▶ Watch Video: Sean “Diddy” Combs issues statement following raids at LA, Miami homes
Sean “Diddy” Combs’ homes in Los Angeles and Miami have been raided by Homeland Security Investigations agents and other law enforcement officers due to a possible ongoing sex trafficking investigation, U.S. officials confirmed Monday.
“Earlier today, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New York executed law enforcement actions as part of an ongoing investigation, with assistance from HSI Los Angeles, HSI Miami, and our local law enforcement partners,” HSI said in a statement. “We will provide further information as it becomes available.”
Investigators were still at Combs’ Miami Beach home late into the evening, CBS Miami reported. Combs was not at the Miami Beach location during the search.
Combs has faced multiple sexual assault allegations in recent months.
Two women accused the music mogul of sexual abuse in November last year, one week after he settled a separate lawsuit with the singer Cassie that contained allegations of rape and physical abuse. The women’s lawsuits were filed on the eve of the expiration of the Adult Survivors Act, a New York law permitting victims of sexual abuse a one-year window to file civil action regardless of the statute of limitations.
“We will always support law enforcement when it seeks to prosecute those that have violated the law,” Douglas Wigdor, a lawyer for Cassie, said in response to Monday’s raids. “Hopefully, this is the beginning of a process that will hold Mr. Combs responsible for his depraved conduct.”
In a statement released Tuesday, a lawyer representing Combs called the raids a “gross overuse of military-level force,” adding that there was no excuse for the “hostility exhibited by authorities or the way his children and employees were treated.”
“Mr. Combs was never detained but spoke to and cooperated with authorities. Despite media speculation, neither Mr. Combs nor any of his family members have been arrested nor has their ability to travel been restricted in any way,” the lawyer, Aaron Dyer, wrote in the statement. “This unprecedented ambush —paired with an advanced, coordinated media presence— leads to a premature rush to judgment of Mr. Combs and is nothing more than a witch hunt based on meritless accusations made in civil lawsuits. There has been no finding of criminal or civil liability with any of these allegations. Mr. Combs is innocent and will continue to fight every single day to clear his name.”
Another woman in December 2023 accused Combs and two other men of gang raping her in 2003 when she was 17 years old, according to civil court documents filed in United States District Court Southern District of New York. The woman’s lawsuit was filed under New York City’s gender-motivated violence protection law.
Last month, a male music producer filed a lawsuit claiming Combs sexually assaulted him and forced him to have sex with prostitutes.
—Nicole Sganga and Pat Milton contributed reporting.
