Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs abuse allegations: A timeline of key events
Hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs has been arrested in New York – after 10 months of facing civil allegations including rape, sexual assault, and forced drugging.
The 54-year-old rapper, formerly known as Puff Daddy and P Diddy, was detained by officers at the Park Hyatt hotel in Manhattan on Monday, although it is unclear on what charges.
Damian Williams, the US attorney for the Southern District of New York (SDNY), said the arrest was “based on a sealed indictment” – a formal charging document that is not available to the public – and he is expecting to say more when the document is unsealed.
Combs, one of the most influential producers and executives in the history of hip-hop, has faced a wave of civil lawsuits since November last year accusing him of offences including sex trafficking and raping a 17-year-old girl.
Here we take a look at some of the key developments since the allegations against Combs first surfaced.
16 November 2023
The rapper’s ex-girlfriend, R&B singer Cassie, says in a lawsuit that she was trafficked, raped, plied with drugs, and viciously beaten by Combs on many occasions over the course of 10 years.
Cassie, whose real name is Cassandra Ventura, signed to Combs’ label in 2005 and the two were on-and-off romantic partners for more than a decade, starting in 2007.
She filed her case under the state of New York’s Adult Survivors Act.
The act gave victims of sexual violence a one-year window from November 2022 to November 2023 to file civil claims regardless of the statute of limitations – a time window in which a person has to bring a legal claim following an alleged incident.
Combs, through his lawyer, “vehemently denies” all the accusations in the lawsuit.
Sean Combs and Cassie in 2017. Pic: PA
17 November 2023
Combs settles the lawsuit with Cassie the day after it is filed, with the terms of the agreement kept confidential.
“We have decided to resolve this matter amicably,” Combs says in a statement.
23 November 2023
Two more women accuse Combs of sexual abuse in lawsuits filed on the eve of the expiration of the Adult Survivors Act.
The lawsuits, filed by Joi Dickerson and another woman who is not named, allege acts of sexual assault, beatings, and forced drugging in the early 1990s by Combs – then a talent director and rising figure in the New York hip-hop scene.
The rapper’s lawyers call the allegations false.
6 December 2023
A woman alleges in another lawsuit that Combs and two other men raped her in 2003 when she was 17.
The lawsuit filed in federal court in Manhattan says she was living in a Detroit suburb and was flown to a New York studio, where she was given drugs and alcohol that made her incapable of consenting to sex, and the men took turns raping her.
The same day, Combs posts a statement on Instagram broadly denying all the allegations in the mounting series of lawsuits.
“I did not do any of the awful things being alleged,” the post says. “I will fight for my name, my family and for the truth.”
Sean “Diddy” Combs performs during the MTV Video Music Awards in September 2023. Pic: AP
26 February 2024
Music producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones, claims in a lawsuit that Combs pressured him to procure and engage in sexual acts with sex workers between September 2022 and November 2023.
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He also claims he is a victim of unsolicited groping and sexual touching by Combs, and that he witnessed the music mogul giving out drinks laced with drugs to people at parties.
A lawyer for Combs calls the allegations in Jones’ lawsuit “pure fiction”.
25 March 2024
Two properties owned by Combs are searched by federal agents in what officials tell the Associated Press (AP) is part of an ongoing sex trafficking investigation.
Officials do not say whether the raids, at Combs’ homes in Miami and Los Angeles, are prompted by the civil lawsuits, but the music mogul’s attorneys say they believe they are.
The next day, Combs’ lawyer calls the raids “a gross use of military-level force” and says his client is “innocent and will continue to fight” to clear his name.
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From March 2024: Diddy’s homes raided
23 May 2024
April Lampros, now 51, accuses Combs of sexually assaulting her more than 20 years ago when she was a fashion student in New York City, Sky News US partner network NBC News reports at the time.
She claims the musician sexually assaulted her on four occasions between 1995 and the early 2000s, including once when she was forced to take ecstasy and have sex with Combs’ former girlfriend Kim Porter.
Combs denies the allegations and also files a motion to dismiss the lawsuit.
4 April 2024
A lawsuit alleges that Combs’ son Christian “King” Combs sexually assaulted a woman working on a yacht chartered by his father.
Combs is named as a co-defendant in the lawsuit, which claims he created the circumstances that led to the assault and paid to cover it up afterwards.
An attorney for the two men calls the allegations “outrageous”.
