Sean “Diddy” Combs’ famous friends are allegedly settling with victims outside of court to ensure they are not named in impending lawsuits, according to a Texas-based attorney representing over 100 accusers.
Tony Buzbee claimed plans are in the works to sue several celebrities who allegedly helped the musician cover up sexual abuse that occurred at his parties.
“If you were attending one of these parties, if you will, and you attended before, or you knew what was going to happen — that is, you knew that a particular drug was being used in drinks that was causing people to be coerced and taken advantage of — and you were there in the room, or you participated, or you watched it happen and didn’t say anything, or you helped cover it up, in my view, you have a problem,” Buzbee said during an appearance on TMZ Live.
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Celebrity friends of Diddy are quietly settling with victims to avoid being named in public lawsuits, according to lawyer Tony Buzbee. (Getty Images)
Buzbee is planning to take legal action against a handful of A-list celebrities on behalf of his clients, although the lawyer did not indicate who. Some celebrities have already settled, he claimed.
“In every single case, especially cases like this, we collect our data, collect our evidence, do our due diligence, spend time with the victim, and then because it’s in the best interest of the victim, we attempt to resolve these matters without the filing of a public lawsuit, and we have done that already,” Buzbee explained.
“We’ve done that with a handful of individuals, many of which you’ve heard of before, and we’ll continue to do that.”
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Sean “Diddy” Combs stands before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robyn Tarnofsky after prosecutors brought three criminal charges against him in Manhattan federal court. (REUTERS/Jane Rosenberg)
The lawyer announced the filing of a class-action suit against Combs on Oct. 1. He is representing 120 victims, some of whom were minors at the time of the alleged sexual abuse. The youngest accuser was 9 years old, with another 15-year-old alleged accuser.
Buzbee claimed the alleged abuse began as early as 1991, with reported incidents happening into 2024. Victims, who are scattered around the country in states including California, Florida, Georgia and New York, came forward after Combs was indicted by federal prosecutors.
“When we talk about the ages of the victims when the conduct occurred, it’s shocking,” Buzbee said during the press conference. “The youngest victim at the time of the occurrence was 9 years old. We have an individual who was 14 years old. We have one who was 15. Twenty-five of the 120 individuals who are plaintiffs in these cases were minors at the time of the acts complained of.”
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“In every single case, …we attempt to resolve these matters without the filing of a public lawsuit, and we have done that already. We’ve done that with a handful of individuals, many of which you’ve heard of before, and we’ll continue to do that.”
Combs’ attorney said the rapper “emphatically and categorically denies as false and defamatory any claim that he sexually abused anyone, including minors.” (Prince Williams)
Combs’ legal team denied the allegations in a statement provided to Fox News Digital.
“As Mr. Combs’ legal team has emphasized, he cannot address every meritless allegation in what has become a reckless media circus,” Combs’ attorney, Erica Wolff, stated. “That said, Mr. Combs emphatically and categorically denies as false and defamatory any claim that he sexually abused anyone, including minors. He looks forward to proving his innocence and vindicating himself in court, where the truth will be established based on evidence, not speculation.”
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Sean Combs’ lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, argued for Diddy’s release on bail following his arrest on racketeering and sex trafficking charges. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)
Combs was arrested on Sept. 16 and later charged with sex trafficking crimes. He remains behind bars after both of his attempts to be released on bail were denied.
Authorities alleged Combs ran a criminal enterprise through his businesses, including Bad Boy Entertainment, Combs Enterprises and Combs Global, among others. He used “firearms, threats of violence, coercion, and verbal, emotional, physical, and sexual abuse” to fulfill his sexual desires, according to the unsealed indictment obtained by Fox News Digital.
Combs and his employees would “intimidate, threaten, and lure female victims into Comb’s orbit, often under the pretense of a romantic relationship. Combs allegedly then used force, threats of force, and coercion, to cause victims to engage in extended sex acts with male commercial sex workers that Combs referred to as, among other things, ‘Freak Offs.'”
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Diddy’s homes were raided in March in connection to a human trafficking investigation. (Getty Images)
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If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org
