S Poddar
Rapper and businessman Sean Combs, better known as Diddy, has been hit with six new lawsuits claiming sexual assault, rape, and molestation. The plaintiffs, who remain anonymous under New York’s Gender Motivated Violence Act, are part of a larger group of over 100 alleged victims planning to file a complaint against the music mogul.
The latest allegations follow the rap mogul’s arrest last month on racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking charges. He pleaded not guilty and now awaits trial.
Another new lawsuit involves a man who claims Combs sexually assaulted him at a “white party” in 1998. According to the victim, who was 16 years old at the time, he claims Combs forced him to perform a sexual act, which he says is some type of “rite of passage” for aspiring musicians.
A second plaintiff, who is a man, claims Combs attacked him in the stockroom of a Macy’s. According to his complaint, the victim was struck on the head, then sodomized and raped, after which Combs threatened him.
Two women also have come forward with rape allegations. One says Combs invited her and a friend to his hotel room in 2004 and then locked them in where the rap occurred. The other woman claims she was drugged and assaulted at Combs’ East Hampton home during a party in 2006.
In the new lawsuits, Combs’ lawyers dismissed all of their allegations, stating that their client has never sexually assaulted anyone. They expressed confidence in the facts of the case and the integrity of the judicial process.
How deep do the allegations against Combs go? Only time will tell as the legal proceedings continue. The relative anonymity of the plaintiffs and the swelling list of accusers raise serious questions about the pervasiveness of sexual misconduct within the entertainment industry.
