Sean Diddy Combs, a US rapper and music mogul credited with helping launch the careers of some of the biggest stars in recent years, was arrested by federal agents in New York on Monday, after facing months of civil lawsuits accusing him of sex trafficking, sexual abuse and rape.
In an indictment unsealed on Tuesday morning, federal prosecutors allege Combs and his associates threatened, abused and coerced women and others around him “to fulfill his sexual desires” – which allegedly includes forcing victims into engaging in recorded sexual activity which he referred to as “Freak Outs”.
A lawyer for the hip-hop artist called Combs “an innocent man with nothing to hide.”
“We are disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe is an unjust prosecution of Mr. Combs by the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” his attorney, Marc Agnifilo, told The Independent via email.
Combs, formerly known as Puff Daddy, P. Diddy and a host of other names, has undergone a myriad of reinventions since the start of his career – but has since entered a new and unwelcome “era.”
Federal agents with US Homeland Security raided two of the rapper’s houses in Los Angeles and Miami on March 25 as part of an investigation into the allegations brought against him.
The music mogul was also recently hit with a $100 million default judgment on September 9 over an alleged sexual assault from a 1997 party against Derrick Lee Cardello-Smith.
Lenawee County Circuit Court Judge granted the award to Cardello-Smith, an inmate who filed the lawsuit against Combs, accusing him of drugging and sexually assaulting him at a party 30 years ago.
Combs, 54, has strongly denied all of the allegations against him. His attorneys have branded the lawsuits and their accusations as money grabs, “baseless” or “sickening.”
Howard University terminates Diddy’s honorary degree over assault video
On May 17, surveillence footage captured at a hotel in Los Angeles in March 2016 showed Diddy chasing his then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura down the hallway before attacking her by the elevators. He then attempts to drag her back to his hotel room.
The following day, he shared an apology video to Instagram saying his behaviour was “inexcusable” and that he took “full responsibility for his actions in the video”.
The slew of allegations in lawsuits against Combs date as far back as the 1990s, when he founded his own record label, Bad Boy Records.
All the allegations against Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs:
Lawsuits against the rapper began on 16 November 2023 when he was sued by singer and dancer Cassie, his former partner, who alleged years of abuse.
Casandra ‘Cassie’ Ventura
R&B singer Cassie, whose full name is Casandra Ventura, filed a lawsuit in 2023 alleging that she was trafficked, raped and beaten by Combs on many occasions over 10 years.
Ventura said that the pattern of abuse began as soon as their relationship started and that, as she was trying to end it in 2018, he forced himself into her Los Angeles home and raped her.
However, on Sunday (19 May), Combs released a video apologising for his actions in the video, calling his behaviour “inexcusable” and saying he “takes full responsibility for his actions in the video”.
Derrick Lee Cardello-Smith
A lawsuit was filed by Derrick Lee Cardello-Smith, 51, an inmate who claims Combs drugged and sexually assaulted him at a party 30 years ago, according to court documents obtained by Detroit’s Metro Times.
Rodney ‘Lil Rod’ Jones
In the most recent lawsuit against Combs, filed on 26 February 2024 in New York, producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones, alleged he was “subjected to unwanted advances by associates of Diddy at his direction” and that he was forced to engage in relations with the sex workers Combs had hired.
Joie Dickerson-Neal
In November 2023, Joie Dickerson-Neal filed a lawsuit alleging that Combs drugged her, sexually assaulted her and secretly recorded the assault while she was a college student in 1991, NBC News reported, citing the filing.
More women come forward
Since November, three more women have come forward with lawsuits in the Southern District of New York alleging that they were sexually assaulted by Combs, according to NBC News.
Two of the women said they were teenagers at the time of the alleged assaults.
Unnamed Accuser ‘Jane Doe’
In December, Combs was hit with another lawsuit which claimed he had drugged and gang-raped a 17-year-old girl in 2003.
The plaintiff, identified as Jane Doe, accused Combs of plying her with drugs and alcohol at his New York studio and then raping her along with two associates.
Crystal McKinney
In May, after the shocking CCTV footage of Combs attacking Venture was published, former model Crystal McKinney filed a new lawsuit claiming the rapper sexually assaulted her at his recording studio in New York City in 2003.
April Lampros
Days after McKinney’s lawsuit was filed, April Lampros – who met Diddy while she was a student – claimed Diddy had sexually assaulted multiple times between 1995 and the early 2000s.
Dawn Richard
In September of this year, Dawn Richard, a former bandmate, accused the music mogul of carrying out years of physical and sexual abuse against her and others while the two worked together, according to a lawsuit filed in New York federal court, describing allegations dating back to 2009.
Combs’s response to allegations
Sean Combs has strongly denied all the accusations against him and vowed to “fight for my name, my family and for the truth.”
Credible News.ng
