Hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs has been arrested in New York City on unspecified federal charges, according to federal authorities, as reported by CBS, the BBC’s US partner.
The arrest in Manhattan follows raids conducted in March at two of his properties in Los Angeles and Miami as part of an ongoing investigation into sex trafficking.
Marc Agnifilo, Combs’s attorney, expressed disappointment over the arrest, asserting that his client is innocent.
Combs has faced multiple allegations, including sexual assault and abuse, some of which have been made by his ex-partner, Casandra “Cassie” Ventura. He has denied all accusations.
The arrest is linked to an ongoing investigation by US Homeland Security officials, as confirmed by several law enforcement sources to CBS.
Damian Williams, the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, confirmed the arrest in a statement on Monday night.
“Earlier this evening, federal agents arrested Sean Combs, based on a sealed indictment filed by the SDNY,” the prosecutor said.
He said the office plans to unseal the indictment on Tuesday morning and we “will have more to say at that time”.
Combs faces a number of civil lawsuits, including allegations that he raped an underage girl and tried to “groom” a producer and force him to have sex with another man.
His attorney said on Monday night that Mr Combs was looking forward to “clearing his name in court”.
“We are disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe is an unjust prosecution,” Mr Agnifilo said in a written statement to the BBC.
“Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs is a music icon, self-made entrepreneur, loving family man, and proven philanthropist who has spent the last 30 years building an empire, adoring his children, and working to uplift the black community.”
The rapper’s legal troubles began in November 2023 when Ms. Casandra Ventura filed a lawsuit against him.
That same week, two other women also filed lawsuits, accusing him of abuse and assault. One of the women claimed Mr. Combs choked her until she lost consciousness.
At the time, Mr. Combs denied all allegations, and his spokesperson dismissed the lawsuits as a “money grab.”
In December, another civil lawsuit surfaced, accusing Mr. Combs and two other men of “sex trafficking” a 17-year-old girl.
In February of this year, more accusations emerged in a civil lawsuit filed by his former producer, Rodney Jones Jr., who alleged that Mr. Combs made unwanted sexual advances and attempted to “groom” him for sexual encounters with others.
Mr. Combs denied these accusations as well, but a month later, authorities raided his properties. He was detained at a Miami airport while preparing to travel to the Bahamas, where he handed over electronics to investigators.
Many of these lawsuits were filed just before the New York Adult Survivors Act expired, a law that temporarily allowed individuals to file claims of sexual abuse even after the statute of limitations had passed.
In May, CCTV footage posted by CNN appeared to show the rap mogul attacking and beating Ms Ventura, an episode that was chronicled in her civil suit.
Mr Combs – who has also gone by the names Puffy, Puff Daddy, P Diddy, Love, and Brother Love – is one of rap’s most successful moguls.