(Chris Cella Jr., Headline USA) Mark Agnifilo, a lawyer representing embattled rap mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, said Thursday that Costco was to blame for the thousands of bottles of lube and baby oil among the contraband that police seized during a raid on Combs’s mansions, TMZ reported.
But a judge and jury may not be so quick to let it slide. The discovery could bolster the Justice Department’s claims that Combs used his media empire to build a sex-trafficking network.
“[Diddy] buys in bulk,” Agnifilo said.
“I think they have Costcos in every place where he has a home,” he added. “… Have you sat in a Costco parking lot and seen what people walk out with?”
A Costco spokesperson clarified to TMZ that none of its U.S. stores carry, stock or sell baby oil.
Combs was arrested last week on charges stemming from a multi-year investigation after allegations of sexual abuse and exploitation of women began to surface—including a surveillance camera video of him allegedly attacking an ex-girlfriend in a hotel corridor.
🚨BREAKING: CNN has released footage of Diddy BEATING his ex – girlfriend in 2016 in a hotel hallway. 😳‼️ pic.twitter.com/fKlB10nKT4
— DramaAlert (@DramaAlert) May 17, 2024
Federal agents took Combs into custody on charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, and transportation to engage in prostitution on Sept 16. He pleaded not guilty but was denied bail and remains in custody as a flight risk.
If convicted, he could face a life sentence. As of Thursday, Combs was on suicide watch at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York.
According to Forbes, the saga has ensnared several high-profile celebrities who were mentored by or partied with Combs. Celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Paris Hilton, Sarah Jessica Parker, Mariah Carey and Leonardo DiCaprio have been photographed at Combs’s “White Parties.”
Combs was also known for the “freak offs” at his “White Parties,” described as orgies involving narcotics, alcohol, and Costco-sized bottles of lube and baby oil.
R&B star Usher Raymond, who first met Combs in 1994, told Rolling Stone that the “It’s All About the Benjamins” rapper had “introduced me to a totally different set of s**t—sex, specifically.”
Raymond’s Twitter feed was deleted after Combs’s arrest, which he claimed was due to hacking.
Justin Bieber has also been caught in Combs’s controversy. In 2009, Bieber, then 15, posted a video with Combs, who announced that Bieber would spend “48 hours with Diddy,” doing things “we can’t really disclose, but it’s definitely a 15-year-old’s dream.”
Some online speculation has centered around the possibility that Bieber himself may have been sexually abused while in Combs’s care.
Rapper and longtime Combs critic Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson is producing a Netflix documentary on the scandal titled Diddy Do It?
Jackson promoted the documentary on social media, renaming the classic Johnson & Johnson baby oil bottle “Diddy Oil” with the caption, “Coming soon! LOL.”
Coming soon! LOL 😆 pic.twitter.com/VeHPJvnFof
— 50cent (@50cent) September 25, 2024
When referencing Combs’s alleged orgies, labeled by the prosecution as “freak-offs,” Agnifilo said, “Back when I was a kid in the late ’70s, they were called threesomes.”
He proclaimed his client’s innocence and added that Combs remains cooperative with the investigation.
Agnifilo also disputed the number of lube and baby oil bottles found, saying, “I don’t think it was a thousand. Let’s just say it was a lot.”
He added, “One bottle of baby oil goes a long way. I don’t know what you need a thousand for.”
