Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs accused of raping woman over Tupac claims
Sean “Diddy” Combs has been accused of raping a woman as alleged payback for her saying she believed he was involved in the murder of rapper Tupac Shakur, a new lawsuit shows.
The court document, filed in California, is the latest civil case to be filed against Combs, who is currently behind held in New York as he awaits a criminal trial on charges of sex trafficking and racketeering.
Warning: This story contains details readers may find distressing
In the lawsuit, the woman claims the hip-hop mogul raped her using a remote control – and that associates witnessed and also took part in sexual abuse. She also alleges he threatened to give her “a Glasgow smile” – to cut her face with a knife – and threatened he could harm her and her family if she spoke out.
She is suing Combs, along with four other men and two women, over allegations of sexual assault, battery, rape, sexual abuse, false imprisonment and kidnapping, and has called for a trial by jury.
Combs, known as P Diddy, has not yet responded to this lawsuit, but has denied all claims of sexual assault made against him.
He has also previously denied any involvement in the murder of Shakur, who was killed in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas in 1996.
Tupac Shakur was killed in 1996. Pic: Walik Goshorn/MediaPunch/IPx/AP
The woman claims she first met one of Combs’ friends in a bar in February 2018. In the lawsuit, she says the man made a video call to Combs and showed her – but she told him she “was not impressed” as she believed “he had something to do with the murder of rapper Tupac Shakur”.
She heard Combs remark that she would “pay” for her statement and dismissal of him, the court documents say.
The woman says she was at the friend’s home in Orinda, California, the following month, when the rapper arrived unannounced.
He told her again she would “pay”, the lawsuit claims, and approached her with a knife. He held it to the right side of her face “and threatened to give her a ‘Glasgow smile’ in retaliation for her previous statements on the video call”, the document says.
The woman alleges her clothes were removed and that Combs covered her in a substance she realised was an oil or lubricant, before picking up a television remote and “violently” raping her with it.
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Combs is accused of telling the woman “her life was in his hands and that if he wanted he could ‘take her’ and she would never be seen again”, and also that he “owned her now”.
She was then raped by Combs and others “until eventually she had no control over her body nor could she move her body”, the lawsuit alleges. The rapper recorded some of this, she claims.
The woman says she eventually managed to run for help and that Combs offered her money to say she was a sex worker and that they had had consensual sex.
She says she told a local sheriff about her ordeal, but her complaint was “ignored”.
Her claim in California comes a day after six lawsuits were filed against Combs in New York, with more expected in the coming weeks.
In a statement, Combs’ representatives said the rapper and his legal team “have full confidence in the facts, their legal defences, and the integrity of the judicial process”.
They added: “In court, the truth will prevail: that Mr Combs has never sexually assaulted anyone – adult or minor, man or woman.”
When planned lawsuits were announced on 1 October, one of his lawyers said he could not “address every meritless allegation in what has become a reckless media circus”.
Combs, 54, was once one of the most influential producers in hip-hop, and also known as a rapper in his own right, with hits including Bad Boy For Life and I’ll Be Missing You.
After being arrested in September, he pleaded not guilty to three felony charges accusing him of using his business empire, including record label Bad Boy Entertainment, to transport male and female sex workers across state lines to take part in recorded sexual performances called “freak offs”.
His criminal trial has been set for May 2025.
The killing of Tupac remained unsolved for more than two decades, but the case was reinvestigated in recent years.
In September 2023, former gang member Duane “Keffe D” Davis was charged with murder. His trial is due to take place in March 2025.
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A Banksy artwork, where a glass police box looks like a tank of piranhas, has been moved into protective storage ahead of its display at the London Museum’s new location.
The artwork made headlines last summer when it featured as part of the street artist’s animal-themed collection in the capital, which concluded with a gorilla appearing to lift up a shutter on the entrance to London Zoo.
The piranhas piece is now in the care of the London Museum and will be kept in secure storage before it becomes accessible to the public as part of a permanent display at the museum’s Smithfield location, which is opening in 2026.
The artwork is moved from London’s Guildhall. Pic: PA
The police box had stood in Ludgate Hill since the 1990s before it was painted to resemble a fish tank.
