While a number of celebrities appeared in court filings made in connection with music producer Rodney Jones' $30 million lawsuit against Sean "Diddy" Combs, many are speculating about the identity of one of the redacted names.
Jones filed his lawsuit on February 26, making a number of accusations against Combs, including sexual misconduct, grooming and participating in sex-trafficking activity. Attorneys for Combs strongly denied the allegations, previously saying: "We have overwhelming, indisputable proof that his claims are complete lies."
Jones' filing to the federal district court in New York lists in detail his allegations, with one section claiming that Combs' music industry associates, who are also named in the lawsuit, financially benefited from facilitating his alleged unlawful behavior, gaining access to his powerful connections.
According to the court filings, Jones accuses Combs of telling him he had sex with two other celebrities whose names were redacted. One of those redacted names was described as a Philadelphia rapper who had dated rapper Nicki Minaj.
Since the court filings were made, people have begun to speculate about the identity of the mystery celebrity on X, formerly Twitter. Some pointed toward rapper Meek Mill, who is from Philadelphia and began dating Nicki Minaj in early 2015 as he accompanied her as an opening act on her 2015 world tour.
They dated for two years, and it was reported that the two ended their relationship in January 2017.
X user Le'Veon Bell noted the speculation, writing on X," Philly rapper who dated Nicky Minaj .. Meek Mill??"
However, Meek Mill took to X to fire back at the speculation, denying that the redacted name is his, as he shared the lawsuit filings in late February and wrote: "Here's the doc let's go on trail live playing with my name find the page where my name mentioned and what date so I can get my credit card and show you the date where I was."
Meek Mill has continued to deny allegations he ever had a sexual relationship with Combs, and he has been wrapped up in a heated X feud with DJ Akademiks since the internet personality posted on the matter on social media.
Newsweek reached out to Meek Mill via his website contact form for comment.
Federal authorities on Monday raided homes reportedly owned by Combs in Los Angeles and Miami, according to local media outlets.
The raids are reportedly tied to sex-trafficking allegations leveled by different plaintiffs in recent months, the Associated Press reported, citing law enforcement sources.
In response to the raid, Tyrone Blackburn, an attorney representing Rodney "Lil Rod" Jones, gave a statement saying: "About damn time. Sometimes justice delayed is not justice denied, so long as justice ultimately arrives."
Aaron Dyer, Combs' attorney, said in a statement: "There was a gross overuse of military-level force as search warrants were executed at Mr. Combs' residences," as he pointed out his client is cooperating with authorities and that there has been no finding of criminal or civil liability in relation to any of the allegations.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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Natalie Venegas is a Weekend Reporter at Newsweek based in New York. Her focus is reporting on education, social justice ... Read more
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