Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs pleads not guilty to racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking charges
Sean “Diddy” Combs pleaded not guilty to racketeering conspiracy; sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion; and transportation to engage in prostitution.
The embattled rapper-turned-mogul, 54, appeared in federal court in Lower Manhattan Tuesday, where a judge decided he would be held without bail.
If convicted, Combs — who was arrested Monday night at a New York City hotel — faces a minimum of 15 years in prison.
“Mr. Combs is a fighter … he’s not afraid of the charges,” his attorney, Marc Agnifilo, said in a press conference after the hearing.
“He’s been looking forward to this day; he’s been looking forward to clearing his name. He didn’t do these things.”
Combs was detained at the Park Hyatt amid a criminal investigation that led to his Miami and Los Angeles mansions being raided by the feds in March, during which they discovered more than 1,000 bottles of lubricant, various narcotics and three AR-15s.
In the 14-page unsealed indictment, which was obtained by Page Six, prosecutors claimed the Bad Boy Records founder “abused, threatened and coerced women and others around him to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation and conceal his conduct” for decades, “creating a criminal enterprise whose members and associates engaged in … sex trafficking, forced labor, kidnapping, arson, bribery and obstruction of justice.”
Per the indictment, Combs and members of his Combs Enterprise — including high-ranking supervisors, security staff, household staff and personal assistants — allegedly facilitated multiple “freak-offs”: drug-fueled sex parties.
During these gatherings, the hip-hop star allegedly “hit, kicked, threw objects at and dragged victims, at times, by their hair,” according to the indictment, which further claimed that he “subjected victims to physical, emotional and verbal abuse to cause the victims to engage in freak-offs,” which he “often electronically recorded.”
The alleged assaults “often resulted in injuries that took days or weeks to heal,” per prosecutors.
The indictment continued, “Combs maintained control over his victims through, among other things, physical violence, promises of career opportunities, granting and threatening to withhold financial support, and by other coercive means, including tracking their whereabouts, dictating the victims’ appearance, monitoring their medical records, controlling their housing and supplying them with controlled substances.”
Agnifilo condemned his client’s arrest, saying in a statement shortly after, “We are disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe is an unjust prosecution of Mr. Combs by the US Attorney’s Office.”
The lawyer went on to call Combs “a music icon, self-made entrepreneur, loving family man and proven philanthropist who has spent the last 30 years building an empire, adoring his children and working to uplift the black community.”
Agnifilo acknowledged that the Grammy winner is an “imperfect person” but insisted he is not a criminal.
“To his credit, Mr. Combs has been nothing but cooperative with this investigation, and he voluntarily relocated to New York last week in anticipation of these charges,” he made sure to note, asking the public to “reserve your judgment until you have all the facts.”
“These are the acts of an innocent man with nothing to hide,” Agnifilo concluded, “and he looks forward to clearing his name in court.”
Combs is currently facing at least eight lawsuits accusing him of sexual assault, rape and more.
Though he has denied the allegations, he did apologize for violently attacking his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura after a video of the 2016 beating was released in May.
The R&B singer, 38, was the first of Combs’ accusers to sue him; the pair settled immediately in November 2023.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-330-0226.
