Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ Rape Accuser Sued by Bodyguard for Defamation

A bodyguard is at the center of sexual assault case Sean “Diddy” Combs She sued her accuser and her attorney, Gloria Allred, for defamation, denying that he was the person who allegedly attacked her and that he filmed the alleged assault.

Joseph Sherman filed a lawsuit against Thalia Graves in New York federal court on Friday. After filing suit against him and Combs in late SeptemberShe claimed the duo drugged, tied up and violently raped her at Daddy’s House, the recording studio of the Bad Boy Entertainment founder, in 2001.

Graves claimed years of trauma were compounded when she learned in late November 2023 — days after Casandra “Cassie” Ventura filed the bombshell sex trafficking case against Combs; “Combs and Sherman videotaped two decades of horrific rape,” according to the lawsuit. She showed the video to multiple men two years ago.” Graves claimed that she learned about the tape from her ex-boyfriend, who told her that the video was being sold as pornography.

But Sherman said she stopped working for Combs in 1999 and had never met Graves, claiming that everything about Graves’ dress was “completely wrong.” “Plaintiff has never met Defendant, has never had sexual or non-consensual physical interaction with her, and has not participated in the alleged events,” the countersuit alleges. “Simply put, Plaintiff Joseph Sherman could not have touched, recorded, or had anything to do with Thalia Graves.”

As part of his lawsuit, Sherman included 12 pages of screenshots of what he claimed was a conversation between himself and Graves on Nov. 29, 2023, in which Graves “attempted to persuade Joseph Sherman to serve as a witness against Mr. Combs.”

In the messages allegedly from Graves, the sender begins by questioning whether Sherman works for Combs and tells Sherman to call his numbers. “If you become my witness against Diddy, my attorneys will exclude you from any further proceedings,” Graves says in an alleged text message. “I will ensure that the state does not press charges or rape charges against you.”

Sherman claims reputational and financial harm as a result of the accusations and is suing Graves, Allred and other parties on multiple charges, including defamation, emotional distress, negligence and abuse of process, among others. (Allred and Graves did not immediately respond to this question. Rolling stoneRequest for comment.)

Graves is among about 30 people who sued Combs and some of his associates for sexual misconduct after Ventura set off a domino effect last November. Sherman became the first defendant to file a lawsuit against his accuser.

Combs, 55, arrested in Manhattan A lawsuit was filed on September 16 on charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and transportation for the purpose of prostitution. In the 14-page indictment, prosecutors for the Southern District of New York said Combs operated a criminal enterprise that engaged in interstate transportation for the purpose of “unlawful acts of violence, including sexual violence,” prostitution, drug distribution, arson, bribery, and kidnapping. obstruction of justice.

Prosecutors said the main function of the alleged enterprise was to “lure female victims into Combs’ orbit, often under the guise of a romantic relationship,” and then use “force, threat of force, and coercion” to encourage the victims to “commit crimes in an elaborate manner.” and produced sexual performances that Combs called “freakish.”