In just a few days, Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs will be returning to court for the beginning of his sex trafficking trial in New York, months after his arrest.
Last September, the I’ll Be Missing You rapper was taken into custody on charges of racketeering and sex trafficking charges following a federal investigation.
The 55-year-old has denied all allegations against him but his team was dealt a crushing blow last month when US District Judge Arun Subramanian denied their motion to delay the hearings, meaning his trial will begin with jury selection on Monday, May 5.
The proceedings are expected to last several weeks, and could see the music mogul spend the rest of his life behind bars if convicted.
Ahead of the case starting in Manhattan, here is everything you need to know about Combs’ high-profile trial.
When was Diddy arrested?
Combs was detained at the Park Hyatt hotel in Manhattan on September 16, 2024, with US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams confirming the news in a statement.
His attorney told TMZ they were ‘disappointed’ by the arrest of an ‘innocent man.
‘We are disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe is an unjust prosecution of Mr Combs by the US Attorney’s Office,’ he added.
What has Diddy been charged with?
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After his arrest, Combs was initially charged with three offences – racketeering, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.
However, two extra counts of the latter two offences were added in April, bringing the total to five.
If found guilty, he could face a minimum sentence of 15 years in prison, with a maximum sentence of life – some of the most severe allegations stem from the racketeering charge.
Sky News reports that the indictment alleges he ‘led a racketeering conspiracy that engaged in sex trafficking, forced labor, kidnapping, arson, bribery, and obstruction of justice, among other crimes’ between 2008 and 2024.
Prosecutors claimed: ‘Combs relied on the employees, resources, and influence of the multi-faceted business empire that he led and controlled – creating a criminal enterprise whose members and associates engaged in, and attempted to engage in, among other crimes, sex trafficking, forced labor, kidnapping, arson, bribery and obstruction of justice.’
According to People Magazine, the documents also mentioned an incident between Combs and his ex-girlfriend, Casandra ‘Cassie’ Ventura, where he allegedly attacked her at a hotel in LA in 2016.
Although the singer was not named in the indictment, the outlet reports that the description matches footage published by CNN last year, which appeared to show him physically assaulting his former partner.
Nearly one year before the indictment, Ventura filed a lawsuit against Combs in November 2023, accusing him of raping and physically abusing her over a period of ten years.
They settled the suit privately the day after it was filed – since then, a number of others have come forward with separate allegations against him, with Combs denying all claims.
A judge recently ruled that the alleged victims in next week’s trial will be allowed to testify under pseudonyms, except for possible testimony from Ventura.
It was also decided that most evidence concerning prior sexual assault allegations not charged in the indictment would not be allowed at trial.
Timeline of allegations against Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs
Cassie Ventura filed a lawsuit against Combs, accusing him of raping and physically abusing her during their relationship.
The documents came with a rare trigger warning due to the extreme nature of the allegations, which accused him of ‘beating her, plying her with drugs and forcing her to have sex with male prostitutes as Combs filmed’.
It was alleged that Ventura was raped ‘in her own home’ in 2018 after ‘she tried to leave him’ and ‘endured over a decade of his violent behavior and disturbed demands’. The lawsuit stated she required ‘intensive medical and psychological care to recover from the trauma she lived through’ in a decade of enduring ‘threats of violence, excessive use of drugs, physical and psychological abuse, and sexual slavery’.
The day after Ventura’s lawsuit was filed in New York, the case was settled for an undisclosed fee.
She later said: ‘I have decided to resolve this matter amicably on terms that I have some level of control. I want to thank my family, fans and lawyers for their unwavering support.’
In the wake of Ventura’s lawsuit, Combs was hit with multiple other sexual assault allegations from different women, dating back to the 90s.
An anonymous woman filed legal documents claiming the musician, along with another man, had coerced her into sex.
Joi Dickerson-Neal came forward to allege that he drugged her and sexually assaulted her while she was a student in 1991, while Liza Gardner claimed he joined another man in raping her and a friend, when she was aged 16.
Combs denied all the allegations at the time.
After a string of accusations and a fourth bombshell lawsuit, Combs issued a blanket statement on Instagram, branding the claims ‘sickening’.
‘ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. For the last couple of weeks, I have sat silently and watched people try to assassinate my character, destroy my reputation and my legacy,’ he said.
‘Sickening allegations have been made against me by individuals looking for a quick payday. Let me be absolutely clear: I did not do any of the awful things being alleged.
‘I will fight for my name, my family and for the truth.’
Combs was hit by more legal woes after Rodney ‘Lil Rod’ Jones filed a lawsuit, accusing the star of coercing him into sex acts with sex workers, as well as allegations of incidents of drugging – after they worked together on his latest record, The Love Album: Off The Grid .
According to the paperwork, via CNN, the producer was seeking $30million after Combs allegedly failed to compensate him for work.
He is also said to have forced Jones to procure and interact with sex workers, threatened him and served alcoholic beverages laced with drugs to guests at parties at his homes, something he denied.
Amid an ongoing investigation, Combs’ properties in both LA and Miami were raided by Homeland Security at the end of March.
CNN reported that the raids were carried out ‘in connection’ with an ongoing federal sex trafficking investigation.