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs and his son Christian ‘King’ Combs. Pic: Evan Agostini/Invision/AP
26 April 2024
Combs and his legal team file a motion to dismiss several elements of Dickerson’s November 2023 lawsuit on the grounds they were not illegal in 1991 when the alleged incidents occurred.
While the legal objections are procedural, the filing also slams the “numerous false, offensive, and salacious accusations” in the lawsuit.
10 May 2024
Combs asks a federal judge to dismiss the 6 December 2023 lawsuit alleging he and two co-defendants raped a 17-year-old girl from Michigan in a New York recording studio.
Again, the objections are procedural – alleging the lawsuit was filed too late under the law – but the court document calls the claims “false and hideous”.
A still from a video that showed a man appearing to be Combs attacking Cassie. Pic: CNN via AP
17 May 2024
CNN publishes video showing Combs attacking Cassie in a hotel hallway in 2016.
The video closely mirrors an assault described in her lawsuit, which claimed Combs had already punched her that night, and she was trying to leave the InterContinental Hotel in Los Angeles when he woke and came after her.
Combs’ representatives give no immediate comment.
The Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office says it cannot prosecute Combs for the attack shown in the video due to the statute of limitation, noting that no case had been presented to prosecutors.
19 May 2024
Combs posts a video on Instagram and Facebook apologising for the assault on Cassie.
He describes it as “inexcusable” and says he is “disgusted”.
“I was f***** up – I mean I hit rock bottom – but l make no excuses. My behaviour on that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video. I was disgusted. I was disgusted then when I did it. I’m disgusted now,” he says.
A still from a video that showed a man appearing to be Combs attacking Cassie. Pic: CNN via AP
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26 August 2024
As part of a multi-faceted pushback against the lawsuits filed against him, Combs asks a federal judge to throw out
the February 2024 lawsuit from music producer Jones.
Combs’ lawyers say the suit is overrun with “tall tales,” “lurid theatrics,” “legally meaningless allegations” and “blatant falsehoods” with the only intent to “generate media hype and exploit it to extract a settlement”.
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‘Diddy’ apologises after assault video
11 September 2024
Combs is sued by singer Dawn Richard in a case describing years of psychological and physical abuse, including groping, that she says she suffered as he helped launch her career.
Combs’ representatives accuse Richard of making “an attempt to rewrite history” by manufacturing “a series of false claims, all in the hopes of trying to get a pay day – conveniently timed to coincide with her album release and press tour”.
16 September 2024
Combs is arrested in New York after a grand jury indictment.
No details on the charges are made public, but federal officials say they will ask a judge to unseal the indictment the next day.
Combs’ attorney calls it an unjust prosecution of an “imperfect person” who is “not a criminal”.
Entertainment
BAFTA Games Awards: Astro Bot tops leaderboard – with psychological horror close behind
Astro Bot was the big winner at this year’s BAFTA Games Awards, taking home five prizes, including the coveted best game.
The 3D platformer, which was launched to critical acclaim in September to mark PlayStation’s 30th anniversary, was nominated for eight gongs, while Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II, led with 11 nods.
But in the end, the critics – some of whom had dubbed Astro Bot a “perfect game” – were right as it dominated the awards at London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall, hosted by comedian Phil Wang for the second year running.
Astro Bot. Pic: Team Asobi
Nicolas Doucet with his five awards for Astro Bot. Pic: PA
BAFTAs for audio achievement, game design, animation, and best family game completed the set for developers Team Asobi, who designed multiple galaxies and dozens of levels for the titular Astro to journey through, retrieving spaceship parts and rescuing lost robots.
“We’re a team based in Japan, but we have over 12 nationalities. We really mix it up and get ideas from everyone,” Nicolas Doucet, president of Team Asobi, told Sky News.
“We do a lot of jokes in the game, but the joke has a different meaning depending on where you are in the world. So it’s really, really nice to go around and ask everyone ‘is that joke fine in your country?’ And then together we come to a kind of universal playfulness.”
Among the gongs for Astro Bot was the best game award. Pic: BAFTA
It’s a very different atmosphere than that generated by British psychological horror Still Wakes The Deep, which won three awards for best new intellectual property and best supporting and leading roles.
Compared to John Carpenter’s 1980 sci-fi horror The Thing but on a Scottish oil rig, the game sees players take on the role of an electrician trapped on a damaged facility while being pursued by monsters.
