Diplo Faces More Accusations Of Sexual Assault After Another Woman Comes Forward
The woman claims Diplo assaulted her at an afterparty in 2019 - allegations which Diplo strongly refutes.
Diplo has strongly denied allegations of sexual assault levelled at him in a lawsuit filed last week.
— Content Warning: This article contains discussion of sexual assault. —
As reported by TMZ, a lawsuit was filed last week by a woman who claims Diplo forced her into performing oral sex at an afterparty in 2019 — additionally, she alleges he filmed the encounter without her consent.
Documents seen by TMZ state that the incident occurred after one of the DJ’s shows in Las Vegas two years ago. Diplo, real name Thomas Wesley Pentz, allegedly invited the woman into a private room during the afterparty, and asked everyone else to leave the room. The woman claims his bodyguards punched her male friend in the face after he refused to leave her alone with the producer.
The woman goes on the claim that Diplo then forced her into giving him oral sex, and filmed it without her consent — she states she was not in a fit state to consent, being under the effects of alcohol and weed.
It’s the second allegation in as many months against the producer — in June, a lawsuit was filed against him by a woman called Shelly Auguste, alleging sexual battery, assault, defamation, infliction of emotional distress and fraud, according to TMZ. Diplo had previously taken out a restraining order against Auguste in December last year, after she made revenge porn allegations against him.
Diplo’s lawyer says there is no basis for this new allegation, and claims there is a connection to the previous plaintiff.
“This complaint is completely outrageous, wildly untrue and yet also entirely predictable, given that it simply repeats the exact same claim already made by the plaintiff’s friend Shelly Auguste, an individual who has been harassing Mr. Pentz and his family for more than a year and already has repeatedly violated the restraining order issued against her,” attorney Bryan Freedman said in a statement, as reported by TMZ.
“We have irrefutable evidence that this is a completely meritless claim and we will be providing it to a court as quickly as we possibly can to put an end to this shakedown by Ms Auguste and her accomplices once and for all.”
In regards to Auguste’s earlier allegation, Freedman alleges that she has “repeatedly stalked, defamed, threatened and attempted to shake down [Diplo] and his family.
“These latest false claims are just part of that ongoing campaign of harassment,” he stated. “We will not allow them to deter us from pursuing justice against her to the fullest extent possible under the law.”
Diplo was scheduled to play a set following the Baltimore Orioles baseball game at the end of this month, but organisers have since announced the gig has been cancelled due to the new allegations.
“This is very concerning in light of the news that came out on July 7 that Diplo is accused of sexual assault after he forced a fan to perform oral sex on him after a show in Vegas in 2019, which she has claimed he filmed,” the statement from the Baltimore Orioles reads. “If the Orioles are such a family-friendly team, and truly care about women, they need to separate themselves from Diplo and stand up and cancel this post-game concert.”