Sean Combs Sued by Jane Doe Alleging 2004 Rape in a Manhattan Hotel

The Houston lawyer who promised a flurry of new lawsuits against Sean “Diddy” Combs filed his first complaints Monday on behalf of a Jane Doe and three John Does, who all claim they were sexually assaulted by Combs between 2004 and 2021. The lawyer, Tony Buzbee, said in a statement Monday that he plans to file a total of six new complaints this week, representing three women and three men, including someone who was 16 years old at the time of the alleged abuse.

In one of the new lawsuits filed in the Southern District of New York, a Jane Doe alleges she was a 19-year-old college student when she met Combs at a photoshoot promoting Combs’ musical act Da Band in 2004. She claims Combs invited her and a friend to an afterparty but asked them to stop by his Manhattan Marriott hotel room first. According to the 19-page complaint, someone in Combs’ entourage “suddenly grabbed” the women and isolated them in a separate room with Combs while allegedly telling them, “You know what you are here for.”

The plaintiff alleges Combs instructed the women to imbibe more drinks and cocaine that he had prepared for them on a table. “Combs continued getting gradually more aggressive with the two women and eventually began forcibly touching them without consent. When they resisted, Combs ordered Ms. Doe’s friend to perform oral sex on him or else he would have them both killed,” the lawsuit states.

The Jane Doe says Combs ignored her attempts to resist and forced her to take her clothes off under threat of violence. “Once she was undressed, Combs forced himself on her and began to sexually assault her. Combs fondled, molested, and ultimately raped Ms. Doe, all while she was begging him to stop,” the lawsuit states. According to the complaint, Combs told the plaintiff he would be leaving the room, but she had to stay alone in the dark “otherwise she would be killed.” After 30 minutes, a security guard told her she could leave, and she fled the hotel, her lawsuit states.

Reps for Combs did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent Monday.

A second lawsuit came from a John Doe, who claims that he was invited to a New York City party hosted by Combs in October 2021. After being picked up at the airport by Combs’ associates, the Georgia man claims he arrived at the industry event where he was offered ecstasy by Combs’ employees, which he refused.  

But after consuming what he believed to be only an alcoholic drink, the man claims the room began spinning and he became disoriented. “In a state of confusion, he attempted to remove himself from the situation, seeking a safe space,” the lawsuit claims. “As Plaintiff tried to leave, a male voice told him to ‘hold on,” and he promised to help him.”

Doe claims he awoke in a bedroom paralyzed, unable to “move, speak, or fight back.” “He distinctly recalls seeing Combs above him, naked, at one point during the assault,” the lawsuit claims. “During this time, Plaintiff was sodomized by at least three men.” 

The man described the night as “life-altering” and says he has continued to seek therapy to heal from the traumatic event. He is suing Combs under the Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Act for rape, aggravated sexual abuse, and assault and battery. 

The third lawsuit came from a second John Doe, who claims he was sexually assaulted by Combs at Macy’s flagship department store in Manhattan in May 2008. The man claims he worked as an advisor for Ecko Clothing — a rival to Combs’ Sean John line — and had previously met Combs on numerous occasions.

Doe — who is now based in Ohio — claims he was inside the Macy’s stockroom when Combs entered the space with three bodyguards. Doe claims he was struck in the back of the neck, falling to his knees. “Combs approached Plaintiff while Plaintiff was still on his hands and knees and said ‘Suck my dick, Ecko,’ referring to the clothing line that Plaintiff worked for,” the lawsuit claims. “Combs thereafter forced his penis into Plaintiff’s mouth and proceeded to forcefully, and brutally, orally rape Plaintiff.”

The man claims that Combs and his bodyguards made threats towards him before leaving the stockroom. Combs then proceeded to hand out Sean Jean merchandise on the Macy’s retail floor “as if nothing had happened,” the lawsuit adds. Doe claims that although he tried reporting the alleged assault to Macy’s security, nothing was ever done and he was later fired by Ecko.

The new lawsuits follow a dozen other complaints filed over the last year that allege Combs subjected people to sexual abuse during his heyday as a hip-hop mogul. Earlier this month, Buzbee held a press conference saying he was working with 120 people with a range of sexual abuse claims against Combs going back decades.

“When we talk about the ages of the victims when the conduct occurred, it’s shocking,” Buzbee said at the press conference. “Our youngest victim at the time of the occurrence was nine years old. We have an individual who was 14 years old. We have one who was 15.”

The flood of lawsuits started with the bombshell rape and sex-trafficking lawsuit filed against Combs by his ex-girlfriend Casandra “Cassie” Ventura last November. It was quickly followed by several more accusers stepping forward and a criminal investigation that led to Combs’ indictment by a grand jury last month.

Combs, 54, was arrested in Manhattan on Sept. 16  on racketeering and sex trafficking charges. In the 14-page indictment, prosecutors said Combs ran a criminal enterprise that engaged in “unlawful acts of violence including sexual violence,” interstate transportation for the purposes of prostitution, narcotics distribution, arson, bribery, kidnapping, and obstruction of justice. Prosecutors said a main function of the alleged enterprise was to “lure female victims into Combs’ orbit, often under the pretense of a romantic relationship,” and then use “force, threats of force and coercion” to make the victims engage in “elaborate and produced sex performances” that Combs called “freak offs.” The extended sex acts often involved commercial sex workers and would sometimes last multiple days, they said. Combs allegedly distributed drugs to his alleged victims to keep them “obedient and compliant,” prosecutors said.

Combs has pleaded not guilty to the charges in the indictment and was denied bail. Last week, a judge set a trial date for May.

The Jane Doe lawsuit filed early Monday included Bad Boy and Marriott as corporate defendants. Buzbee said department store giant Macy’s would be included in another lawsuit that is due to be filed. He said the alleged conduct dated back to 1995 and that the allegations qualify for revival under New York City’s Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Act.

“We will let the allegations in the filed complaints speak for themselves and will work to see that justice is done,” Buzbee said. “We expect to be filing many more cases over the next several weeks naming Mr. Combs and others as defendants as we continue to gather evidence and prepare the filings.”