NFL Hall of Famer making a violent threat.
“I’m going to f***ng choke the s* out of you," Sharpe can be heard saying as reported by TMZ.
The one-minute-long audio was shared by attorney Tony Buzbee, who represents the woman accusing Sharpe of rape.
The woman, referred to as "Jane Doe," has kept her identity private.
However, Buzbee’s team says the recording took place near the end of her relationship with Sharpe.
In the content of the clip, the woman and Sharpe appear to allegedly be in an argument, where she is telling him not to “manipulate” her. To which, Sharpe allegedly responded with the threat to choke her.
The woman then says:
“I don’t want to be choked."
Following which, Sharpe replied:
“Yes, you do. I don’t think you have a choice in the matter.”
That said, the context of the conversation is quite unclear.
Sharpe’s lawyers have pointed to previous sexually explicit messages between the two. He suggested that their relationship included consensual power dynamics, which included requests for choking.
However, Buzbee argues that the new audio shows a much more frightening situation and it is not just sexual roleplay.
“The contents of this clip are certainly not sexual. They are not playful. They are instead disturbing, aggressive, and dangerous," Buzbee said.
After the TMZ report came out, former NFL star, Shannon Sharpe took to X to defend himself and respond to the accusations.
Sharpe called the situation “a shakedown” and said he would be “open, transparent, and defend” himself. He claimed the whole thing was being led by attorney Tony Buzbee, who he accused of targeting Black men and using a short clip of a video to make him look bad. He said the full video is about 10 minutes long and shows the full story.
Sharpe also challenged Buzbee to release the entire video instead of just an edited version. He said he didn’t have the footage himself, or he would post it. According to Sharpe, the meeting in question happened during the day at the woman’s invitation, and he believes it was a setup. He named a woman called Gabby, also known online as Carly, and said both she and Buzbee were trying to get $50 million from him.
Shannon Sharpe ended his post by thanking his family, friends, and fans for standing by him. He promised to keep telling the truth and said,
“I love all you guys. Thanks.”
He has said he plans to take legal action against those accusing him and continues to speak out publicly.
The reason Tony Buzbee decided to publicly release the audio involving Shannon Sharpe
Tony Buzbee, who is representing the accuser, decided to release this audio after Shannon Sharpe’s lawyer, Lanny J. Davis, shared old text messages between the two.
Buzbee claimed this was an attempt to damage his client’s credibility.
On Monday, Davis strongly denied the allegations. He called the lawsuit an attempt to get money from the former Denver Broncos star. However, he has not yet responded to the new audio.
On the other hand, Shannon Sharpe has continued his regular role on ESPN’s "First Take" amid the legal storm.