New York:
Sean “Diddy” Combs — the rap mogul whose star has plunged after a wave of intercourse trafficking accusations and assault lawsuits — was arrested by federal brokers in Manhattan late Monday, a US federal court docket stated.
The lawyer for the Southern District of New York, Damian Williams, stated in a press release that the arrest stemmed from a sealed indictment filed by his workplace.
“We count on to maneuver to unseal the indictment within the morning and could have extra to say at the moment,” he stated, with out offering additional particulars of the fees.
Diddy’s lawyer Marc Agnifilo stated in a press release offered to AFP that Combs had voluntarily relocated to New York anticipating the fees.
Combs’s lawyer stated their crew is “dissatisfied with the choice to pursue what we consider is an unjust prosecution of Mr. Combs by the US Legal professional’s Workplace.”
The rapper is the goal of a number of civil lawsuits that characterize him as a violent sexual predator who used alcohol and medicines to subdue his victims.
His houses had been raided in March by federal brokers, in a closely publicized bicoastal operation that indicated a federal investigation and potential legal case was mounting in opposition to Combs.
Armed brokers entered his sprawling luxurious properties in Miami and Los Angeles, marking a fast downfall for the highly effective music trade determine who in recent times has vied to rebrand himself as “Brother Love.”
His authorized crew stated Monday that Combs was being “cooperative with this investigation” and “seems ahead to clearing his identify in court docket.”
Bombshell swimsuit
The artist, who’s passed by varied monikers together with Puff Daddy and P Diddy, was extensively credited as being key to hip hop’s journey from the streets to the bottle-service membership.
Over the a long time he is amassed huge wealth not least resulting from his ventures within the liquor trade.
However regardless of his efforts to domesticate a picture of a easy occasion kingpin and enterprise magnate, a spate of lawsuits describe Combs as a violent man who used his superstar to prey on girls.
The artist has denied all accusations in opposition to him.
He has no main convictions however has lengthy been trailed by allegations of bodily assault, courting again nicely into the Nineties.
Late final yr the floodgates opened after singer Cassie, whose actual identify is Casandra Ventura, alleged Combs subjected her to greater than a decade of coercion by bodily pressure and medicines in addition to a 2018 rape.
The pair met when Ventura was 19 and he was 37, after which he signed her to his label and so they started a romantic relationship.
The bombshell swimsuit was shortly settled out of court docket, however a string of equally lurid sexual assault claims adopted — together with one in December by a lady who alleged Combs and others gang-raped her when she was 17.
Disturbing surveillance video then emerged in Might exhibiting Combs bodily assaulting his then-girlfriend Ventura, corroborating allegations she made within the now-settled case.
World fame with darkish shadow
Born Sean John Combs on November 4, 1969 in Harlem, the artist entered the trade as an intern in 1990 at Uptown Data the place he ultimately turned a expertise director.
He gained a status as a celebration planner, which might be central to his model as his fame rose.
In 1991 he promoted a celeb basketball recreation and live performance on the Metropolis School of New York that left 9 folks lifeless after a stampede.
The occasion was over capability by the hundreds and resulted in a string of lawsuits, with Combs blamed for hiring insufficient safety.
He was fired from Uptown and based his personal label, Dangerous Boy Data.
Thus started a fast ascent to the highest of East Coast hip hop, alongside along with his disciple, the late The Infamous B.I.G.
Combs boasted plenty of main signed acts and manufacturing collaborations with the likes of Mary J Blige, Usher, Lil’ Kim, TLC, Mariah Carey and Boyz II Males.
He was additionally a Grammy-winning rapper in his personal proper, debuting with the chart-topping single “Cannot No person Maintain Me Down” and his album “No Method Out.”
He constructed a picture as a brash hustler with unapologetic swagger, a serious producer who additionally ventured into Hollywood, actuality tv and trend and had high-profile romantic hyperlinks with the likes of Jennifer Lopez.
However a darkish historical past of violence and severe misconduct has lengthy haunted his fame — and now seems to be eclipsing it.
(Apart from the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV workers and is revealed from a syndicated feed.)