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JAY-Z AND SEAN ‘DIDDY’ COMBS ACCUSED IN LAWSUIT OF RAPING GIRL, 13

Jay-Z slammed the allegations and accused the attorney representing the
plaintiff of attempting to blackmail him with a “demand letter.”

Updated
December 9, 2024 at 12:41 p.m. EST45 minutes ago
7 min
564

Musician and producer Jay-Z has been accused in a lawsuit of raping a
13-year-old with hip-hop star Sean Combs in 2000, court documents show, claims
denied by Jay-Z. (Chris Delmas/AFP/Getty Images)
By Janay Kingsberry
and 
Herb Scribner

This story has been updated.

Shawn Carter, the superstar rapper and businessman professionally known as
Jay-Z, has been accused of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl alongside
embattled hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, according to an amended lawsuit
refiled on Sunday.


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The civil complaint, initially filed against Combs, 55, in the Southern District
of New York in October, now includes Carter, 55, as a co-defendant. It alleges
that the two rappers took turns sexually assaulting the plaintiff, identified
only as Jane Doe, at a private residence in 2000 where an after-party was being
held for the MTV Video Music Awards.



In a lengthy response shared Sunday night to social media pages for his
entertainment company, Roc Nation, Carter slammed the allegations as “heinous”
and “idiotic.” Carter accused Tony Buzbee, the attorney representing the
plaintiff, of attempting to blackmail him with a “demand letter.”

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“What he had calculated was the nature of these allegations and the public
scrutiny would make me want to settle. No sir, it had the opposite effect!”
Carter wrote. “These allegations are so heinous in nature that I implore you to
file a criminal complaint, not a civil one!! Whomever would commit such a crime
against a minor should be locked away, would you agree?”

In an email to The Washington Post, Buzbee said the demand letter sent to Carter
on behalf of his plaintiff never asked for money. “Instead, she only sought a
confidential mediation,” he said.

The amended lawsuit notes that Carter was initially identified as “Celebrity A”
in the original complaint and received a letter from the plaintiff’s counsel
requesting a mediation before the refiling. Carter responded by filing a
“frivolous” lawsuit, the complaint reads.

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“As far as the allegations in the complaint filed, we will let the filing speak
for itself and will litigate the facts in court, not in the media,” said Buzbee,
a personal injury lawyer who has represented several plaintiffs in sexual
lawsuits against Combs.

In response to a request for comment, a publicist for Carter directed The Post
to the rap mogul’s statement from Roc Nation. The entertainment company did not
respond to requests for additional comment. Lawyers for Carter and Combs also
did not immediately reply to requests for comment.

The lawsuit alleges that Doe was 13 years old when a friend dropped her off near
Radio City Music Hall in New York City so she could try to attend the VMAs in
2000. While she failed to gain entry to the awards show, the plaintiff claims
she was invited to an after-party by a limousine driver who told her that “Combs
liked younger girls and said she ‘fit what Diddy was looking for.’”

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Later that night, the suit alleges, the driver took Doe to the party, which was
held “at a large white residence with a gated U-shaped driveway.” Once inside,
the plaintiff said she was prompted to sign a document, which she did not read
but now believes to have been a nondisclosure agreement.

During the party, Doe said she recognized many celebrities, observed “widespread
drug use” and accepted a drink from one of the waitstaff circulating at the
event. “The drink was a reddish-yellow mixture that tasted like orange juice,
cranberry juice, and something bitter” that made her feel “woozy” and
“light-headed,” the complaint reads, so she walked to an empty bedroom to lie
down.

“Soon after, Combs entered the room, along with defendant Carter and a female
celebrity, ‘Celebrity B,’” the complaint reads. It alleges that Combs and Carter
took turns raping Doe as the female celebrity watched. When Combs later
attempted to force Doe to perform oral sex, the plaintiff claims that she fought
back, grabbed her clothes and ran out of the residence to a nearby gas station
where her father picked her up.



The amended lawsuit is among more than 30 complaints that have now been filed
against Combs and is the first to name another high-profile defendant.

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Combs, who is being held without bail in a Brooklyn jail while he awaits his May
5 trial, has repeatedly denied all accusations and pleaded not guilty to federal
charges of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy.

