JAY-Z has been implicated in one of Sean “Diddy” Combs legal battles, which now also accuses HOV off sexual assault that dates back to a 2000 MTV VMAs after-party.
The lawsuit, which was initially filed by anonymous accuser “Jane Doe” in October, was refiled in New York on Sunday, December 8. Ahead of the amendment, the lawsuit stated Combs raped the minor while "Celebrity A" and "Celebrity B" watched. JAY-Z, whose full name is Shawn Carter, was named as "Celebrity A" in the refiled lawsuit, which included additional allegations that she was also assaulted by JAY at the same party.
The woman, who is identified as a Jane Doe, says she was 13 years old at the time she was allegedly assaulted by Combs and Carter at the VMAs after-party back in 2000. According to the amended lawsuit, the woman began to feel woozy after consuming a drink at the party and wandered into a nearby bedroom. Alleging Carter raped her first, followed by Combs, she says she hit Combs and ran out of the party.
Carter, the first celebrity to be accused of sexual assault in connection to Combs, denied the allegations and went on to accuse Doe’s lawyer, Tony Buzzbee, of blackmail.
In a statement made through his Roc Nation banner, JAY conveyed — "My lawyer received a blackmail attempt, called a demand letter, from a ‘lawyer’ named Tony Buzbee," JAY-Z shared. "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! It made me want to expose you for the fraud you are in a VERY public fashion. So no, I will not give you ONE RED PENNY!!”
He continued, “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 not agree? These alleged victims would deserve real justice if that were the case.”
Also noting, “This lawyer, who I have done a bit of research on, seems to have a pattern of these type of theatrics!” Going on to state that his “only heartbreak” is for his family, JAY revealed, “My wife and I will have to sit our children down, one of whom is at the age where her friends will surely see the press and ask questions about the nature of these claims, and explain the cruelty and greed of people. I mourn yet another loss of innocence. Children should not have to endure such at their young age.”
“You have made a terrible error in judgment thinking that all ‘celebrities’ are the same. I’m not from your moral world. I’m a young man who made it out of the project of Brooklyn,” Carter wrote in his closing paragraph. “We don’t play these types of games. We have very strict codes and honor. We protect children, you seem to exploit people for personal gain. Only your network of conspiracy theorists, fake physics, will believe the idiotic claims you have levied against me that, if not for the seriousness surrounding harm to kids, would be laughable.”
Read his response in full below.
Taking to social media to share what has since transpired after JAY’s statement, Buzbee responded, “Mr. Carter previously denied being the one who sued me and my firm. He filed his frivolous case under a pseudonym. What he fails to say in his recent statement is my firm sent his lawyer a demand letter on behalf of an alleged victim and that victim never demanded a penny from him. Instead, she only sought a confidential mediation. Since I sent the letter on her behalf, Mr. Carter has not only sued me, but he has tried to bully and harass me and this plaintiff. His conduct has had the opposite impact. She is emboldened. I’m very proud of her resolve.”
Diddy, who was indicted in September on charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, and prostitution related charges, has once again denied the allegations, after pleaded not guilty to the initial charges and denying all wrongdoing in approximately 30 other civil lawsuits that have been filed against him.
In a newly released statement, Diddy’s reps shared, “This amended complaint and the recent extortion lawsuit against Mr. Buzbee exposes his barrage of lawsuits against Mr. Combs for what they are: shameless publicity stunts, designed to extract payments from celebrities who fear having lies spread about them, just as lies have been spread about Mr. Combs."
They continued, "As his legal team has said before, Mr. Combs has full confidence in the facts and the integrity of the judicial process. In court, the truth will prevail: that Mr. Combs never sexually assaulted or trafficked anyone—man or woman, adult or minor."
Denied bail by two different judges since his September 16 arrest, Combs will remain incarcerated at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York until his trial on May 5, 2025, and could face life in jail if convicted of the racketeering charge alone.