Federal investigation comes amid multiple lawsuits including singer Cassie accusing him of rape and physical abuse
The rapper and mogul Sean Combs is facing mounting legal troubles after federal agents searched his properties in Los Angeles and Miami as part of a sex-trafficking investigation.
On Monday morning, US Department of Homeland Security agents in tactical gear and armored vehicles raided two of Combs’s mansions as part of an investigation by federal authorities in New York, sources told the Associated Press.
While Combs has not been named as the target of the investigation, it follows numerous sexual assault allegations against the Bad Boy Records founder that have upended the career of one of the most prominent and enduring names in hip-hop.
In November, the singer Cassie, who dated Combs, accused him of rape and severe physical abuse spanning more than a decade. In a shocking lawsuit filled with harrowing accounts of abuse, Cassie alleged that Combs had subjected her to “a cycle of abuse, violence and sex trafficking”, forced her to have sex with male prostitutes, and used his powerful network to keep her trapped in the relationship. The pair settled one day after the lawsuit was filed.
In the months since, Combs – who has also been known as Puff Daddy, P Diddy, Diddy and Love – has faced several more lawsuits accusing him of rape, sexual assault, physical violence and revenge porn. Combs has denied all allegations and said he will “fight for my name”.
Attorney Douglas Wigdor, who represents Cassie and another woman who sued Combs, said in a statement on Monday: “Hopefully, this is the beginning of a process that will hold Mr Combs responsible for his depraved conduct.
