Sean 'Diddy' Combs denies sexual assault allegations in legal showdown

Lawyers representing Sean 'Diddy' Combs file motion to dismiss lawsuit filed by an anonymous accuser.

Sean 'Diddy' Combs' legal team has submitted a motion asking a federal judge for the dismissal of  a lawsuit alleging that the rapper along with two co-defendants sexually assaulted a 17-year-old girl in a New York recording studio in 2003, saying the accusations were a “false and hideous claim” that was filed too late under the law.

A woman who said she lived in a Detroit suburb in 2003, but now lives in Canada, anonymously sued Sean "Diddy" Combs and others in December 2023, claiming they drugged and gang raped her when she was 17. 

She says Harve Pierre, then head of Combs' record label, flew her to New York and took her to a recording studio. The lawsuit includes photos of her with Combs that night.

Combs' lawyers want the case thrown out immediately to avoid damage to his reputation and further legal costs. The woman's lawyer says this is a weak attempt to avoid responsibility.

Several lawsuits accuse Sean Combs of sexual assault, including some based on incidents from many years ago. 

These are part of a larger wave of lawsuits filed under a New York law that gave victims a chance to sue over old allegations. 

While the deadline for that law has passed, one lawsuit is based on a different New York City law that also allows lawsuits after the deadline. 

However, Combs argues this lawsuit is too late because another state law applies with an earlier deadline.

In November 2023, Cassie, with whom he had an on-and-off relationship from 2007 to 2018, had accused him of assaulting and mistreating her throughout their ten-year association.

Following the settlement of the initial lawsuit, Combs faced another accusation of sexual assault in a subsequent lawsuit filed by Joi Dickerson-Neal. She claimed that Combs drugged and sexually assaulted her while she was a college student at Syracuse University in 1991.

On the same day, another woman, identified as a separate Jane Doe, accused Combs of sexual assault. She alleged that Combs and singer-songwriter Aaron Hall sexually assaulted her and a friend in New York City over 30 years ago.

In February, Rodney "Lil Rod" Jones, a former producer and videographer, filed a lawsuit alleging that Combs sexually harassed, drugged, and threatened him during their professional collaboration.