Fat Joe‘s name is being dragged through the mud following the filing of an explosive new lawsuit accusing the Terror Squad captain of horrific acts. But Fat Joe’s attorney, Joe Tacopina, tells AllHipHop it’s nothing more than an attempt at revenge.
Fat Joe (real name Joseph Antonio Cartagena) already sued the accuser, Terrance Dixon, and his embattled attorney, Tyrone Blackburn, for libel. Now, he believes Dixon and Blackburn are simply retaliating out of spite.
“The lawsuit filed by Tyrone Blackburn and Terrance Dixon is a blatant act of retaliation—a desperate attempt to deflect attention from the civil suit we filed first, which exposed their coordinated scheme to extort Mr. Cartagena through lies, threats, and manufactured allegations,” Tacopina says. “We didn’t just sue a disgruntled former employee trying to revive a false claim from 15 years ago—we sued the lawyer behind it all. Tyrone Blackburn has a well-documented pattern of abusing the courts to harass defendants and generate media attention.
“Two separate federal judges have condemned his conduct—one for filing headline-chasing lawsuits full of salacious and baseless claims, and another for making repeated legal misstatements and personal attacks in court filings. He is now the subject of a pending referral to the Southern District’s disciplinary committee.”
He continues, “Law enforcement is aware of the extortionate demand at the heart of this scheme. The allegations against Mr. Cartagena are complete fabrications—lies intended to damage his reputation and force a settlement through public pressure. Mr. Cartagena will not be intimidated. We have taken legal action to expose this fraudulent campaign and hold everyone involved accountable.”
Dixon filed a $20 million civil RICO lawsuit against the Bronx rapper in federal court on Thursday (June 19), alleging years of exploitation, fraud and abuse under what he calls “The Cartagena Enterprise.” The complaint accuses Fat Joe of orchestrating a criminal operation involving forced labor, sexual coercion, financial fraud and witness intimidation.
“[Fat Joe] employed persistent verbal abuse, threats of physical violence, erratic and insufficient payment, manipulative control over travel and accommodations, and continuous humiliation,” Dixon claimed. “Collectively, these coercive tactics resulted in chronic emotional and psychological distress, profound anxiety, and severe trauma that continue to affect [Dixon] to this day.”
But Fat Joe filed suit against Dixon and Blackburn in April for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. In the complaint, Fat Joe outlines how Dixon and Blackburn conspired to extort him for money and it started on March 23, when both parties sent a written demand to Fat Joe seeking financial compensation for being a “ghostwriter and uncredited vocalist” on some of his songs.
When the false demand was ignored, they threatened to file a complaint not just for unpaid wages and other compensation, but also false and outrageous allegations against Fat Joe, including unspeakable acts such as statutory rape, forced labor, sex trafficking, and fraud.
Blackburn also told Tacopina he’d verified all the allegations and had spoken to critical witnesses, including one of the alleged minors, who ultimately denied ever speaking to Blackburn.
“These allegations are completely false and part of a criminal conspiracy orchestrated between a disgruntled former hype man and his attorney,” Fat Joe said. “These two individuals have been scheming together to extort me with their elaborate and ludicrous demands changing by the day. The relentless threats, harassment, and defamation I’ve endured as they peddle salacious lies are utterly deplorable. I’m taking legal action to expose their misconduct and I’m fully confident that the facts will reveal this is nothing more than a deceptive and desperate scam.”