Houston attorney Tony Buzbee is speaking out after music mogul Jay Z blasted him as “a fraud.”
Buzbee recently filed an amended lawsuit accusing rapper Jay-Z of raping a 13-year-old girl in 2000, allegedly alongside Sean “Diddy” Combs. The anonymous accuser, referred to only as “Jane Doe,” claims the assault occurred after she was driven to an MTV Video Music Awards after-party. Initially filed in October by Buzbee, the federal lawsuit named Sean “Diddy” Combs as a defendant. The lawsuit was refiled last week to include Jay-Z, whose legal name is Shawn Carter.
In response to the amended lawsuit, Jay-Z and his Roc Nation team issued a statement on X.
“My lawyer received a blackmail attempt, called a demand letter, from a ‘lawyer’ named Tony Buzbee,” Carter wrote. “What he had calculated was the nature of these allegations and the public scrutiny would make me want to settle. No sir, it had the opposite effect! It made me want to expose you for the fraud you are in a VERY public fashion. So no, I will not give you ONE RED PENNY!!”
Carter further addressed the nature of the accusations, urging Buzbee to take the matter to criminal court. Buzbee has filed lawsuits on behalf of 25 women who accused former Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson of inappropriate behavior during massage sessions. None of those alleged infractions have been prosecuted in a court of law but Watson has settled most lawsuits in civil court.
“These allegations are so heinous in nature that I implore you to file a criminal complaint, not a civil one!! Whomever would commit such a crime against a minor should be locked away, would you not agree?” Carter wrote.
He also expressed his concern about the personal toll the lawsuit is taking on his family.
“My only heartbreak is for my family,” Carter wrote. “My wife and I will have to sit our children down, one of whom is at the age where her friends will surely see the press and ask questions about the nature of these claims, and explain the cruelty and greed of people.”
In turn, Tony Buzbee fired back with his statement, accusing Carter of attempting to silence him and his client.
“Regarding the Jay-Z case and his efforts to silence my clients: Mr. Carter previously denied being the one who sued me and my firm. He filed his frivolous case under a pseudonym<” Buzbee said. “What he fails to say in his recent statement is my firm sent his lawyer a demand letter on behalf of an alleged victim and that victim never demanded a penny from him. Instead, she only sought a confidential mediation.”
Buzbee continued, “Since I sent the letter on her behalf, Mr. Carter has not only sued me, but he has tried to bully and harass me and this plaintiff. His conduct has had the opposite impact. She is emboldened. I’m very proud of her resolve.”
Buzbee emphasized that the case will be litigated in court and not in the media. “As far as the allegations in the complaint filed, we will let the filing speak for itself,” he added.
