Sean 'Diddy' Combs: What we know about the accusations against him

 

Sean 'Diddy' Combs: What we know about the accusations against him

One of the most successful music moguls in rap history, Sean "Diddy" Combs, has been the target of several claims of sexual assault.

The artist is the target of lawsuits from four women, including his longtime lover Casandra "Cassie" Ventura, who claims he has abused her physically and sexually.

A similar lawsuit was filed in February by producer Rodney "Lil Rod" Jones, who claimed that Combs mistreated him for a year while he was residing on the star's homes and recording songs.

Combs defended himself against "sickening allegations" made by "individuals looking for a quick payday" in a statement released in December of last year.

He declared, "Let me be absolutely clear: I did not do any of the awful things being alleged," and vowed to battle to clean his record.

But federal officials searched the star's two homes in March 2024 "as part of an ongoing investigation" into sex trafficking.

His attorney upheld his client's innocence and described the incident as a "unprecedented ambush" and a "gross overuse of military-level force".

Hip-hop's laws were effectively rewritten in the 1990s by Combs, also known by the moniker Puffy, Puff Daddy, P Diddy, Love, and Brother Love. However, his career has been marred by controversy.

A timeline of his career and the charges levelled against him is shown below.

1969-89: Early life in New York

Born in Harlem, Sean John Combs grew up in Mount Vernon, New York.

His father, Melvin, was a former US Air Force member and a friend of narcotics trafficker Frank Lucas, who served as the inspiration for the Ridley Scott film American Gangster. His mother, Janice, worked as a teacher's assistant.

Melvin was shot dead in his automobile in 1972 during a cocaine deal after being mistaken for an informant. Combs was only two years old, but it wasn't until long later that he found out how his father had died.

He was a flamboyant child, raised by his mother, who played football for the school team and enjoyed rap music.

He performed in music videos as a youngster for musicians like Diana Ross and the Fine Young Cannibals.

Before enrolling at Howard University to study business administration, he worked six different newspaper delivery routes, following in the footsteps of his mother, who worked many jobs to support Sean and his sister Keisha.

Early 1990s: Party plans turn into tragedy

Combs had a reputation for organising extravagant parties while in college, some of which drew over a thousand attendees.

After he brought artists like Terry Riley and Heavy D to these performances, he caught the eye of Andre Harrell, the founder of Uptown Records, who offered him an internship in New York.

Eventually, Combs left college to work there full-time, helping to launch the careers of musicians like Jodeci and Mary J. Blige.

Tragic events, however, occurred in 1991 when Combs co-sponsored a concert and celebrity basketball game at City College of New York. Only 2,730 people could fit in the gymnasium, which was packed with over 5,000 attendees. 29 people were hurt and nine individuals died in the subsequent crush.

Combs was penalised by the New York Mayor's Office for using untrained security personnel. The celebrity and his solicitors, however, insisted that he was not in charge of the event's security.

The artist declared in 1998, "I deal with City College every day of my life." "However, the suffering that the families endure is incomparable to anything I deal with. All I do is pray every day for families and the children who lost their lives."

Although no criminal charges were brought in relation to the disaster, the promoters, the college, and the city were sued by the relatives of the deceased, who claimed they were negligent.

In the $3.8 million (£3 million) settlement, Mr. Combs contributed $750,000.

Mid-to-late 1990s: A new 

Combs signed Christopher Wallace, a.k.a. Biggie Smalls or the Notorious B.I.G., a young Brooklyn rapper, while he was still at Uptown and began recording his debut album.

However, Combs's friendship with Harrell soured, and he was let go. In retaliation, he took Biggie with him and founded his own record company, Bad Boy Records.

Hailed as an all-time rap masterpiece, the star's debut album Ready To Die sold millions of copies and gave rise to the multi-platinum hits Big Poppa and Juicy.

Combs swiftly added more artists to the Bad Boy label by putting out successful albums by Faith Evans, Ma$e, 112 and Total.

The label had a clean, smooth tone. Large samples from well-known songs were sampled for its biggest tracks. Radio programmers loved the technique, but hip-hop purists didn't think it was cool.

