3 days ago
Fat Joe accused of sex acts with minors in $20 million lawsuit filed by former hype man, rapper denies allegations
Fat Joe is denying all allegations of exploitation and abuse made by his former hype man in a newly filed $20 million lawsuit.
Terrance "T.A." Dixon filed the suit against the 54-year-old rapper in federal court on Thursday, alleging that his former boss — whose real name is Joseph Antonio Cartagena — engaged in "coercive labor exploitation, financial fraud, sexual manipulation, violent intimidation, and psychological coercion."
The complaint, obtained by Entertainment Weekly, includes Fat Joe's codefendants, Peter "Pistol Pete" Torres and Richard "Rich Player" Jospitre, referring to them as key associates in the musician's "criminal enterprise," as well as Erica Juliana Moreira, a lawyer for Fat Joe.
In it, Dixon claims that his work went beyond that of a hype man, with him serving as a writer and background vocalist on tracks like "Congratulations," "Ice Cream," and "Money Over Bitches." He also alleges that despite being a foundational element in the rapper's career for 16 years, Fat Joe and his associates systematically suppressed, silenced, and erased his contributions. He also claims that he has never been properly compensated for his work, and is seeking $20 million in damages.
"Fat Joe is Sean Combs minus the Tusi," Dixon's attorney, Tyrone Blackburn, said in a statement to EW on Friday. Blackburn is also currently the lead counsel in a high-profile case against hip-hop artist Sean "Diddy" Combs on behalf of accuser Lil Rodney.
"As with most criminals, Fat Joe is pretty dumb, as displayed in the pleading," Blackburn added. "We have three additional pages of predicated acts, which would make the 24 in the complaint look like child's play. Fat Joe has a lot of explaining to do."
Fat Joe's team has vehemently denied Dixon's allegations.
The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, claims that Dixon was forced "into humiliating situations, including sex acts performed under duress and surveillance, accompanied by threats of abandonment in foreign countries if [he] refused compliance." According to his estimation in the complaint, he "was coerced into more than 4,000 sexual acts to maintain his standing within the Enterprise."
The suit alleges that the "wide spectrum of sexual coercion, psychological control, forced exhibitionism, and surveillance-based humiliation" were "tactics designed to control Plaintiff's body, erode his autonomy, and ensure silence."
"These sex-based abuses were not private, incidental, or isolated," the complaint continues. "They were integral to the enterprise's culture of dominance and humiliation, enforced by Defendant's associates such as Pistol Pete, [UPNYC store manager] JB, and others, and sustained across numerous tour locations including Miami, North Carolina, Germany, Spain, and Wisconsin."
The most damning and disturbing accusations in the complaint include several centered on Fat Joe's alleged sexual relations with minors. It claims that Dixon "personally witnessed [Fat Joe] engage in sexual relations with children who were 15 and 16 years old" and lists three alleged examples of underage girls identified as "Minor Does."
Minor Doe 1 is described as a 16-year-old Dominican girl from New York, who, according to the lawsuit, "would [perform] oral sex and other sexual acts" for the rapper in exchange for "cash, clothing, and payment of her cell phone bill."
Minor Doe 2 is described as a Caucasian female who is not an American citizen and allegedly met Fat Joe when she was 15 years old after a concert overseas. "Defendant flew Minor Doe 2 to New York City and Miami, Florida, on multiple occasions," the complaint reads. "Due to Minor Doe 2's body being adolescent and not fully formed, Defendant paid for her to get a Brazilian Butt Lift. Minor Doe 2 eventually left Defendant and is now married to a professional athlete."
Minor Doe 3 is described as a Latina female who allegedly met the rapper when "she was 15 years old, turning 16." According to the suit, the rapper was "in love with Minor Doe 3" and even contemplated leaving his wife for her.
"The Defendant paid all Minor Doe 3's bills and even took her overseas to his tour stops," the lawsuit claims. "He brought her to Florida and would put her up in a condo he rented a few blocks from his house with his wife. In a recorded conversation, Minor Doe 3 and her 15-year-old cousin describe in detail to Plaintiff how 'inappropriate' it was for Defendant, who was in his late 30s at the time, to be fawning over children."
The complaint also alleges that Fat Joe engaged in money laundering and tax evasion schemes, including artificially inflating Dixon's tax liabilities "in an effort to conceal their extensive wage theft," exposing him to unwarranted tax audits and penalties, and systematically obscuring the exploited labor.
The suit additionally names Jay-Z's Roc Nation as a defendant, claiming that the company, which represents Fat Joe, knowingly participated in "concealing, transferring, and manipulating" Dixon's authorship rights and royalty interests and sought to intimidate, harass, and obstruct the hype man's legitimate claims against Fat Joe, Torres, and Jospitre.
Jordan Siev, an attorney at Reed Smith LLP who works with Roc Nation, called the complaint "bogus" in a statement to EW on Friday.
"Dixon worked for Joe for many years until 2019. During the time since he left in 2019, there were no complaints about what he was paid or any supposed mistreatment," Siev said. "He made up a whole bunch of claims in a money grab. Joe took the affirmative step of filing a lawsuit for defamation against Dixon in April, and also against Dixon's lawyer, Tyrone Blackburn, for intentional infliction of emotional distress. So nothing happens for two months, and then out of nowhere, this lawsuit comes up yesterday, which is clearly in retaliation for the filing made — and clearly ignores the facts."
Siev also cited a recent ruling by a New York federal judge that criticized Blackburn's litigation strategy in the Combs case and noted that Fat Joe's April filing called Blackburn's behavior "shakedown tactics masquerading as lawyering."
"This is simply a shakedown effort," Siev said. "Joe would not agree to it, and now [Dixon] has not only sued Joe, but he's dragged in everybody under the sun who has had any affiliation with Joe at any time, including Joe's management for the last several years. [The complaint] has no legal basis or no legal theory to support it."
The attorney said the case will be "fought hard and actively," concluding, "We certainly expect to prevail on Joe's claims and to dismiss the claims that were brought yesterday."Fat Joe filed a lawsuit against Dixon for allegedly slandering him on social media with claims that the rapper flew a 16-year-old girl across state lines for sex. That suit, filed in April, claimed that Dixon and Blackburn sought to extort Fat Joe for money for being a "ghostwriter and uncredited vocalist" on some of his songs.
"The lawsuit filed by Tyrone Blackburn and Terrance Dixon is a blatant act of retaliation, a desperate attempt to deflect attention from the civil suit we filed first, which exposed their coordinated scheme to extort Mr. Cartagena through lies, threats, and manufactured allegations," Fat Joe's attorney, Joe Tacopina, said in a statement to EW on Friday.
"We didn't just sue a disgruntled former employee trying to revive a false claim from 15 years ago — we sued the lawyer behind it all," he added. "Law enforcement is aware of the extortionate demand at the heart of this scheme. The allegations against Mr. Cartagena are complete fabrications — lies intended to damage his reputation and force a settlement through public pressure. Mr. Cartagena will not be intimidated. We have taken legal action to expose this fraudulent campaign and hold everyone involved accountable."
Dixon seems prepared for a lengthy legal battle. "This is the right way to fight Joe — through the system," he told Variety. "You can't fight him no other way. Joe thinks he's a god. Joe thinks he's untouchable."
Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly
