Rick Pitino a Victim of an Extortion Attempt?

There is a strange story coming out of Louisville tonight:

Louisville head coach Rick Pitino has released a statement tonight saying that he is fighting an extortion attempt aimed at him.

Pitino's statement, in full, reads, "My family and I were recently threatened as part of a criminal scheme to extort money. Upon receiving these threats, we reported this extortion attempt to the FBI. While I did not want to make this matter public, I recently learned that the individual behind this extortion attempt has already gone to the media with false, defamatory and outrageous allegations in an attempt to pressure me to cave in to this scheme. I want to make it clear that I intend to vigorously defend my reputation and the character of my family against any criminal scheme to extort money. I am hopeful that the media and public will recognize the slanderous nature of this direct and malicious attack. My family and I appreciate the support we have received from Tom Jurich, Dr. James Ramsey, and the entire Louisville family. Because this is a federal criminal investigation, I cannot comment further at this time. Any inquiries should be directed to my attorney, Steve Pence."

U of L athletic director Tom Jurich said in a statement that, "Coach Pitino has informed us that he and his attorneys have reported a potential extortion attempt to the FBI. We cannot comment further about this ongoing criminal investigation. We stand by Coach Pitino and support his decision to alert the authorities."

Source: Louisville Courier-Journal

UPDATE: I have learned a little more about this issue and while I will not post exactly what I know, I will say this: things are about to get very ugly in Louisville.