In March 2023 – eight months before Cassie Ventura filed the bombshell lawsuit against her ex-boyfriend Sean “Diddy” Combs that would ignite his public downfall and ultimately lead to his criminal conviction – another accuser was contemplating coming forward.
Music producer and publicist Jonathan Hay had contacted a civil attorney in the spring of 2023 to discuss his claims of being sexually battered by Combs. After speaking with the attorney’s office, Hay got cold feet, fearful of standing up against a figure as powerful as Combs. He was, he said, “terrified.”
CNN has reviewed email correspondence showing Hay reached out to the civil attorney’s office in March 2023.
“I was like, I can’t do this,” Hay said of his first attempt to come forward with his claims against Combs in early 2023. “I’m just not ready.”
Hay finally filed his claims against Combs – then as a “John Doe” – in July 2025, shortly after Combs was convicted by a New York jury on two federal prostitution-related counts that would lead to him being sentenced to more than four years.
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