Sean "Diddy" Combs hit with seventh sexual assault lawsuit

An eighth lawsuit has been filed against Sean “Diddy” Combs, the seventh to directly accuse the music mogul of sexual assault. (One suit against his son Christian accuses Diddy of aiding and abetting assault.) The most recent suit was filed on Thursday by April Lampros, who says that she met Combs when she was a student at the Fashion Institute of Technology and alleges four instances of sexual assault between 1995 and the early 2000s. According to the suit (obtained by CNN), Combs promised to mentor the student and introduce her to the music and fashion industries. Instead, “What Mr. Combs displayed as kind gestures quickly manifested into an aggressive, coercive, and abusive relationship based on sex,” her filing reads.

The lawsuit describes an occasion in which Combs forced Lampros to drink and then brought her back to a hotel to force himself upon her while she “pleaded with Mr. Combs to stop.” The next morning, “She was nude, sore, and confused.” On another occasion, Combs allegedly forced her to perform oral sex in a parking garage while a parking attendant watched. “Ms. Lampros was in shock, morally depleted, embarrassed, and in physical agony because of Mr. Combs violently yanking her down to her knees and pulling her hair,” the lawsuit reads.

Per the suit, Combs became “angry” and “threatening,” developing a “mobster persona” when Lampros attempted to distance herself from him. “She felt that if she disobeyed him, he would take away her dreams of pursuing a career in his world. Mr. Combs would also threaten to blacklist her in the industry if she tried to mess with him in any way,” the suit claims. “Ms. Lampros’ dreams and everything she’s been working hard for were in the palm of his hands.”

Lampros alleges that in 1996, Combs forced her to take ecstasy and have sex with his former girlfriend Kim Porter (per Rolling Stone). Lampros says when she “vocally opposed this idea, Combs quickly reminded her that she had no control over the situation as he could make her lose her job.” (According to CNN, Lampros was at one point an intern at Arista Records, which was the parent company to Combs’ Bad Boy Records. Both companies, as well as Sony Music Entertainment, are named in the suit.) Combs allegedly masturbated while watching the two women and subsequently sexually assaulted Lampros.

Lampros is said to have ended the relationship in 1998, but encountered Combs again in the early 2000s. After a chance encounter at an event Combs allegedly begged to see her again, and Lampros allowed him to come over her apartment where he non-consensually kissed and touched her. She was able to stop the interaction and get Combs to leave. However, in 2023 she was informed that during their relationship Combs had, unbeknownst to her, recorded them having sex and later showed the video to multiple people.

The lawsuit states that as a result of her experiences with Combs, Lampros “has suffered and continues to suffer harm, including physical injury, severe emotional distress, humiliation, anxiety, and other consequential damages for which she is entitled to an award of monetary damages and other relief.”

Combs was recently forced to acknowledge and apologize for some of his abusive behavior towards ex-girlfriend Cassie when video leaked of him physically abusing her in a hotel hallway. (Cassie filed a sex trafficking lawsuit against Combs in 2023 that was settled out of court a day later.) However, he has by and large denied the many allegations against him. His lawyers have asserted that the various lawsuits cropping up are nothing more than cash grabs from greedy individuals.

Lampros is represented by attorney Tyrone Blackburn, who also represents Rodney Jones and Grace O’Marcaigh, who have filed suits against Combs and his son, respectively. In a statement to CNN, Lampros said, “I’m confident that justice will prevail and the veil will be removed so no other woman will have to endure what I did.”