diddy1.jpgOn Monday (May 15), Sean “Diddy” Combs reached a settlement with a North Carolina man who claims that bodyguards hired by the hip-hop mogul beat him backstage at a 1995 concert. In a lawsuit originally filed in May 2002, Cedrick Bobby Lemon said that he was wearing an identification badge that permitted him to stand backstage at a concert featuring Mary J. Blige, whom Combs was managing at the time. As Blige’s set ended, two bodyguards attempted to clear the backstage area in order to escort Blige out of the venue. The two then allegedly punched Lemon in the head, kicked him in the back and broke his right ankle. According to the Associated Press, the lawsuit states that Combs was negligent because he failed to properly train the bodyguards. In 2002, a judge entered a default judgment against Combs for $2.45 million because he failed to answer the allegations in Lemon’s lawsuit, which was later reduced to $450,000. Then in 2004, the North Carolina Court of Appeals voided the 2002 judgment and sent the case back to the County Superior Court. Before the Superior Court judgment could be reached, Combs’ attorney announced that a settlement had been reached outside of court. Details of the settlement have been kept confidential.

More From XXL