Latest news with #Biggie
Express Tribune
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
50 Cent mocks Diddy over disturbing allegations in new lawsuit
50 Cent has once again mocked Sean 'Diddy' Combs after a bizarre lawsuit surfaced, accusing the mogul of a disturbing act involving a shirt once worn by The Notorious B.I.G. The lawsuit, filed by an anonymous plaintiff known as John Doe, claims Diddy engaged in inappropriate behavior during a 2020 encounter in Los Angeles, which allegedly included masturbating into Biggie's shirt and tossing it onto the plaintiff. The lawsuit alleges that the incident occurred after Doe attended a listening session for an unreleased Biggie project, where he was reportedly pressured by Diddy to take ketamine. The session took place at a warehouse where Biggie's personal clothing was stored. While alone with Diddy, Doe claims the mogul was watching pornography on his phone before allegedly committing the lewd act. According to the lawsuit, Diddy then threw the semen-covered shirt onto Doe's lap and said, 'RIP Biggie' before walking out of the room. The plaintiff is suing for sexual battery, emotional distress, and other related claims. 50 Cent, who has long been critical of Diddy, didn't hold back in his response to the allegations. While on tour in Europe, the rapper posted a screenshot of the lawsuit on Instagram, mocking Diddy with a caption saying, 'Man got damn it, enough is enough.' 50 Cent has previously taunted Diddy, calling him "the gay John Gotti" and making several jabs at the mogul's behavior. The lawsuit adds to Diddy's ongoing legal battles, which follow his partial acquittal in a high-profile RICO case earlier this year.
NDTV
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- NDTV
A Timeline Of The Rise Of Sean 'Diddy' Combs And His Legal Troubles
For more than two decades, Sean "Diddy" Combs was one of hip-hop's most nimble entrepreneurs, spinning his hitmaking talents into a broad business empire that included a record label, a fashion brand, a TV network, deals with liquor companies and a key role in a reality TV show. Then he was charged with forcing, threatening and manipulating two ex-girlfriends into drug-fueled sex marathons, with assistance from a network of associates. Combs denied the allegations and went to trial in a high-stakes federal sex crimes and racketeering case. The trial ended Wednesday with a verdict that his attorneys called a victory: Combs was convicted of prostitution-related offenses but acquitted of higher-level charges of racketeering and sex trafficking. Here is a timeline of major events in his life story: 1990-1999 1990: Combs, then a student at Howard University, gets his start in the music business with an internship at Uptown Records in New York. Dec. 28, 1991: Nine people die at a celebrity basketball game promoted by Combs and the rapper Heavy D when thousands of fans try to get into a gym at the City College of New York. A mayoral report lays part of the blame for the catastrophe on poor planning by Combs. 1992: Combs is one of the executive producers on Mary J. Blige's debut album, "What's the 411?" 1993: After being fired by Uptown, Combs establishes his own label, Bad Boy, which quickly cuts a lucrative deal with Arista Records. 1994: Bad Boy releases Notorious B.I.G.'s album "Ready to Die." Two months later, Tupac Shakur survives a shooting in New York and accuses Combs and Biggie of having prior knowledge of the attack, which they deny. Shakur was later killed in a 1996 shooting in Las Vegas. 1996: Combs is convicted of criminal mischief after he allegedly threatened a photographer with a gun. 1997: Biggie is killed in Los Angeles. Combs, then known as Puff Daddy, releases "I'll be Missing You" in honor of his dead star. 1998: Combs wins two Grammys, one for best rap album for his debut "No Way Out" and another for best rap performance by a duo or group for "I'll Be Missing You" with Faith Evans. Also that year, Combs' Sean John fashion line is founded. April 16, 1999: Combs and his bodyguards are charged with attacking Interscope Records music executive Steve Stoute in his New York office in a dispute over a music video. Combs is sentenced to an anger