By Paul Joseph
A woman who accused American rapper Jay-Z of raping her when she was 13 has withdrawn the allegation, saying in a court declaration that her claims against the music star were false.
The woman, identified as Jane Doe in court documents, had sued Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter, and Sean “Diddy” Combs in 2024.
She alleged that she was drugged and sexually assaulted at a party following the MTV Video Music Awards in 2000. Both rappers denied the allegations, while she later discontinued the lawsuit in February 2025.
In a new declaration filed Thursday in a related legal case, Jane Doe said Jay-Z never raped her and that she had never met or spoken with him.
“Shawn ‘Jay-Z’ Carter never raped me. I have never met or spoken to Mr. Carter. Mr. Carter never engaged in any inappropriate conduct toward me whatsoever,” she stated.
She also acknowledged that her previous allegation that Jay-Z and Combs raped her while another celebrity watched was false.
“There is no truth to any of my claims against Mr Carter,” she said, adding that she understood the allegations had caused significant pain and damage to the rapper and his family.
Jay-Z had consistently denied the accusation and previously described it as “frivolous, fictitious and appalling allegations.”
Following the withdrawal of the lawsuit in February 2025, the rapper said the case had caused trauma to his wife, children and other loved ones.
Jane Doe, who is from Alabama, has now been removed from Carter’s lawsuit. She also stated that she had not received money from Jay-Z or anyone acting on his behalf in connection with her latest declaration.
However, Jay-Z continues to pursue legal action against Jane Doe’s former lawyers, including attorney Tony Buzbee.
Buzbee told Rolling Stone that he had not seen the latest declaration and questioned the woman’s new account, saying she had previously presented the same allegations to several lawyers.
The attorney had previously alleged that investigators working for Carter harassed and pressured Jane Doe to withdraw her claims. In her latest declaration, however, she denied receiving threats from Jay-Z or anyone acting on his behalf.
How the Allegation Began
Jane Doe also provided an account of how her original allegation emerged.
She said she saw a Facebook advertisement in September or October 2024 seeking people who might have sexual assault claims involving Combs.
According to her declaration, the advertisement prompted memories of an alleged assault from when she was 13, after which she was contacted by a law firm.
She claimed the lawyers did not show her a draft of the lawsuit before it was filed and that she did not authorise the allegations contained in the October 2024 complaint.
She further alleged that the lawyers filed the case without carrying out independent investigations, background checks or obtaining corroborating evidence.
Buzbee, who represents several other people who have made allegations against Combs, has disputed aspects of her account through his previous statements.
In a separate criminal case, Combs was convicted in July 2025 on prostitution-related charges involving two former girlfriends and is serving a four-year prison sentence.
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