- A man who has accused Sean “Diddy” Combs of sexual assault and humiliating him at a party in Miami in 2015 has removed Beyoncé and Jay-Z’s names from his lawsuit
- The couple’s lawyers were able to prove that they were not in attendance at the party
- The accuser, Joseph Manzaro, alleges that he was drugged and taken to a home on Star Island, and then later paraded around at another party where he was forced to wear a penis mask
A man who has accused Sean “Diddy” Combs of sexual assault and humiliating him at a 2015 party while Beyoncé and Jay-Z were present has now removed the couple’s names from his lawsuit.
The accuser, Joseph Manzaro, filed an amendment to his lawsuit in Florida on Friday, April 11. He removed Beyoncé and Jay-Z’s names from his complaint, which was obtained by PEOPLE.
Manzaro alleges in the original complaint that he was drugged and taken to a home on Miami’s Star Island, owned by Gloria and Emilio Estefan, for Combs’ son Christian’s birthday in April 2015. Once there, Manzaro claims Gloria saw him in a “deteriorating state” and told someone to call an ambulance, before Emilio allegedly ushered her away, according to the complaint.
Manzaro also alleges that he was drugged, taken from the home and paraded around another party while being made to wear a penis mask. The complaint described the event as a “freak-off.”
Page Six reported that Jay-Z and Beyoncé’s lawyers supplied information that proved the couple were not in attendance at the time. A 2015 article from New York University’s newspaper reported that Jay-Z was making an appearance at the college at the time, and soon after, he and Beyoncé went on vacation in Hawaii, per photos published by The Daily Mail.
Manzaro claims in the complaint that he was drugged and transported via an underground tunnel to Combs’ mansion by former porn star Adria English, who is also named as a defendant.
A previous version of the complaint alleges that Manzaro was taken to a room with Jay-Z and Beyoncé, the latter of whom expressed confusion and asked why a “half-naked” man with a sex toy strapped to his face was standing in front of her. This claim was removed from the complaint.
One of the other defendants named in the complaint allegedly responded that it was a “punishment,” and that “Diddy wants him to see what we do to snitches.”
Jay-Z’s attorney Alex Spiro gave a statement to PEOPLE, in which he said that the musician was not in Florida at the time of the alleged assault.
“[Jay-Z] wasn’t in Florida at that time to witness this incident — he was engaged in easily findable public activities that prove he was not at this event,” Spiro said in the statement. “This is more nonsense that erodes the trust in our ‘justice’ system.”
Manzaro’s complaint alleges that Combs later specifically ordered that Manzaro be degraded in front of others at the party before the plaintiff was stripped and then dressed in a thong and “a black leather mask with a rubber dam forcibly inserted and zipped closed over his head.”
“A locking sex device was affixed to the mask, which protruded from his mouth,” the complaint alleges. “Plaintiff was then subjected to degrading and non-consensual acts.”
The complaint further claims that Gloria again requested an ambulance, but was once more silenced by Emilio.
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In a statement to PEOPLE on Saturday, April 12, Combs’ legal team denied the allegations leveled by Manzaro.
“This complaint demonstrates the depraved lengths plaintiffs will travel to garner headlines in pursuit of a payday,” the statement said. “No sane person reading this complaint could credit this story. Mr. Combs looks forward to having his day in court, where these lies — and the perverse motives of those who told them — will be revealed.”
Emilio was named a defendant in the complaint. Gloria, Beyoncé and Jay-Z — as well as LeBron James, whom Manzaro alleges saw him at the event — were not named as defendants.
PEOPLE reached out to attorneys for Beyoncé, Jay-Z and Manzaro for comment on Saturday, April 12, but did not receive an immediate response.
Combs has been sued by dozens of people accusing him of sexual misconduct and has denied the allegations. He has also pleaded not guilty to federal sex crime charges and is set to go on trial in May 2025.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.
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