Rappers Jay-Z and Sean “Diddy” Combs have been accused in a civil lawsuit of raping a 13-year-old girl back in 2000.
The lawsuit, which was originally filed in October and re-filed Sunday in New York to add Jay-Z to the list of defendants, alleges that the victim, identified only as a woman now living in Alabama, was raped by both men at a Video Music Awards afterparty.
Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter, referred to the allegations in a statement as a “blackmail attempt.” Combs’ attorney denied the allegations.
The lawsuit alleges the girl went to the VMAs in New York City without a ticket hoping to get inside, but was instead invited to an afterparty by a limo driver who claimed to work for Combs. The limo driver allegedly drove her to the party, where she was told to sign something that she believes was a non-disclosure agreement, the lawsuit claims.
While inside, the lawsuit alleges, “after attempting to talk to numerous celebrities, Plaintiff accepted a drink from one of the waitresses circulating the crowd.” The lawsuit claims she began to feel “woozy and lightheaded” after drinking “a portion of the drink” and went to find a place to lie down. She went into a room that had a bed in it and, shortly after lying down, Combs, Carter and an unnamed woman celebrity whom the alleged victim recognized entered the room, the lawsuit claims.
The lawsuit then alleges that Carter held her down and raped her while Combs and the woman celebrity watched. After, Combs also raped her while Carter and the woman watched, the suit claims. Combs then attempted to force the girl to perform oral sex on him, but she managed to punch him, grab her clothes, wrap them around her and run away, according to the lawsuit.
“Although there were other guests still at the party, no one appeared to take notice of Plaintiff’s distress or attempted to help her,” the lawsuit alleges.
According to the lawsuit, after leaving the house and putting her clothes back on, the girl managed to run back to a gas station she had seen on the way to the party, where a clerk “noticed her distress and allowed her to use the phone.” She then allegedly used the phone to call her father and have him pick her up.
The woman is seeking unspecified damages.
In response to the filing, Carter said in a statement, “My lawyer received a blackmail attempt, called a demand letter, from a ‘lawyer’ named Tony Buzbee. 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!!”
“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,” the statement added.
Teny Geragos, an attorney representing Combs, said in a statement, “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. 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.”
Buzbee was sued last month by an anonymous male celebrity, who alleges the lawyer tried to extort payments by threatening to file allegations of sexual assault, which the celebrity denies. Buzbee, in return, denies the extortion allegations.
Buzbee did not immediately respond to a CBS News request for comment. On Sunday night he posted on Instagram that there has been a “coordinated and aggressive effort” against him that has included “filing frivolous cases against me and my law firm, defaming me with outrageous assertions to anyone who will listen, and having mysterious people follow me and my family.”
“People will see through this effort to discredit me and my clients and the truth will be revealed. I also won’t allow anyone to scare my clients into silence,” Buzbee wrote.
Combs is currently in custody in New York as he awaits trial on federal sex trafficking charges. His attempts to secure bail have been denied several times.
Combs was arrested in September and charged with sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and transportation to engage in prostitution, with prosecutors accusing him of using his business empire to engage in repeated abuses over the years. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
