Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs hotline gets more than 12K calls in 24 hours, lawyer says
A hotline opened up for those with potential cases and allegations against Sean “Diddy” Combs was hit with more than 12,000 calls in just 24 hours, according to Tony Buzbee, a lawyer representing some of the embattled music mogul’s latest accusers.
“Our Herculean task is to try to sift through every one of these calls and make sure that we’re identifying those who are victims and those who are witnesses and collect evidence,” he told Law & Crime, adding that more than 100 people are working through the thousands of claims.
Buzbee pushed the hotline during a press conference earlier this week, shortly after he announced 54-year-old Combs would be facing another 120 lawsuits accusing him of assault and sexual misconduct.
The latest wave of accusers are made up of 60 men and 60 women from several different states, 25 of whom were minors when they say they crossed paths with the Bad Boys Records founder. Buzbee said the alleged victims were between 9 and 38 years old when they were assaulted across a 20-year period spanning the 2000s and 2010s, the Washington Post reported
Many of the younger accusers had been “seeking TV or music careers” and were allegedly manipulated by Diddy, who promised to help them thrive in the entertainment industry, Buzbee added.
The Houston-based attorney told Law & Crime the complaints are ready for filing, but that his team wants to ensure they include “every potentially liable party,” including “any entities or other individuals that were either involved, participated [in], facilitated, egged on, provided the venue [for] or profited from” Diddy’s alleged crimes.
Most of the new cases will likely play out in courtrooms in New York and Los Angeles, Buzbee said. He added they will implicate “many powerful people” and make public “many dirty secrets.”
The latest series of lawsuits were announced just under a year after Diddy’s ex-girlfriend Casandra Ventura accused him of sexual abuse and rape during their yearslong relationship.
That complaint, filed in New York City in November 2023, was the first brought against Diddy. While it was settled just one day later, it sparked an outpouring of similar accusations against the rapper. Since then, he has been named in 11 additional suits, most of them detailing allegations of rape, sexual assault, physical abuse and drugging.
The announcement of the newest suits also came after Diddy’s arrest in NYC last month — the result of a lengthy investigation carried out by Homeland Security, which saw agents raid Diddy’s homes in L.A. and Miami in connection with drug and sex trafficking allegations.
He was taken into custody at the Park Hyatt Hotel in Midtown on Sept. 16 and has since pleaded not guilty to felony counts of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking, and transportation to engage in prostitution.
At the center of the accusations brought against Diddy are his infamous “freak off” sex parties, which allegedly involved degrading and physically abusive acts that were often recorded.
According to a federal indictment in the case, the rapper “abused, threatened and coerced women and others around him” into participating in the illicit hotel room parties.
He has repeatedly been denied bail and remains behind bars at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.
While Diddy has denied most of the allegations leveled against him, he admitted in May to assaulting Cassie after violent footage of a 2016 incident in a hotel hallway was obtained and published by CNN.
“My behavior on that video is inexcusable,” he said in a video statement posted on Instagram. “I take full responsibility for my actions in that video.”
The hotline phone number for his alleged victims is 1-800-200-7474.
from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/DbyFR9X
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