Federal agents searched two of Sean “Diddy” Combs’ houses Monday, as the rapper faces multiple civil lawsuits accusing him of sex trafficking, sexual abuse and rape—all of which he has denied.

KEY FACTS

Combs’ homes in Los Angeles and Miami were raided by Federal Homeland Security Investigations agents as part of an “ongoing investigation” that the agency did not elaborate on, though NBC News and the Associated Press reported the searches stem from a federal sǝx trafficking investigation.

Combs has not been formally charged or accused by federal prosecutors of a crime.

The rapper has faced a string of lawsuits, starting when he was sued on Nov. 16 last year by Casandra Ventura, a singer and dancer who alleged Combs rαpєd her in 2018, and subjected her to a yearslong abusive relationship that included punching, kicking and stomping on her and asserting “complete control” over her personal and professional life.

Later that month, Ventura’s $30 million lawsuit against Combs was resolved through a settlement for an undisclosed sum. In a statement to CNN, Ventura expressed her decision to resolve the matter amicably. Combs’ attorney clarified that the settlement did not imply any acknowledgment of guilt on his client’s part and maintained his denial of the accusations.

Later in November, a woman named Joie Dickerson-Neal alleged in a lawsuit Combs drugged her, ѕєχυαℓℓу αѕѕαυℓтє∂ her and secretly recorded the assault while she was a college student in 1991.

In November, an anonymous plaintiff lodged accusations against Combs and singer-songwriter Aaron Hall, alleging яαρє of her and a friend in 1990 or 1991. The incident purportedly occurred after they met at an MCA Records event in New York. This lawsuit, akin to the Dickerson-Neal complaint, was filed just before the expiration of a New York law that temporarily permitted lawsuits for older assault allegations, which would otherwise be barred by the statute of limitations.

Combs was hit with another ѕєχυαℓ assault suit in December, accusing the rapper of druggíng and participating in a gang rαpє of the unnamed accuser in 2003, when the accuser was 17 years old.

The most recent lawsuit against Combs was filed last month by producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones, who sued the rapper in New York and alleged he was “subjected to unwanted advances by associates of Diddy at his direction” and was forced to engage in relations with s3x workers he hired.

Jones’ lawsuit claims that Combs frequently organized “s3x-trafficking parties” involving underage women and illegal drugs, which garnered significant media attention. The lawsuit further suggests that record label executives turned a blind eye to these activities, benefiting financially from their association with celebrities and dignitaries, such as British royal Prince Harry. It’s important to note that Prince Harry is not implicated in any wrongdoing or accused of attending these parties himself. Combs’ attorney refuted the allegations, stating to the Los Angeles Times that the lawsuit contains “reckless name-dropping about events that are pure fiction and simply did not occur.”

CONTRA

Combs, 54, has denied all of the allegations against him, with his attorneys characterizing some of the lawsuits and their accusations to Forbes as money grabs, “baseless” or “sickening.” Combs has not been criminally charged.

TANGENT

Combs’ former personal chef, Cindy Rueda, accused Combs in a since-settled 2017 ѕєχυαℓ harassment lawsuit of having her prepare and serve food to the rapper and his guests while they were engaged in ѕєχυαℓ activity or right after they had done so.

KEY BACKGROUND

The allegations contained in lawsuits against Combs date as far back as the 1990s, when he founded his own record label, Bad Boy Records. The searches into the rapper’s homes occurred Monday afternoon. The Los Angeles search was conducted in Holmby Hills, an affluent neighborhood where Combs purchased a home for $40 million ten years ago. It is unclear what the next step in the investigation is, or whether charges will be filed.