Diddy Accused of Raping Woman in 2001, Years Before Crimes Alleged In Ongoing Federal Investigation

On Wednesday, Sean “Diddy” Combs was accused of rape in a new lawsuit, the latest in a series for the currently incarcerated rapper and entrepreneur.

In a suit filed in the Southern District of New York, Thalia Graves alleged that Combs and his associate Joseph Sherman (Combs’s bodyguard at the time), drugged, sexually assaulted, and recorded her assault for later video distribution. In November 2023—the same month Combs was sued by Cassandra “Cassie” Ventura, whom he dated for a decade—Graves claimed she not only learned of the recording’s existence, but that it had been sold as pornography by Combs and Sherman.

“The internal pain after being sexually assaulted has been incredibly deep and hard to put into the words,” Graves told reporters during a press conference with her attorney, Gloria Allred. “It goes beyond just physical harm caused by and during the assault. It’s a pain that reaches into your very core of who you are, and leaves emotional scars that will never be fully healed.”

Graves is the 11th person to accuse Combs of assault since Ventura filed her suit, and is suing for both compensatory and punitive damages. What’s of particular note is that the alleged crimes occurred in 2001, seven years prior to the alleged crimes Diddy was charged with last week. Those charges, which the Southern District characterized as a “criminal enterprise,” include sex trafficking, racketeering, and transportation to engage in prostitution that took place between 2008 and 2023. Combs is currently being held at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center.

According to the lawsuit, Graves met Combs “around 2000” via her then-boyfriend, a former executive at Bad Boy Records. In the summer of 2001, Combs allegedly called Graves to discuss her boyfriend’s standing at his company. Combs, she said, picked her up at her home in Queens and drove her to his home studio. On the way there, she was given a glass of wine that she believes was drugged, as she recalled having difficulty walking and later lost consciousness. Graves said that when she came to, she had allegedly been stripped nude and her hands were tied behind her back. When she attempted to call for help, she said, Sherman forced her head onto a pool table. Combs allegedly then brutally raped Graves and forced her to perform oral sex. Graves said she eventually was able to call a car and flee the scene but was too afraid to go to the hospital for a rape kit and examination for fear of retribution.

“I’ve had PTSD, depression, and anxiety. I’m emotionally scarred. It has been hard for me to trust others, to form healthy relationships, or even feel safe in my own skin. Flashbacks, nightmares, and intrusive thoughts make me feel like it’s a constant struggle,” Graves said during the press conference. “I also suffer with physical problems, such as chronic pain, sexual discomfort; the violation I have experienced during the assault has had lasting effects on my body, causing ongoing health problems and complications.”

For years, Graves decided to remain silent about the assault, in part because, she said, Combs has contacted her occasionally, threatening her not to come forward and warning her that if she did, she could lose custody of her son.

“The combination of physical and emotional pain has created a cycle of suffering from which it is so hard to break free,” she told reporters. “I want to continue on this journey towards recovery and healing. I’m glad that he is locked up, but that’s a temporary feeling of relief.”