Sep 17, 2024,11:10am EDT
Topline: Rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs was arrested in Manhattan on Monday evening after a grand jury indicted him on charges of racketeering and sex trafficking. These charges come months after Combs faced a series of civil sexual assault lawsuits, all of which he has denied.
Timeline of Allegations:
- September 17: A federal court in Manhattan unsealed charges against Combs, including racketeering, sex trafficking, and facilitating prostitution. The charges allege that Combs “abused, threatened, and coerced women and others around him to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation, and conceal his conduct.”
- September 16: Combs was arrested in Manhattan following the grand jury indictment.
- May 29: Federal investigators are reportedly planning to have Combs’ accusers testify before a grand jury soon. Most plaintiffs who have filed lawsuits against the rapper have already been interviewed by investigators, a step that may indicate forthcoming charges, although none have been filed yet.
- May 24: Plaintiff April Lampros accuses Combs in a lawsuit of sexual assault over four “terrifying sexual encounters” between 1995 and 2001, which include three incidents of rape and one instance of Combs forcing her to take ecstasy.
- May 22: Former model Crystal McKinney files a lawsuit in Manhattan federal court accusing Combs of drugging and sexually assaulting her at his New York recording studio in 2003.
- May 19: Cassie Ventura, Combs’ ex-girlfriend, speaks out after CNN obtained a 2016 video of Combs attacking her in a hotel hallway. She stated on Instagram that domestic violence “broke” her and she will “always be recovering” from her past. Combs later apologized for the video.
- February 26: Producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones sues Combs, alleging he was “subjected to unwanted advances by associates of Diddy at his direction” and was forced to engage in relations with sex workers hired by Combs. The lawsuit claims Combs regularly hosted “sex-trafficking parties” involving underage women and illegal drugs.
- December 6: Combs faces another sexual assault lawsuit accusing him of drugging and participating in a gang rape of an unnamed woman in 2003 when the accuser was 17 years old.
- November 23: Joie Dickerson-Neal alleges in a lawsuit that Combs drugged her, sexually assaulted her, and secretly recorded the assault while she was a college student in 1991.
Contradictory Statements: Combs has denied all allegations against him, with his attorneys characterizing some of the lawsuits and their accusations as money grabs, “baseless,” or “sickening.”
What To Watch For: An upcoming docuseries. Producer Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson revealed that Netflix had won a “bidding war” for a docuseries about the recent abuse, rape, and sex trafficking allegations against Combs. Jackson confirmed that the series, produced by G-Unit Film & Television, might need more episodes if more victims come forward. Proceeds from the film will go to victims of sexual assault.
Additional Notes: Combs’ former personal chef, Cindy Rueda, accused him in a since-settled 2017 sexual harassment lawsuit of having her prepare and serve food to the rapper and his guests while they were engaged in sexual activities. Combs has built a significant fortune through Bad Boy Records, several liquor brands, a fashion label, and other ventures, and was ranked No. 14 on Forbes’ list of the highest-paid entertainers in 2022, earning an estimated $90 million that year.