Sean 'Diddy' Combs to be hit with additional 120 civil sexual assault lawsuits

HOUSTON (CN) — Less than two weeks after Sean “Diddy” Combs was hit with a New York sex trafficking indictment, a pair of Houston attorneys announced they will be representing 120 plaintiffs in civil lawsuits against the embattled hip-hop producer.

One of the lead attorneys for the upcoming wave of cases, Houston’s Tony Buzbee, said in a Tuesday press conference, “This is the beginning of what I hope to be a national dialogue. This type of sexual assault, sexual abuse and sexual exploitation should never happen in the United States or anywhere else. This should have never been allowed to go on for so long. This conduct has created a mass of individuals who are injured, scared and scarred."

Buzbee clarified in the press conference that these will be individual cases, not class action suits, and that his team is still collecting records before filing the suits. He said that most will be filed in New York or Los Angeles, and that he expects to start filing them in the next 30 days.

“In this group, 62% identify as African American, 30% are white, and the remainder Hispanic or Asian. The victims are from more than 25 states; the majority are from California, New York, Georgia and Florida,” Buzbee said.

“25 of the 120 individuals who are plaintiffs in these cases were minors at the time of the acts complained of,” he added.

He also emphasized that these suits would extend beyond Combs.

“So, in addition to Sean Combs, you should know the defendants in these cases we’re going to file will include anyone, of course, who engaged in the assault or exploitation; anyone who participated in such in any way; anyone who encouraged or facilitated this conduct; anyone who was in the room and watched it happen, but made no effort to stop it; any venue or venue owner who was aware of what was going on, but failed to stop it; any individual or entity who knew about the conduct and benefited from it, but did nothing to report it or stop it; and any individual or entity who covered it up or helped cover it up,” he said.

He also noted that these events took place from 1991 to 2024, many at large parties but some at individual auditions. That stretches much further back than the federal indictment against Combs, which focuses on the period from 2008 to 2024.

Q. Olivia Rivers, president of the Texas Association Against Sexual Assault spoke alongside Buzbee at the press conference Tuesday about the physical, legal and social barriers preventing assault survivors from coming forward.

“Cases involving powerful figures often attract significant media attention, which can deter victims from coming forward due to fear of public exposure or scrutiny," she said. “The intense focus on these high-profile cases can make survivors feel that their personal lives are being put under a microscope, causing further emotional distress. These allegations mentioned here today, as reported, reflect deeply troubling claims that deserve thorough investigation. And no individual, regardless of their stature, is above the law or public accountability.”

Carrie Paul, a former district attorney who now works as The National Victim Advocate, said Tuesday, “To the survivors that have come forward despite not being believed at some point in time, your courage is like nothing we have seen before. We thank you for coming forward, for yourself and all survivors.”

Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York first indicted Combs over a sex trafficking conspiracy, and unsealed the indictment on Sept. 17 after Combs was arrested in Manhattan that night. Combs faces three federal charges: one count of racketeering conspiracy; one count of “sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion;” and one count of “transportation for purposes of prostitution.” Combs has since been denied his $50 million bail.

Representatives of Combs did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Buzbee — a high-profile Houston attorney known for defending Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in his impeachment trial and for bringing a massive lawsuit against rapper Travis Scott for a concert crowd rush that killed 10 — initially announced himself in a Friday Instagram postas lead counsel in the joint effort suits with his firm and the Ava Law Group run by Andrew Van Arsdale.

Van Arsdale noted the sexual assault hotline the two law firms have set up, encouraging people to come forward.

“If you know that this happened to someone, and you have information about it, please contact us,” Van Arsdale said. “If it happened to you, come forward. There’s attorney-client privilege here; what you tell us is in confidence. Yes, we’ll have to go out and build your case, but we will protect you.”