1997: Notorious B.I.G. is murdered

Biggie Smalls, at 24 years old, was shot and killed in a drive-by shooting in March 1997.

Although the murder has never been solved, it has always been connected to the East-West rivalry that dominated rap music in the 1990s and took Tupac Shakur's life.

Combs, who was driving behind his friend in the automobile, channelled his sorrow into the song "I'll Be Missing You," which went on to become one of the top hits of 1997.

Based on The Police's Every Breath You Take, the song was also included on Combs's breakthrough album, No Way Out, which went on to sell seven million copies globally.

1999: New York shooting

Bad Boy was by now one of the biggest labels in the rap industry. In an effort to give their music a little more hip-hop legitimacy, musicians like Jennifer Lopez and Mariah Carey begged Combs to remix their tracks in addition to its own releases.

However, there was also problems. Following a dispute over a music video, Combs was taken into custody in May 1999 on suspicion of assaulting Interscope Records executive Steve Stoute. He was sentenced to one day of anger management class after entering a guilty plea to harassment.

Later that year, following a violent altercation at a bar, he was charged with criminal possession of a firearm when authorities discovered two nine-millimeter weapons in his car.

Both Combs and Jennifer Lopez, his ex-girlfriend, were taken into custody. Then, Combs was found not guilty.

2003: Sued by business partner

A former president of Bad Boy Entertainment sued Combs in 2003, alleging that his former business partner threatened him with a baseball bat and forced him into signing over his shares in the company.

In his lawsuit, Kirk Burrowes also says that Combs intimidated Mary J Blige into dropping him as her manager in 2001.

Combs denied the allegations, calling them "complete fantasy".

An appeals court dismissed the case in 2006, ruling that the statute of limitations has expired.

2005-2018: Relationship with Cassie Ventura

Me & U, the debut track by 20-year-old vocalist Casandra Elizabeth Ventura, became a modest club hit in Germany in 2005.

Upon hearing it after a night out, Combs persuades Cassie, her professional name, to sign a ten-album deal with Bad Boy Records.

When her 2008 self-titled first album was published, critics found her futuristic, space-age R&B to be popular.

Combs and Ventura were already dating at that point. However, she claimed that the billionaire had "set the groundwork" for a "manipulative and coercive romantic and sexual relationship" by using his position of power in a December 2023 legal complaint.

She claimed that Combs "regularly beat and kicked Ms. Ventura, leaving black eyes, bruises, and blood" in her lawsuit, which contained several vivid details of brutal abuse.

In addition, Ventura accused Combs of sexual assault and rape, claiming that Combs' "tremendously loyal network" saw many of these instances and "were not willing to do anything meaningful" to put an end to the violence.

Combs vehemently refuted the accusations and charged Ventura with attempting to blackmail him. A day after the complaint was launched in New York, it was resolved, and Combs' attorney stated that "in no way was there an admission of wrongdoing" in the agreement.

2007-2024: Business ventures

After Combs secured a contract with British beverage corporation Diageo in 2007 to market the French vodka brand Cîroc in the US for a 50/50 profit share, music became less important.

With his support, the brand was featured in several music videos, including Diddy's own song "Ciroc Star," and by 2014, sales had increased from 40,000 to 2,000,000 cases annually.

He was a co-founder of Revolt, a media firm that is referred to as "the unapologetic, authoritative voice of hip-hop culture" on its websites and TV networks.

Combs's tenure with both organisations ended in 2023–2024. In a previous lawsuit, he claimed Diageo had ignored his brand because of its race.

2015: Arrested for fighting football coach

After a fight during practice in 2015, Combs and his son's football coach got into a brawl.

Combs allegedly threatened an intern with a kettle bell as the argument got more heated. After that, he was taken into custody and accused with assault using a dangerous weapon.

After that, the accusations were dismissed. Press reports of the event, according to a Combs spokeswoman, were "wholly inaccurate".

2019: Gina Huynh alleges abuse

The initial accusations of mistreatment directed at Combs originated from his former girlfriend, Gina Huynh, a model.

