Former Bad Boy President, Label Sued for Sexual Assault, Negligence

Less than a week after Sean “Diddy” Combs was accused of rape and sex trafficking by R&B singer Cassie, a longtime executive at his company Bad Boy Entertainment is being sued for allegedly grooming and sexually assaulting his assistant.

Harve Pierre, the former president of Bad Boy who met Diddy when they were students together at Howard University, is accused of preying on the Jane Doe plaintiff “on multiple occasions in New York City and other locations throughout the country,” the complaint filed in New York County Supreme Court and obtained by Rolling Stone reads.

“Pierre used his position of authority as plaintiff’s boss to groom, exploit, and sexually assault her,” the filing alleges. “Pierre engaged in a year-long pattern of grooming plaintiff, leading to sexual harassment of plaintiff, and sexual assault.”

The anonymous assistant alleges Pierre sexually assaulted her on multiple occasions from 2016 to 2017, and as a result she suffered physical, emotional, and psychological injuries, along with pain and suffering. The woman is asking for damages that will “fully and fairly compensate” her. (Pierre did not immediately reply to a request for comment.)

The lawsuit also names Bad Boy Entertainment, Bad Boy Records, and Combs Enterprises as co-defendants, accusing the companies of negligence and gender violence. “Defendants knew or should have known that Pierre was unfit to be in a position of authority before Pierre sexually assaulted plaintiff,” the lawsuit states. It claims the companies failed to “properly supervise” Pierre, especially considering his access to “individuals like plaintiff.”

A Bad Boy spokesperson tells Rolling Stone that “we have recently become aware of a lawsuit filed in New York by a former employee. The allegations are from many years ago that were never brought to the attention of the company. Neither the plaintiff nor the executive are current employees of the company. We are now investigating the allegations, and our top priority is the safety and well-being of our employees.”

Pierre started at Bad Boy in 1992, according to his LinkedIn profile, working his way up from an intern and Combs’ assistant to a director-level position before leaving the company in 1995. Pierre eventually returned to become its president until December 2017. He now calls himself a “partial owner” of the company that helped launch the careers of Notorious B.I.G., Craig Mack, Ma$e and Faith Evans.

The suit was filed as a consequence to the Adult Survivors Act, which allowed a one-year window for those in New York to bring civil lawsuits alleging sexual abuse even if the statute of limitations had passed. It’s set to expire on Friday, November 24. According to the Associated Press, the legislation led to more than 2,500 lawsuits, with many – including Cassie’s suit against Diddy and a Jane Doe lawsuit against Russell Brand – being filed in the final days leading up to the deadline.

Cassie, real name Casandra Ventura, also named Bad Boy Entertainment in her suit as a co-defendant. In a 35-page filing, Ventura alleged that Combs began abusing her in 2005, which lasted until she left the relationship in 2018. The singer alleged that Combs was physically violent and “often punched, beat, kicked and stomped” on her and forced her to have sex with male prostitutes, which Combs allegedly filmed. Ventura also claimed that Combs blew up rapper Kid Cudi’s car in 2012 after Combs believed Kid Cudi was interested in Ventura. Through a spokesperson, Kid Cudi corroborated her account.

A day after filing the bombshell lawsuit, Ventura and Combs settled out of court. Details of the settlement have not been made public and Combs denied her claims of abuse and violence.

“After years in silence and darkness, I am finally ready to tell my story, and to speak up on behalf of myself and for the benefit of other women who face violence and abuse in their relationships,” Ventura said in a statement. “With the expiration of New York’s Adult Survivors Act fast approaching, it became clear that this was an opportunity to speak up about the trauma I have experienced and that I will be recovering from for the rest of my life.”