By Variety | Created at 2024-12-21 18:11:42 | Updated at 2024-12-22 05:40:58
11 hours ago
Sean Combs, long known by rap aliases like Diddy and Puffy, is facing an avalanche of lawsuits and legal trouble. The latest in his ongoing issues includes lawsuits filed on Friday by two women, who made similar allegations of being drugged and assaulted.
The first suit, filed in New York by a Jane Doe, claims that Combs spiked her drink at a charity basketball game in 1991 and sexually assaulted her. After the encounter, she told Combs that she would tell her friend about the incident, which he discouraged her from doing because “people can come up missing” and the friend would never know.
Latroya Grayson filed the second suit in New York against Combs, Atlantic Records, Delta Airlines and more. She claims that she won a radio contest in 2006 to fly from Oklahoma to New York City to attend one of Combs’ white parties, which was later changed to a black party. After consuming a premade drink, she felt sick and tried to go to the bathroom, waking up later at the hospital with her shirt ripped, her underwear missing and her wallet stolen. The day after she returned home from New York, she received a call from an anonymous woman who threatened her and said that pursuing anything related to assault would be futile because Combs was a “celebrity” and that she would “just be wasting her time.”
Below is an overview of the accusations that have been leveled against Combs, as well as the answers to frequently asked questions about his cases.
Why is Combs in jail?
Combs is currently incarcerated at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York. He was arrested on Sept. 16, 2024 in Manhattan by Homeland Security on charges of racketeering and sex trafficking. He pleaded not guilty to a grand jury indictment. He was denied bail by two separate judges, and is set to remain behind bars until his May 5, 2025 trial. Combs could face life in prison if found guilty of the racketeering charge.
Evidence of the charges was sought on March 25, when the Department of Homeland Security raided the rapper’s homes in Miami, New York and Los Angeles. Electronics including computers were seized due to containing potential evidence.
What are “freak-offs?”
The federal criminal indictment describes Diddy’s wild sex parties filled with illegal activity, known as “freak-offs,” in great detail. They would frequently involve group sex, exhibitionism, sex workers, copious amounts of drugs and baby oil, and could be filmed and last for days.
How did Cassie Ventura’s allegations start a wave of investigation into Combs’ behavior?
Combs’ high-profile ex-girlfriend, singer Cassie Ventura, filed a lengthy lawsuit against Combs on Nov. 16, 2023, accusing him of physical abuse, rape and sex trafficking. This included Ventura’s accusation that she participated in numerous “freak-offs,” where, as detailed in her lawsuit, Combs “treated the forced encounter as a personal art project, adjusting the candles he used for lighting to frame the videos he took.”
The lawsuit was settled privately the next day with undisclosed terms. On May 17, 2024, CNN released hotel surveillance footage of Combs beating Ventura in Los Angeles in 2016, which led to Combs issuing a public apology — the sole time he acknowledged wrongdoing since this saga began.
What lawsuits and allegations came after Cassie filed?
Ventura’s headline-making lawsuit action was just the beginning of a wave of legal action against Combs from women and men he allegedly assaulted. His attorney, Erica Wolff, issued a statement on Oct. 1 denying his culpability in the upcoming wave of suits. “Mr. Combs emphatically and categorically denies as false and defamatory any claim that he sexually abused anyone, including minors,” said Wolff. “He looks forward to proving his innocence and vindicating himself in court, where the truth will be established based on evidence, not speculation.”
Nov. 23, 2023: Joi Dickerson-Neal accused Combs of drugging and sexually assaulting her in 1991. In a separate lawsuit filed that day, Liza Gardner sued Combs and R&B singer Aaron Hall for sexually assaulting her and a friend in 1990.
Dec. 6, 2023: A Jane Doe claimed that Combs, then-Bad Boy Records’ president Harve Pierre and another man raped her in New York City while she was a teenager.
Feb. 26, 2024: Producer Rodney Jones alleges Combs sexually assaulted him while he was an employee from Sept. 2022 to Nov. 2023.
Apr. 4, 2024: Combs is named as a co-defendant in a suit that claims his son Christian “King” Combs sexually assaulted a woman on a yacht. The suit, filed in Los Angeles, alleges that Combs paid to cover up the assault.
May 21, 2024: Crystal McKinney, a model, accused Combs of sexual assault in 2003.
May 24, 2024: April Lampros sued Combs for sexual assault and battery for a series of incidents from 1994 into the 2000s.
June 10, 2024: Derrick Lee Cardello-Smith filed a lawsuit saying he was sexually assaulted by Combs at a 1997 party.
Sept. 10, 2024: “Making the Band” star Dawn Richard sued Combs, alleging sexual battery, sex trafficking, sexual assault and more.
Sept. 24, 2024: Thalia Graves sued Combs, saying he drugged and raped her in 2001.
September 27, 2024: Jane Doe, a Florida model, sued Combs, alleging she was drugged and sexually assaulted.
October 14, 2024: Six lawsuits, two from women and four from men, were filed against Combs in Manhattan. One man claimed that Combs assaulted him when he was 16 years old in 1998.
October 20, 2024: Combs was hit with an additional six lawsuits, with one claiming that he sexually assaulted a 13-year-old girl in 2000.
October 28, 2024: A John Doe filed a lawsuit against Combs alleging that the mogul drugged and raped him when he was 10 years old. Another filed a similar suit claiming that he was sexually assaulted when he was 17 years old while auditioning for “Making the Band” in 2008.
November 19, 2024: Five additional suits were filed against Combs by three men and two women who make similar allegations of being drugged and assaulted. One of the women was 17 at the time described in the incident.
December 8, 2024: Jay-Z was added as a defendant in a refiled case, which prompted the rapper to issue a swift, fiery rebuttal claiming that the allegations were untrue.
December 12, 2024: Three men filed suits against Combs, alleging similar accusations of sexual assault. One claimed that he was offered $2,500 after an encounter where he claimed that Combs raped him while others filmed the incident.
December 20, 2024: Two women filed lawsuits stating that they were drugged and sexually assaulted during separate incidents in 1991 and 2006.
What further lawsuits is Combs expected to face?
On Oct. 1, attorney Tony Buzbee said 120 more lawsuits are expected from alleged victims he is working with, which include assaults that took place in the 2000s and 2010s.
In a statement shared with Variety, Combs’ attorneys said, “The press conference and 1-800 number that preceded today’s barrage of filings were clear attempts to garner publicity. Mr. Combs and his legal team have full confidence in the facts, their legal defenses, and the integrity of the judicial process. In court, the truth will prevail: that Mr. Combs has never sexually assaulted anyone—adult or minor, man or woman.”
The first batch of six lawsuits, filed on Oct. 14, lays out allegations from several men and women, including a then-16-year-old boy.
What lawsuits has Combs faced in the past?
Prior to Ventura’s allegations, Combs was sued by Cindy Rueda in 2017 for sexual harassment and retaliation. The lawsuit was settled in February 2019.
