Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Loses $100m Default Judgment Over Sexual Assault Allegation
Detroit, MI – The hip-hop mogul, Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, is facing a heavy financial blow as he loses a lawsuit over a sexual assault allegation dating back to 1997.
Default Judgment Against ‘Diddy’
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs has been handed a staggering $100m default judgment in a Michigan courthouse over a sexual assault allegation that he failed to contest. According to his attorney, Marc Agnifilo, Combs denies knowing the plaintiff, Derrick Lee Cardello-Smith, and accuses him of committing “fraud on the court.” Combs is optimistic about having the judgment promptly dismissed.
The Accuser’s Background
Cardello-Smith, 51, claimed the substantial judgment after filing a lawsuit that described an encounter with Combs while he worked in the restaurant industry near Detroit in the late 1990s. Cardello-Smith alleged that he was both drugged and sexually assaulted by Combs at a party in Detroit in 1997. This assault claim forms part of a wider pattern of alleged sexual abuse and misconduct by the three-time Grammy winner.
The plaintiff, currently incarcerated, eventually pursued legal action over the alleged assault, producing information showing Combs’s name in a prison visitation log. Cardello-Smith testified that Combs even offered him $2.3m to drop the lawsuit to finalize a property sale. However, Cardello-Smith rebuffed the offer and opted to continue pursuing the case.
Failure to Appear in Court Culminates in Default Judgment
As Combs failed to appear at a virtual hearing in Cardello-Smith’s lawsuit, the judge awarded the plaintiff a $100m default judgment. When defendants fail to respond to cases brought against them, plaintiffs receive default judgments in their favor.
Not the First Legal Battle for ‘Diddy’
This is not the first time Combs has faced such allegations. Several lawsuits accusing him of rapes, sexual assaults, physical violence, and distribution of “revenge porn” have been lodged against the famous music producer. Despite initially denying every allegation and vowing to clear his name, video evidence obtained and published earlier this year contradicted Combs’ denials.
Raid by Federal Authorities
In another twist, federal authorities raided Combs’s properties in Los Angeles and Miami earlier this year in connection with a sex trafficking investigation, although no charges have been leveled against Combs to date. While the investigation is ongoing, Combs put up his property in Los Angeles for sale with an asking price of $61.5m, according to multiple media reports.
Despite the controversies surrounding his personal and professional life, Combs, also known as P Diddy, Puff Daddy, and Love, remains an influential figure in the hip hop industry and a successful businessman. However, these allegations seem to cast a long shadow over his commercial and artistic pursuits.
