New York: Music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs has been arrested, and his lawyer has confirmed he is facing federal charges in New York.
Details of the charges weren’t immediately announced by prosecutors, but Combs’ lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, issued a statement saying: “We are disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe is an unjust prosecution of Mr Combs by the US Attorneys’ Office.”
Sean “Diddy” Combs is now facing federal charges, his lawyer has said.Credit: AP
He added that Combs had gone to New York last week in anticipation of the charges being brought. “He is an imperfect person, but he is not a criminal,” Agnifilo said.
In March, federal Homeland Security Investigations agents searched two mansions belonging to Combs in Los Angeles and Miami as part of an ongoing sex-trafficking investigation, two law enforcement officials told The Associated Press at the time.
It was not immediately clear if the federal charges related to this investigation.
US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams announced Combs’ arrest on X, formerly Twitter: “Earlier this evening, federal agents arrested Sean Combs, based on a sealed indictment filed by the SDNY. We expect to move to unseal the indictment in the morning and will have more to say at that time.”
Entertainment website TMZ said: “Homeland Security swooped into a midtown hotel late Monday where Diddy was staying and they arrested him. We have unconfirmed reports the feds are searching his hotel room. We’re told Diddy was taken to the FBI field office in Manhattan.”
Another of Combs’ defence attorneys, Aaron Dyer, called the raids earlier this year “a gross use of military-level force”, and said the allegations were meritless and Combs was innocent.
Diddy, 54, is an American rapper, producer and record executive. Born Sean Combs, he rose to fame in the 1990s under the alias Puff Daddy. He became an influential hip-hop producer, going by many names, including P. Diddy and Puffy. In 2017, he announced his preferred monikers: “Love” or “Brother Love”.
In November, Combs’ former protege and girlfriend, the R&B singer Cassie (Cassandra Ventura), sued him, alleging years of sexual abuse, including rape. The lawsuit was settled the day after it was filed.
Four other people accused Combs of assault following Ventura’s lawsuit, including one who alleged she was gang-raped by Combs and two other men at the rapper’s Manhattan recording studio in 2003. She alleged she was 17 at the time.
A male music producer alleged Combs coerced him to solicit prostitutes and pressured him to have sex with them. Combs’ attorney at the time, Shawn Holley, has said of those allegations that “we have overwhelming, indisputable proof that his claims are complete lies”.
Combs last year denied the allegations against him, saying: “I did not do any of the awful things being alleged.”
In May, security video was released showing Combs attacking Cassie in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016. In response, he released a video apology, saying he was truly sorry and his actions were inexcusable.
Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732).
AP with staff reporters
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