Law&Crime Sidebar - 9 Disturbing New P. Diddy Claims in Male Exotic Dancer’s Lawsuit

Episode Date: February 9, 2025

Another John Doe has come forward to accuse Sean “Diddy” Combs of sexual abuse. The latest lawsuit, filed on behalf of a male dancer, accuses the music mogul of sex trafficking him for five years. Law&Crime’s Jesse Weber combed through the latest legal filings.PLEASE SUPPORT THE SHOW: If you or a loved one have suffered physical or mental health issues due to video games, visit https://vgclaims.com/Sidebar to answer less than 10 questions and check your eligibility to file a claim!HOST:Jesse Weber: https://twitter.com/jessecordweberLAW&CRIME SIDEBAR PRODUCTION:YouTube Management - Bobby SzokeVideo Editing - Michael Deininger, Christina O'Shea & Christina FalconeScript Writing & Producing - Savannah Williamson & Juliana BattagliaGuest Booking - Alyssa Fisher & Diane KayeSocial Media Management - Vanessa BeinSTAY UP-TO-DATE WITH THE LAW&CRIME NETWORK:Watch Law&Crime Network on YouTubeTV: https://bit.ly/3td2e3yWhere To Watch Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3akxLK5Sign Up For Law&Crime's Daily Newsletter: https://bit.ly/LawandCrimeNewsletterRead Fascinating Articles From Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3td2IqoLAW&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrime/Twitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lawandcrimeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can binge all episodes of this Law and Crimes series ad-free right now. Join Wondry Plus in the Wondery app Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Agent Nate Russo returns in Oracle 3, Murder at the Grandview, the latest installment of the gripping Audible Original series. When a reunion at an abandoned island hotel turns deadly, Russo must untangle accident from murder. But beware, something sinister lurks in the grand. View Shadows. Joshua Jackson delivers a bone-chilling performance in this supernatural thriller that will

keep you on the edge of your seat. Don't let your fears take hold of you as you dive into this addictive series. Love thrillers with a paranormal twist? The entire Oracle trilogy is available on Audible. Listen now on Audible. A male dancer claims that Sean Combs sex trafficked and abused him for years. In this brand new lawsuit, if you thought you heard all the allegations against Diddy, wait to you hear what's being claim now. We are going to do a full breakdown of this complaint. Welcome to Sidebar, presented by Law and Crime. I'm Jesse Weber. We have another Sean Diddy Combs lawsuit that we're going to be breaking down for you right now. So this one was filed yesterday in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. That is where we have seen a lot of

these lawsuits filed against the rapper and music mogul. This is where he's currently facing criminal charges of racketeering, sex trafficking, prostitution charges. And there is something interesting to note about this case. And that is who filed it. Let's start there. So the lawyer representing this plaintiff here is Lisa Bloom. Lisa Bloom is the daughter of famed women's rights attorney Gloria Allred. And Allred is reportedly representing other Sean Combs accusers, including Talia Graves. We've talked about this before here on Sidebar, Graves. Had sued Sean Combs last year, also in the Southern District, she alleges that back in 2001 at 25 years old, she was lured into the bad boy record studio in New York City, was possibly drugged, and then Combs and his bodyguard,

she claims Joseph Sherman viciously raped her. That's her allegation. And she claims that she has never psychologically recovered from this alleged attack. And by the way, Graves and all read, they held a press conference when this suit was filed. pain after being sexually assaulted has been incredibly deep and hard to put into words. It goes beyond just physical harm caused by and during the assault. But going back to Lisa Bloom here, just an interesting connection there because she is now representing this unnamed John Doe in this new lawsuit again, Sean Combs. And in fact, in a statement to USA Today, Lisa Bloom said, I am very proud to represent my brave client

in this new case, we will not rest until we get justice for him. But justice for what? What is he alleging? Okay, let's discuss it. And I warn you right now, this is not an easy one to hear. And by the way, not entirely clear if he's going to be permitted to remain anonymous throughout this case, we've seen this in other cases where Jane Does have had to reveal their identities by the court in actions against Sean Combs, that unless there is a specific, overwhelming reason other than just embarrassment or public scrutiny, that unless the anonymous plaintiff can show they will suffer real harm and there's a real danger and that this can be documented, what we've seen recently is the court saying the balance of interest are being weighed in favor of having

