Hip-hop megastar Jay-Z has emphatically denied allegations in a lawsuit that he and fellow artist Sean “Diddy” Combs raped a 13-year-old girl more than two decades ago.
The lawsuit was amended Sunday in U.S. District Court in New York to add Jay-Z as a defendant after originally being filed against Combs in October. He alleges that “they took turns assaulting the minor” at a party after the MTV Video Music Awards in 2000.
In a statement issued Sunday by Roc Nation, Jay-Z's entertainment company, he attacked Tony Buzbee, the attorney for the anonymous accuser.
“These allegations are so egregious in nature that I implore you to file a criminal complaint, not a civil one!” the statement said. “Whoever commits such a crime against a minor should be locked up, don't you think?”
The statement called the lawsuit's claims “idiotic” and something that would be ridiculous “if not for the seriousness surrounding the harm to children.”
“You have made a terrible error in judgment by thinking that all 'celebrities are equal,'” the statement said. “I'm not from your world. I am a young man who managed to get out of the Brooklyn project. We don't play these types of games. We have very strict codes and honors. We protect children. …”
Federal prosecutors charged Combs in September with crimes including sex trafficking and extortion. He has pleaded not guilty.
Buzbee, a Texas-based attorney, has filed several lawsuits against Combs since his arrest. The attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
An unnamed celebrity sued Buzbee in Los Angeles County Superior Court in November, accusing the attorney of threatening to “unleash totally fabricated and malicious sexual assault allegations” if the celebrity did not participate in “confidential mediation.” The lawsuit says Buzbee alleged that the celebrity raped “multiple minors, both men and women, who had been drugged at parties hosted by Combs.”
On Sunday, Buzbee responded to Jay-Z on social media: “Mr. Carter previously denied being the one who sued me and my company. He presented his frivolous case under a pseudonym. …Since I sent the letter on his behalf, Mr. Carter has not only sued me, but has attempted to intimidate and harass me and this plaintiff. His behavior has had the opposite impact. She is emboldened. “I am very proud of their determination.”
Times staff writer Richard Winton contributed to this report.