management course. Dec. 27, 1999: Combs is arrested on gun possession charges after he and his girlfriend at the time, Jennifer Lopez, fled a shooting that wounded three people at a New York City nightclub. Some witnesses tell police Combs was among the people shooting in the club. He is later charged with offering his driver $50,000 to claim ownership of the 9 mm handgun found in his car. 2001-2008 March 17, 2001: Combs is acquitted of all charges related to the nightclub shooting. One of his rap protégés, Jamal "Shyne" Barrow, is convicted in the shooting and serves nearly nine years in prison. Two weeks after the trial, Combs announces he wants to be known as P. Diddy. (Barrow also later changed his name, to Moses Barrow, and became a parliamentarian in his native Belize). 2002: Combs becomes the producer and star of "Making the Band," a talent search TV show. Feb. 1, 2004: Combs performs at the Super Bowl halftime show along with Janet Jackson, Justin Timberlake and others. A week later, Combs, Nelly and Murphy Lee win a Grammy for best rap performance by a duo or group for "Shake Ya Tailfeather." April 2004: Combs makes his Broadway acting debut in "A Raisin in the Sun." 2005: Combs announces he is changing his stage name to Diddy, getting rid of the P. March 2008: Combs settles a lawsuit brought by a man who claims Combs punched him after a post-Oscar party outside a Hollywood hotel the previous year. In May, Combs is honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. 2015-2022 2015: Combs is arrested after a confrontation on the campus of UCLA, where one of his sons played football. Assault charges are later dropped. 2016: Combs launches a Harlem charter school, the Capital Preparatory School. Also that year, he announces he is donating $1 million to Howard University. 2017: Combs is named the top earner on Forbes' list of the 100 highest-paid celebrities, which says he brought in $130 million in a single year. 2018: Kim Porter, Combs' former girlfriend and the mother of three of his children, dies from pneumonia at age 47. 2022: Combs receives a lifetime honor at the BET Awards. 2023-2025 Sept. 15, 2023: Combs releases "The Love Album - Off the Grid," his first solo studio project since 2006's chart-topping "Press Play." Nov. 16, 2023: R&B singer Cassie sues Combs, alleging that during their decade-plus as a couple, he subjected her to abuse, including beatings and rape. A day later, the lawsuit is settled under undisclosed terms. Combs, through his attorney, denies the accusations. Nov. 23, 2023: Two more women accuse Combs of sexual abuse in lawsuits. Combs' attorneys call the allegations false. Dozens of additional lawsuits follow by women and men who accuse Combs of rape, sexual assault and other attacks. Plaintiffs include singer Dawn Richard, a "Making the Band" contestant who alleged years of psychological and physical abuse. Combs denies all the allegations. March 25, 2024: Federal agents search Combs' homes in Los Angeles and Miami Beach, Florida. May 17, 2024: CNN airs video that shows Combs attacking and beating Cassie in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016. Two days later, Combs posts videos on social media apologizing for the assault. Sept. 16, 2024: Combs is arrested at his Manhattan hotel. A federal sex trafficking and racketeering indictment unsealed the next day accuses him of using his business empire to coerce women into participating in sexual performances. Combs denies the allegations. His attorney calls it an unjust prosecution of an "imperfect person." May 5, 2025: Jury selection begins for Combs' trial. May 12, 2025: A jury is selected and testimony begins in Combs' trial. June 30, 2025: Jury deliberations begin in Combs' trial. July 2, 2025: The jury convicts Combs of two counts of a prostitution-related offense but acquits him of higher-level charges of racketeering and sex trafficking. The outcome significantly reduces the rap mogul's potential prison sentence, which a judge will determine in the months to come. His lawyers unsuccessfully ask for him to be released on bond in the meantime. Combs is visibly relieved by the verdict, and his lead lawyer calls it "a victory of all victories."