The box was temporarily relocated by the City Of London Corporation to Guildhall Yard, where thousands of visitors viewed it from behind safety barriers, after Banksy confirmed he was responsible for the artwork.
It was later moved to Guildhall’s South Ambulatory.
Banksy’s London animals collection was made up of nine works including a rhino seemingly mounting a silver Nissan Micra, two elephant silhouettes with their trunks stretched out towards each other, and three monkeys that appeared as though they were swinging on a bridge.
Some of the works, which also included a howling wolf on a satellite dish, were removed, covered up or vandalised, after being painted across the city from 5 to 13 August 2024.
Chris Hayward, policy chairman of the City of London Corporation, said: “Banksy stopped Londoners in their tracks when this piece appeared in the Square Mile – and now, we’re making it available to millions.
“By securing it for London Museum, we’re not only protecting a unique slice of the City’s story, but also adding an artwork that will become one of the museum’s star attractions.”
The artwork after it first emerged. Pic: PA
Brendan Barns, chairman of the City of London Corporation’s culture, heritage, and libraries committee, said: “Banksy’s Piranhas are already part of City legend – and soon, they’ll be part of London’s story, too.
“Moving this piece into the care of London Museum guarantees that millions of people will be able to enjoy it, alongside an extraordinary collection that celebrates the capital’s creativity and diversity.”
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Glyn Davies, head of curatorial at London Museum, added: “With the arrival of Banksy’s Piranhas, our collection now spans from Roman graffiti to our first piece of contemporary street art.
“This work by one of the world’s most iconic artists now belongs to Londoners, and will keep making waves when it goes on show next year in the Museum’s new Smithfield home.”
London Museum’s London Wall site opened in 1976 and closed in December 2022 in preparation for the move to Smithfield.
London Museum Docklands remains open.
Taylor Swift has announced she is getting married to her NFL star boyfriend, Travis Kelce.
The pop star and Kansas City Chiefs tight end shared the news in a joint post on Instagram, with the caption: “Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married.”
The announcement was liked more than 1.7 million times just over 30 minutes after it was posted.
Pic: Instagram / @taylorswift
Swift and Kelce started their relationship in 2023, after the three-time Super Bowl winner said on his podcast New Heights that he tried and failed to meet the singer at her Eras Tour concert in Kansas City.
Rumours grew that the couple were dating after Swift was spotted at a number of Chiefs games. On her seventh time in the stands, she brought her father, Scott Kingsley Swift, along.
Kelce told the Wall Street Journal in November 2023: “There were definitely people she knew that knew who I was, in her corner [who said]: ‘Yo! Did you know he was coming [to the Eras Tour]?’
“I had somebody playing Cupid… She told me exactly what was going on and how I got lucky enough to get her to reach out.”
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From January: Taylor cheers on Travis after Chiefs win
Earlier this month, Swift appeared on Kelce’s podcast, New Heights, and announced her 12th album, titled The Life Of A Showgirl.
Speaking to Kelce and his brother Jason, Swift said it was inspired by the Eras Tour – and also talked about his attempt at meeting her two years ago.
While she said his plan to give her his number on a friendship bracelet was a “wild, romantic gesture,” she joked he “didn’t do any proper logistical planning” and thought he would be allowed backstage.
“Because he knows the elevator lady, he thought he could talk to her about just getting down to my dressing room,” she added. “That’s how it works in 1973.”
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The new album, which will be released on 3 October, marks her first release since she took back control over her entire back catalogue from private equity firm Shamrock Capital.
Sky News culture and entertainment reporter Gemma Peplow said after her globe-trotting tour and a swathe of re-releases over recent years, the new album cemented Swift’s reputation “as the hardest-working star in pop”.
Despite rumours he would retire after losing this year’s Super Bowl, Kelce will play for the Kansas City Chiefs again this season.
He told GQ magazine his on-field performances “slipped a little bit” as he started acting, and added: “I’m just saying that my work ethic is such that I have so much pride in how I do things that I never want the product to tail off, and I feel like these past two years haven’t been to my standard.”
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