Sean "Diddy" Combs was arrested on September 16 and charged with sex trafficking, racketeering, and transporting individuals for prostitution, following 10 months of abuse allegations. The billionaire has pleaded not guilty and is currently awaiting trial at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn after being denied bail twice.
During a press conference in Houston, Texas, on Tuesday, a group of attorneys revealed they had received over 3,000 responses after issuing a call for other potential victims to come forward. Diddy now faces an additional 120 sexual assault lawsuits set to be filed in New York, Los Angeles, and Miami.
The alleged victims, both male and female, reportedly ranged in age from 9 to 38 at the time of the incidents.
Here is a timeline of the key developments
16 November 2023
On November 16, 2023, Cassie Ventura filed a lawsuit against Sean Combs. Cassie, a singer and model, had an on-off relationship with Combs from 2007 to 2018. Signed to his record label, she claimed that Combs used his power to "set the groundwork" for a "manipulative and coercive romantic and sexual relationship."
In her civil lawsuit, Cassie provided graphic details of violent abuse, accusing Combs of regularly beating and kicking her, leaving her with black eyes, bruises, and blood. She also described "freak offs" — drug-fueled, multi-day sexual parties — which she alleged Combs coerced women into and filmed for his personal pleasure.
Cassie further accused Combs of sexual abuse and rape, claiming these acts were witnessed by his "tremendously loyal network," who did nothing to intervene. The lawsuit also alleged that Combs destroyed a car belonging to rapper Kid Cudi to deter him from dating her.
Combs strongly denied the allegations and accused Cassie of extortion. The case was settled for an undisclosed amount just one day after it was filed in New York, with Combs maintaining his innocence.
November to December 2023
Between November and December 2023, following the settlement of Cassie Ventura's lawsuit, Sean Combs faced additional sexual assault allegations from multiple women, with accusations dating back to 1991.
One anonymous lawsuit claimed that Combs and another man coerced the woman into sex. In another, Joi Dickerson-Neal alleged that Combs drugged and sexually assaulted her while she was a college student in 1991, also claiming he filmed the assault and shared the footage without her consent.
A third lawsuit, filed by Liza Gardner, accused Combs and another man of raping her and her friend over 30 years ago, when she was just 16. Gardner also alleged that days after the attack, Combs became violent, choking her until she passed out. She said he was enraged because he feared her friend might tell "the girl he was with at the time."
These lawsuits were filed just before the expiration of the New York Adult Survivors Act, which allowed individuals to file sexual abuse claims beyond the statute of limitations. Combs denied all the allegations, with his spokesperson dismissing the lawsuits as a "money grab."
December 2023
In December 2023, another lawsuit was filed by a woman, identified as Jane Doe, who accused Sean Combs, former Bad Boy Records president Harve Pierre, and another man of sex trafficking and gang raping her in 2003 when she was 17. According to the lawsuit, Jane Doe claimed she was given "copious amounts of drugs and alcohol" before the assault and was left in so much pain that she could barely stand or remember how she got home.
In response, Combs denied the allegations, stating he "did not do any of the awful things being alleged," while Pierre called the accusations "false and a desperate attempt for financial gain."
Diddy Denies Accusations
On December 6, Sean Combs addressed the wave of lawsuits in a statement on his Instagram page. He wrote, "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. For the last couple of weeks, I have sat silently and watched people try to assassinate my character, destroy my reputation and my legacy."
"Sickening allegations have been made against me by individuals looking for a quick payday. Let me be absolutely clear: I did not do any of the awful things being alleged. I will fight for my name, my family and for the truth."
February 2024
In February 2024, music producer Rodney Jones Jr., who worked on nine tracks for the 2023 album The Love Album, filed a lawsuit against Sean Combs, accusing him of making unwanted sexual advances and pressuring him to hire prostitutes and engage in sexual acts with them.
In the court filing in New York, Jones also alleged that Combs attempted to "groom" him into having sex with another man, claiming it was "a normal practice in the music industry."
Combs' lawyer, Shawn Holley, dismissed the allegations, calling Jones "nothing more than a liar" and describing his claims as "pure fiction" that could be disproved by "overwhelming, indisputable proof."
17 May 2024
On May 17, 2024, CCTV footage surfaced showing Sean Combs assaulting Cassie Ventura in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016. The footage, aired by CNN, showed a man pushing Cassie to the ground, kicking her while she was down, attempting to drag her by her shirt, and throwing an object at her.
