Sean “Diddy” Combs was confronted with six new sexual abuse lawsuits on Monday accusing him of raping women, sexually assaulting men and molesting a 16-year-old boy. It is the first time he has been sued by a person alleging they were abused as a minor.
The civil lawsuits were filed a month after Combs was criminally charged for what prosecutors describe as a long-running scheme of sex trafficking and racketeering.
Combs’ lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday. The rapper has denied wrongdoing in other civil cases against him and pleaded not guilty in his criminal case.
The lawsuits were filed in New York federal court by anonymous plaintiffs, two by women identified as Jane Does and four by men identified as John Does. One man accuses Combs of assaulting him when he was a minor.
Some of the Does, echoing others who have accused Combs in recent months, allege that he used his fame and the promise of potential stardom to entice victims to lavish parties or drug-fuelled hang-outs where he then assaulted them. Some allege that he beat or drugged them. Others say he threatened to kill them if they did not do as he pleased or if they spoke out against him.
“For decades, Sean Combs abused, molested, raped, assaulted, threatened and coerced women, men and minors for sexual gratification, to assert dominance, and to conceal his abhorrent conduct,” said one of the lawsuits, filed by a John Doe plaintiff.