What is Sean 'Diddy' Combs accused of? Here's how many people have filed lawsuits and when he's due in court
By Hanan Dervisevic
Topic:Courts and Trials
If convicted, Sean Combs faces up to life in prison.
Warning: This story contains details of sexual abuse and domestic violence.
Rapper and music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs is currently in federal custody awaiting a trial on charges of sex trafficking and racketeering.
In addition to the criminal case, Mr Combs is being sued by at least 17 people who have accused him of sexual assault, rape and sexual exploitation.
Mr Combs has pleaded not guilty in the criminal trial.
Meanwhile, his lawyers continue to maintain his innocence, calling all the allegations against him both laid out in lawsuits and in his federal indictment as "meritless".
Here's a breakdown of his legal troubles to get you up to speed.
When is Diddy's trial?
May 5, 2025.
He will stand trial on federal sex trafficking and racketeering charges in Manhattan.
Prosecutor Emily Johnson told the judge that the government would need three weeks to present its case.
Defence lawyer Marc Agnifilo said the rapper's team will need a week for theirs.
How many people have filed lawsuits against Diddy?
More than two dozen.
These lawsuits are separate from the federal case that charged Mr Combs with running a "criminal enterprise" that included sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy.
The first lawsuit was filed by his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura back in November 2023.
She accused Mr Combs of serial physical abuse, sexual slavery and rape.
Security footage aired by CNN appeared to show her being violently assaulted by Mr Combs in a hotel hallway in Los Angeles.
A day after filing the lawsuit, Ms Ventura and Mr Combs settled it out of court. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
Houston lawyer Tony Buzbee represents more than 150 victims of Mr Combs's alleged abuse and has filed at least 17 lawsuits.
Some have alleged that the assaults happened when they were minors, including as young as nine years old, Mr Buzbee said.
What has Diddy been accused of?
A lot.
The rapper faces criminal charges in federal court.
He also faces lawsuits from individuals who have accused him of sexual assault.
Here's a look at some of them.
Federal criminal case
On September 16, Diddy was arrested in New York and charged with racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.
The charges date from 2008 to the present.
According to the unsealed indictment, Diddy threatened and coerced women to "fulfil his sexual desires", and on numerous occasions assaulted women by "striking, punching, dragging, throwing objects at, and kicking them".
In a raid on his Los Angeles mansion in March, police found supplies they say were intended for use in "freak offs" including drugs and 1,000 bottles of baby oil.
Mr Combs pleaded not guilty and was denied bail.
John Doe 1
This is the most recent lawsuit filed against Mr Combs.
In 2005, 10-year-old John Doe was an aspiring actor and rapper when a consultant whom his parents had hired arranged an "audition" with Diddy at a New York hotel.
During the audition, he performed several rap songs before Mr Combs allegedly asked him "how badly he wanted to be a star".
He claims he was given a drink spiked with drugs and forced to perform oral sex on Mr Combs.
John Doe said he lost consciousness, and upon waking was sore and had his pants undone.
The plaintiff claims Mr Combs threatened to hurt his family "badly" if he told anyone.
John Doe 2
John Doe, who now lives in North Carolina, alleges Mr Combs fondled his genitals in 1998 when he was 16 at one of the rapper's famous white parties in the Hamptons.
During a conversation about breaking into the music industry, Mr Combs told the plaintiff to drop his pants.
According to the man's lawsuit, Mr Combs explained to him that it was a rite of passage to becoming a music star.
"Don't you want to break into the business?" Diddy allegedly asked him.
The man said he complied out of fear, anxiety and the power imbalance he felt with Mr Combs, only realising later that what had happened was sexual assault.
Jane Doe
The plaintiff, Jane Doe, said she was 13 when Mr Combs drugged and assaulted her at an afterparty for the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards in New York.
She said Mr Combs and an unnamed male celebrity vaginally raped her while an unnamed female celebrity looked on, after Mr Combs proclaimed, "You are ready to party!"
Thalia Graves
On September 25, a woman named Thalia Graves filed a lawsuit alleging Mr Combs and his head of security raped her and recorded it in 2001.
Then 25, (now 53), Ms Graves said Mr Combs and Joseph Sherman lured her to a meeting at Bad Boy Recording Studios and gave her a drink "likely laced with a drug".
According to the lawsuit, she lost consciousness and woke to find herself bound inside Mr Combs's office and lounge at the studio.
Rodney 'Lil Rod' Jones
Rodney "Lil Rod" Jones, a producer who worked on Mr Combs's most recent album, accused the rapper of running an illegal racketeering enterprise.
Mr Jones says he witnessed hundreds of hours of illegal drug and sexual activity by Mr Combs and the people surrounding him.
The plaintiff also alleges Mr Combs tried to groom him for sex, groped him, made him solicit prostitutes and pressured him to have sex with them.
Mr Combs has denied the allegations and moved to dismiss the case as it's overrun with "tall tales", "legally meaningless allegations" and "blatant falsehoods".
Dawn Richard
Dawn Richard, who once sang in two Combs-assembled groups, sued the music producer in September for unspecified damages.
According to the lawsuit, she alleges that he subjected her to groping and assault, withheld her earnings and imprisoned her by locking her in a car for hours at one point.
She also alleges she had personally witnessed Mr Combs's violence against his then-girlfriend Ms Ventura and was threatened with her life when she tried to intervene.
Mr Combs's lawyers said in a statement that he was "shocked and disappointed" by the lawsuit.
Where is Diddy now?
At the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn, New York.
He's been held there for six weeks since his arrest on September 16.
Mr Combs's lawyers have argued for his release pending trial because of the jail's "horrific" conditions, but have been denied twice.
What has his family said?
Mr Combs's children have stood behind their father amid accusations of sexual assault and rape.
In a joint statement posted on social media on October 22, Quincy Brown, Justin, Christian (King), Chance, Jessie and D'Lila Combs expressed their "united" support for their dad.
"The past month has devastated our family," it said.
"Many have judged both him and us based on accusations, conspiracy theories, and false narratives that have spiralled into absurdity on social media.
"We hold onto the truth, knowing it will prevail, and nothing will break the strength of our family."
Mr Combs's seventh child, Love, is only two years old so was not included.
Earlier this month, the musician's mother Janice Combs also issued a statement supporting her son.
"My son is not the monster they have painted him to be, and he deserves the chance to tell his side," the statement said.
"It is heartbreaking to see my son judged for not the truth, but for a narrative created out of lies."
Could Diddy see prison time?
Yes.
Mr Combs faces up to life in prison if convicted on the racketeering charge.
He could face another statutory minimum of 15 years for the sex trafficking charges.
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