LOS ANGELES, March 26 — Homes belonging to Sean “Diddy” Combs were being raided by federal agents, media reported yesterday, with the US hip hop mogul at the centre of sex trafficking and sex assault lawsuits.
Armed agents from the Department of Homeland Security entered luxury properties on both East and West Coasts of the United States, with video footage showing helicopters circling overhead.
“Earlier today, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New York executed law enforcement actions as part of an ongoing investigation, with assistance from HSI Los Angeles, HSI Miami and our local law enforcement partners,” a statement carried by US media said.
The agency did not confirm the target of the raids, but multiple outlets in the Los Angeles area identified the swanky Holmby Hills residence as one associated with Combs — an artist and producer also known as Puff Daddy.
Entertainment title TMZ said it had footage of a raid on a luxury waterside property in Miami connected to Combs.
There was no immediate official confirmation about what precipitated the raids.
However, they come with legal pressure increasing on the rapper, who is facing at least four lawsuits filed against him, with allegations dating back decades.
In December a woman accused Combs of sexual assault, alleging he and others gang-raped her when she was 17.
A lawsuit said Combs and other men plied her with drugs and alcohol before violently raping her repeatedly.
Douglas Wigdor, a lawyer who represents two of the women who have accused Combs of abuse, told AFP on Monday: “We will always support law enforcement when it seeks to prosecute those that have violated the law.
“Hopefully, this is the beginning of a process that will hold Mr. Combs responsible for his depraved conduct.”
Combs has vehemently denied all accusations against him.
Combs, 54, founded the Bad Boy record label in 1993, and was a major figure in hip-hop’s commercialization over the course of the decades that followed. His proteges included the late Notorious B.I.G. and Mary J. Blige.
He is among the industry’s billionaires, not least due to his ventures in the liquor industry.
Lawsuits against him describe Combs as a violent man who used his celebrity to prey on and intimidate women. — AFP
