Sean “Diddy” Combs Under Criminal Investigation By Federal Authorities: Report
An investigation is ongoing into sex trafficking allegations against Sean Combs is said to have reached a new milestone.
According to sources familiar with the matter, many legal battles The media mogul faces a federal grand jury in New York weighing evidence against Combs as part of a criminal investigation. Meanwhile, he is also facing another lawsuit in a series about civil complaints filed against him by women who alleged he assaulted or trafficked them during the height of his fame.
The allegations against Combs have escalated since last November, when his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura filed a sensational lawsuit alleging sexual assault and coercion, domestic violence and other abuse. He settled with Ventura days after she filed the lawsuit, but denied the allegations. Several lawsuits from other women followingapparently encouraged by Ventura’s statements. Combs has also denied these allegations.
The release of the security footage Ventura referenced in her lawsuit has shocked those who believe in Combs’ claims of innocence: a video from 2016Combs was seen pushing and hitting Ventura as she tried to escape the hotel room. Combs eventually admitted to the assault. via video on Instagram that he deleted from there.
What California’s criminal time limit laws mean he cannot be charged for the admitted attack on Ventura, but an organization led by Homeland Security raid on his home in March said officials believe Combs may be involved in other illegal activities. Last month, It has been reported that Federal officials are working to convene a grand jury in Manhattan to weigh the evidence against Combs, while prosecutors are scrutinizing allegations in multiple civil cases against him for any useful details.
Prosecutors now have an additional civil case to consider, as multiple media outlets report that a woman named Adria English filed a lawsuit against Combs on Wednesday, saying that as a former employee of the businessman, she was “lured… into sex trafficking over time.”
English, who said she worked at Combs’ annual Labor Day “White Party” at his Hamptons home, said the job did not “require sexual contact and appeared to be a legitimate employment opportunity” when she accepted, but after working at three such events, Combs “requested” her to “initiate vaginal intercourse with guests, as they knew of her past in the adult entertainment industry and used it coercively to force Plaintiff into prostitution.” (Under the name “Omunique,” English had previously worked in the adult film industry. She said Combs did not hire her for that position.)
Page six reports that One of the guests she is believed to have been trafficked to was Jacob Arabova man once called “Hip-Hop Jeweler” because of his connections to people in the R&B music industry. Arabov, also known as “Jacob the Jeweler”, is imprisoned in 2008 as part of a federal investigation into a Detroit-area drug ring. He has since been released. (Vanity Fair (Attempts to contact Arabov remained unsuccessful as of publication time.)
“At the end of the night, Defendant Combs personally congratulated Plaintiff for following his instructions to Defendant Jacob and for a job well done,” the lawsuit states. At subsequent parties, she was also coerced into performing additional non-consensual acts as a victim of Combs’ “ongoing corrupt sex trafficking organization,” her lawsuit claims.
In a statement, Combs’ attorney Jonathan Davis issued a denial, saying, “No matter how many lawsuits are filed, it does not change the fact that Mr. Combs has never sexually assaulted or sexually trafficked anyone. We live in a world where anyone can file a lawsuit for any reason and without any evidence. Fortunately, there is a fair and impartial judicial process to uncover the truth, and Mr. Combs is confident that he will prevail in court against these and other baseless lawsuits.”
But before going to civil court, Combs will likely have to defend himself in criminal court in New York. According to NBC NewsCombs’ attorneys have been “informed by federal authorities in the Southern District of New York that he is the subject of an ongoing criminal investigation.”
A federal grand jury is currently hearing evidence gathered by prosecutors and law enforcement as part of the investigation into Combs and his activities, NBC also reported. However, it is unclear whether any charges will be filed against Combs in the coming days, as a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office is on vacation and was unavailable for comment at the time of publication.
