Legal troubles piling up for music mogul ‘Diddy’
Fox News’ Christina Coleman reports on the latest news emerging from Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ ongoing sexual assault lawsuit.
A lawyer for Rodney Jones, the music producer who accused Sean "Diddy" Combs of sexual assault, claimed recording giant UMG Recordings and the Motown Records division "funded" the rapper's alleged sex trafficking.
"If defendants are concerned about having a salacious claim filed against them, they should not engage in salacious acts," Tyrone Blackburn wrote in a letter to the court April 9. "It was the defendant's choice to enter a general business partnership with Sean Combs, which funded his sex trafficking operation."
Blackburn's letter, obtained by Fox News Digital, was filed in response to UMG Recordings and Motown Records' bid to be removed from Jones' legal proceedings shortly after Combs' homes were raided by Homeland Security as part of a human trafficking investigation.
Sean "Diddy" Combs' Los Angeles and Miami homes were raided last month as part of a human trafficking investigation. (Jordan Strauss)
A lawyer for the recording companies argued Jones' inclusion of the labels in the lawsuit was an attempt "to fit a square peg into a round hole" in a separate letter filed with the court.
"There is zero factual basis for Mr. Blackburn’s assertion that UMG, Motown and Sir Lucian Grainge "funded" Mr. Combs’ alleged sex trafficking," attorney Donald Zakarin told Fox News Digital. "The fact that he has no knowledge whether the allegations he makes are true or false does not seem to deter Mr. Blackburn from including such allegations in the papers he files in Court."
"In fact, he has ignored that he has been told (and we have documented) that Motown Records had a short-lived distribution agreement with Love Records, Mr. Combs’ record label, and under that agreement, Motown was obligated to pay recording costs to be incurred by Love Records and to reimburse Love Records for recording costs that had already been incurred. Therefore, UMG and its executives did not 'fund' any activity of Mr. Combs other than the recording costs of one record album."
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UMG Recordings did not follow its own contract with Combs, but wanted "to rely on it to get out of being his general business partner," Blackburn claimed to Fox News Digital.
Blackburn asserted Motown Records never allocated a budget to Combs despite it being part of his contract with UMG Recordings.
"So, like I said in my letter, this contract is a ruse," he added. "It is a ruse. It is a fraud. It is a fake. Just in case some s--- like this happens, right? They have to point to something to get themselves out of trouble. They gave this man $1.3 million, if not more. And they had no oversight of the money. No oversight of what was being done."
Sean "Diddy" Combs' Los Angeles and Miami homes were raided by Homeland Security March 25. (Getty Images)
Zakarin's letter, filed April 4, sought to have the court dismiss the allegations against the label and current and former executives, including CEO Lucian Grainge. The legal team for UMG Recordings and Motown Records claimed Blackburn filed a lawsuit including "offensively false and salacious accusations" against the record labels.
"Each time that [Blackburn's] client’s assertions have been shown to be completely false, Mr. Blackburn simply discards them and substitutes new allegations, equally without any factual basis, indifferent to the human cost of the false allegations he has made," Zakarin explained to Fox News Digital.
Jones accused Combs of sexually assaulting him and forcing him to perform sex acts with prostitutes in a lawsuit originally filed in February.
This photo shows Sean "Diddy" Combs and Rodney Jones at a Thanksgiving party. (Courtesy: Southern District of New York Court)
Jones worked as a producer with Combs on his latest album, "The Love Album: Off the Grid." The music producer claimed he lived with the "I'll Be Missing You" singer for extended periods of time and accused Combs of unsolicited groping and sexual touching.
Jones has since amended his complaint to add claims that he was also sexually assaulted by Cuba Gooding Jr.
Rodney Jones, in his lawsuit against Sean "Diddy" Combs, alleged that this photograph shows him with Cuba Gooding Jr. on a yacht Combs rented and the actor allegedly making unwanted advances. (Courtesy: Southern District of New York Court)
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Jones did agree to drop former Motown CEO Ethiopia Habtemariam from his lawsuit. Habtemariam called the claim that the record label, or its executives, were involved in any of the alleged sex trafficking "vile and deeply upsetting accusations, and are completely untrue."
She also accused Jones' legal team of asking her to sign a "materially false" declaration.
A lawyer for Diddy's music company, Bad Boy Entertainment, slammed Jones' lawsuit as "pure fiction."
Sean "Diddy" Combs was seen on Star Island April 4, days after his home was raided by Homeland Security. (Romain Maurice/Mega for Fox News Digital)
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"Mr. Jones is nothing more than a con man, shamelessly looking for an easy and wholly undeserved payday," Shawn Holley told Fox News Digital in February. "We have indisputable, incontrovertible proof that his claims are complete fabrications. Our attempts to share this proof with Mr. Jones’ attorney, Tyrone Blackburn, have been ignored, as Mr. Blackburn has refused to return our calls. We look forward to addressing these ridiculous claims in court, and intend to take all appropriate action against all who are attempting to peddle them."
Diddy's personal lawyer Aaron Dyer added in a statement shared with Fox News Digital April 5: "This is just another lewd and meritless claim from Tyrone Blackburn – just like what he filed in the Rodney Jones lawsuit, which he still has not served. This complaint is filled with the same kind of manufactured lies and irrelevant facts we’ve come to expect from Blackburn."
"This is exactly why the federal judge in New York slapped him two days ago for a ‘pattern of behavior’ in ‘improperly [filing] cases in federal court to garner media attention, embarrass defendants with salacious allegations, and pressure defendants to settle quickly,’ and why he was referred to the disciplinary committee in the Southern District of New York. We will be filing a motion to dismiss this outrageous claim."
NEWARK, NEW JERSEY - SEPTEMBER 12: Diddy attends the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards at the Prudential Center on September 12, 2023 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by John Nacion/WireImage) (Getty Images)
Dyer also previously called out Homeland Security for the use of "excessive show of force" used while raiding Diddy's homes.
"Yesterday, there was a gross overuse of military-level force as search warrants were executed at Mr. Combs’ residences," a statement provided to Fox News Digital on March 26 said. "There is no excuse for the excessive show of force and 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. 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."
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