One of Sean “Diddy” Combs’ associates was arrested at a Miami airport just hours before federal agents raided the artist’s properties in Los Angeles and Miami on Monday.
According to court documents obtained by USA TODAY, 25-year-old Brendan Paul, a former Syracuse University basketball player, was taken into custody at Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport and charged with felony possession of cocaine and marijuana-laced edibles.
The arrest was a joint operation involving Miami-Dade police, the Department of Homeland Security, and Customs and Border Protection.
Brendan Paul, who is described as Combs’ “mule” in a recently amended civil lawsuit against the rapper, allegedly had the illegal drugs inside his travel bags before his departure. The damning lawsuit, filed by producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones, accuses Paul of procuring and transporting an array of illicit substances like ecstasy, ketamine and “pink cocaine” – a combination of cocaine and MDMA – on Combs’ behalf.
The arrest capped a whirlwind day that saw federal Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents raid Combs’ multi-million dollar mansions on both coasts as part of an escalating probe into alleged crimes including sex trafficking. Video footage showed a heightened security presence with some agents arriving in armored vehicles.
Combs’ legal team swiftly condemned the “unprecedented ambush” and accused authorities of excessive force, despite the rapper not being detained or having any travel restricted. They insisted Combs is innocent and a victim of “a witch hunt based on meritless accusations made in civil lawsuits.”
Those lawsuits, including Jones’ recent filing, have lodged a series of lurid accusations against the Bad Boy Records founder and his inner circle – from operating a “widespread and dangerous criminal sex trafficking organization” to sexual assault and drugging. The suits also allege Combs recruited and paid several high-profile women, including rapper Yung Miami, as “sex workers.”
