Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs arrested in Manhattan after wave of sexual misconduct lawsuits

Nature of arrest was not immediately clear

Music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs was arrested by federal agents in New York City on Monday.

"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,” his attorney, Marc Agnifilo, told The Independent via email, calling Combs “an innocent man with nothing to hide.”

“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,” Agnifilo added. “Please reserve your judgment until you have all the facts.”

The nature of the charges was not immediately clear.

“Earlier this evening, federal agents arrested Sean Combs, based on a sealed indictment filed by the [U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York],” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in an email statement to The Independent. “We expect to move to unseal the indictment in the morning and will have more to say at that time.”

The arrest was carried out by agents from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), in connection with a federal grand jury indictment, ABC News reports.

Combs’s attorney said he was ‘disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe is an unjust prosecution’ (AP)

The hip-hop artist was arrested in a Midtown hotel, TMZ reports, citing unnamed sources.

The Independent has contacted HSI for comment.

In recent months, Combs has been the subject of multiple sexual misconduct lawsuits, and a raid from the Department of Homeland Security earlier this year in connection with a reported sex trafficking investigation.

Federal investigators have interviewed multiple sources on allegations of sex trafficking, sexual assault, and the solicitation and distribution of illegal drugs and firearms, a source familiar with the investigation told NBC News.

Combs has been sued eight times since November on accusations of sexual misconduct, according to The New York Times, lawsuits spanning decades of alleged incidents. The artist has denied wrongdoing in all cases.

Most recently, former bandmate Dawn Richard sued Combs in New York federal court last week, alleging years of physical and sexual abuse against her and others.

Combs denied the allegations in the suit.

Late last year, the singer Casandra “Cassie” Ventura sued Combs, her former boyfriend, alleging the music mogul was “prone to uncontrollable rage,” gave her drugs and forced her to have sex with other men.

The suit was settled in November.

In May, CNN obtained footage showing a 2016 incident in which Combs assaulted Ventura in a Los Angeles hotel hallway, which he apologized for.

Investigators have prepared to bring Combs accusers before a grand jury for testimony, CNN reported in May.