After Garth Brooks denounced the sexual assault allegations against him, the attorney representing his accuser has spoken out — invoking the name of another famous musician accused of sexual assault, Sean “Diddy” Combs, in a new statement.
“I cannot get into settlement discussions, but the suggestion made by Brooks that he was unwilling to pay millions is simply not true,” attorney Douglas H. Wigdor tells Us Weekly in a Friday, October 4, statement. “It seems as though Sean Combs and Garth Brooks are using the same public relations team by attacking legitimate victims.”
Wigdor adds, “We are very confident in our case and over time the public will see his true character rather than his highly curated persona.”
Wigdor and his legal associates filed a lawsuit on Thursday, October 3, on behalf of an anonymous client referred to as Jane Roe. In court documents obtained by Us, Roe claimed that she was raped by Brooks, 62, in 2019 after being hired as a hairstylist for the singer and his wife, Trisha Yearwood.
Brooks denied the allegations that same day, noting in a statement to Us, “For the last two months, I have been hassled to no end with threats, lies, and tragic tales of what my future would be if I did not write a check for many millions of dollars. It has been like having a loaded gun waved in my face.”
The country singer continued, “Hush money, no matter how much or how little, is still hush money. In my mind, that means I am admitting to behavior I am incapable of — ugly acts no human should ever do to another. … I want to continue our good deeds going forward. It breaks my heart these wonderful things are in question now. I trust the system, I do not fear the truth, and I am not the man they have painted me to be.”
Brooks has not addressed Wigdor’s Friday statement and apparent comparison to Diddy, 54. Us has reached out for comment.
Wigdor, meanwhile, is very familiar with Diddy’s legal issues. He was also the attorney representing Cassie (real name Casandra Ventura) when she filed a lawsuit against Diddy. In November 2023, Cassie, 37, sued the disgraced music mogul for repeated sexual assault and physical abuse throughout their on-off relationship. Diddy vehemently denied the allegations and they settled the lawsuit out of court within one day.
Attorneys for Diddy told Us at the time that the settlement did not admit any wrongdoing on his behalf.
After Cassie’s lawsuit, multiple other individuals came forward with similar accusations against Diddy. He denied every claim before he was arrested last month.
News broke in September that Diddy was arrested in New York on charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and transportation to engage in prostitution. In a 14-page indictment, the rapper allegedly “abused, threatened and coerced women and others around him” for decades. Diddy was also accused of using the acts to fulfill “his sexual desires, protect his reputation and conceal his conduct.”
Diddy pleaded not guilty to the charges before a judge denied him bail. He was remanded to the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn until his trial.
“We are disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe is an unjust prosecution of Mr. Combs by the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” Diddy’s attorney Marc Agnifilo told Us Weekly in a statement. “Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs is a music icon, self-made entrepreneur, loving family man and proven philanthropist who has spent the last 30 years building an empire, adoring his children and working to uplift the Black community.”
Agnifilo added, “He is an imperfect person, but he is not a criminal. To his credit, Mr. Combs has been nothing but cooperative with this investigation and he voluntarily relocated to New York last week in anticipation of these charges. Please reserve your judgment until you have all the facts. These are the acts of an innocent man with nothing to hide, and he looks forward to clearing his name in court.”
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