open and transparent proceedings. And a defendant has a right to know who is suing them. So we'll see. Now, John Doe has filed a lawsuit against Combs, bad boy entertainment, bad records, bad boy productions, bad boy books, and other unnamed corporations and people. And we'll talk about the corporate defendants a little bit later, but the lawsuit begins, quote, defendant Sean Combs, a prominent entertainment mogul, exploited his power to sexually, physically, and psychologically abused plaintiff over more than five harrowing years. Combs caused plaintiff's life to spiral into a living nightmare. Hey guys, real quick, you might want to listen up to this.

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By the way, as I've said before in other lawsuit breakdowns, even though claims and allegations are similar, we don't know if the plaintiffs, the people suing like John Doe will play a role in Combs' criminal trial scheduled for this May. although there's an overlap, although there's similar allegations, we don't know if they're going to be witnesses in that case. We can maybe take educated guesses, but we don't know for sure. And also with federal cases, we may not know the exact alleged victims or witnesses at that trial until much later, until closer to the trial. So we'll see. And also, let me be clear about something else, too. Sean Combs and his attorneys, they have adamantly denied all of the sexual assault and criminal allegations against him. And it appears he is looking forward to his day in court to what

he has claimed is to prove his innocence. And remember, he has not been found liable in these lawsuits. He's not been found guilty in connection with the criminal allegations. Currently, he is innocent until proven guilty. And by the way, I'll also tell you, Combs' legal team recently said in a statement, no matter how many lawsuits are filed, it won't change the fact that Mr. Combs has never sexually assaulted or sex trafficked anyone, man or woman, adult or minor. We live in a world where anyone can file a lawsuit for any reason. Fortunately, a fair and impartial judicial process exists to find the truth, and Mr. Combs is confident he will prevail in court. Okay, so with all of that in mind, let's continue with the lawsuit. The lawsuit reads, quote, plaintiff was at all relevant

times, a Las Vegas-based entertainer who aspired to become a musician. Knowing that plaintiff desperately sought a breakthrough in the music industry, Combs enticed plaintiff with fraudulent promises of a career in the music industry. Combs used his false promises of career and advancement as weapons, trapping plaintiff in a vortex of exploitation and fear. Combs did not follow through with these promises. Instead, Combs subjected plaintiff to a relentless pattern of drugging, sexual assaults, death threats, clandestine recording, blackmail, and psychological manipulation that far exceeded any bounds of consent or professionalism. So very similar allegation. to what is leveled in Combs' criminal indictment and other lawsuits as well.

This lawsuit continues, quote, Combs dehumanized plaintiff and reduced him to a mere object for Combs' own amusement and to satisfy his own sexual fetishes. Combs' gravely exploited plaintiff, effectively imprisoning him and controlling him through surreptitious surveillance and filming. Combs' recordings were not just blatant invasions of plaintiff's privacy, but he wielded them as tools of blackmail, forcing plaintiff to continuously complains. with his perverse sexual demands.

Combs covertly drug plaintiff to strip plaintiff of his ability to resist his sexual demands. Bad Boy Entertainment, Combs production company, facilitated Combs calculated abuse and played a significant part in Combs' ruthless scheme to exploit plaintiff. So we'll get to the corporate defendants a little bit later. But the reason this is being filed in federal court in New York is because the plaintiff, John Doe, claims that there are violations of the federal sex trafficking and forced labor statutes, and he claims that a substantial part of the events of this case took place in this district. So now I want to get into the main allegations. Again, trigger warning, this is bad. So John Doe claims that back in 2007, he was recognized as one of the premier performers in the Las Vegas adult entertainment scene, and that

