Sean 'Diddy' Combs trial to delve into the seediest side of rap's 'bad boy'
Share this @internewscast.com

NEW YORK (AP) — Sean “Diddy” Combs, the renowned hip-hop mogul, was once the king of lavish White Parties in the Hamptons, drawing in celebrities, columnists, and photographers from all corners. However, as his trial begins on Monday, prosecutors aim to paint a picture of a man who used his fame for darker purposes, casting him as a deviant who abused women behind closed doors.

Prosecutors assert that for over twenty years, the founder of Bad Boy Records leveraged his power and reputation from his hip-hop empire to harm young lives.

He is confronted with an indictment describing “Freak Offs,” where drug-fueled orgies allegedly took place, forcing women to engage with male sex workers while Combs recorded them.

Numerous witnesses have come forward to accuse Combs of terrorizing people into silence by choking, hitting, kicking and dragging them, often by the hair, prosecutors say. Once, the indictment alleges, he even dangled someone from a balcony.

Combs’ lawyers contend prosecutors are trying to police consensual sexual activity.

And while Combs, 55, has acknowledged one episode of violence — the caught-on-camera beating of his former girlfriend, R&B singer Cassie — his lawyers say other allegations are false.

Jury selection is scheduled to begin Monday at a federal courthouse in Manhattan. Testimony will likely start the following week.

If convicted on all charges, which include racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking, and transporting people across state lines to engage in prostitution, Combs faces a possible sentence of decades in prison.

Investigation followed Cassie lawsuit

Although dozens of men and women have alleged in lawsuits that Combs abused them, this trial will highlight the claims of four women.

One of them is Cassie, who filed a lawsuit in late 2023 saying Combs had subjected her to years of abuse, including beatings and rape after they met in 2005.

The Associated Press does not typically name people who say they have been sexually abused unless they come forward publicly, as Cassie, whose legal name is Casandra Ventura, did.

Her lawsuit, which offered the first public account of the Freak Offs described in the indictment, was settled in a day. Four months later, though, federal investigators raided Combs homes in Los Angeles and Miami and confronted him at a private airport in Florida, seizing 96 electronic devices. They also found three AR-15-style rifles with defaced serial numbers.

The three-time Grammy winner was indicted last September. He has since been held in a federal jail in Brooklyn after judges ruled that he would be a threat to intimidate witnesses and victims if released.

The 17-page indictment against Combs accuses him of using employees of his business endeavors — including record labels, a recording studio, an apparel line, an alcoholic spirits company, a marketing agency, a television network and a media company — to facilitate his crimes through acts that included kidnapping, arson and bribery.

Prosecutors plan to show jurors travel records, text messages and emails, hotel records and videos to supplement testimony and support their claims about what they call “Freak Off activity.”

Jurors will also see security camera video showing Combs punching, kicking and then dragging Cassie in the hallway of a Los Angeles hotel in 2016.

After the video aired on CNN last year, Combs apologized, saying, “I take full responsibility for my actions in that video. I was disgusted then when I did it. I’m disgusted now.”

Defense says Freak Offs were consensual

Combs’ attorney, Marc Agnifilo, said at a bail hearing that Combs wrote “a very large check” to Cassie after she filed her lawsuit. The lawyer said the payout motivated others to come forward with false claims.

Agnifilo said Combs was “not a perfect person” and that there had been drug use and toxic relationships, but he said the rapper was undergoing therapy before his arrest.

He said Cassie and Combs were in a 10-year relationship that was “very loving at times” and sometimes chose to bring a third person into their intimacy.

“That was their thing,” he said. “It was a sought-after, special part of their relationship.”

The trial is not Combs’ first. In 2001, he was acquitted of bringing an illegal handgun into a crowded Manhattan dance club where three people were wounded by gunfire. A rapper in Combs’ entourage, Jamal Barrow, who performed under the name Shyne, was convicted in the shooting and served nearly nine years in prison.

At a pretrial conference Thursday, Combs confirmed to a judge that he turned down a plea offer that would have carried a lesser penalty than what he might face if he is convicted at his upcoming trial.

Just before he left the courtroom after the hearing, he defiantly shook his fist in the air.

Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like
Mugshot of Andrew McGann.

Andrew McGann, 28, Linked to Devil’s Den Stabbings; Previously Exhibited Alarming Conduct with Young Girls

THE individual suspected of murdering a couple while they were hiking with…
Portrait of Alice Brasil Souza da Paz.

Tragic School Playroom Accident: 4-Year-Old Girl Dies in Front of Twin Brother, Just a Day After Her Birthday Celebration

A FOUR-year-old girl died at school when a dressing table toppled onto…
6.1 earthquake hits Turkey's Balikesir province, killing 1 and collapsing buildings

6.1 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Turkey’s Balikesir Province, Resulting in 1 Death and Building Collapses

A powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 6.1 struck the northwestern province…
CCSO: Orange Park teen arrested for threatening shooting on first day of school

Orange Park Teen Arrested for School Shooting Threat on Opening Day, Says CCSO

Investigators said the teen threatened the victim multiple times from a blocked…
Robert Kennedy, Mehmet Oz Announce and Insurance Providers Co-Sign Pre-Authorization Process Changes

RedState Weekly Update: The Influence of Wine Moms, MRNA Realities, and a Major Obama Misstep

Welcome to the RedState Weekly Briefing — where we provide a quick…
Vance says only Trump can decide when to bring Putin and Zelensky together for peace talks

Vance Believes Only Trump Can Facilitate Putin and Zelensky Peace Talks

Vice President JD Vance stated on Sunday that the United States is…
Bernin' the Jet Fuel: Socialist Sanders Has Exactly Zero Apologies to Give for Hollywood Lifestyle

Bernie Sanders, Lacking Traditional Work Experience, Urges Democrats to Support Workers

If you’re searching for someone to instruct you on how to connect…
Community mourns St. John Police Department Det. Aaron Amptmeyer, died after medical emergency at Midwest Training and Ice Center

Community Grieves the Loss of St. John Police Detective Aaron Amptmeyer Following a Medical Crisis at Midwest Training and Ice Center

ST. JOHN, Ind. (WLS) — A Northwest Indiana community is mourning the…
Crowded beach with people walking on the sand and in the water.

At Least Three Swimmers Killed by Sea Mines Drifting into Ukrainian Tourist Beaches

AT least three holidaymakers have been killed in a horror double explosion…
Reptile hunter climbs into apartment building dumpster to remove 16-foot python in Los Angeles

LA Reptile Wrangler Retrieves 16-Foot Python from Apartment Complex Dumpster

A reptile hunter sprang into action last week to remove a 16-foot…
Trial to start on whether deployment of National Guard to Los Angeles violated federal law

Upcoming Trial to Determine if National Guard Deployment to Los Angeles Broke Federal Law

A federal judge in San Francisco is set to evaluate evidence and…
AOC campaign denies link to woman charged with 'terroristic threat' against school over Jewish students

AOC Campaign Denies Connection to Woman Accused of Threatening School Targeting Jewish Students

The team supporting Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., denounced “horrible” antisemitic comments made…