Still Wakes The Deep. Pic: Sumo Digital Limited
Developer The Chinese Room has been praised for using home-grown talent to voice the characters, including comedian and actress Karen Dunbar, who picked up best performer in a supporting role for voicing Finlay.
“I’ve been nominated for quite a few BAFTAs in my time in Scotland, and I’ve never won one,” said Dunbar.
“It was such a great category, so many great performances. When they shouted my name, I think I started clapping for someone else!”
Read more: See full list of winners
Still Wakes The Deep star Karen Dunbar won best performer in a supporting role. Pic: BAFTA
Meanwhile, best multiplayer game went to Helldivers II – a satirical, sci-fi shooter that sees players fight bugs, aliens and robots with the gumption and gullibility of the characters in Paul Verhoeven’s Starship Troopers.
It has gained a cult following since launching in February 2024 with so much initial interest it created server problems.
“Games for me are about connecting people and forging those bonds of friendship and the multiplayer award is exactly what it stands for,” said Johan Pilestedt, chief executive of Arrowhead Game Studios.
Helldivers II. Pic: Arrowhead/Sony
From outer space to a fictional Yorkshire town called Barnsworth. Thank Goodness You’re Here! – a cartoonish, comedy platformer – won Best British Game. Like Still Wakes The Deep, it has won praise for the authenticity of its actors and setting.
“I think it’s been a real privilege to be able to represent Barnsley on the silver screen,” said Will Todd, who is from the town and one of two game designers behind the project.
Thank Goodness You’re Here! Pic: Coal Supper/Panic Inc
Co-creator James Carbutt added: “Me and Will wrote everything in our tone of voice, quite literally. The further along development we got, the more we lent into it. I think the voices from different parts of the UK and different voices in gaming are super important, and hopefully we’re one of them.”
By the time the BAFTAs wrapped up, Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II was only handed one of the 11 BAFTAs it was nominated for, technical achievement.
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II. Pic: Ninja Theory
But developers Ninja Theory are already adding this year’s win to a tally of five BAFTAs they were awarded for the first game in the series, which created a protagonist with psychosis by drawing on clinical neuroscience and the experiences of people living with the condition.
Blondie drummer Clem Burke has died at the age of 70
The band said Blurke had been diagnosed with cancer, and described his death as a “profound loss”.
He featured on all the Debbie Harry-fronted group’s studio albums since joining a year after their formation in 1975.
Blurke was with the band from their self-titled debut, through their 1978 classic Parallel Lines, to 2017’s Pollinator.
Drummer Burke.
Pic: Reuters
In a statement on Blondie’s Instagram, Harry and the band’s guitarist, Chris Stein, said: “It is with profound sadness that we relay news of the passing of our beloved friend and bandmate Clem Burke following a private battle with cancer.
“Clem was not just a drummer, he was the heartbeat of Blondie.
“His talent, energy, and passion for music were unmatched, and his contributions to our sound and success are immeasurable.
“Beyond his musicianship, Clem was a source of inspiration both on and off the stage. His vibrant spirit, infectious enthusiasm and rock solid work ethic touched everyone who had the privilege of knowing him.
“Clem’s influence extended far beyond Blondie, a self-proclaimed ‘rock and roll survivalist’, he played and collaborated with numerous iconic artists.”
Burke in his performance at Festival Estereo Picnic 2023.
Pic: AP
Burke featured on Iggy Pop’s 1982 album Zombie Birdhouse and also performed with Bob Dylan, The Ramones, The Who guitarist Pete Townshend and Joan Jett.
The statement went on to say Burke had left an “indelible mark on every project he was part of”.
It added: “We extend our deepest condolences to Clem’s family, friends, and fans around the world. His legacy will live on through the tremendous amount of music he created and the countless lives he touched.”
Burke, who performed on classic tracks such as Call Me, Heart Of Glass and One Way Or Another, made his final live appearance with Blondie last year.
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Blondie performing during Glastonbury Festival in 2023.
Pic: Invision/AP
Among those paying tribute to him was Kinks guitarist Dave Davies, who said: “I feel saddened that Clem Burke was taken from us so soon.
“May he rest in peace, spectacular drumming, we were friends.”
Nancy Sinatra said: “My heart is shattered. Clem became an icon as a member of Blondie, but he was also an important part of my band, the K.A.B. I was blessed to call him my friend.
“If I ever needed him, he was there. Always. Sending healing prayers and comfort to his widow, Ellen, his family, and all who loved him.”
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