he worked with agencies to help book them for different things. And he says both he and his clients, use pseudonyms and he wouldn't know the identity of his clients until meeting up with them. But now he claims that around this time, again 2007, in and around 2007, he was booked to perform a strip show in a hotel room in Las Vegas. And he didn't know until arriving that that day, his client would be Sean Combs. And he claims when he showed up, the rapper gave him a full body pat down. John Doe proceeded to dance. He proceeded to strip. And then Combs' paid him $1,500. And it must have gone well because according to John Doe, he says in the following months, Combs booked him at two more times in Las Vegas. And he also says that each time

he showed up, he didn't know it was going to be Combs until he got there. And that each time Combs had a different woman with him. A little side note here. If this was done through agencies, you do have to wonder if they have any form of invoices or receipts or some form of documentation, to prove these engagements took place and to back up John Doe's story, although would this documentation even say it was Combs? No, because according to John Doe, it was all anonymous, but if he could say, look, I remember in or around these dates and they have receipts of in or around those dates, that could be something.

Also, by the way, as we go through this, one more thing struck me, in Sean Combs' recent amended indictment that we covered here on Sidebar, the prosecutors say his alleged criminal enterprise in that case, it now goes back to 2004. And they expanded alleged criminal activities that make up sex trafficking and racketeering from just the freak-offs, which we've talked about extensively, to more generally the way they've described it was commercial sex acts, including with male sex workers. And now there are at least three alleged victims in the criminal case who are part of the charge of transportation to engage in prostitution. So all of this to say, Again, we don't know for sure if John Doe here is potentially a part of the criminal case,

but based on his allegations, based on, you know, a five-year time span. He's talking about from 2007 to 2012. It matches up with what we're hearing in the criminal case. So could he potentially be a witness to all this? It's consistent. We don't know. We shall see. Moving on.

The complaint reads, on these additional engagements through plaintiff's agencies, Combs offered plaintiff beverages, which plaintiff consumed. Combs also asked plaintiff to apply baby oil to plaintiff's skin during the performances, which plaintiff did. After applying the baby oil, plaintiff became unusually sleepy, disoriented, confused, exhausted, drowsy, weak, sluggish, numb, an alarm by the sensation of being trapped in his own body. Plaintiff felt a heavy sensation behind his eyes and felt that moving his body became more difficult and exhausting. So first of all, baby oil, lubricant, very reminiscent of what's, being alleged in Sean Combs' criminal case and other lawsuits as well about potential drugging.

But also the baby oil. This is important. I remember in another lawsuit filed by a different John Doe from last year, there was a claim in that case that Combs had laced baby oil with the date rape drug, GHB. Now, this complaint continues. While plaintiff was in this disoriented state, Combs instructed him to perform acts that were outside the scope of the agreed upon performance, and limitations set by plaintiff and his agency. Combs instructed plaintiff to engage in acts such as pleasuring himself while Combs and the women engaged in sexual intercourse. Plaintiff left in an incapacitated state after applying the baby oil to his skin, found himself

mentally and physically unable to resist or expressed his discomfort, leading to his unwilling compliance with Combs' demands, essentially meaning he didn't consent to any of this. Once the intoxicating effects of the substances have subsided, plaintiff felt a deep sense sense of humiliation and shame for being coerced into such acts. Obviously, this is horrific. This is disturbing. However, a defense argument would be you file this lawsuit in February of 2025. How come you come forward now? How come you allowed this to happen to you for five years? We'll get to that part too. But the counter argument would be this really did happen to me. and my experience, it just happens to be consistent and the same pattern as alleged by other

alleged victims and other lawsuits. Now, going back to the suit, the story does not end there. So John Doe claims that around the third time he was booked by Combs, Combs allegedly asked John Doe to stop working with the agencies and work for him directly. But John Doe claims he told Combs he was having financial troubles and then he needed the agency work, but that his real hope was to become a musical artist. And that is where things take another turn, according to him. Quote, upon learning that plaintiff was an aspiring musician, Combs offered to listen to plaintiff's music and expressed a willingness to help him advance his music career. Combs made statements such as, I can make you a millionaire overnight, and I can change your

