Diddy Arrested for Assault Following Fight With College Football Coach
UPDATE, July 3rd: The Los Angeles County district attorney declined to file felony charges against Combs stemming from the June 22nd incident. “We are thankful that the district attorney rejected felony charges in this matter,” Combs’ attorney Mark Geragos said in a statement. “This case never should have been part of the criminal justice system to begin with.”
UPDATE: Combs’ charges have been elevated to three counts of assault with a deadly weapon, one count of making terrorist threats and one count of battery, according to UCLA police. The hip-hop mogul has been booked into the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Inmate Reception Center.
Sean “Diddy” Combs was arrested for assault on the UCLA campus Monday afternoon after getting into a fight with a football coach at the school’s athletic facility, CBS Los Angeles reports. The rapper’s son, Justin Combs, plays on UCLA’s team as a defensive back. UCLA police confirmed the arrest to an Orange County Register reporter.
“Shortly after 12:30 p.m. today, Sean Combs (also known as P. Diddy) was arrested at UCLA’s Acosta Athletic Training Complex on a charge of assault with a deadly weapon, which was a kettlebell,” a university spokesperson wrote on the school’s site. “No one was seriously injured and UCPD is investigating. Combs is expected to be transported to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Inmate Reception Center later this evening.”
“I’m thankful that our staff showed the level of professionalism that they did in handling this situation,” UCLA football coach Jim Mora said in a statement. “This is an unfortunate incident for all parties involved. While UCPD continues to review this matter, we will let the legal process run its course and refrain from further comment at this time.”
Prior to the alleged incident, the coach had allegedly been “riding Justin, screaming intensely at him,” a source told TMZ, during a strength-and-conditioning exercise as Diddy watched on the sidelines. The source claimed that Diddy approached the coach in his office and grabbed the man.
Another source told the gossip site that the rapper had wanted to call the authorities himself but that someone took his phone from him. The rapper is reportedly still being held at the school’s campus jail.
“We are aware of the reports and are looking into the matter,” UCLA director of media relations Phil Hampton told USA Today. “We will share confirmed facts when they are available.”
“The various accounts of the event and charges that are being reported are wholly inaccurate,” Diddy’s rep tells Rolling Stone. “What we can say now is that any actions taken by Mr. Combs were solely defensive in nature to protect himself and his son. We are confident that once the true facts are revealed, the case will be dismissed.”
USA Today reports that Justin Combs, a junior at the school, played in seven football games with the school’s Bruins team over the past two seasons as a reserve in the secondary, in addition to playing on special teams.
Diddy, whose real name is Sean Combs, released “I Want the Love,” a new song featuring Meek Mill, last year under the name Puff Daddy. He unveiled the single as he was working on a new album, his first since 2010’s Last Train to Paris.