SEAN “Diddy” Combs has been denied bail and will stay behind bars awaiting trial despite pleading not guilty to sex trafficking and other charges.
The 54-year-old music mogul was arrested on Monday night following a months-long investigation and, in addition to sex trafficking, has been charged with racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution.
criminal charges against him in federal court on Tuesday
The charges allege that Combs “abused, threatened, and coerced women and others around him to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation, and conceal his conduct.”
Addressing the court after a brief recess late on Tuesday afternoon, US Magistrate Judge Robyn F. Tarnofsky ordered Combs to be held without bail, citing “very significant concerns” about his reported substance abuse and “what appears to be anger issues.”
Speaking to reporters outside the courthouse after, Combs’ attorney, Marc Agnifilo, announced, “We are appealing the decision to hold him without bail.”
“We’ll fight every day until we don’t have to fight anymore,” Agnifilo said.
“We made the points that we’ve been wanting to make. Mr Combs is a fighter. He’ll fight this to the end. He’s innocent. He’s not afraid.”
When asked how Combs was doing, Agnifilo said, “He’s doing fine. He’s a fighter.”
Earlier on Tuesday, Combs walked into a Manhattan courtroom with his hands behind his back, even though he wasn’t handcuffed, the Associated Press reported.
Combs stood stoically in the courtroom as the judge read out the allegations and pleaded not guilty after hearing the charges.
In court filings, his attorneys argued that he should be released on a $50 million bail because he was struggling to find a place to live in New York City.
The lawyers cited the US Open and Fashion Week as some of the reasons why their client couldn’t land a month-long rental.
Meanwhile, prosecutors argued that Combs was a danger to the community and urged the judge to keep him locked up until trial.
“Mr. Combs physically and sexually abused victims for decades,” Assistant US Attorney Emily Johnson said in the hearing.
“He used the vast resources of his company to facilitate his abuse and cover up his crimes.
“Simply put, he is a serial abuser and a serial constructor.”
The prosecutors then referenced a video that matched the footage of Combs chasing his ex, Cassie Ventura, in a hotel hallway and beating her, which CNN obtained in May.
They argued this was surefire proof that Combs shouldn’t be trusted to roam free alongside his alleged victims.
UNSEALED INDICTMENT
The court appearance came after a federal indictment detailing the charges was unsealed ahead of Combs’ arraignment on Tuesday following his arrest on Monday night by Homeland Security Investigations officers at the Park Hyatt Hotel in Manhattan.
Prosecutors accused Combs of using his business empire, called Combs Enterprise, to carry out and cover up his alleged crimes, the documents said.
Combs is willing to offer his Miami home, valued at $48 million, plus his mother’s Miami home, worth $2 million, to make bail, TMZ reported.
He’s also willing to limit his travel, keep his private jet parked in Los Angeles, and wear a GPS tracking device, the report continued.
This comes after Damian Williams, the US attorney for the Southern District of New York, shared several mid-morning updates – including the desire to keep Combs in custody until trial.
Williams noted that bail is not wanted in the case and stressed the possibility of pretrial detention.
“There is some presumption of detention in this case and we think that is warranted,” he said.
He emphasized that Combs is accused in the indictment of “exploiting women for years” as well as using “embarrassing and sensitive recordings as collateral,” adding that the sex trafficking charge carries “significant penalties.”
According to the indictment, Williams said he “maintained control over victims in several ways,” including allegedly giving them drugs, monitoring their whereabouts, and threatening to take away support.
Williams also confirmed that the raids on Combs’ homes in Los Angeles and Miami earlier this year were tied to the investigation.
Photos presented by Williams showed firearms recovered from Combs’ Miami home, including two AR-15s broken into parts and with a defaced serial number.
“Combs did not do this alone,” Williams said, adding that he is “not taking anything off the table” as far as others being charged.
“We are committed to bringing justice to everyone who’s been victimized by the defendant.”
If Combs is convicted and receives a maximum sentence, he faces a combined 45 years behind bars; the racketeering charge has a 20-year max, the sex trafficking charge carries a 15-year max, and the other charge has a 10-year max.
FREAK OFFS
The unsealed indictment revealed Combs held “Freak Offs,” where he allegedly forced victims to have sex with sex workers and recorded the disturbing scenes.
“Freak Offs were elaborate and produced sex performances that Combs arranged, directed, masturbated during, and often electronically recorded,” prosecutors alleged.
The documents revealed Combs allegedly arranged for sex workers to be transported internationally and across state lines for the freak offs, which sometimes lasted for multiple days and involved multiple sex workers.
Prosecutors said that Combs used “the sensitive, embarrassing, and incriminating recordings that he made during Freak Offs as collateral to ensure the continued obedience and silence of the victims.”
The charges also accuse the hitmaker of distributing drugs to victims during the freak offs to keep them “obedient and compliant.”
Victims of the sex acts received IV fluids to recover after the freak offs, the indictment said.
In March of this year, searches of Combs’ homes in Miami and Los Angeles revealed “various Freak Off supplies” including narcotics and over 1,000 bottles of baby oil and lube.
The rapper’s reputation as a hitmaker has been tainted in the past year by several sexual assault lawsuits, a violent surveillance video showing him beating his ex-girlfriend, and the federal sex trafficking probe.
HSI – the lead investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security – handles transnational crime cases, including human trafficking, terrorism, and drug smuggling.
The indictment said that the US government seeks to recover an undetermined amount of money involved in Combs’ alleged crimes, court documents revealed.
‘NOTHING TO HIDE’
Agnifilo, told reporters that the rapper moved to New York last week to prepare for the charges.
“He came to New York to basically engage the court system and start the case, and it will start today and he’s going to plead not guilty,” Agnifilo said outside of Manhattan federal court on Monday.
“He’s going to fight this with all of his energy and all of his might and the full confidence of his lawyers.”
Agnifilo previously said that his client has “nothing to hide.”
The lawyer described Combs as “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.”
“He is an imperfect person but is not criminal,” he added.
HORRIFIC VIDEO
Since last November, Combs has faced 10 lawsuits, with nine directly accusing him of sexual assault.
A horrifying video from 2016 that was unearthed in May showed Combs physically assaulting his girlfriend at the time, Cassie Ventura.
The surveillance footage showed Combs chasing Cassie while she waited for an elevator at the InterContinental Hotel in Los Angeles.
Combs then struck Cassie, threw her on the ground, and kicked her while she lay motionless, the video obtained by CNN showed.
After the video was uncovered, Combs shared an apology in a video posted to Instagram.
“My behavior on that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video,” he said in his statement.
Tuesday’s indictment detailed an incident from March 2016 that matched the disturbing footage.
“These assaults were, at times, witnessed by others and included one instance at a Los Angeles hotel in or about March 2016, which was captured on video and later publicly reported, where Combs
kicked, dragged, and threw a vase at a woman as she was attempting to leave,” the documents said.
“When a member of the hotel security staff intervened, Combs attempted to bribe the staff member to ensure silence.”
A lawyer for one of the alleged victims also spoke out.
Attorney Rodney Diggs, speaking on behalf of Grace O’Marcaigh, who is suing Combs and his son Christian, said: “The long-awaited arrest of Sean Combs is the first step for our clients receiving justice.
“We leave the criminal aspect of this case in the hands of the people and justice system.
“As for the civil cases, we await our time for the facts to reveal themselves and seek the justice our clients deserve.
“We also anticipate more victims coming forward. We knew this was coming. The evidence is very clear and it was only a matter of time.
“This is an important step towards justice for all of Mr. Combs’ victims including my clients. Justice will prevail.”
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