Macy’s is accused of covering up a 2008 sexual assault by Sean “Diddy” Combs at its Herald Square flagship store

• A series of federal lawsuits from Manhattan accuse Combs of sexual assaults dating back to 1995.

• One alleges that Combs verbally raped an employee of rival brand Ecko at the Macy’s flagship store in 2008.

• The lawsuit alleges that Macy’s covered up the attack because of a multimillion-dollar deal with Sean John.

Macy’s covered up a violent 2008 sexual assault by Sean “Diddy” Combs at its Herald Square, Manhattan, flagship store to protect a “million-dollar” deal with Combs’ clothing brand Sean John, a new lawsuit alleges.

The global department store chain was named as a defendant in one of at least six federal lawsuits, all alleging sexual assault, filed against the hip-hop entrepreneur in Manhattan on Monday.

The 19-page lawsuit is one of two filed Monday that names an outside company as a defendant, in addition to companies belonging to Combs. It was filed on behalf of a “John Doe” now living in Ohio.

The plaintiff claims he was orally raped by Combs while working in the warehouse of the flagship store.

The prosecutor said he worked for Ecko, a clothing company that competed with Combs’ Sean John brand, which Macy’s also carried.

On the day of the attack, Combs entered the warehouse with three armed bodyguards, the lawsuit said.

One or more of the guards struck him — possibly pistol-whipping him, he claims — causing him to fall to his hands and knees, the lawsuit said.

The plaintiff says in the lawsuit that one or more of the bodyguards threatened to kill him.

The prosecutor said Combs demanded he perform oral sex on him, calling him by the name of the company he worked for: “Ecko.” According to the lawsuit, Combs then proceeded to verbally rape the accuser in what was described as a two-minute attack.

The lawsuit alleges that after the attack, Combs grabbed armfuls of Sean John merchandise from the warehouse, went onto the store floor and “began handing out merchandise to an adoring crowd, as if nothing had happened.”

The lawsuit accuses Macy’s of quickly covering up the incident.

The plaintiff reported it to company security the same day, but there was no follow-up and he was quickly denied access to the store, the lawsuit alleges.

“Approximately three weeks later, Macy’s CEO Terry Lundgren pressured Ecko executives to fire Plaintiff because Macy’s had just signed a multi-million dollar deal with Sean John Clothing,” the lawsuit said.

The plaintiff was eventually fired and told by Ecko that he could no longer live in his company-paid apartment in the city, the lawsuit said.

Ecko was not named as a defendant in the lawsuit. The company did not immediately return requests for comment from Business Insider after normal business hours on Monday.

The plaintiff “believes that the report of the assault was destroyed or otherwise deleted from Macy’s records, and that no action was ever taken on the report.” He still fears for his life, the lawsuit says.

Macy’s and Lundgren did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the allegations.

Lawyers for Combs released a statement on Monday, again denying that the artist ever committed sexual assault. They called the lawsuits filed Monday an attempt to “gain publicity.”

“Mr. Combs and his legal team have full confidence in the facts, their legal defense and the integrity of the legal process,” the attorneys said. “In court, the truth will prevail: that Mr. Combs has never sexually assaulted anyone – adult or minor, male or female.”

The lawsuits against Combs were filed in Manhattan by Texas-based Buzbee Law Firm, co-counsel AVA Law Group and Curis Law.

The Sean John brand, founded in 1998, now appears to be defunct. The Instagram page is empty and the website is broken. But its clothing, furniture, perfumes and footwear were once a big money maker for both Macy’s and Combs, with the chain’s retail sales exceeding $525 million in 2010.

Beginning in 2011, the company’s lucrative sportswear line — which it said made up about half of its sales — was sold exclusively at Macy’s. Five of the retailer’s locations included Sean John stores, where the company’s goods were marketed and sold in prime locations, and Combs appeared in commercials for the store.

For years it was one of the chain’s best-selling men’s brands, WWD reports.

“I have always admired Sean’s fashion sense, as well as his business acumen. He has a keen understanding of the needs of a style-conscious, contemporary man,” Lundgren said of Combs when the exclusivity deal was announced in 2010 – two years ago. after the alleged assault.

“He was the first person to believe in me,” the hip-hop star said of Lundgren, returning the compliment in a 2012 Barron’s article. “He was like a godfather,” Combs said.

In 2016, Combs sold a majority stake in the brand for $70 million, but under new management the brand floundered and eventually filed for bankruptcy.

In 2021, Combs bought back the company for $7.55 million. Sean John was sold at Macy’s until last fall, though a spokesperson did not say whether the line was drawn because of the mounting allegations against Combs.

Combs remains in jail awaiting a sex trafficking trial scheduled for May 5.

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