Disgraced Penn State football coach and convicted child molester Jerry Sandusky continues to maintain his innocence in his first interview in over a decade, RadarOnline.com has learned.
Sandusky, 80, was found guilty in 2012 on 45 counts of sexual abuse of young boys he met through his Second Mile charity between 1994 and 2009 and sentenced to 30-60 years in prison.
"I never ever in my life ever thought about molesting anybody," Sandusky told The Daily Mail in a new interview from the Laurel Highlands State Correctional Institution in Pennsylvania, where he has been incarcerated for years.
"I was accused of heinous crimes, which I've never committed. My wife was my only partner in sex and that was after marriage," he claimed. "I was in disbelief in terms of how this happened. Why were they [accuser] saying things that were so inconsistent with what they had said before?"
"I believe I was wrongfully convicted by inconsistent, perjured testimony," Sandusky continued, alleging that "nobody came forward on their own" and that the accusers were "vulnerable and susceptible" people who were "coached and led" by law enforcement and therapists using controversial repressed memory therapy techniques.
"We now have evidence that there was repressed memory therapy, and we have an expert who's willing to testify about how to analyze what happened," he said. "Their stories changed. The point is that every last one changed."
Sandusky suggested that the alleged victims, who received over $63.1 million in payouts from Penn State, may have been "incentivized" by the money. "I feel that they've made some decisions, they had a chance to do it the hard way, making an effort in school, studying, working," he said.
"They turned that down for an easy road with allegations and to make millions of dollars - that's not going to bring them happiness. That's very unfortunate for them. I don't know that much about how they're living or whatever. But maybe they ought to think about what they've done. And all the people who have been hurt."
Sandusky's wife, Dottie, has stood by him despite the allegations. "It's only by the grace of God that we can get through what we have," she said. "I know who Jerry is. I never saw anything, and I was here. If Jerry had done these things, I would have told somebody I wouldn't have stayed with him."
"He's that kind of a person. I mean, if he messes up or does something wrong, he'll tell you he has and he's sorry ... The family has stuck by him because we love him. I know if he had done anything, even if it was the least little bit of something about anything in life, he would tell you. He would not have let that many people be hurt."
"I don't know how you can't say that there is something wrong here, when the troopers and all the kids lied. There should at least be a retrial," she added. "I can't understand it and I don't have any faith any more in this system. I used to, and I used to have faith in the police. But now I don't know what I'd do if I was really in need of something. It would scare me."
Former Penn State coach Dick Anderson agreed that Sandusky is "completely innocent." He and former NCIS Special Agent John Snedden, who led a federal probe into the matter, both claimed that the situation was a "political hit job" motivated by Governor Tom Corbett's vendetta against Penn State and the university's then-president Graham Spanier.
Sandusky is continuing to appeal the verdict in hopes of a new trial. "What I would say to the public is, I would plead with them. Please just look into this case. Everybody is either afraid, and somebody has to come up with the conscience and the courage to look at this case, look at the facts," he said.