Six months after federal agents raided his homes in Los Angeles and Miami in connection with a sex trafficking case, Sean “Diddy” Combs has been arrested, authorities said.
Combs was taken into custody late Monday, Sept. 16, in New York City.
Damian Williams, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced the arrest on social media.
“Earlier this evening, federal agents arrested Sean Combs, based on a sealed indictment filed by the SDNY. We expect to move to unseal the indictment in the morning and will have more to say at that time,” Williams said in a statement.
USA Damian Williams: Earlier this evening, federal agents arrested Sean Combs, based on a sealed indictment filed by the SDNY. We expect to move to unseal the indictment in the morning and will have more to say at that time.
— US Attorney SDNY (@SDNYnews) September 17, 2024
The arrest came after the Bad Boy Records founder was indicted by a federal grand jury. While the indictment is sealed, sources familiar with the case told the New York Times they believed Combs would be charged with racketeering and sex trafficking.
Related: ‘Unseen Photo’ Shows Diddy After He Allegedly Abused Kim Porter, Ex-Bodyguard Says
In a statement to TMZ, the music mogul’s attorney Marc Agnifilo called the case “unjust.”
“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. Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs is a music icon, self-made entrepreneur, loving family man, and proven philanthropist who has spent the last 30 years building an empire, adoring his children, and working to uplift the Black community,” Agnifilo said.
March Raids
The arrest followed the mogul’s stunning downfall, which saw heavily armed Homeland Security agents raid his homes in L.A. and Miami on March 25.
Former Bad Boy Records rapper Mark Curry claimed in the documentary TMZ Presents: The Downfall of Diddy, that agents removed hundreds of recording devices from the homes.
“They have 250 cameras they took from his houses, a lot of people may be running from that tape,” Curry said in the film. The “Bad Boy 4 Life” artist suggested that many of Combs’ associates were secretly recorded in compromising positions.
Cassie’s Lawsuit
The once-powerful mogul’s reputation began to crumble on Nov. 16, 2023, when his ex-girlfriend Casandra “Cassie” Ventura filed a civil lawsuit in Manhattan’s Federal District Court alleging sexual abuse.
Some of the allegations in Ventura’s 35-page complaint were so disturbing that there was a “trigger warning” on the first page.
The suit noted that the “Me & U” singer, 38, met a much-older Combs in 2005, when she was 19. He signed her to his label and the two dated on-and-off for nearly a decade.
Ventura accused Combs, 54, of rape, sexual battery, and human trafficking. The suit additionally alleged the Bad Boy Records founder “punched, beat, kicked and stomped on Ms. Ventura, resulting in bruises, burst lips, black eyes and bleeding.”
Combs settled with her for an undisclosed amount of money after one day, although his reps said the settlement was not an admission of guilt.
As the rapper and producer continued to deny the claims in Ventura’s lawsuit, CNN posted hotel security video on its website on May 17, which showed Combs physically assaulting Ventura in the hallway of a Los Angeles hotel in March 2016.
Ventura had described the hotel incident in her lawsuit and said Combs paid $50,000 to suppress the security video. It’s unclear how CNN obtained the footage.
Apology Video
Combs released a since-deleted apology video on Instagram amid public outcry on May 19, saying he was “truly sorry” for attacking Ventura.
“My behavior on that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video,” he said. “I went and I sought out professional help. I got into going to therapy, going to rehab. I had to ask God for his mercy and grace.”
In a statement to Urban Hollywood 411 at the time, an attorney for Ventura said the mogul’s apology was “pathetic” and a sign of “desperation.”
Since November, Diddy has been hit with nearly a dozen lawsuits from female and male accusers alleging sexual abuse.
He has denied all of their allegations.
Lil Rod’s Lawsuit
One of the more explosive complaints was filed in February 2024 by music producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones.
Jones, who produced nine tracks on Combs’ Grammy-nominated The Love Album: Off the Grid, alleged the Bad Boy Records founder harassed, sexually assaulted, drugged and threatened him.
The complaint also contained a trigger warning on the front page noting that it contained “graphic images of the aftermath of a shooting, redacted images of sexual intercourse, redacted images of minors, sex workers and prostitutes, details of sex trafficking, and the illegal distribution of guns, and drugs.”
Jones said he lived and traveled with Combs from September 2022 to November 2023 while they worked on the album, and also served as a house photographer of sorts.
The music producer said during the time he spent with Combs, there was “constant unsolicited and unauthorized groping and touching of his anus.”
Jones said he filed the lawsuit because Diddy was trying to “steal” his publishing. The producer also accused the mogul of refusing to fairly compensate him for his work.
Jones filed an amendment to his complaint in March, and added even more shocking allegations, claiming Combs had sex workers on his payroll, employed a drug mule, and was allegedly involved in a shooting inside a Los Angeles recording studio that left an associate injured.
Related: Lil Rod Says He Fears for His Life After Suing Diddy ‘ ‘He’s a Monster’
Dawn Richard’s Lawsuit
Just last week, former Danity Kane singer Dawn Richard sued Combs in federal court in New York.
Richard met Combs on his MTV reality series Making the Band during its third season, which aired in 2005.
In her lawsuit filed Sept. 10, the singer-songwriter said working with the mogul was a nightmare that left her traumatized.
Richard alleged verbal abuse, assault, sexual battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, false imprisonment, sex trafficking, stealing her copyrighted work, and withholding her earnings in the 55-page complaint.
After Danity Kane disbanded, Richard joined the trio Diddy — Dirty Money in 2009, alongside Combs and Kalenna Harper.
Richard alleged she was trafficked while a member of Diddy-Dirty Money, and was forced to engage in “commercial sex acts.”
The suit alleged she also witnessed Combs abuse other women, including Cassie.
One disturbing incident occurred during a dinner party at a restaurant in West Hollywood, California, in or around late 2009 or early 2010.
According to page 15 of the complaint, Richard and fellow Diddy-Dirty Money bandmate Kalenna Harper were “required to attend” the gathering as Diddy worked to finalize a $50 million deal between Bad Boy and Interscope Records.
Guests at the gathering included then-Interscope CEO Jimmy Iovine, and chart-topping singers Ne-Yo and Usher, the suit said.
At some point during the dinner, Diddy and Cassie began to argue in front of the other guests. “Mr. Combs hissed at Ms. Ventura in a screaming whisper and forcefully punched her in the stomach causing her to double over in visible pain, crying,” the complaint said.
Combs denied the allegations in the lawsuit through his attorney Erica Wolff.
“Mr. Combs is shocked and disappointed by this lawsuit. In an attempt to rewrite history, Dawn Richard has now manufactured a series of false claims all in the hopes of trying to get a pay day — conveniently timed to coincide with her album release and press tour,” Wolff said in a statement.
On Friday, Sept. 13, Richard’s bandmate Kalenna Harper released a statement on her Instagram stories and contradicted some of the claims in the civil complaint.
“I, acknowledge the recent lawsuit filed by Dawn Richard in which my name has been mentioned 33 times,” Harper wrote. “While I fully respect Dawn’s right to recount her experiences, I want to emphasize that her account reflects her personal perspective and should not be interpreted as a universal truth applicable to everyone involved.”
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