Key Points
- Sean “Diddy” Combs faces allegations of rape, forced oral sex and drugging to incapacitate victims.
- A fresh wave of lawsuits has accused Combs of raping women, sexually assaulting men, and molesting a teenager.
- Combs has pleaded not guilty in the criminal trial.
This article contains references to allegations of rape and sexual assault.
A new wave of lawsuits have accused Sean “Diddy” Combs of raping women, sexually assaulting men and molesting a 16-year-old boy.
At least six lawsuits were filed against the hip-hop mogul in federal court in Manhattan. They were filed anonymously, two by women identified as Jane Does and four by men identified as John Does.
The accusers are part of what their lawyers say is a group of more than 100 alleged victims who are in the process of taking legal action against Combs in the wake of his sex trafficking arrest last month.
One of the John Does, a man living in North Carolina, alleges that Combs fondled his genitals when he was 16 at one of the rapper’s famous white parties in Long Island’s Hamptons in 1998.
The man alleges that during a conversation about possibly breaking into the music industry, Combs abruptly ordered the then-teen to drop his pants so that Combs could inspect his penis.
According to the man’s lawsuit, Combs explained to him that it was a rite of passage to becoming a music star, at one point asking the then-teen: “Don’t you want to break into the business?”
At least six lawsuits have been filed against hip-hop star Sean “Diddy” Combs in federal court in Manhattan. Source: AAP / Elizabeth Williams
The man said he complied out of fear, anxiety and power imbalance he felt with Combs, only realising later that what had happened was sexual assault.
The other lawsuits filed in the District Court in Manhattan on Monday include allegations of rape, forced oral sex and drugging to incapacitate victims.
Until Monday’s lawsuit, Combs had only been accused in civil cases and his criminal indictment of sexual activity with adults.
Combs’ lawyers and other representatives did not immediately respond to the media’s request for comment. When the planned lawsuits were announced on 1 October, a lawyer said Combs “cannot address every meritless allegation in what has become a reckless media circus”.
Combs, 54, has pleaded not guilty to racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking charges, alleging he coerced and abused women for years with help from a network of associates and employees while silencing victims through blackmail and violence, including kidnapping, arson and physical beatings.
Combs’ lawyers have been trying unsuccessfully to get the Bad Boy Records founder freed on bail. He has been held at a federal jail in Brooklyn since his 16 September arrest.
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