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Buzbee and a group of attorneys announced in October that they planned to file
at least 120 lawsuits against Combs. Buzbee said at the time that the
accusations would include other well-known public figures.

“The day will come when we will name names other than Sean Combs. And there’s a
lot of names,” Buzbee said at an Oct. 1 news conference.

“The names that we’re going to name, assuming our investigators confirm and
corroborate what we’ve been told, are names that will shock you,” he added. “I’m
talking here about not just the cowardly but complicit bystanders, that is,
those people that we know watched this behavior occur and did nothing. And I’m
talking about the people that participated, encouraged it, egged it on. They
know who they are.”

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Buzbee has previously handled high-profile cases. He represented more than a
dozen women who accused NFL quarterback Deshaun Watson of sexual assault; many
of those cases were settled. He also filed a $750 million lawsuit against rapper
Travis Scott on behalf of victims who died at Scott’s Astroworld concert in
2021. That lawsuit was later settled, too.

In November, Buzbee was accused of extortion in a lawsuit filed by an anonymous
plaintiff, who described himself as “a celebrity and public figure who resides
in Los Angeles.” The plaintiff, who was represented by the law firm Quinn
Emanuel, accused Buzbee of “shamelessly attempting to extort exorbitant sums
from him or else publicly file wildly false horrific allegations against him.”

Attorneys for the law firm did not respond to a request for comment on whether
the anonymous celebrity was Carter.



Carter and Combs have maintained a relationship over the years. They’re two of
the most prominent entertainment businessmen, with several hit records and
production credits to their names. Both Carter and Combs represent the pinnacle
of New York’s hip-hop scene.

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Jay-Z’s rap career ascended as Combs’s career blossomed in the late 1990s and
early 2000s, with Jay-Z filling the gap left after the deaths of renowned
rappers Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur.

The two collaborated on a few songs, including “Love & Life Intro” by Mary J.
Blige, a reworking of 50 Cent’s “I Get Money,” and the Diddy–Dirty Money hit
“Coming Home” featuring Skylar Grey, a song that Jay-Z helped write and produce.



Jay-Z’s wife, Beyoncé, and Combs also collaborated on the song “Summertime” in
2003. Representatives for Beyoncé did not respond to requests for comment.

Combs and Jay-Z performed at hip-hop festivals and appeared at events alongside
each other over the next 20 years. When Combs received the lifetime achievement
award at the 2022 BET awards, Jay-Z was one of the artists to commemorate him.
The duo were spotted together at DJ Khaled’s Hollywood Walk of Fame that same
year.

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The accusations against Carter were leveled a little more than two weeks before
Beyoncé’s halftime performance during an NFL Christmas Day game and before Apple
Music’s Super Bowl halftime show, produced in partnership with Roc Nation. This
year’s show will feature Kendrick Lamar.

The NFL, Roc Nation, Apple Music and Lamar’s representatives did not respond to
requests for comment about whether these accusations would affect the Super Bowl
halftime show.


THE ALLEGATIONS AGAINST SEAN ‘DIDDY’ COMBS

The charges: A grand jury indicted Sean “Diddy” Combs on charges of racketeering
conspiracy and sex trafficking. Combs has been ordered to remain in federal
custody as he awaits trial. Here’s what we know about the charges that Diddy is
facing and the full indictment document.

Lawsuits: Combs has been accused in a dozen sexual assault lawsuits, and a team
of lawyers has announced plans to file more than 100 new ones. Dawn Richard of
Danity Kane has accused him of years-long patterns of sexual assault, vindictive
and violent behavior, and sex trafficking — all of which Combs has denied.

Cassie Ventura: R&B singer Cassie Ventura accused Combs of raping, sex
trafficking and abusing her in a 2023 lawsuit that was settled quickly. Months
later, disturbing footage from 2016 emerged that showed Combs viciously
assaulting Ventura at a hotel. Combs apologized for the assault in the video,
which prompted Ventura to release a statement about domestic violence.

Raid by law enforcement: The Department of Homeland Security raided multiple
homes belonging to Combs in March as part of an investigation related to sex
trafficking.

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