Sean 'Diddy' Combs sued for sexual assault

12/9/2024 5:53

        Dawn Richard, a former singer for
        Bad Boy Records, has filed a lawsuit accusing music mogul and
        the label's founder Sean "Diddy" Combs of sexual assault and
        battery, sex trafficking, gender discrimination, and fraud,
        according to court documents.
        
        Richard filed the suit on Tuesday in the Southern District
        of New York, also suing former Bad Boy Entertainment CEO Harve
        Pierre.
        
        The legal action by Richard was filed one day after a
        Michigan prison inmate was awarded a $100 million judgment
        against the rapper, a judgment Combs' attorney said he would
        seek to have dismissed. The inmate, Derrick Lee Smith, had
        accused Combs of drugging and sexually assaulting him at a party
        almost 30 years ago.
        
        Combs' and Pierre's teams did not immediately respond to
        Reuters requests for comment on Wednesday.
        
        Richard belonged to girl group Danity Kane and R&B trio
        Diddy Dirty Money, which included Combs and singer Kalenna
        Harper. The groups were part of Bad Boy Records, the label
        founded by Combs.
        
        During her time working with Combs, the singer alleged in
        the suit, the rapper repeatedly groped her, was physically
        violent, and trapped her in a car while threatening her life.
        
        Richard met Combs during her audition for his MTV series
        "Making the Band" in 2004, which was when she alleges he began
        displaying inappropriate behavior.
        
        "(Combs) manipulated her with mantras that submission to his
        depraved demands was necessary for career advancement,
        instilling in her the belief that such abuse and exploitation
        were required for female artists to succeed in the music
        industry," the lawsuit said.
        
        In the lawsuit, Richard also said she witnessed Combs
        abusing his then-girlfriend, the R&B vocalist Cassandra Ventura.
        Last year, Combs settled a lawsuit filed by Ventura that had
        accused him of serial physical abuse, sexual slavery and rape.
        
        Combs is one of the most influential producers and
        executives in hip-hop and was a hugely successful performer, as
        well as the impresario of his own Sean John clothing line.