Crime

5/20 -- 8:02 AM PT -- Authorities have released Austin Maddox's mugshot ... and he appears a bit beaten up, with red marks on his face, and what looks like a partially swollen eye.

Former MLB third-round pick Austin Maddox was arrested during an anti-child predator sting in Florida last month ... and now, the ex-Red Sox pitcher is facing several felony charges.

The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office released the results of its five-day "Operation Valiant Knights" bust on Monday ... claiming 27 men believed they were communicating with underage girls online -- but in reality, they were speaking to detectives.

Julia Fox is vocalizing her support for Cassie in the wake of the Diddy assault video ... sounding deeply disturbed while discussing the triggering footage.

We caught up with the actress on the streets of NYC Monday, where she weighed in on the Diddy-Cassie saga ... which had a major update last week. As we reported ... hotel security footage from 2016 surfaced on CNN Friday, showing the rap mogul beating on his ex.

Diddy has since apologized for the incident, calling it one of the darkest times of his life ... but JF isn't showing him so much grace -- instead slamming the whole thing as "disgusting."

Peloton is swearing off Diddy's music for all future workouts -- this after the horrifying 2016 clip of the rapper beating his ex, Cassie, emerged.

On its private member's Facebook page, the fitness company stated, "We take this issue very seriously and can confirm Peloton has paused the use of Sean Combs' music, as well as removed the Bad Boy Entertainment Artist Series, on our platform."

They add, "This means our instructors are no longer using his music in any newly produced classes. Again, thank you for sharing your concerns and thank you for being a member of our Peloton community."

Drake Bell says he feared for his life while being sexually abused ... noting the presence of serial killer memorabilia at his abuser's home, making the situation all the more terrifying.

The former child star appeared on "The Today Show" Monday, where he opened up about the trauma he faced at the hands of former dialogue coach Brian Peck ... confirming BP owned a signed painting of serial killer John Wayne Gacy.

Drake says ... "[T]hings were happening to me in a room where there’s a painting by one of the most prolific serial killers who preyed on young boys staring at me. So, now that puts in my mind, 'How far is this really gonna go?'" Gacy killed 33 young men and boys in the '70s.

The chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Court is gunning for Benjamin Netanyahu as well as Hamas leaders ... accusing each side of crimes against humanity in the ongoing war.

Karim Khan -- who's heading up this effort -- broke the news Monday ... saying his office is now applying for arrest warrants for each side of the conflict -- a couple for Israeli's Prime Minister including its Defense Minister, Yoav Gallant, and three on the Hamas side too.

For Hamas ... the ICC wants to arrest and charge leader Yahya Sinwar and two other high-ranking officials -- Al-Qassam Brigades and Ismail Haniyeh. All are accused of war crimes.

Diddy isn't hiding from cameras in the wake of the Cassie video – if anything, he's making a point to be out in public ... stepping out into the wild and seemingly telegraphing a few things, if these pics are any indication.

The rap mogul looked unbothered as he smoked a cigar while taking a leisurely stroll through his Miami neighborhood Sunday. Dressed in an all-white outfit and wearing a medallion -- which featured a childhood photo of himself and his father -- Diddy appeared to be signaling something with his look ... although, he stayed mum when he ran into photogs.

Instead, the rapper offered up a one word response, "Love" ... which he supported by making the shape of the letter "L" with his hand. Hard to say for sure what he's trying to communicate – but on its face, he's showing that he ain't ducking out of the spotlight ... even at this point, with many in the public having turned on him.

Diddy's former employees at Revolt, the media company he co-founded, are reacting to the horrific video of him assaulting Cassie.

The company posted a statement saying, "We are deeply saddened and disturbed by the recent video circulation of our former chairman, Sean "Diddy" Combs,”

It added, "Even with his recent separation from REVOLT, it is still our duty to address this matter, and recognize the direct impact it has on our staff, our audience, and the culture we represent."

Public distancing from Diddy is in full swing in the hip hop community as artists watch the brutal footage of him assaulting his ex-girlfriend, Cassie Ventura ... and some are calling for his head.

50 Cent didn't react with his usual jokes this time around, but tossed a sarcastic jab at Diddy's legal counsel for their inevitable defense of their client ... quipping the entire saga gave him "Maury vibes."

The G-Unit rapper previously announced he's putting together his own Diddy documentary ... so, he's not only watching this from his usual vantage point -- as social media troll supreme -- but also as a producer.

