EXCLUSIVE: Shannon Sharpe's Rape Accuser Demanded $50K In Shocking Texts After NFL Star 'Cheated On Her'— And Now He Vows To Sue For Defamation
Shannon Sharpe shared a text message demanding money from him.
April 22 2025, Published 5:30 p.m. ET
The woman who claims NFL star Shannon Sharpe raped her, and is now suing him for $50million, has allegedly tried to extort money from him in the past, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The accuser, revealed by Sharpe's attorney to be named Gabriella Zuniga, previously demanded a chunk of cash after Sharpe "cheated" on her in a now infamous Instagram Live snafu.
The NFL star is being sued for $50million for sexual assault.
Last September, Sharpe, 56, inadvertently shared an intimate moment with a different woman on his own Instagram account.
The Hall of Famer previously confessed: "This was not staged. I came in, threw my phone on the bed, engaged in an activity. I've never turned IG Live on, so I don't know how it works. All of a sudden, my other phone is going off and people are calling me."
One of the people who contacted him was Zuniga, who first entered into a relationship with Sharpe in 2023, when she was just 19.
In texts from December Sharpe shared to counter her rape claims, Zuniga threatened: "u can’t touch me bc u cheated on me on instagram live."
In a subsequent text, she doubled down: "ur still not gonna be able to touch…bet ur regretting ur actions right about now."
Sharpe shared one text with the accuser asking for her money.
Hours later, when Sharpe reached out for a rendezvous, Zuniga replied: "absolutely not. when u give me a formal apology for cheating on me on instagram live and multiple other times, then we can talk about it."
She went on to demand a "formal apology" in several additional exchanges, and asked how he planned to "make it right."
Nearly a week passed before Sharpe next reached out to her, wishing her a happy new year, and seemingly offering her $50,000 to come over to his house.
Zuniga replied with a link to her personal PayPal account, to which Sharpe informed her he did not have an account.
"Then what do u have?" she asked, to which he replied: "10k cash."
Zuniga ordered Sharpe to send her a pic with the cash in hand, and after hearing nothing back, lashed out: "what’s taking so long? u either don’t have the cash to show me rn or ur with (another woman)…which one is it SHANNON??"
That was followed by another selfie shot, along with the ultimatum: "i know u miss this big juicy a--…$25k for each cheek."
On Tuesday, Sharpe angrily dismissed Zuniga's $50million lawsuit, promising to counter with one of his own.
Sitting behind a desk on a television set, he addressed: "This is a shakedown. I’m going to be open, transparent, and defend myself because this isn’t right.
"Gabby and (her attorney) want $50million. What they’re getting is sued for defamation and trying to take me down."
Sharpe was a Super Bowl winning tight end.
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Sharpe went on to suggest that Zuniga's attorney, Tony Buzbee, targeted him because of his race.
"This is all being orchestrated by Tony Buzbee, who has targeted Jay-Z," Sharpe explained. "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 plays into every stereotype you can possibly imagine. That video should actually be 10 minutes or so.
"Hey Tony, instead of releasing your edit, put the whole video out. I don’t have it or I would myself. You know what happened and you’re trying to manipulate the media."
