Music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs is now facing even more allegations of sexual assault and misconduct.
On Tuesday, Texas-based attorney Tony Buzbee revealed during a press conference that he is representing 120 accusers who claim misconduct against Combs over a span of two decades.
“We will expose the enablers who enabled this conduct behind closed doors. We will pursue this matter no matter who the evidence implicates,” Buzbee stated during the press conference. “The biggest secret in the entertainment industry, that really wasn’t a secret at all, has finally been revealed to the world. The wall of silence has now been broken.”
Andrew Van Arsdale, another attorney representing plaintiffs, told the Washington Post that the upcoming filings are “unprecedented in scope” and include sexual assault allegations from both men and women, who ranged in age from nine to 38 at the time of the alleged incidents. Van Arsdale further noted that 120 individual lawsuits would be filed in New York, Los Angeles, and Miami in the coming weeks. In previewing the lawsuits, Buzbee mentioned “many powerful people … many dirty secrets,” and stated that his team has gathered “pictures, video, texts” as evidence.
Buzbee also shared that over 3,000 individuals had contacted his office with accusations against Combs, and he plans to start filing lawsuits in several states. These new civil claims will include accusations of “violent sexual assault or rape, facilitated sex with a controlled substance, dissemination of video recordings, and sexual abuse of minors.”
Buzbee emphasized, “It’s a long list already, but because of the nature of this case, we are going to make damn sure we are right before we do that. These names will shock you.”
According to Buzbee, 62% of the accusers are African American, from over 25 states, and 25 of them were minors when the incidents took place, with one victim as young as nine years old at the time of the alleged sexual assault, dating back to as early as 1991. Separately, the New York Post reported Tuesday that a sexually explicit video of Combs and another A-list celebrity was allegedly being “shopped around” in Hollywood.
Combs, 54, has been detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn since pleading not guilty on September 17 to federal charges. The indictment claims that he used his “power and prestige” to coerce female victims into drugged-up, elaborately staged sexual performances with male sex workers during events referred to as “Freak Offs.”
Combs has pled not guilty to federal racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking charges. His attorney insists that he is innocent and intends to fight to clear his name. Combs will remain in federal custody in Brooklyn until his trial.
