Diddy is currently in the custody of federal agents after being arrested as part of a grand jury indictment in New York City today.
Diddy Arrested Following Grand Jury Indictment
On Monday evening (Sept. 16), The New York Times published a report that Diddy was arrested in Manhattan that same evening after a grand jury indicted him following nearly a year of sexual assault allegations. The news was confirmed by “a person familiar with the indictment who was not authorized to speak publicly.”
The charges in the indictment have not been revealed. TMZ reported that Homeland Security apprehended Diddy at a midtown hotel late Monday where he was staying. He was reportedly arrested and taken to the FBI Field Office in Manhattan. The federal takedown is reportedly tied to the alleged sex trafficking investigation against Diddy, which caused raids on his homes in Los Angeles and Miami this past March.
A statement from Diddy’s attorney, Marc Agnifilo, has been provided to XXL confirming his arrest.
“We are disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe is an unjust prosecution of Mr. Combs by the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” the statement reads. “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. He is an imperfect person but he is not a criminal. To his credit Mr. Combs has been nothing but cooperative with this investigation and he voluntarily relocated to New York last week in anticipation of these charges. Please reserve your judgment until you have all the facts. These are the acts of an innocent man with nothing to hide, and he looks forward to clearing his name in court.”
This past May, Diddy’s accusers were rumored to be detailing their claims in front of a federal grand jury as a potential move to indict the 54-year-old rap mogul. Witnesses were reportedly notified by federal investigators that they could testify in front of a federal grand jury in New York City. The initial talk of an indictment came about a week after CNN obtained a video in which Diddy was shown beating former girlfriend Cassie at a hotel in 2016.
Diddy’s arrest comes a week after he was hit with another lawsuit accusing him of sexual abuse and violence. Singer Dawn Richard sued Diddy on Sept. 10 and claimed she was a victim of sexual assault, sexual harassment, gender discrimination, hostile work environment, forced labor, false imprisonment, among other allegations, inflicted by him.
Since November of 2023, 10 lawsuits have been filed against Diddy alleging rape, violence, sex trafficking, drugging and abuse, among other claims. The most explosive claims began with singer Cassie’s lawsuit last November. She alleged Diddy raped her and subjected her to years of violence during their 10 years of dating. The two settled out of court a day after the lawsuit was filed. To date, Cassie’s legal filing is the only one Diddy settled.
XXL has reached out to Diddy’s team for comment.