Sean Diddy Combs, one of the most successful rappers and music moguls in the United States of America (USA), will soon be on trial for sex trafficking and racketeering charges.
He also faces dozens of lawsuits from individuals who say they were harmed and exploited by the rapper through drugs, alcohol and physical abuse.
Combs has pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges and rejected the accusations in the individual lawsuits, calling them attempts “for a quick payday”.
If convicted, he faces up to life in prison on the racketeering charge and a minimum of 15 years for sex trafficking.
Combs – who has also gone by the names Puffy, Puff Daddy, P Diddy, Love, and Brother Love – emerged into the hip-hop scene in the 1990s.
His early music career success included helping launch the careers of Mary J Blige and Christopher Wallace – aka Biggie Smalls, or the Notorious B.I.G.
His music label Bad Boy Records soon became one of the most important labels in rap and expanded to include Faith Evans, Ma$e, 112, Mariah Carey and Jennifer Lopez.
Combs also had a prolific business career outside of music, most notably, signing a deal with British drinks company Diageo in 2007 to promote the French vodka brand, Cîroc, in the US.
In 2023, he released his fifth record The Love Album: Off The Grid and earned his first solo nomination at the Grammy awards. He also was named a Global Icon at the MTV Awards that year.
In the federal criminal case, Combs is charged with racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.
He is accused of kidnapping, drugging and coercing women into sexual activities, sometimes by using firearms or threatening them with violence.
In a raid on his Los Angeles mansion, police found supplies that they said were intended for use in orgies known as “freak offs”, including drugs and more than 1,000 bottles of baby oil.
Separately, Mr Combs faces a number of lawsuits accusing him of rape and assault.
Tony Buzbee, a Texas lawyer handling some of these cases, said that more than 100 women and men from across the US have either filed lawsuits against the rap mogul or will do so.
In December 2023, a woman known in court papers as Jane Doe alleged that she was “gang raped” by Mr Combs and others in 2003, when she was 17. She said she was given “copious amounts of drugs and alcohol” before the attack.
Combs’ legal team dismissed the flurry of lawsuits as “clear attempts to garner publicity.” –BBC
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