Jay-Z is doubling down on claims he did not rape a 13-year-old girl alongside Sean “Diddy” Combs, saying recently revealed inconsistencies in his story prove his account is unreliable.
Earlier this week, an anonymous woman filed a lawsuit against Diddy and Jay-Z, whose name is Shawn Carter, who revealed that a previously unidentified celebrity in her original complaint against Combs, initially filed in October, was Carter. In the lawsuit, Jay-Z is accused of raping the woman, then 13 years old, at a party after the MTV Video Music Awards in 2000.
The amended complaint made the rapper the first celebrity to be accused of sexual assault in connection with Diddy, who has pleaded not guilty to three federal charges and is awaiting a criminal trial.
In a new interview on Friday, the alleged victim said she stands by her rape accusation against Jay-Z, but admits to inconsistencies in her original story, including key witnesses who corroborated it.
“I made some mistakes,” the woman told NBC News. “You should always stand up for yourself and be a voice for yourself. You should never let what someone else did ruin or control your life. I just hope I can give others the strength to show up like I showed up.”
In her initial complaint, the woman said she asked her father to pick her up in 2000 after she was allegedly sexually assaulted by Carter and Combs. But her father has now said he doesn’t remember picking her up, according to NBC News, which also reported that the alleged victim said she spoke to a celebrity the night she claimed she was raped, but that celebrity said she wasn’t there. in New York at the time his allegations occurred.
The woman’s attorney, Tony Buzbee, said he is still reviewing his client’s allegations but stands by her accusations.
“Our client remains fiercely adamant that what she stated is true as far as she can remember. We will continue to verify your claims and collect corroborating data to the extent it exists. Because we questioned her intensely, she even agreed to submit to a polygraph. I’ve never had a client suggest this before,” Buzbee told CNN by email on Friday (13) evening.
“In any case, we always do our best to verify every allegation made, just as we did in this case. This has been extremely distressing for her, to the point where she has had seizures and has had to seek medical treatment due to the stress,” he added.
In a statement issued to CNN Jay-Z said the woman’s inconsistencies “prove” that Buzbee “filed a false complaint in pursuit of money and fame.”
“This abuse did not happen and yet he registered it in court and redoubled the pressure on the press,” the businessman’s statement continued. “True justice is coming. We fight FROM victory, not FOR victory. This was over before it started. This lawyer hasn’t figured it out yet, but soon.”
Carter’s lawyer, Alex Spiro, told CNN : “It is stunning that a lawyer would not only file such a serious complaint without proper vetting, but also make things worse by further spreading this false story in the press. We are asking the Court to dismiss this frivolous case today, and we will take up the issue of additional discipline for Mr. Buzbee and all of the attorneys who filed the complaint.”
Spiro also submitted a letter to the judge on Friday night about inconsistencies in the alleged victim’s account, calling her allegations a “hoax.”
“Basic facts in your narrative – who, what, when and where – are wrong,” Spiro wrote to the judge. “When pressed, Plaintiff admitted that she was ‘guessing’ about important details… She admits that she has no corroborating witnesses in the last 24 years.”
Before Buzbee filed the woman’s amended complaint, in which Jay-Z was named, his lawyers filed a racketeering lawsuit against Buzbee, alleging that the Houston lawyer was trying to “extort innocent celebrities, politicians and businesspeople with an army of masked accusers.”
Lawyers for Diddy, who previously denied all civil charges against him, criticized Buzbee in a statement to CNN .
“This is the beginning of the end of this shameful money grab.”
This content was originally published in Jay-Z says lawyer for alleged rape victim seeks “money and fame” on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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