Winnipeg Free Press
03-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Winnipeg Free Press
A timeline of the rise of Sean ‘Diddy' Combs and his legal troubles
For more than two decades, Sean 'Diddy' Combs was one of hip-hop's most nimble entrepreneurs, spinning his hitmaking talents into a broad business empire that included a record label, a fashion brand, a TV network, deals with liquor companies and a key role in a reality TV show. Then he was charged with forcing, threatening and manipulating two ex-girlfriends into drug-fueled sex marathons, with assistance from a network of associates. Combs denied the allegations and went to trial in a high-stakes federal sex crimes and racketeering case. The trial ended Wednesday with a verdict that his attorneys called a victory: Combs was convicted of prostitution-related offenses but acquitted of higher-level charges of racketeering and sex trafficking. Here is a timeline of major events in his life story: 1990-1999 1990: Combs, then a student at Howard University, gets his start in the music business with an internship at Uptown Records in New York. Dec. 28, 1991: Nine people die at a celebrity basketball game promoted by Combs and the rapper Heavy D when thousands of fans try to get into a gym at the City College of New York. A mayoral report lays part of the blame for the catastrophe on poor planning by Combs. 1992: Combs is one of the executive producers on Mary J. Blige's debut album, 'What's the 411?' 1993: After being fired by Uptown, Combs establishes his own label, Bad Boy, which quickly cuts a lucrative deal with Arista Records. 1994: Bad Boy releases Notorious B.I.G.'s album 'Ready to Die.' Two months later, Tupac Shakur survives a shooting in New York and accuses Combs and Biggie of having prior knowledge of the attack, which they deny. Shakur was later killed in a 1996 shooting in Las Vegas. 1996: Combs is convicted of criminal mischief after he allegedly threatened a photographer with a gun. 1997: Biggie is killed in Los Angeles. Combs, then known as Puff Daddy, releases 'I'll be Missing You' in honor of his dead star. 1998: Combs wins two Grammys, one for best rap album for his debut 'No Way Out' and another for best rap performance by a duo or group for 'I'll Be Missing You' with Faith Evans. Also that year, Combs' Sean John fashion line is founded. April 16, 1999: Combs and his bodyguards are charged with attacking Interscope Records music executive Steve Stoute in his New York office in a dispute over a music video. Combs is sentenced to an anger management course. Dec. 27, 1999: Combs is arrested on gun possession charges after he and his girlfriend at the time, Jennifer Lopez, fled a shooting that wounded three people at a New York City nightclub. Some witnesses tell police Combs was among the people shooting in the club. He is later charged with offering his driver $50,000 to claim ownership of the 9 mm handgun found in his car. 2001-2008 March 17, 2001: Combs is acquitted of all charges related to the nightclub shooting. One of his rap protégés, Jamal 'Shyne' Barrow, is convicted in the shooting and serves nearly nine years in prison. Two weeks after the trial, Combs announces he wants to be known as P. Diddy. (Barrow also later changed his name, to Moses Barrow, and became a parliamentarian in his native Belize). 2002: Combs becomes the producer and star of 'Making the Band,' a talent search TV show. Feb. 1, 2004: Combs performs at the Super Bowl halftime show along with Janet Jackson, Justin Timberlake and others. A week later, Combs, Nelly and Murphy Lee win a Grammy for best rap performance by a duo or group for 'Shake Ya Tailfeather.' April 2004: Combs makes his Broadway acting debut in 'A Raisin in the Sun.' 2005: Combs announces he is changing his stage name to Diddy, getting rid of the P. March 2008: Combs settles a lawsuit brought by a man who claims Combs punched him after a post-Oscar party outside a Hollywood hotel the previous year. In May, Combs is honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. 2015-2022 2015: Combs is arrested after a confrontation on the campus of UCLA, where one of his sons played football. Assault charges are later dropped. 2016: Combs launches a Harlem charter school, the Capital Preparatory School. Also that year, he announces he is donating $1 million to Howard University. 2017: Combs is named the top earner on Forbes' list of the 100 highest-paid celebrities, which says he brought in $130 million in a single year. 2018: Kim Porter, Combs' former girlfriend and the mother of three of his children, dies from pneumonia at age 47. 2022: Combs receives a lifetime honor at the BET Awards. 