After Mayor Eric Adams wrote to Diddy requesting its return, citing the video of Cassie's assault, Diddy returned a significant honor to the city: New York's Key.
TMZ has obtained two letters from Mayor Adams expressing his "deep dismay" over the Cassie video. One letter is addressed to Combs Entertainment LLC's New York office, and the other is addressed to his L.A. office.
After stating that the Key to the City is awarded to people who behave as model citizens—a requirement the selection committee no longer believes Diddy meets—Adams continues, saying he supports victims of domestic abuse.
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The committee recommended that Combs' key be revoked, according to Mayor Adams, who made it known that the committee would meet to discuss the matter. He also provided an address for Combs to mail back the key.
The letters were sent out on June 4 and Diddy replied by returning the key on June 10, according to people with firsthand knowledge who spoke with TMZ.
By the way, the city maintains a record of every recipient of Key to the City. The added text reads, "This Key to the City was rescinded by Mayor Eric Adams on June 4, 2024, via a formal letter due to actions of domestic and gender-based violence committed by Mr. Combs." Combs' name is still listed in the log.
Less than a year ago, Diddy accepted the Key to the City, and he proudly posed for a picture with Adams in September of that year. Naturally, a few months later, accusations against Diddy started to mount, starting with Cassie's lawsuit in November.
Even though Diddy has consistently refuted accusations of misconduct, he later acknowledged beating Cassie and issued an apology when the video went viral. In addition to being the subject of multiple sexual assault lawsuits, he is also being investigated by the federal government for possible drug and sex trafficking and other serious offenses.
This seems like the inevitable conclusion to this tale; keep in mind that a number of politicians in New York City were pressuring Adams to return the key.
Just last month, when we spoke with New York City Councilman Erik Bottcher, he stated that returning the key was an obvious choice.
We've contacted Diddy's team, but we haven't heard back yet.
