Sean 'Diddy' Combs accused in new lawsuit of sexually assaulting 16-year-old girl in 2000

Sean "Diddy" Combs is facing a new lawsuit from a woman who claims he sexually assaulted her when she was 16 years old and babysitting for a tenant in a lower Manhattan building where his romantic partner allegedly lived.

In a complaint dated Jan. 7 and filed in New York Supreme Court on Monday, the Jane Doe claimed she was leaving her babysitting job one night in August or September 2000 when Combs, allegedly sitting in a car and in the presence of "two male individuals who apparently worked for him," offered her a ride home. According to Doe's lawsuit, she refused multiple times because her parents lived around the corner but eventually relented.

"Getting into Combs' car that day was something (Doe) would come to regret forever. During the ride, (she) became scared when they did not drop her off at home as promised," the lawsuit states. Combs "gave her a drink to 'calm her down.' She soon became groggy and unsteady. Combs and his staff, the two male co-defendants, proceeded to a location where she was sexually assaulted by Combs."

Doe claims she was "eventually taken home and left in the lobby of her building" by Combs' driver.

In a statement to USA TODAY on Monday, Combs' legal team said, "No matter how many lawsuits are filed, it won't change the fact that Mr. Combs has never sexually assaulted, or sex trafficked anyone — man or woman, adult or minor. We live in a world where anyone can file a lawsuit for any reason.

"Fortunately, a fair and impartial judicial process exists to find the truth, and Mr. Combs is confident he will prevail in court."

TMZ was first to publish news of the lawsuit.

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Jane Doe plans to 'confidentially' disclose her identity to Diddy's lawyers

Doe, who says she was a student at the New York City Museum School at the time, suffered "monetary damages, physical injury, pain and suffering, and serious psychological and emotional distress" due to the alleged incident. She requests a jury trial and judgment against the defendants "in a sum to be determined at a trial."

In his own filing affirming the necessity of Doe proceeding with her lawsuit anonymously, her lawyer, Michael Rubin, noted that survivors of child sexual abuse "do not only suffer embarrassment and shame as a result of the abuse but have historically been subjected to social stigma," and Doe's name has not been made public.

"Additionally, (Doe) has expressed her desire to keep her identity concealed from the public to protect her privacy and to insulate her from social stigmatization," Rubin wrote. He later adds: "Here, the sensitive nature of (her) injuries presents a proper case where the court may invoke its inherent power to preserve anonymity in order to protect (Doe) from the further harm that would likely result from unwanted harassment and social stigmatization."

Rubin says Doe's name will be "confidentially disclosed" to defendants — Combs, Bad Boy Records, Combs Enterprises and John Does 1 and 2 — so they can "investigate and defend against (her) claims through the standard means of discovery."

Some Jane Doe accusers have been ordered to reveal their identities

In recent months, some of Combs' anonymous sexual assault accusers have been ordered by judges to reveal their identities. As a result, last month Anna Kane filed an amended complaint exactly a year after she sued Combs and Harve Pierre, the former president of Bad Boy Records, for an alleged "gang rape" in 2003, when she was 17.

Her original complaint was filed on Dec. 6, 2023, under the pseudonym Jane Doe. In February 2024, U.S. District Judge Jessica G. L. Clarke ruled that Kane could not proceed with her case anonymously and wrote, in part, that Kane "has failed to demonstrate particularized harm or current vulnerabilities."

Meanwhile, an Alabama woman — who'd accused Combs and Jay-Z of drugging and raping her at an MTV Video Music Awards after-party when she was 13 years old in 2000 — was granted a win last month when a federal judge agreed to allow her to pursue her case anonymously.

Judge Analisa Torres, who noted her ruling may be revisited as the case progresses, cited various details of sensitivity in the woman's lawsuit, including Doe's allegation of sexual abuse, her purported mental health struggles and the risk of being threatened by Combs for speaking out against him.

Combs is currently in jail after being denied bond multiple times and has a trial start date of May 5. He has maintained his innocence amid more than two dozen civil lawsuits over the past year that have accused him of rape, trafficking and sexual abuse from the 1990s to 2024.

Federal prosecutors say the 55-year-old elaborately schemed to use his finances and status in the entertainment industry to "fulfill his sexual desires" in a "recurrent and widely known" pattern of abuse. In September 2024, he pleaded not guilty to federal criminal charges of racketeering, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.

If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence, RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline offers free, confidential, 24/7 support to survivors and their loved ones in English and Spanish at: 800.656.HOPE (4673) and Hotline.RAINN.org and en Espa?ol RAINN.org/es.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Diddy lawsuit: Rapper accused of sexually assaulting 16-year-old girl