‘Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New York executed law enforcement actions as part of an ongoing investigation, with assistance from HSI Los Angeles, HSI Miami, and our local law enforcement partners,’ the department said in a statement
Last May, brutal surveillance footage was obtained and published by CNN, which appeared to show Combs attacking Ventura and dragging her across the floor of the InterContinental Hotel in LA.
As she left a hotel room and walked towards the elevators, he was filmed following her, before grabbing her and throwing her to the floor and kicking her multiple times as she lay on the ground.
After the footage emerged, Combs offered an apology in which he said: ‘I hit rock bottom. But I make no excuses. My behavior in that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video.
‘I’m disgusted. I was disgusted then when I did it, I’m disgusted now.
‘I went and I sought professional help, started going to therapy, I’ve been going to rehab. I had to ask God for His mercy and grace.
‘I’m so sorry. But, I’ve committed to being a better man, each and every day.
‘I’m not asking for forgiveness, I’m truly sorry.’
Ventura’s legal team later branded his apology ‘pathetic’.
In the wake of further lawsuits from Crystal McKinney, April Lampros and Adria English, Combs continued to maintain his innocence amid mounting legal woes.
‘No matter how many lawsuits are filed it won’t change the fact that Mr Combs has never sexually assaulted or sex trafficked anyone,’ his legal team vowed.
Combs was detained at the Park Hyatt hotel in Manhattan on September 16, 2024, with US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams confirming his arrest in a statement.
His attorney told TMZ they were ‘disappointed’ by the arrest of an ‘innocent man.
Combs was charged with sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution – the federal indictment was unsealed and included allegations that he coerced multiple alleged victims into sex acts, during organized ‘freak offs’.
He was accused of ‘directing, masturbating during, and often electronically recording’ the ‘elaborate and produced sex performances’, and forcing women to participate with male sex workers.
During the previous raids, police officers discovered supplies that were allegedly intended for the incidents, including drugs and more than 1,000 bottles of baby oil.
Texas-based attorney Tony Buzbee held a press conference, claiming more than 100 people are suing Combs for sexual assault, rape, and sexual exploitation.
Speaking to reports, he said that some of the alleged victims include minors as young as nine years old, and shared that a phone line had been set for anyone to come forward.
‘We will expose the enablers who enabled this conduct behind closed doors. We will pursue this matter no matter who the evidence implicates,’ he declared.
‘The biggest secret in the entertainment industry, that really wasn’t a secret at all, has finally been revealed to the world. The wall of silence has now been broken.’
Prosecutors accused Combs of coercing two additional women into sex acts, and claimed he dangled a person over an apartment balcony.
BBC reports that the two unnamed women were added to the ongoing federal case, but no new charges were filed.
‘The government has added the ridiculous theory that two of Combs’s former girlfriends were not girlfriends at all, but were prostitutes,’ the star’s lawyer hit back. ‘Combs is as committed as ever to fighting these charges and winning at trial.’
Combs appeared in court in Manhattan to enter a not guilty plea over the updated indictment.
He is said to have smiled during the hearing, while waving and blowing kisses to his family who were in attendance.
Prosecutors hit Combs with two new charges of sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution, bumping his total count from three to five.
According to reports, he was accused of using force, fraud or coercion to recruit, harbor and transport the woman – known only as Victim 2 – across state lines, with the intent of engaging in prostitution between 2021 and 2024.
Combs was dealt a huge blow when his team’s motion to delay his trial by two months was denied by US District Judge Arun Subramanian.
It was also ruled that the alleged victims would be allowed to testify under pseudonyms, except for possible testimony from Ventura.
As well as this, the Judge declared that most evidence concerning prior sexual assault allegations not charged in the indictment would not be allowed at trial.
With days to go before the trial begins, Combs rejected a plea offer from the government to plead guilty and possibly spare himself a prolonged prison sentence.
He appeared in court and was asked by judge Arun Subramanian if he rejected prosecutors’ plea deal.
‘Yes, I do, your honor. Thank you,’ he added.
What are ‘freak offs’?
The federal indictment was unsealed, with many of the details making headlines around the world – including the allegations that Combs coerced multiple alleged victims into sex acts, known as ‘freak offs’.
It was claimed that he organized the ‘freak offs’, and has been accused of ‘directing, masturbating during, and often electronically recording’ the ‘elaborate and produced sex performances’.
He is also said to have forced, or coerced, women to participate with male sex workers, who were reportedly flown in to take part.
After his home in LA was raided, police officers discovered supplies that were allegedly intended for the incidents, including drugs and more than 1,000 bottles of baby oil.
Prosecutors have alleged that the ‘freak offs’ could last days, after which Combs and the women would receive IV treatments to recover, according to People Magazine.
Where is Diddy and what has he said about the claims?
Since his arrest, Combs has been behind bars and is currently being held in custody at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.
His team has requested bail multiple times following his detention, but these have been denied by three different judges.
His lawyer issued a statement about the federal criminal charges, telling BBC: ‘Mr Combs and his legal team have full confidence in the facts and the integrity of the judicial process.
‘In court, the truth will prevail: that Mr Combs never sexually assaulted or trafficked anyone – man or woman, adult or minor.’
The trial begins on Monday.
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