Who Is Crystal McKinney? Model Becomes 5th Person to File Lawsuit Against Diddy in Less Than 6 Months

Less than a week after video footage of Sean “Diddy” Combs assaulting his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura became public on May 17, 2024, another woman has come forward and filed a lawsuit against the “Mo’ Money, Mo’ Problems” artist. The filing comes from former model Crystal McKinney, who has accused Combs of drugging and sexually assaulting her in New York City in 2003.

Who Is Crystal McKinney?

After winning a modeling competition on MTV, McKinney was awarded a contract with IMG in 1998. From there, the Savannah, Georgia, native went on to book modeling campaigns with brands like Tommy Hilfiger, Elle, Cosmopolitan and more.

Crystal McKinney’s Allegations Against Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs

McKinney becomes the fifth person to file a lawsuit against the Bad Boy Entertainment founder since November 2023. In documents obtained by In Touch, McKinney claims she was 22 when she met Combs in 2003 after an unnamed fashion designer invited her to attend a Men's Fashion Week ​event at Cipriani.

According to the court documents, the fashion designer told McKinney “that he would be introducing her to Combs which could advance her modeling career.” When McKinney and the fashion designer arrived at dinner to meet Combs, she sat beside the fashion designer. However, Combs insisted that she sit directly across from him.

McKinney claimed that Combs “made a very public display of coming on to [her] in a sexually suggestive manner.” The “All About the Benjamins” rapper allegedly told McKinney that she was “going to make it big one day” and plied her with alcohol throughout dinner.

McKinney claimed that Combs asked her to visit him at his studio later that night, which she did. When she arrived, she alleged that the group of men inside, including Combs, were passing around a bottle of Hennessy and smoking marijuana. Despite allegedly telling Combs that she’d had enough, McKinney claimed that Combs “pressured her to imbibe more alcohol and marijuana by telling her that she was acting too uptight.”

McKinney claimed that Combs then “physically led” her to a bathroom where he began kissing her without his consent and forced her to perform oral sex on him. She claimed that when she and Combs returned to the studio, she lost consciousness.

Crystal McKinney Claimed Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs ‘Blackballed’ Her in the Industry

McKinney claimed that after the events of the night in the studio, she noticed that her “modeling opportunities quickly began to dwindle and then evaporated entirely.” She alleged that Combs “blackballed” her in the modeling and entertainment industry, which sent her into a downward spiral of depression and anxiety.