A judge granted a default judgment against Sean “Diddy” Combs for $100 million Monday after the rapper failed to appear at a court hearing.
Combs was ordered to pay Derrick Lee Cardello-Smith, 51, $100 million by Lenawee County Circuit Court Judge Anna Marie Anzalone, Fox News Digital confirmed. A court can grant a default judgment if a party fails to meet certain obligations within a specific time frame.
Cardello-Smith originally filed his lawsuit against Combs on June 10. The Michigan inmate requested a temporary restraining order and the court granted his motion after Diddy failed to appear at the hearing on Aug. 7.
Cardello-Smith appeared at all court hearings virtually, according to the docket.
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Sean “Diddy” Combs was ordered to pay accuser Derrick Cardello-Smith $100 million in a default judgment. His attorney told Fox News Digital, “Mr. Combs looks forward to having this judgment swiftly dismissed.” (Getty Images)
Diddy’s legal team plans to have the judgment dismissed.
“This man is a convicted felon and sexual predator, who has been sentenced on 14 counts of sexual assault and kidnapping over the last 26 years,” Marc Agnifilo, attorney for Combs, told Fox News Digital in a statement. “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.”
Cardello-Smith accused Diddy of drugging and sexually assaulting him at a Detroit-area party in 1997, according to court documents obtained by Fox News Digital.
He claimed to have met the “I’ll Be Missing You” singer while working as a restaurant and hospitality employee in Detroit.
Cardello-Smith produced visitation records for the Detroit Metro Times showing Diddy had visited the inmate. Cardello-Smith alleges that the 54-year-old record producer offered him $2.3 million to dismiss the lawsuit, according to the Metro Times.
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“Mr. Combs looks forward to having this judgment swiftly dismissed.”
Sean “Diddy” Combs and Cassie split for the last time in 2018, following years of an on-again, off-again relationship. (Getty Images)
Diddy faces a mountain of legal claims after multiple women accused him of sexual assault beginning in November 2023. Cassie, legally known as Casandra Ventura, alleged she endured “over a decade” of Diddy’s “violent behavior and disturbed demands” in a lawsuit. Combs and his ex-girlfriend settled the matter a day later outside of court.
Three more women came forward with claims just before New York’s Adult Survivors Act expired in December.
Diddy was also sued by music producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones in February. Jones accused the rapper of forcing him to perform sexual acts with prostitutes in his lawsuit obtained by Fox News Digital.
Rodney Jones’ lawyers included this image in his lawsuit accusing Sean “Diddy” Combs of sexual assault. (Courtesy: Southern District of New York Court)
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Homeland Securities Investigations (HSI) raided Diddy’s homes in March related to a federal human trafficking investigation, Fox News Digital previously confirmed. Since the raids, Diddy has been hit with more allegations of sexual assault.
In a lawsuit filed in May, Crystal McKinney claimed she was attacked in Combs’ recording studio after having dinner with the music mogul and an un-named fashion designer at Cipriani Downtown in New York during a Men’s Fashion Week event in 2003.
Sean Combs’ LA home was raided by Homeland Security officials in March. (Getty Images)
Two months later, a former adult film star sued Diddy claiming she was groomed into sex trafficking by the music producer as an employee at his Labor Day White Party.
Diddy has denied all sexual assault allegations.
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Fox News Digital’s Tracy Wright contributed to this report.
