Following the arrest of American rapper Diddy on charges of sex trafficking and racketeering, his mother, Janice Combs, has spoken out for the first time.
In a statement released by her lawyer, Natlie G. Figger, Janice defended her son, acknowledging that while he may have made mistakes in the past, he is not the villain people are portraying him to be.
“He’s made mistakes, like all of us, but he’s not the monster they are making him out to be,” Janice said.
She went on to express her sadness about how her son is being judged based on a false narrative. “It breaks my heart to see him judged, not for the truth, but for lies that have been spread about him,” she added. She admitted that Diddy hasn’t always been truthful, mentioning that he had once denied getting violent with an ex-girlfriend, even though hotel surveillance footage showed otherwise.
Janice explained that sometimes, the truth and lies get so mixed up that it becomes difficult to admit certain things, especially when the truth is hard to believe or not what people expect.
She also referred to Diddy’s past relationship with ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, which she claimed was filled with abuse—an accusation Diddy has denied. However, old footage of him mistreating her in a hotel later surfaced in the press.
“This is likely why Diddy’s legal team chose to settle the lawsuit with his ex-girlfriend instead of fighting it in court,” Janice stated. She believes that the federal government used this settlement as a sign of guilt against her son.
“It’s painful to watch how quickly the world has turned on my son, without even giving him a chance to share his side of the story,” she said. She also suggested that some of his accusers were motivated by money.
Diddy was arrested on Monday, September 17, 2024, at the Park Hyatt Hotel in Manhattan by Homeland Security Investigations. After his arrest, he was placed on suicide watch, which has since been lifted, and he is now allowed visits from family members.
