Diddy Files Motion to Dismiss $100 Million Judgment Awarded to Michigan Inmate (UPDATE)
The music executive failed to respond to the lawsuit, but Diddy's lawyer says the judgment will be "swiftly Dismissed."
UPDATED 9/13 1:40 p.m. ET: Diddy has filed a motion to have a $100 million default judgment in a sexual assault lawsuit dismissed.
TMZ reports that the embattled Bad Boy Records founder has denied being served the lawsuit by the plaintiff, Derrick Lee Cardello-Smith. He said that he wasn't aware of the lawsuit at all until the default judgment was reported by news outlets.
His legal team has also denied the allegations leveled against Diddy and argued that even were the allegations true, the statute of limitations expired over 16 years ago. They also cast doubt on the character of Cardello-Smith, who they called a convicted rapist with a history of frivolous lawsuits.
See original story below.
Diddy will have to pay a costly default judgment in a sexual assault lawsuit that an inmate in Michigan filed against him.
On Monday, the Metro Times in Detroit reported that a Lenawee County Circuit Court Judge awarded Derrick Lee Cardello-Smith a $100 million default judgment against the music executive. Diddy will have to pay $10 million monthly as part of a payment schedule that begins on Oct. 1.
In his lawsuit, Cardello-Smith claimed Diddy drugged and sexually assaulted him at a party back in 1997. The two smoked weed and got naked to party with a few women. Cardello-Smith gave a woman oral sex and claimed Diddy grabbed his buttock, while also stating the Bad Boy Records founder gave him a drink that caused him to pass out.
Once he regained consciousness, Cardello-Smith said he saw Diddy having sex with a woman while allegedly telling him, "I did this to you too." Cardello-Smith filed a $100 million lawsuit against Diddy, but the mogul ignored the complaint as he didn't attend the hearing nor answer to the lawsuit.
Diddy allegedly tried to offer Cardello-Smith $2.3 million to throw out the lawsuit, visiting him in prison. But the inmate turned him down and said he would go through with the lawsuit. Combs then allegedly told him, "You know how we get down." Cardello-Smith replied, "I disagree with how you get down."
Diddy's attorney Marc Agnifilo tells TMZ, "This man [Cardello-Smith] is a convicted felon and sexual predator, who has been sentenced on 14 counts of sexual assault and kidnapping over the last 26 years. His resume now includes committing a fraud on the court from prison, as Mr. Combs has never heard of him let alone been served with any lawsuit. Mr. Combs looks forward to having this judgment swiftly dismissed."
Diddy's latest loss comes after reports were published that he's selling his Beverly Hills mansion, which was raided a few months ago by Homeland Security, for $61 million. The two-story home is a 13,000-square-foot property on 1.3 acres of land and features several luxurious amenities such as a theater, guest house, and resort-like outdoor spaces.
