Sources report guns found at P Diddy’s residences during federal raids

According to three sources close to the matter, federal agents searching homes owned by rapper Sean Combs discovered firearms. This information was reported by Sky News’s US partner network NBC News.

The 54-year-old‘s residences in Los Angeles and Miami were raided by Homeland Security Investigations agents on 25 March as part of an ongoing sex trafficking investigation by federal authorities in New York, the AP news agency reported.

Several phones were seized from Combs in Miami before he was scheduled to depart on a trip to the Bahamas, according to NBC News.

The rapper, also known as P Diddy and Puff Daddy, has been embroiled in a string of serious allegations in recent months.

Three women and a man were interviewed by federal officials in Manhattan in relation to the probe, as reported by NBC News.

It is still unclear what type of firearms were discovered or to whom they belonged.

Following the raids on his residence in late March, Combs’s lawyer Aaron Dyer denounced what he called a “gross overuse of military-level force as search warrants were executed”.

“There is no excuse for the excessive show of force and hostility exhibited by authorities or the way his children and employees were treated,” he added.

Mr Dyer stated that Combs and his family members had not been arrested or had their travel restricted.

“This unprecedented ambush—paired with an advanced, coordinated media presence—leads to a premature rush to judgement of Mr Combs and is nothing more than a witch hunt based on meritless accusations made in civil lawsuits.

“There has been no finding of criminal or civil liability with any of these allegations. Mr Combs is innocent and will continue to fight every single day to clear his name.”

Multiple lawsuits

Combs has also faced numerous lawsuits recently accusing him of sexual misconduct and other misdeeds.

In February, a music producer claimed that Combs coerced him to solicit prostitutes and pressured him to engage in sexual activities with them.

Combs’s lawyer refuted the allegations, stating: “We have overwhelming, indisputable proof that his claims are complete lies”.

The rapper’s former protege and girlfriend, R&B singer Cassie, also sued him in November alleging she was trafficked, raped, plied with drugs, and beaten by Combs over a period of 10 years.

Combs denied the accusations, deeming them offensive and outrageous.

The case was settled the day after it was filed.

Since then, three other women have filed lawsuits in the Southern District of New York alleging that Combs sexually assaulted them, two claiming they were teenagers at the time.

Combs has refuted all allegations, labeling them as “sickening” and “awful”.

Combs is a highly influential hip hop producer of the past three decades, establishing one of hip hop’s largest empires and founding record label Bad Boy Records in 1993, collaborating with artists such as Notorious BIG, Mary J Blige, Usher, and Lil Kim.

A three-time Grammy winner, his latest album, The Love Album – Off the Grid, was nominated for best progressive R&B album at February’s Grammy Awards, where he neither won nor attended.

Sky News has reached out to representatives for Combs for comment.