Court documents involving a Michigan inmate claim that local authorities plotted against him on behalf of rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs. However, authorities denied the claim and said the documents appeared fraudulent, even down to the notary's signature.

CBS News Detroit found multiple affidavits that were filed in March in the Eastern District of Michigan concerning Combs. All of them were filed by a prisoner named Derrick Lee Cardello Smith, who asked the court to drop his charges because of new evidence. The new evidence includes signed affidavits that he claims clear him of wrongdoing.

The allegations date back to 2008 when Cardello Smith was arrested for criminal sexual conduct against two women. The court documents allege that Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy, among others, all conspired with Combs to frame Cardello Smith. They also claim that former Detroit Police Officer Nicole Rabior, who was the arresting officer in Cardello Smith's case, was bribed to make a false police report.

"It's crazy. It's insane to be connected to something so big. I mean, because of what he's going through," Rabior said. "I took an oath, and I have respect for the Detroit Police Department."

"Paid $132K by Sean Combs is insane. I don't even know P. Diddy."

Rabior has since retired and now lives a civilian life. CBS News Detroit tracked her down and asked her to read over the affidavit with her name. She said several times that she had never written or signed it. 

"No one made me go through any action because none of it's true," she said. "This isn't my signature at all."

CBS News Detroit spoke with Combs' attorney, who said all of these claims are simply untrue.  

People have found the documents in court records and posted them on social media. Some videos even attracted thousands of views. As fake documents spread online, they could cause damaging effects. 

Another affidavit was purportedly signed by the Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor Suzette Samuels. One of the most serious allegations in the affidavit is that Samuels was forced to work with judges and other high-ranking Wayne County leaders to cover up a rape concerning Cardello Smith and Combs.

The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office sent the following statement in response: 

"At this time, the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office is limited in what can be said about the affidavits and many false representations related to Defendant Derrick Lee Cardello Smith's legal matters because they are the subject of an ongoing criminal investigation. Creating, filing, or presenting false documents or assisting someone else in doing so are all potential criminal offenses. The affidavits in question purport to be from Prosecutor Kym Worthy and Assistant Prosecutor Suzette Samuels, but they are patently fraudulent, and contain numerous falsehoods, forged signatures, and notarizations."

"Because of the names he included, he may have bitten off more than he can chew," said former federal prosecutor Rick Convertino.

Convertino has seen his share of forged records. He believes these latest ones will only lead to a longer prison sentence for Cardello Smith.

"Mail fraud, wire fraud, false statements in a filing. There's probably two or three other statutes he violated," Convertino said.

Forensic document expert Erich Speckin said from what he could tell, the signatures were copied from other documents and then pasted on new ones.

"The typed written name of Samuels and the signature of the notary public along with the date does not align with the text above," Speckin said.

Speckin said forgers often trace or recreate signatures. These documents reportedly contain extra written strokes to thwart the naked eye. It's as simple as adding tails to letters.

"The average person I would be very confident and would not see this," he said.

But how can forged documents make it into the federal court system?

"It's assumed initially that a lawsuit is truthful and veracious and has the ability to be filed under a good faith basis for a successful outcome," Convertino said.

Cardello Smith is accused of filing other outlandish claims. In 2024, he filed documents accusing Jennifer Lopez of being a witness to a sexual assault against him in the 90s. It was ultimately tossed out. While he hasn't faced any punishment, these latest claims could change that.

"It's very possible that a judge in a particular case says your remedies are exhausted and have been exhausted," Convertino said.

Experts said it's possible these documents could've been forged while in prison.  A typewriter and copier is all that's needed.

"It could be done with one person for sure, but it may have been more involved I don't know," Speckin said.

Convertino believes new resources will be used to investigate these phony documents. Meanwhile, the people named in the forged documents hope the mastermind comes clean.

"I mean, where is there a little bit of his heart to think there's other people involved," Rabior said.