An ex-federal prosecutor is weighing in on Diddy's assault video -- and she says while this isn't necessarily a smoking gun in the investigation he's facing, it certainly doesn't help him.

We talked to Katie Cherkasky -- who's had years of experience with these sorts of legal matters -- on "TMZ Live" Friday ... where she declared that the now-viral video, in which Diddy can be seen beating Cassie -- should make him and his camp worried.

Katie says the tape gives credibility to Cassie on multiple fronts -- both in the public eye, but also with the feds who are drilling down into major allegations against Diddy right now.

Donald Trump took a break from his NYC criminal trial and presidential campaign to celebrate a major milestone ... his son Barron's high school graduation.

The former prez and wife, Melania Trump, were in attendance at the graduation ceremony for Oxbridge Academy in West Palm Beach Friday ... where they watched with pride as their son received his diploma.

Both Donald and his father-in-law, Viktor Knavs, were seen waving at Barron ... who towered above his peers and teachers while wearing a navy blue cap and gown, as well as a red stole.

1:13 PM PT -- A rep for InterContinental Hotels & Resorts tells TMZ ... "This hotel is no longer under IHG management, and we do not have any access to prior incident records or footage."

10:56 AM PT -- Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... there is no record cops can track down as it pertains to this 2016 incident at the InterContinental, so it doesn't appear to have been mentioned to cops in a police report, or otherwise reported to the authorities.

In terms of cops opening a case on this now, LAPD tells TMZ ... For cases before January 2020, it's a 3 year statute of limitations -- and after January 2020, it's 5 years. In other words, there's no chance cops will dive into this specific incident for potential criminal charges at this point, at least as far as the LAPD is concerned.

Diddy brutally beat up his ex-girlfriend Cassie at a hotel in L.A. 8 years ago -- something she detailed in her lawsuit ... and which we're now seeing for the first time on camera.

Kevin Spacey's on the outs in Hollywood ... but, big stars want to bring him in from the cold -- 'cause Sharon Stone and Liam Neeson just shared their support publicly.

In a new article from The Telegraph -- Stone, Neeson and more stars say they want Spacey acting once again, calling him a generous and kind person who deserves to get back to work in mainstream movies and TV shows.

The embattled actor's back in the public discourse because of the documentary “Spacey Unmasked” -- now streaming on Max -- which details more allegations of sexual misconduct against the actor ... all of which he's denied.

The mother of the 9-year-old who was nearly shot while sitting on his couch in a harrowing video says the neighborhood's experienced another shooting since then ... which is wild.

Mary Jane Gonzales came on 'TMZ Live' Thursday to talk about the original incident ... and, she says it's not the only one -- 'cause her son was recently at a friend's down the street from their house when another shooting occurred since the one that went down May 1.

ICYMI ... multiple bullets ripped through the Gonzales family's window in Fort Worth, TX during a drive-by shooting earlier this month -- and, though no one in the house was hit, some kids hanging out in the front were injured.

More bad news for the Chiefs this offseason ... the team's first-round pick, Xavier Worthy, had his car stolen in Kansas City earlier this week.

According to the Kansas City Police Dept., Worthy's ride was reported missing on Monday morning ... after it had been "parked, secured and intact" at the Two Light Apartment complex in K.C. just hours earlier.

Pro Football Talk reported Thursday those close to Worthy believe it was lifted "by a professional group of criminals who 'knew exactly what they were doing.'" No arrests have been made in the case, however.

Diddy's alleged mule, Brendan Paul, struck a good deal in his drug case -- 'cause he ain't gonna be doing any time behind bars ... TMZ has learned.

Brendan's attorney, Brian Bieber, tells us ... "Brendan accepted the prosecutor’s offer to permit his entry into the diversion program which, after completion, the case against him will be dismissed in its entirety."

A rep for the Miami-Dade State Attorney confirms this as well, telling TMZ ... this was a standard offer to a non-violent defendant with no priors -- who was arrested for a possession case instead of a much more serious trafficking case.

Gypsy Rose Blanchard is opening up about her nose job -- and in the same breath ... giving everyone a peek into her booger sitch, as well as how she did makeup behind bars.

The convict-turned-reality star -- who returned to social media recently after taking a brief hiatus -- uploaded a Get Ready With Me TikTok where she was doing a beauty tutorial ... and she made it clear her nose wasn't fully healed after her rhinoplasty.

GRB explained she has to be careful doing her makeup post-surgery -- and that's where she got a little TMI with some insights ... including how big her boogers are these days.