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The arrest of Sean “Diddy” Combs in New York does not mean that his supporters will be brought to justice

Music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs was arrested in New York on Monday night, the U.S. Attorney's Office in New York City said. The indictment, filed by the Southern District of New York and following a months-long sex trafficking investigation, is scheduled to be announced Tuesday.

In the latest in a series of lawsuits against Combs, Dawn Richard, a former member of the groups Danity Kane and Diddy – Dirty Money, claims that Combs, her former boss, subjected her to a range of abuses, including sexual harassment, assault and false imprisonment. In her 55-page lawsuit, she claims the abuse began in 2004 when she appeared on “Making the Band,” the MTV reality show produced by Combs, and continued until at least 2011.

Richards' complaint not only joins the chorus of voices describing Combs as a shockingly violent man, but also accuses other people around him of complicity.

Not only does Richard's lawsuit add to the chorus of voices describing Combs as a shockingly violent man, it also accuses others close to Combs of complicity and underscores how difficult it is to stop the violence described in the lawsuit, even when there are supposedly numerous witnesses.

In Richard's lawsuit, she claims that Combs touched her inappropriately, called the female contestants on “Making the Band” all kinds of insults like “fat,” “ugly” and “sluts,” and fostered a toxic work culture that forced contestants to work for up to 48 hours without eating, drinking or sleeping. She also says he trapped her in a car for hours and she had to ask her father, who lived in another state, for help. Combs' attorney Erica Wolff said in response to Richard's lawsuit, “Mr. Combs is shocked and disappointed by this lawsuit. In an attempt to rewrite history, Dawn Richard has now fabricated a series of false claims in hopes of getting a payday – conveniently timed to coincide with her album release and press tour.”

Richard filed her suit nearly 10 months after Cassie, a singer signed to Bad Boy Records with whom Combs had a romantic relationship, filed a lawsuit claiming Combs was “prone to uncontrollable rage.” Cassie, whose real name is Casandra Ventura, also accused Combs of a litany of abuse, including physical violence and sexual harassment. The day Cassie filed her suit, a lawyer for Combs said he “vehemently denies these offensive and outrageous allegations,” and yet the next day he settled with Cassie for an undisclosed amount — even though he denied any wrongdoing.

However, in May, CNN released surveillance video from a hotel showing him punching and stomping Cassie in exactly the way her lawsuit alleges. In an Instagram video, Combs issued a weak and self-centered apology: “My behavior in this video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my behavior in this video.” This apology was later removed from his page.

Between Cassie's first lawsuit in November and Richard's lawsuit last week, federal agents searched Combs' homes in Miami and Los Angeles, and a source familiar with the matter told NBC News that federal agents interviewed several witnesses about the allegations of sex trafficking, sexual assault and solicitation and distribution of illegal drugs and firearms.

Two other women also filed suit in November. One of them said she was a college student in 1991 when Combs drugged her and filmed himself abusing her. Combs has denied the allegation. Another woman claims that when she was 16 in 1990 or 1991, Combs and R&B singer Aaron Hall offered her several drinks before Combs forced her to have sex and Hall then sexually assaulted her. Combs has denied the allegation. Hall did not respond to a request for comment from NBC News.

In December, a woman who was 17 in 2003 alleged in a lawsuit that she was a victim of sex trafficking and gang rape by Combs and Harve Pierre, a former longtime president of Combs' record label. Combs denied the allegations and Pierre called the lawsuit “a fabricated story.” Pierre is also named as a defendant in Richards' lawsuit. She says he and Combs locked her in a company vehicle for hours. Pierre did not respond to NBC News' request for comment.

Richard claims in her lawsuit that after she was cast in Danity Kane, Combs groped her without her consent and touched her breasts and butt. She also claims that Combs held meetings in her underwear and that he regularly asked her to strip down to her underwear during rehearsals and offered her a breast augmentation as a Christmas present.

She claims that when she confronted Combs about his behavior, he retaliated by excluding her from songs and performances and threatening to ruin her career. She also says he controlled when and what she ate, and she had to be hospitalized when she reached a dangerously low weight. Even as she faced multiple medical diagnoses, Combs continued to force her to work. It was one winter evening, she said, when Combs, upset at her tardiness, locked her in a car with blacked-out windows and no emergency exit handles or heat for more than two hours. He was angry when she called her father in Baltimore, who came to her aid. She says he told her, “You don't call your father unless you're in the hospital.”

She also claims that Combs held meetings in her underwear, regularly asked her to strip down to her underwear during rehearsals, and offered her a breast augmentation as a gift.

Equally disturbing, her lawsuit describes an environment in which there were multiple witnesses to Combs' alleged abuse – including other celebrities and police officers who she said were on Combs' payroll – but who she said did nothing.

One of the most disturbing claims in Cassie's lawsuit was her allegation that Combs became so angry at her dating rapper Kid Cudi in 2012 that he promised to blow up Kid Cudi's car. “About that time,” she wrote in her lawsuit, “Kid Cudi's car exploded in his driveway.” Through a spokesperson, Kid Cudi confirmed to The New York Times that his car exploded, saying, “This is all true.”

His confirmation gives us even more reason to believe Richard when she says Combs told her she could leave if she kept trying to get Cassie to leave him.

Although Combs denies all of Richards' allegations, her attorney Lisa Bloom said in a statement: “We will not rest until we have achieved full and complete justice for Dawn in this case.”

As should already be clear, the complaint alleges that those in his inner circle supported Combs and allowed his described violence against women to go unpunished or addressed. “In the decades following his rise to fame, Mr. Combs' star-studded, larger-than-life personality overshadowed his vicious temper and pervasive acts of violence toward those in his inner circle – particularly women,” the complaint states.

And so domestic violence continues: When the people who should be interrupting that violence are intimidated, face unequal power dynamics, or face pushback from those who support them, the violence can continue and eventually escalate.

With her claims that Combs abused Cassie in front of other celebrities and industry executives, Richard claims the entire music industry supported Combs and allowed him to abuse women with impunity while continuing to amass fame, power and wealth. I would like to express my surprise at this allegation, but in an industry that still treats hip-hop figures accused of abuse as icons – rather than walking red flags in need of help – it's no surprise.

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