2023-2025 Sept. 15, 2023: Combs releases 'The Love Album — Off the Grid,' his first solo studio project since 2006's chart-topping 'Press Play.' Nov. 16, 2023: R&B singer Cassie sues Combs, alleging that during their decade-plus as a couple, he subjected her to abuse, including beatings and rape. A day later, the lawsuit is settled under undisclosed terms. Combs, through his attorney, denies the accusations. Nov. 23, 2023: Two more women accuse Combs of sexual abuse in lawsuits. Combs' attorneys call the allegations false. Dozens of additional lawsuits follow by women and men who accuse Combs of rape, sexual assault and other attacks. Plaintiffs include singer Dawn Richard, a 'Making the Band' contestant who alleged years of psychological and physical abuse. Combs denies all the allegations. March 25, 2024: Federal agents search Combs' homes in Los Angeles and Miami Beach, Florida. May 17, 2024: CNN airs video that shows Combs attacking and beating Cassie in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016. Two days later, Combs posts videos on social media apologizing for the assault. Sept. 16, 2024: Combs is arrested at his Manhattan hotel. A federal sex trafficking and racketeering indictment unsealed the next day accuses him of using his business empire to coerce women into participating in sexual performances. Combs denies the allegations. His attorney calls it an unjust prosecution of an 'imperfect person.' May 5, 2025: Jury selection begins for Combs' trial. May 12, 2025: A jury is selected and testimony begins in Combs' trial. June 30, 2025: Jury deliberations begin in Combs' trial. July 2, 2025: The jury convicts Combs of two counts of a prostitution-related offense but acquits him of higher-level charges of racketeering and sex trafficking. The outcome significantly reduces the rap mogul's potential prison sentence, which a judge will determine in the months to come. His lawyers unsuccessfully ask for him to be released on bond in the meantime. Combs is visibly relieved by the verdict, and his lead lawyer calls it 'a victory of all victories.'
Libya Review
01-07-2025
- Politics
- Libya Review
Foreign-Led Human Trafficking Ring Arrested in Libya
Libya's elite 444 Brigade has announced the arrest of one of the most dangerous foreign criminals operating in the country — a Ghanaian national known as Saeed, nicknamed 'Biggie' — in a major security operation that also led to the rescue of 11 kidnapped women. In a statement issued Monday, the brigade confirmed that one of its military units successfully raided a large compound used by Biggie to detain and exploit foreign women. The location, originally housing migrant laborers, had been converted into a criminal den, where women were reportedly held against their will and forced into prostitution under threats of violence. The victims, of various nationalities, were rescued following precise surveillance and intelligence gathering, launched in response to multiple international alerts about the missing women. According to the statement, the operation was carried out late last night, resulting in the liberation of the victims and the capture of the suspect. Biggie is currently in custody and will be referred to the Public Prosecution Office for further legal procedures. The brigade reaffirmed its commitment to dismantling criminal networks operating within Libya and protecting vulnerable communities, particularly migrants. Libya has been in chaos since a NATO-backed uprising toppled longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. The county has for years been split between rival administrations. Libya's economy, heavily reliant on oil, has suffered due to the ongoing conflict. The instability has led to fluctuations in oil production and prices, impacting the global oil market and Libya's economy. The conflict has led to a significant humanitarian crisis in Libya, with thousands of people killed, and many more displaced. Migrants and refugees using Libya as a transit point to Europe have also faced dire conditions. The planned elections for December 2021 were delayed due to disagreements over election laws and the eligibility of certain candidates. This delay has raised concerns about the feasibility of a peaceful political transition. Despite the ceasefire, security remains a significant concern with sporadic fighting and the presence of mercenaries and foreign fighters. The unification of the military and the removal of foreign forces are crucial challenges. Tags: human traffickingkidnappinglibyatripoli
CNBC
25-06-2025
- Business
- CNBC
