Federal agents have searched homes owned by hip-hop mogul Sean Combs in Los Angeles and Miami as part of a New York-based criminal investigation, NBC News reported, citing sources.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security agents who raided Combs’ property were given the authority to search the property by a warrant issued in Manhattan federal court, months after a series of lawsuits charging Combs with serious crimes. It was given. sexual misconductsaid a law enforcement official.
According to NBC, Combs, 54, had his cellphone confiscated in Miami before leaving for a trip to the Bahamas.
Three women and one man have been arrested in connection with an investigation into sex trafficking, sexual assault, and possible solicitation and distribution of illegal drugs and firearms related to Combs, a person familiar with the situation told NBC. said he was being questioned by federal authorities in New York. Also known as “Diddy”, “Puff Daddy” and “P. Diddy”.
Interviews are scheduled with three more women identified as “Jane Does.”
In a statement to NBC 4, the Department of Homeland Security said, “Early today, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New York, with assistance from HSI Los Angeles, HSI Miami, and local law enforcement partners, conducted an investigation as part of an ongoing investigation. We have taken law enforcement action as a result.” Los Angeles.
Benjamin Brafman, a New York attorney representing Combs, did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
Combs denies the civil allegations against him.
The attack will take place in a month. Music producer A man named Rodney “Lee Rod” Jones filed a lawsuit in Manhattan federal court alleging that Combs sexually harassed, drugged and threatened him while he lived and traveled with him.
Tyrone Blackburn, Jones’ attorney, and the two women who sued Combs said in a statement to NBC News, “While we appreciate today’s raid by the federal government, today’s events are a serious threat to my client. It does not hinder or delay the pending matter.” and future actions for justice and solutions by Combs RICO Enterprises. ”
Singer Cassandra Ventura’s New York attorney, Douglas Wigdor, quickly settled a bombshell lawsuit accusing Combs of rape and sex trafficking last fall, but he is unable to represent “Jane Doe” against Combs in the federal investigation. He also said that there is.
“We will always support law enforcement when they seek to prosecute those who violate the law,” Wigdor said in a statement.
“We hope this is the beginning of a process to hold Mr. Combs accountable for his corrupt conduct,” the attorney said.
Combs was sued in Manhattan federal court by Ventura, also known as Kathy.
According to the complaint, in 2005, when Kathy was 19 years old, Combs signed her to his label, Bad Boy Records, and lured her into a professional relationship, and within a few years began a sexual relationship. , he said, “introduced a sexual relationship.” Her lifestyle of excessive alcohol and drug abuse required her to obtain illegal prescriptions to satisfy her own addictions. ”
According to the complaint, Combs raped Kathy in his home after she tried to break up with him, “bombed” her car after learning that another man had romantic feelings for her, and frequently punched her. He claims that he kicked him.
Kathy and Combs agreed to resolve the complaint on private terms just one day after she filed her lawsuit.
However, after the settlement, two other women, Liza Gardner and Joey Dickerson-Neal, filed suit accusing Combs of sexual assault.
A fourth woman, identified in court filings as Jane Doe, accused Combs in December of gang-raping her 20 years ago when she was 17 years old, along with a former record company president and another person. I filed a complaint.
Blackburn is representing Gardner and Jane Doe.
Dickerson-Neal’s attorney declined to comment to NBC News about the attack on Combs’ home.
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