Ever since Homeland Security raided the homes of the 54-year-old rapper in connection with a federal sex trafficking investigation, social media users have been scrutinizing his past. Think of everything from his creepy close relationship with a teen Justin Bieber to his old relationship with Jennifer Lopez.
You may recall Diddy and Jennifer once had been a huge power couple in Hollywood. But throughout their two years of dating, they experienced a lot of highs. They also had a ton of lows — most notably the time they were arrested following a shooting at a nightclub in New York City decades ago. And a lot of people have been bringing up this messy situation over the past week. Here’s the deal.
In December 1999, the former couple had been at Club New York when shots were fired during an altercation Diddy had been involved in, leading to three clubgoers wounded. The Bad Boy Records founder and Jennifer left the scene in his car but got pulled over by police after running a red light. Law enforcement found a gun inside the vehicle, leading to the pair getting arrested on weapons and bribery charges. The charges against the singer were dropped. However, it was not until 2001 that Diddy was acquitted.
Jennifer understandably never forgot about that dreadful night. She recalled to Elle in July 2000:
“It was a complete nightmare from beginning to end. I was scared to death in the car. I had absolutely no idea what was going on. No one did.”
Despite the shooting incident, J.Lo continued her relationship for two more years. They broke up in February 2001 after Diddy had been unfaithful. The Maid In Manhattan actress confirmed the infidelity rumors to Vibe magazine in May 2003, saying she “never caught him” cheating but “knew” in her gut he was unfaithful:
“He’d say he was going to a club for a couple of hours and then never come back that night. It was the first time I was with someone who wasn’t faithful. I was in this relationship with Puff where I was totally crying, crazy, and going nuts, it really took my whole life in a tailspin.”
Yikes. She thought to herself at one point in their relationship:
“Do I want to be home with kids in 10 years wondering where somebody is at three in the morning?”
Obviously, Jennifer was not down for that and got out. Despite their tumultuous romance, Jennifer is grateful for their time together. She told Access Hollywood in October 2014:
“He gave me so many cues and taught me so many things. I’ll always be grateful to him for that, and I love that he can be so supportive of me so many years later and there’s still so much mutual respect, admiration and love there.”
However, she may not look back on everything fondly. In her new documentary, The Greatest Love Story Never Told, she did open up about being in abusive relationships – and fans have speculated she could have been talking about Diddy! Given the sexual assault, abuse, and sex trafficking allegations against him, it is no wonder they came to that conclusion. But Jennifer – who is married to Ben Affleck now – never mentions who had been abusive toward her. All she says:
“Being thrown around and manhandled like that is not fun. I mean, I was never in a relationship where I got beat up, thank God, but I’ve definitely been manhandled and a couple of other unsavory things. Rough. Disrespectful.”
Awful. As we mentioned, fans have since speculated Jennifer was referring to Diddy. One person even wrote on Reddit:
“Considering a bunch of allegations of P.Diddy are coming out … I wonder if there’s a connection between to speaking out publicly now. Either way, I hope she’s doing better now!”
At this time, Jennifer has not spoken out about the legal issues surrounding her ex-boyfriend. But we are certainly curious about what she has to say regarding this matter. Reactions, Perezcious readers? Let us know in the comments below.
[Image via Nikki Nelson/ WENN, MEGA/WENN, Judy Eddy/WENN]
