Diddy Ordered To Pay MI Prison Inmate $100 Million: Reports

MUSKEGON HEIGHTS, MI — An inmate at a Michigan prison has been awarded a $100 million default judgment against rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs, triggered by Combs's absence at a virtual hearing Monday, according to reports.

Derrick Lee Cardello-Smith accused Combs of drugging and sexually assaulting him at a Detroit party in 1997, when Cardello-Smith worked in the hospitality industry, according to the Detroit Metro Times.

Cardello-Smith was granted a temporary restraining order against Combs in August to stop the rapper from selling assets with the potential to compensate Cardello-Smith, the newspaper reported. The inmate revealed Combs’s name in a prison visitation log and said Combs offered him $2.3 million to dismiss the lawsuit, but that Cardello-Smith refused, according to the Metro Times.

Combs’s lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, in a statement to USA Today accused Cardello-Smith of fraud.

“… Mr. Combs has never heard of him let alone been served with any lawsuit,” Agnifilo told the newspaper. “Mr. Combs looks forward to having this judgment swiftly dismissed."

The Metro Times characterized Cardello-Smith as “a self-taught student of civil and criminal statutes” who is “known for his long history of challenging the judicial system with civil lawsuits.” The 51-year-old is serving up to 75 years for charges of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and kidnapping at a facility in Muskegon Heights, USA Today reported.

Combs has been the subject of several lawsuits alleging sexual and other abuse.

In May, CNN aired 2016 hotel security video that showed him punching, kicking and dragging the R& B singer Cassie, who was his protege and longtime girlfriend at the time. The incident closely matched a description in a lawsuit she filed in November that was settled the following day but set off intense scrutiny of Combs.

A few days after the video's airing, Combs posted an apology video on social media saying he was “truly sorry” and his actions were “inexcusable.”

The Associated Press contributed to this story.