SYRACUSE, N.Y., Nov. 27 (UPI) -- Embattled Syracuse University assistant basketball coach Bernie Fine, accused of child sex abuse, has been fired, school officials announced Sunday.
A statement released by the school and carried by Syracuse cable news broadcaster YNN indicated Fine had been fired by Chancellor Nancy Cantor.
"At the direction of Chancellor Cantor, Bernie Fine's employment with Syracuse University has been terminated, effective immediately," the statement read.
The move came only hours after a news report indicated the scope of the investigation of Fine had widened and that his wife had once acknowledged he had "issues" with children.
The (Syracuse) Post-Standard reported Sunday a third person has accused Fine of molesting him as a child, while the coach's wife Laurie admitted in a recorded conversation with another alleged victim she was aware of "everything that went on," ESPN reported.
The Syracuse newspaper said Zach Tomaselli, a 23-year-old Maine resident, last week told police Fine molested him in 2002 in a Pittsburgh hotel room when Tomaselli was 13.
The accusation prompted a search of Fine's home in DeWitt, N.Y., Friday, during which authorities seized documents, the Post-Standard said.
Former Syracuse ball boy Bobby Davis has also accused Fine of molestation that began in 1983 before he reached the seventh grade and went on for more than 12 years.
Davis' step-brother, Mike Lang, also claims he was abused by the coach.
A recording of a phone conversation Davis made with Laurie Fine in 2002 reveals she knew of the assistant coach's alleged misconduct, ESPN reported Sunday.
In the conversation, Laurie Fine reportedly tells Davis, "I know everything that went on with him. ... Bernie has issues, maybe that he's not aware of, but he has issues."