The following day, Combs issued an apology, stating, "I take full responsibility for my actions in that video. I was disgusted then when I did it. I'm disgusted now."
Cassie later released a statement, reflecting on the lasting effects of domestic violence: "It broke me down into someone I never thought I would become," she wrote.
21 May 2024
On May 21, 2024, former model and actress Crystal McKinney filed a lawsuit accusing Sean Combs of drugging her and forcing her to perform oral sex in the bathroom of a New York City recording studio in 2003.
Two days later, another lawsuit was filed by April Lampros, who alleged four instances of sexual assault by Combs between 1995 and around 2000. Lampros claimed she met him in 1994 while attending the Fashion Institute of Technology, and what started as a romantic relationship "quickly turned into an aggressive, coercive, and abusive relationship based on sex." In one instance, she alleged that Combs forced her to take ecstasy and have sex with his then-girlfriend.
July 2024
In July 2024, as the eighth lawsuit was filed, former adult film star Adria English accused Combs of grooming her into sex trafficking at various star-studded parties between 2004 and 2009.
Combs' lawyer, Jonathan Davis, responded: "No matter how many lawsuits are filed it won't change the fact that Mr Combs has never sexually assaulted or sex trafficked anyone."
10 September 2024
On September 10, 2024, Sean Combs failed to attend a virtual court hearing for a lawsuit filed by Michigan inmate Derrick Lee Cardello-Smith, who alleged that Combs drugged and sexually assaulted him at a party in Detroit in 1997. Due to Combs' absence, a default judgment was issued, ordering him to pay Cardello-Smith $100 million. The judgment was later set aside after Combs' legal team filed an appeal.
11 September 2024
On September 11, 2024, Dawn Richard, a former member of Combs' girl group Danity Kane, filed a lawsuit accusing him of multiple instances of sexual assault, including inappropriate touching, verbal abuse, and overworking her during their time together, including when she joined his band Diddy Dirty Money.
16 September 2024
On September 16, 2024, Combs was arrested in a Manhattan hotel following a grand jury indictment. His lawyer stated that Combs had cooperated with authorities and voluntarily relocated to New York in anticipation of the charges, asserting, "These are the acts of an innocent man with nothing to hide, and he looks forward to clearing his name in court."
17 September 2024
On September 17, 2024, Sean Combs appeared in a New York court where he was charged with sex trafficking, racketeering, and transportation for prostitution. The unsealed indictment also accused him of kidnapping, forced labor, bribery, and leading a criminal enterprise that abused women through violent threats, forcing them into drug-fueled "freak off" parties with male prostitutes.
Prosecutors described these events as elaborate, organized sex parties, with associates booking hotel suites, recruiting sex workers, and distributing drugs like cocaine, methamphetamine, and oxycodone to keep participants compliant. They also alleged that Combs filmed the parties to blackmail victims into silence. His staff reportedly managed travel for victims and provided intravenous fluids to help them recover after days-long events.
If convicted, Combs faces 15 years to life in prison. His lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, declared his innocence, arguing the parties were consensual. Combs pleaded not guilty, but bail was denied after prosecutors highlighted his history of trying to obstruct the investigation and contact witnesses with false narratives.
The judge cited Combs' anger issues and substance abuse as reasons for his detention at Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center until the trial. Despite his lawyers' appeal, offering private security, the judge ruled Combs could still use employees to influence witnesses. A conference hearing is set for September 24, with another bail appeal scheduled for October 9.
24 September 2024
On September 24, 2024, Sean Combs was transferred to a special unit at the Metropolitan Detention Center, separated from the general prison population. Around the same time, he faced an eleventh lawsuit, filed by a woman who accused Combs and his bodyguard of drugging, binding, and violently raping her in 2001, later showing a video of the attack to others.
In a press conference, the accuser, Thalia Graves, described the "lasting effects" of the assault, saying it had led to "a cycle of suffering" that made her feel "worthless, isolated, and sometimes responsible" for what happened.
1 October 2024
By October 1, 2024, attorney Tony Buzbee announced that more than 100 people planned to file lawsuits against Combs for sexual assault, rape, and sexual exploitation. Of the 120 individuals Buzbee represents, half were men, and 25 were minors, including one who was just nine years old at the time of the alleged abuse. This marked the first time Combs was accused of sexually abusing children. Buzbee's firm was also vetting an additional 100 cases.
Combs' lawyer firmly denied the allegations, calling them "false and defamatory."