life in a second. Combs specified that he would give plaintiff a million dollars for each song plaintiff wrote for him. So John Doe claims he was, not surprisingly, excited for what could be a quote, tremendous opportunity, gave Combs his phone number. Now again, it's interesting that if you take this timeline is true after everything that Combs allegedly did to him to now get even closer to him. Again, that could be a problem for this case, but we continue. But from there, John Doe claims that Combs invited to meet several times offering to listen to John Doe's music, traveling to Las Vegas, New York City, L.A., Miami. And he said that Combs paid for

and arranged travel in hotels through bad boy records, by the way, important because if you're talking about sex trafficking, it seems to be suggesting that he's using company resources to move someone across state lines to sexually abuse. We'll get to that in a minute. But he says that Combs would pat him down,

take his phone, and then this is really crazy. So he claims that Sean Combs had a gun on him, either on him or somewhere in the room. And John Doe said that this made him afraid. So if you're talking about sex trafficking, forcing someone through threats, force, fraud, coercion to engage in commercial sex acts, having a gun or a weapon nearby, that can be a key piece of evidence. But here's again, I have to emphasize this.

A counter argument would be, why did you keep coming back? If you claim that Combs drugged you, you see him with a gun. now, you should have stopped meeting him, right? How are you a credible witness? The idea would be dangling opportunities, his power, his influence, that can all be a level of control and manipulation in sex trafficking cases. Keep that in mind. Let's continue. John Doe claims, essentially, that Combs faked his actual interest in his musical talent and made these apparent promises of helping his career and how he could change lives, even saying how John Doe could be his manager, again, dangling opportunities, dangling promises.

This is something that was very consistent in other sex trafficking claims against Sean Combs. But according to him, all of this wasn't real. According to him, Sean Combs wasn't interested. According to John Doe, Combs would quickly move the conversation to, hey, perform a strip show for me. And John Doe claims Combs even said things like, aren't we friends now? And according to John Doe, he claims during these strip shows, and I'm sorry to get into this,

that men and or women would be present. He was required to get undressed. That Combs would allegedly barricade everybody in the room while all of this was going on. Again, he claims Combs had a gun with him, meaning he felt trapped and in fear. He again says he was forced to apply baby oil to his own body. He would feel drowsy, lethargic, weak, numb.

He claims he even stumbled over furniture. He was disoriented. He claims Combs would keep pushing the baby oil on him, saying things like, you're getting a little dull, rub some more baby oil on yourself. And John Doe alleges that if he didn't do this, Combs would become angry. He even allegedly squirted the baby oil on him. And he says that Combs forced him to drink unknown substances and take pills,

even allegedly sipped Viagra into his drink. All incredibly disturbing allegations. And then there's this. John Doe claims that while he was in this drowsy and confused state, John Doe claims, and this is very important for the sex trafficking component, very important if we're talking about his possible participation in the criminal case, that Combs ordered him to pleasure himself and engage in sexual activities with the women. And I'm sorry to get graphic here, but he alleges that Combs literally groped his genitals,

his private area, including literally physically forcing him to have sex. I'm not going to get more specific here. If you want to read the complaint, you can. But I will say this. John Doe even alleges that Combs got up close and personal as the sexual encounters were happening to make sure that John Doe and a woman were, in fact, engaging in sex, that he got up close and personal, that he directed these sex acts. I mean, he got very, very specific.

And he said these encounters lasted a long time, sometimes more than 18 hours at a time. Remember the allegation talking about freakoffs. These were prolonged sexual episodes. So now John Doe claims that he tried to say, hey, look, this is not my job. I strip, I dance. I don't want to engage in sex acts. But again, he said if he didn't do what Combs wanted, if he didn't drink what Combs gave him, if he didn't apply the baby oil, Combs became enraged.

