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A Viral Photo of Kamala Harris With Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Is Altered
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A Viral Photo of Kamala Harris With Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Is Altered

The image has circulated since the rapper was arrested on racketeering and sex trafficking charges.

Rapper Sean Combs—also known as Diddy, P. Diddy, and Puff Daddy—was arrested in New York on Tuesday on federal charges of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking stretching over 16 years. 

Following the arrest, a viral photo depicting Combs alongside Kamala Harris began spreading on social media sites, and was even “re-truthed” by former President Donald Trump himself on Truth Social, though he later undid the reposting. “Kamala doing the Diddy?” the post asks. “Madam vice president, have you ever been involved with or engaged in one of Puff Daddies freak offs?”

The image is altered. The original version of the image was taken on May 18, 2001, at a charity event in Los Angeles and shows Harris next to television host and actor Montel Williams, whom she was dating at the time. 

Talk Show Host Montel Williams, daughter Ashley Williams and Kamala Harris attending Eighth Annual Race to Erase Multiple Sclerosis on May 18, 2001 at the Century Plaza Hotel in Century City, California. (Photo by Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)

In the altered image, a headshot of Combs is superimposed onto Williams’ body, making it appear that Harris and Combs have—or previously had—a personal relationship. Earlier this year, a similar image was altered to show Harris posed alongside Jeffrey Epstein.

Ten sexual assault lawsuits were filed against Combs last year, and the rapper’s Los Angeles and Miami homes were raided by Homeland Security Investigations officers in March. According to the indictment, Combs “abused, threatened, and coerced women and others around him to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation, and conceal his conduct,” and “relied on the employees, resources, and influence of the multi-faceted business empire that he led and controlled—creating a criminal enterprise whose members and associates engaged in, and attempted to engage in, among other crimes, sex trafficking, forced labor, kidnapping, arson, bribery, and obstruction of justice.”

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Alex Demas is a fact checker at The Dispatch and is based in Washington, D.C. Prior to joining the company in 2023, he worked in England as a financial journalist and earned his MA in Political Economy at King's College London. When not heroically combating misinformation online, Alex can be found mixing cocktails, watching his beloved soccer team Aston Villa lose a match, or attempting to pet stray cats.

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