Shannon Sharpe says he's temporarily stepping down from ESPN amid lawsuit over rape accusations

Professional football Hall of Famer and ESPN analyst Shannon Sharpe announced that he was stepping down from his hosting duties after getting hit with a $50 million lawsuit over sexual assault accusations.

On Wednesday, an attorney for Sharpe's accuser released an audio recording that captured Sharpe joking about choking her in public. She claims that Sharpe raped her twice, threatened her, and recorded their sexual interactions twice without her consent.

'I will be devoting this time to my family, and responding and dealing with these false and disruptive allegations set against me.'

Sharpe responded by claiming that the video was deceptively edited to misrepresent a consensual interaction with the accuser.

On Thursday, he released a statement announcing his departure from ESPN.

"My statement is found here and this is the truth. The relationship in question was 100% consensual," he wrote.

"At this juncture I am electing to step aside temporarily from my ESPN duties," he added. "I will be devoting this time to my family, and responding and dealing with these false and disruptive allegations set against me. I plan to return to ESPN at the start of the NFL preseason."

Sharpe previously revealed that the accuser was OnlyFans model Gabriella “Gabbi” Zuniga and accused her attorney Tony Buzbee of "orchestrating" what he called a "shakedown." He said that he would file a defamation countersuit.

“Tony Buzbee targets black men, and I believe he’s going to release a 30-second clip of a sex tape that tries to make me look guilty and play in to every stereotype you could possibly imagine,” he added.

ESPN offered a brief statement after Sharpe's announcement.

"This is a serious situation, and we agree with Shannon’s decision to step away," the company said.

The lawsuit said that Zuniga met Sharpe at a gym in Los Angeles when she was only 19 years old. She claimed that he became more violent as the relationship progressed and that he threatened to kill her in one alleged incident.

"I sincerely appreciate the overwhelming and ongoing support I have received from my family, fans, friends and colleagues," Sharpe concluded in the latest statement.

Sharpe played for the Denver Broncos and the Baltimore Ravens as a tight end between 1990 and 2003.

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