At 23, he quit his accounting job to start an eBay business–today, his company brings in $167 million a year
Right after graduating from university in 2015, Gurmer Chopra, 32, landed his first corporate role at a "Big Four" accounting firm. But after less than a year on the job, he decided to quit. "Four months into it, I [was] like: 'I freaking hate it here.' It was just the most boring work, and I felt like I was making zero difference in the world," Chopra told CNBC Make It. "At one point, I [started studying] for my [certified public accountant exam]... Then I opened the book [and] I remember just reading the first page, and I think that's literally when I realized I cannot do this with my life, or I'm gonna just not be a happy person," said Chopra. At that time, he was also working on an e-commerce business on the side with his older brother Dashmeet Chopra. In their free time, the duo went into Downtown Los Angeles to source items such as T-shirts, jeans and shoes at wholesale prices and resold them on eBay. Their eBay side hustle has since become YoungLA, a lifestyle clothing brand that brought in over $167 million in 2024, according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It. Originally from India, Chopra and his family immigrated to the U.S. in 2002 and spent their first four years in New Jersey before landing in California. Chopra said he got his entrepreneurial chops from his dad, who worked at a souvenir shop after moving to the U.S. His dad eventually started a wholesale souvenir business and managed some gift shops in Los Angeles. Chopra and his brother became involved in their dad's business endeavors at a young age. "That was honestly the start of me becoming an entrepreneur with my brother, because ... I was 12 years old, and helping my dad with running this business," said Chopra. After some time running these brick-and-mortar stores, Chopra's dad realized that he had better success by selling their goods online. Inspired by his discovery, the two brothers decided to experiment with e-commerce themselves. In March 2014, Chopra was studying economics and accounting at the University of California, Santa Barbara, when he and his brother first opened their eBay account. "Initially, me and my brother pulled together $5,000 and that's all we've ever invested in the company. And we've always been able to just reinvest," said Chopra. The two used this money to source their first few products. "We were buying jeans, Converse, Vans ... Tupac shirts, Biggie shirts ... We would just buy a lot of stuff from Downtown LA, and kind of just throw a bunch of things on the wall. Whatever listings that would start popping off, we would [put] more time and effort into that," he said. Besides selling on eBay, Chopra and his brother also expanded to Amazon and Shopify, which they decided to name — inspired by a DJ on their local radio station called "Young California." From there, they shifted their focus from only reselling items they bought wholesale to going all-in on the YoungLA brand. Chopra said they began manufacturing their own products and would add the name " to the tags of their items to create brand recognition. The business brought in its first million in revenue in 2017, Chopra said. Ultimately, there were two key successes that catapulted the brand's growth further: "drop culture" and influencer marketing — both of which are still core parts of the business today. Drop culture is a marketing strategy where brands release limited-edition items, or "drops," at specific times, to create exclusivity and buzz on social media. "In 2018 we started ... focusing on our website, and we wanted to kind of create a "drop culture," said Chopra. "So whenever a new product came out, we would like try to hype it up beforehand and then drop it on the website." In 2019, YoungLA signed its first major contract with an influencer, and by 2020, the business had hit over $6 million in revenue, added Chopra. Last year, the business brought in, on average, more than double that amount in monthly revenue. When asked if he is happy that he left his accounting job, Chopra said: "I don't think I could be happier. [I'm] very, very satisfied with where we've been, but it is definitely stressful." "I think a few years into running the business, you realize [that] nobody could have prepared me for this... I think some of the hardest things in the beginning was firing an employee ... or just dealing with really tough situations, dealing with stress, getting sued and things like that too," he said. "You learn so much when you're actually in it ... But I think figuring those things out teaches you so much about the world, but also about yourself."
