Daphne Joy, former girlfriend of rapper 50 Cent, is firing back at a recent allegation made about her professional relationship with Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Joy, along with City Girls rapper Yung Miami, was named in an amended civil lawsuit by producer Rodney "Lil Rod" Jones Jr., who is suing Combs for sexual assault and harassment. Jones claimed in the filing that Joy and Yung Miami were among the women "who were paid a monthly fee to work as Mr. Combs' sex workers."
Joy responded to the allegation in an Instagram post Thursday, threatening possible legal action against Jones.
“I am deeply hurt by the lies in Rodney Jones’ lawsuit,” Joy wrote. “The claim that I am a sex worker is 100% false and character assassination. I am retaining an attorney to explore all legal remedies against both Rodney and his attorney.”
The actress also aimed for her ex 50 Cent in a separate post. The rapper seemingly made light of Jones’ allegation about Joy in an Instagram post Wednesday, writing, “I didn’t know you was a sex worker, 👀you little sex worker. LOL 😆Yo this (stuff) is a movie.”
In the post, Joy addressed 50 Cent by his birth name, Curtis James Jackson, and criticized the “Candy Shop” emcee for “wreaking real havoc, frenzy, and chaos onto people’s lives.” She also blasted her ex-boyfriend for his alleged sexual abuse of her, as well as his lack of involvement in their son’s life (the former couple shares 12-year-old son Sire).
“Let’s put the real focus on your true evil actions of raping me and physically abusing me,” Joy wrote. “You are no longer my oppressor and my God will handle you from this point on. You have permanently damaged the last hope I had for you as a father to preserve our family with these last and final false claims made against me. You have broken our hearts for the last and final time.”
In an emailed statement to USA TODAY Thursday, 50 Cent said the “disturbing allegations” about Joy in Jones’ lawsuit against Diddy have “required me to take all necessary legal actions to protect my son.”
The rapper also dismissed Joy’s Instagram statement as retaliation against him for seeking sole custody of Sire in the wake of the lawsuit.
“The most recent false and baseless accusations by Daphne Joy are clearly in response to my decision to seek sole custody of my son,” 50 Cent said. “My son Sire is my main priority and keeping him in a safe environment is my only focus at this time.”
Jones' amended lawsuit follows the raid of two of Combs' homes. The homes were searched by HSI on Monday as part of a federal investigation.
Federal officials raided Combs' Los Angeles home Monday, according to Rolling Stone and local Los Angeles news station Fox 11, amid lawsuits filed against him from accusers alleging the rapper and music mogul has raped or sexually assaulted them. Agents also searched Combs' Miami residence Monday, Rolling Stone and The Associated Press reported.
The day after Combs' homes were raided, attorney Aaron Dyer insisted on the rapper's innocence and criticized the federal invasion for its "gross overuse of military-level force."
"This unprecedented ambush – paired with an advanced, coordinated media presence – leads to a premature rush to judgment of Mr. Combs and is nothing more than a witch hunt based on meritless accusations made in civil lawsuits," Dyer said in a statement to USA TODAY on Tuesday.
Contributing: Naledi Ushe, USA TODAY