Sean "Diddy" Combs' bid for a gag order, intended to quell the purported dissemination of sensitive information by governmental entities, has hit a roadblock, as a judge has turned down his request. This move stems from accusations by Diddy's team that the government illegally leaked a 2016 hotel surveillance video depicting him assaulting his former lover, Cassandra "Cassie" Ventura.
Diddy's legal squad sought the gag order, contending that the leakage was orchestrated to tarnish the embattled rapper's reputation and undermine his attempts to vigorously defend himself against the allegations. The rapper behind the hit "Finna Get Loose" has now witnessed his attempt to muzzle the government in the midst of his sex crime charges crumble into dust.
Currently, Diddy finds himself incarcerated at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, awaiting trial on charges of sex trafficking, racketeering, and facilitating prostitution. According to Page Six, New York Judge Arun Subramanian rejected Diddy's plea but emphasized that all parties involved must adhere to the laws prohibiting the leakage of grand jury proceedings, which could compromise a fair trial.
The court documents clarified, "It bears repeating that this order isn't predicated on any findings of wrongdoing as of now, as the Court has yet to make any such determinations concerning the defendant's allegations of information leakage. The essence of this order is to safeguard a fair trial from any potential interference from this point onward."
This ruling comes amidst Diddy's team's accusations that the government had leaked the 2016 hotel surveillance footage showing him striking, kicking, and stomping on his ex-girlfriend Cassie. Court papers revealed that his lawyers alleged that government agents handed the video to CNN in May, aiming to "irrevocably tarnish Sean Combs' reputation and diminish his chances of successfully defending himself against these accusations."
"Rather than utilizing the videotape as trial evidence, alongside other contextualizing evidence, the agents abused it in the most prejudicial and damaging manner conceivable," they further lamented, as reported by Page Six.
In the video footage, Diddy, draped in a pristine white towel, could be vividly seen sprinting down the narrow alleyway adjacent to the InterContinental Hotel in Century City, California, in hot pursuit of Cassie, his on-and-off lover spanning from 2007 to 2018. The rapper then escalated the altercation by kicking, striking, and physically dragging the singer.
Concurrently, federal agents have emphatically denied any involvement in leaking the footage to CNN. In a formal letter addressed to the presiding judge, they insisted, "The Government did not possess the video prior to its publication by CNN." The letter further elaborated, "Hence, there exists no credible factual foundation for the defendant's assertion that the Government disclosed the video to CNN, especially in contravention of grand jury secrecy."
Since his arrest on September 16 outside the Park Hyatt Hotel in Manhattan, New York, Diddy has faced a surge of sexual assault lawsuits. A recent suit was filed by an anonymized individual known as Jane Doe, who accused the rapper of raping her and threatening her life when she was just 19 years old.
According to US Weekly, the alleged victim recounted that during her college days in Brooklyn, New York, she received an exhilarating invitation from Diddy, alongside her roommate, to participate in a photo shoot. She enthusiastically shared in her filing, "I was flattered and excited to receive an invitation from someone of Combs' celebrity and stature."
Following the photo shoot, which promoted Da Band, a musical group signed under Diddy's Bad Boy Entertainment Record Label, Doe and her roommate were invited to an afterparty. Just before departing, Diddy allegedly beckoned them to his Marriott Hotel suite for an "even more exclusive party."
Upon arriving at the suite, where guests were purportedly "sipping drinks and grooving to music," Doe claimed that she and her fellow student were abruptly seized and escorted into a separate room. She inquired about their destination with the man who had grasped her arm, but he curtly responded, "You know what you are here for," and ushered them into a room, locking the door behind them.
Doe recalled being left alone with Diddy and her friend in the room, where the rapper allegedly "instructed" them to indulge in drugs and consume more beverages. "Combs progressively became more aggressive towards the two women, eventually initiating unwanted physical contact without consent," Doe alleged. She further claimed that when they resisted, Diddy "ordered" her friend to "perform oral sex on him, threatening to kill them both if she refused."
Doe contends that even after her friend "complied," Diddy threatened her with violence, commanding her to undress. He then "forced himself upon her and embarked on sexually assaulting her," Doe alleged. The lawsuit asserts that he "fondled, molested, and ultimately raped Ms. Doe, all while she pleaded for him to halt."
She is seeking "compensatory damages" from the court, citing "physical injuries, emotional distress," as well as "psychological trauma, anxiety, humiliation, and profound physical and emotional pain and suffering" sustained throughout the ordeal, which she hopes to address during the trial.