In an interview with YouTube celebrity Tasha K, Huynh revealed that throughout their sporadic five-year relationship, Combs had physically abused her and offered her money to get an abortion. However, her claims went mostly unnoticed at the time.

She said that Combs "stomped on my stomach really hard - like, took the wind out of my breath" at one point.

He remained silent in the face of the charges.

September 2023: Musical comeback

With the release of his fifth LP, Combs brought his eight-year musical sabbatical to an end. It was titled The Love Album: Off The Grid and included duets with Mary J. Blige, Justin Bieber, The Weeknd, and 21 Savage.

Combs was recognised as a "Global Icon" at the MTV Awards, and the release followed suit.

The Love Album brought the artist his first-ever solo Grammy nomination in November, as he was nominated for Best Progressive R&B Album.

He withdrew from the event, though, as his legal issues grew.

November 2023: Three lawsuits in the space of one week

Two more women came out with allegations of abuse and violence in the same week that Cassie filed (and settled) her case against Combs.

Joi Dickerson-Neal accused the actor of drugging and sexually abusing her in 1991 while she was a college student in a Manhattan complaint. In addition, she said that he videotaped the assault and shared the video without getting her permission.

In court documents, a third woman, Liza Gardner, also claimed that Combs had forced her into having intercourse in the early 1990s and had choked her so severely that she passed out a few days later.

The cases were all filed just before the New York Adult Survivors Act expired, allowing victims of sexual assault to temporarily submit claims even after the statute of limitations had passed.

Combs's representative referred to the cases as a "money grab" while Combs refuted all of the accusations made against him.

"The claims involving alleged misconduct against Mr Combs from over 30 years ago and filed at the last minute are all completely denied and rejected by him," the statement said.

It is undeniable that the New York Legislature did not anticipate or plan for the Adult Survivors Act to be misused. The public ought to exercise caution and not jump to conclusions about these unproven claims."

December 2023: Underage sex claim

A fourth woman filed a lawsuit in December, alleging that in 2003, when she was 17 years old, Combs, former Bad Boy Records CEO Harve Pierre, and another man "gang raped" and "sex trafficked" her.

The lady claimed in court documents that she had been given "copious amounts of drugs and alcohol" prior to the attack and that the agony had left her unable to move or recall how she had gotten home.

In reaction, Pierre called the "disgusting allegations" "false and a desperate attempt for financial gain," while Combs stated he "did not do any of the awful things being alleged."

The lady filed the complaint anonymously, but the court later decided that in order for her to move on, she would need to use her true identity.

December 2023: Diddy's denial

In response to the barrage of lawsuits, Combs posted a statement on his Instagram page on December 6.

"ENOUGH IS ENOUGH," the message said. "For the last couple of weeks, I have sat silently and watched people try to assassinate my character, destroy my reputation and my legacy."I have been the target of horrifying accusations from people hoping to make a fast cash. To be quite clear, I did not do any of the horrible things that are being said. I'm going to battle for the truth, my family, and my name."

February 2024: Accusations of grooming

Nine of the tracks on The Love Album were created by music producer Rodney Jones Jr. In February 2024, Combs was sued by Jones, who claimed the celebrity had forced him to hire prostitutes and engage in sex acts with them and had made unwelcome sexual contact with them.

According to court documents submitted in New York, Jones also stated that Combs attempted to "groom" him into having sex with another guy by informing him that it was "a normal practice in the music industry".

Shawn Holley, Combs' attorney, referred to the producer as "nothing more than a liar" and termed the charges he made "pure fiction" that could only be refuted by "overwhelming, indisputable proof".

March 2024: Combs' properties raided

A month later, federal authorities conducted raids on Combs's Miami and Los Angeles houses. Officers raided his Californian home and seized computers and other electronics.

As Combs was about to depart for the Bahamas, he was also halted at a Miami airport, the New York Times said. He is reported to have turned in many electronic gadgets without being taken into custody.

Although the searches were described as "part of an ongoing investigation" by the Department of Homeland Security, it was unclear how these investigations connected to the civil proceedings against Combs.

His attorney said his client was innocent and referred to the raids as a "witch-hunt based on meritless accusations made in civil lawsuits".