Diddy is in 'panic mode' as Jay-Z prepares an all-out offensive to clear his name

The hip-hop world was rocked when Sean "Diddy" Combs was arrested in September amid mounting legal woes that have since landed him inside a cell at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York. Combs faces federal charges that include racketeering and sex trafficking -- and his problems with the law have even roped in Shawn Carter, the superstar rapper better known as Jay-Z.

Carter and Combs have been accused of raping a 13-year-old girl at a party following the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards. Carter has strenuously denied the allegations, and the unexpected development has convinced "Hova" to take decisive steps toward clearing his name.

Jay-Z ready to resort to "extreme measures"

Insiders speaking to the Daily Mail have insisted that Carter is willing to "throw Diddy under the bus" in order to clear his name and to never see the inside of a jail cell. If it wasn't clear before that Jay-Z wants nothing more to do with Diddy, the Daily Mail report makes it obvious that this is the new reality.

"The moment Diddy was arrested, Jay-Z scrubbed him from his existence. ... Jay-Z is extremely powerful and will deploy any tactic necessary," one insider claimed.

Carter, who has an estimated net worth of more than $2 billion, alleged in a statement that the lawsuit was a blackmail attempt instigated by attorney Tony Buzbee, who is representing the plaintiff. But insiders have disputed that Carter's target is Buzbee, or that he was attempting to show some kind of "solidarity" with the embattled Combs.

"Any notion that Jay is trying to help Diddy by going after Tony Buzbee is false," one insider told the Daily Mail. "He doesn't care about Diddy."

However, Carter may not have accounted for the perception that Diddy's camp might hold: any attempt to discredit Buzbee and the accuser could have a knock-on effect that helps Combs when he goes on trial in May 2025. Buzbee is representing more than 100 of Diddy's accusers, whose own cases against the mogul could be weakened by the time the trial begins.

"Diddy does enjoy that Jay is fighting against the same person that is accusing him of doing any wrongdoing," the insider said. "Because if Jay succeeds, it will help Diddy tenfold."

So Carter will have to exercise some degree of caution in his quest to clear his name, and only time will tell if the "Takeover" rapper is successful.