He threw things. He threw his fists at John Doe. And he alleges that he believes that he was raped by Combs. and he doesn't quite remember what happened because he would wake up allegedly in this disoriented state after being what he thinks drugged, but he believes he was raped. And this is also interesting when we're talking about sex trafficking and the other claims in this lawsuit. He claims that many times he was consistently underpaid by Combs, but on the occasions when he woke up thinking that he was raped by Combs, he claims he was paid a substantially larger amount of money. But this takes another turn. John Doe also claims that he discovered a hidden camera and that Combs admitted to him that he

recorded him engaging in sexual activity and threatened to release the tapes if John Doe didn't do what he wanted, that Combs allegedly made statements such as, I can change your life in a second and make you a millionaire overnight, but I have means and ways of taking care of things. He also alleged that Combs threatened him on other occasions, saying things like, I can make you disappear and things aren't going to get better for you. And he said that this pattern happened for the next several years where Combs or his associates, that's why you're seeing other unnamed people being sued in this lawsuit, that they would schedule these meetings. And

these meetings would often coincide with Combs' appearances at major events like performances, presentations, award shows. And John Doe essentially claims that he felt like he had no choice, even feeling like he was forced to send photos of his privates to Sean Combs. So, when you're seeing the allegation that Sean Combs had other people and using his businesses to engage in what is essentially a legal conduct or allegedly illegal conduct, again, that goes into that whole racketeering case as part of the criminal case. But again, we do not know if John Doe is a part of that criminal case, but just keeping that in mind.

Now, this is how according to John Doe, the relationship ended between him and Sean Combs. Quote, in around 2010, after years of Combs instilling fear and plaintiff, misleading plaintiff, and manipulating him with promises that never materialized, it finally became clear to plaintiff that Combs had no intention of supporting plaintiff's career. At this point, plaintiff realized he needed to find a way to escape Combs' manipulation and abuse. During the next two years, plaintiff made repeated attempts to distance himself from Combs. Each time they spoke on the phone, plaintiff experienced intense anxiety with his heart racing, yet Combs refused to accept no for an answer.

Combs used threats to exert control, warning plaintiff, you're not loyal. Who are you going to tell about all of this? Don't forget, I have tapes of you. Plaintiff found himself trapped in an abusive cycle from which he felt he could not escape. Plaintiff's last encounter with Combs was in or around November 2012, close to the time that plaintiff got married. Plaintiff hoped that his marriage would serve as a boundary that Combs would respect. Yet, Combs continued to call persistently for months, pressuring plaintiff to return.

John Doe claims he wanted to come forward about all of this sooner, but he was very scared that he and his family would be harmed. an important part in any litigation where someone is claiming that they were abused years prior is, why didn't you come forward sooner? So that's a question that plaintiff will face. But John Doe explains in this complaint that when Cassie Ventura, Sean Combs' ex-girlfriend, filed that initial lawsuit back in November of 2023, and then you saw all of these other lawsuits follow, that's when, according to John Doe, quote, he gathered the courage to begin searching for legal representation, but he continued to fear the consequences of bringing him. his own lawsuit against Combs. And then listen to this. He claims on October 3rd,

2024, so this is after Combs was arrested in New York and indicted on federal charges. John Doe claims, quote, an individual representing Combs reached out to plaintiff to insist on an in-person meeting, further intensifying plaintiff's fear for his safety. But Combs' recent arrest and the subsequent denials of his bail applications provided plaintiff with a small measure of comfort and protection, conferring on him newfound confidence that Combs, would remain incarcerated and thus be less likely to release the videotapes or otherwise harm him. By the way, that argument, as we've already seen, is why you're seeing a lot more lawsuits coming out against Sean Combs after his arrest, his indictment, after he had been denied bail,

that people feel safe to come forward. Again, these are allegations. They're not true. These are allegations. We'll have to see if they can be proven. But again, this can be used as a justification for why they are filing their lawsuits now. It's at least an argument that will be put forward. Now, also I have to say that this last part about someone allegedly reaching out to him is interesting, considering prosecutors have alleged that Combs and his associates may have been reaching out to potential witnesses and alleged victims. So again, is he cooperating? We don't know, but interesting to say the least. In terms of damages, what he suffered, he says he believes that he suffered pneumonia, that he coughed up blood because of the alleged drugs that he was given by Combs, that he suffered severe emotional and psychological trauma. And this whole situation, he claims torpedoed his dreams and music that he no longer has the love for it because of what Sean Combs allegedly did to him. Legal point there, that becomes very important in a damages analysis, lost opportunity, lost wages. So now I want to get to the causes of action. What's he suing for? So first, we have violation of the New York victims of Gender Motivated Violence Protection

