Diplo is being sued civilly for allegedly releasing his ex-girlfriend’s sexual videos and pictures without getting her consent, in violation of “revenge porn” regulations.
A woman going by the name of Jane Doe filed a complaint on Thursday in federal court in Los Angeles, alleging that the DJ—real name Thomas Wesley Pentz—filmed their sex sessions and shared the footage on Snapchat with other users without getting her permission.
Diplo, who was 37 at the time, and Jane Doe, who was 21, claim to have linked on Snapchat for the first time in April 2016. Their relationship allegedly continued until October 2023. She states that at some points during that period, “I gave Diplo permission to film them having sex, but I never gave him permission to distribute those images and videos to third parties and I reiterated that he was not to record them without her explicit consent.”
“The plaintiff had faith in defendant Diplo, thinking that he would honor her desires to maintain the privacy of their intimate photos and videos and wouldn’t record them having sex against her will,” the plaintiff’s attorneys wrote.
Doe claims to have received a message in November 2023 from someone claiming to be in possession of pictures and videos showing the “plaintiff and defendant Diplo having sex,” reportedly sent by Diplo over Snapchat in October 2018. The videos and pictures, according to her, showed her “genitals, buttocks, face, and her voice could be heard.”
Jane Doe claims that she reported Diplo’s conduct to the NYPD following the encounter, and that the NYPD then “issued a warrant for defendant Diplo’s arrest for dissemination of intimate images and/or videos depicting Plaintiff.”
The NYPD declined to comment on the allegations of an arrest warrant in an email to Billboard, but they did state that a complaint had been made and that an investigation was ongoing: “NYPD detectives are currently conducting an investigation into a criminal complaint for unlawful dissemination that is currently on file regarding a suspect named Thomas Pentz.”
Diplo has previously accused people of abuse. A lady called Shelly Auguste filed a lawsuit against him in 2020, claiming that he forced her into having sex and subsequently disclosed the video without her consent. His legal team sued her back for stalking, trespassing, and disseminating private materials, branding it a “smear campaign.” In another instance, an unidentified lady sued the DJ in 2021, claiming that he had coerced her into having oral sex with him during a 2019 Las Vegas after-party. However, the woman added that she regretted pursuing the complaint and terminated her case without receiving compensation just one week later.
The legal team representing Jane Doe highlights the significance of shielding victims of image-based sexual assault and seek to find justice for the alleged crime.
Bryan J. Freedman, Diplo’s lawyer, has refuted the accusations, saying that this case is just another attempt by dishonest people to make fraudulent claims in order to obtain financial advantage. Like with other claims, Freedman is still optimistic that the lawsuit will be decided in Diplo’s favor.
Although the result of Jane Doe’s case is yet unknown, it highlights the continuous problems with consent and privacy in the digital era.