Former U of L assistant basketball coach pleads guilty in federal extortion case
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Former University of Louisville basketball assistant coach Dino Gaudio pleaded guilty in federal court Friday to an extortion charge.
Gaudio pleaded guilty to Interstate Communication with Intent to Extort, a felony which carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison. The plea deal Gaudio agreed to on Friday calls for probation and a "low-end fine." He will not face prison time
Gaudio will be sentenced on Aug. 27. The final details of the sentence will be made public then.
Gaudio tried to extort money from the University of Louisville and injure the school's reputation during a March 17 in-person meeting with a Louisville staffer, according to U.S. Attorney Michael Bennet.
Gaudio, who was let go by Mack on March 18, threatened to report to the media allegations that the men's basketball team had violated NCAA rules, a charging document says.
After being told his contract was not being renewed, Gaudio threatened to release details of the violations if he was not paid his salary for an additional 17 months, according to court documents.
In addition, Gaudio sent a text to university officials containing a recruiting video he was threatening to release publicly. Gaudio claimed that the basketball team had produced recruiting videos for potential players and also violated NCAA rules in using graduate assistants in practice.
The text "traveled" outside the state, according to the document filed in U.S. District Court.
Gaudio's termination was a surprise. The one-time head coach at Wake Forest had been a mentor to Mack and the coaches have known each other for three decades.