Act, which provides a look-back window for victims of abuse to sue. He argues that the alleged assault, the physical assault, the threats and false imprisonment are all crimes of violence that were motivated because he is a man, particularly Combs allegedly groping his genitals. By the way, this cause of action, the other ones, they're not only against Combs, but they're against the corporate entities too. So the idea being that they enabled or facilitated Sean Combs, their owners alleged bad behavior, that they benefited by keeping Sean Combs happy and satisfied. That's how you go after the corporate entities. Second cause. of action, the federal statute of forced labor, namely being forced to perform this sexual

activity through threats and coercion. Third, violation of a New York state human trafficking law. So that's essentially forcing John Doe to engage in labor by causing him to believe he would be injured or killed, throwing the objects, the threats, the gun that can all be used here. It can also be forced labor out of fear that a secret will be revealed. So you have to imagine the alleged videotapes of the sexual activity plays a part here. Fourth is the federal sex trafficking statute. The idea here is that Sean Combs, you know, an international superstar, enticed John Doe into believing that he would help his career, made him false promises, but only really used aggression, threats, and intimidation to force John Doe to engage in sex acts for money, i.e. commercial sex acts.

See, that's the same thing on the federal criminal level in the Sean Combs criminal case, that idea there. Fifth is a California human trafficking law, which reads defendant Sean Combs perpetrated human trafficking of plaintiff by depriving or violating his personal liberty with the intent to obtain forced labor. By the way, there's also some discussion in there about the statute of limitations and a response to any argument that the claim is time barred. John Doe makes the argument that you have to suspend the running of the statute of limitations because essentially he claims he didn't realize what exactly happened to him until much later on, particularly because he claims he was traumatized. The sixth cause of action, you have sexual battery under

California law, so that's Combs allegedly grabbing John Doe's genitals, raping him. Seventh is assault under New York law, which is when Combs allegedly put John Doe in reasonable fear of suffering or harm. Eighth is battery, sexual battery under New York law, so that's the alleged unwanted touching. Ninth is sexual battery under Nevada law, so that's Combs allegedly repeated. touching John Doe's genitals without consent. 10th is false imprisonment for allegedly trapping John Doe in hotel rooms for hours at a time. The 11th cause of action is false imprisonment under California law, similar to New York. 12th is intentional infliction of emotional distress under both California and New York law.

The allegation being that all of Combs' conduct that I described before was extreme and outrageous and that Combs knew or should have known that what he was allegedly doing would cause significant emotional harm to John Doe. The 13th cause of action is invasion of privacy under California law, so that pertains through the alleged secret recordings of John Doe engaging in sexual activity. 14 is an intrusion claim under New York, basically the same thing as invasion of privacy. The 15th is breach of contract. So that allegation is that Combs and John Doe agreed that John Doe would perform.

services for a specified hourly rate, but Combs refused to pay him the full number, the full number of hours that John Doe worked. 16 is something called Quantum Meruit, going back to my law school days with that term, and unjust enrichment. Basic idea here is that for five years, John Doe provided entertainment services to Sean Combs. Sean Combs accepted this benefit retained it, but didn't pay the full amount due. So John Doe is looking for all sorts of damages, attorneys fees, costs, so forth.

requesting a jury trial. And look, this is an incredibly disturbing lawsuit, particularly if you read some of the graphic details that I didn't get into. But the main questions become, was this consensual? How can he prove these events occurred? If there are videotapes and that could be discovered during the course of this litigation, will it corroborate what he says happened to him? Will you see that level of force and coercion? Will you see a gun? Will you be able to see that John Doe had no idea that he was being filmed. Obviously, this will all come down to his testimony. But what about the other alleged participants?

Will they be required to testify as well? We shall see. That's all we have for you right now here on Sidebar, everybody. Thank you so much for joining us. And as always, please subscribe on YouTube, Apple Podcast, Spotify, wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Jesse Weber. I'll speak to you next time.

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