Sean “Diddy” Combs will remain in custody ahead of his May 5, 2025, trial on sex-trafficking charges, following a U.S. judge’s decision to deny his request for release on $50 million bail. The ruling, issued by U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, came in a written order after a two-hour hearing on November 22 in Manhattan federal court.
Combs, who has been held at a Brooklyn jail for 10 weeks, has now been denied bail four times, with judges citing concerns over potential witness tampering. The music mogul pleaded not guilty on September 17 to allegations that he used his business empire, including his record label Bad Boy Entertainment, to sexually exploit women.
Prosecutors have alleged that Sean “Diddy” Combs orchestrated abusive practices, including forcing women to participate in recorded sexual performances, known as “freak offs,” alongside male sex workers, some of whom were reportedly transported across state lines.
Combs, 55, has denied any wrongdoing, with his defense team maintaining that all sexual activity described by prosecutors was consensual. His lawyers proposed an alternative to jail, suggesting he could be confined to a Manhattan Upper East Side apartment under 24/7 surveillance by private security, which Combs would personally fund, and restricted from contacting alleged victims or witnesses.
However, prosecutors argued that Combs was unlikely to adhere to such conditions. They cited evidence of his attempts to bypass jail communication policies at the Metropolitan Detention Center, including using other inmates’ identification numbers to make unauthorized phone calls.
Defense lawyer Alexandra Shapiro argued that sharing identification numbers among inmates, as alleged by prosecutors, is a routine practice.
Prosecutors, however, pointed to a 2016 hotel surveillance video showing Sean “Diddy” Combs assaulting his former girlfriend, Casandra Ventura, known as Cassie, as evidence of the potential risk of violence if he were released.
“This video is evidence that the defendant is a violent abuser and that he’s a danger to the community,” prosecutor Christine Slavik stated during the hearing. “The defendant has engaged in physical, sexual, and emotional abuse of his romantic partners for years.”
Defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo countered the claims, asserting that there was no likelihood of Combs acting violently. “There’s a zero percent chance of that happening,” Agnifilo said during the proceedings.
In May, Sean “Diddy” Combs issued an apology after CNN aired footage showing him kicking, shoving, and dragging Cassie in a hotel hallway. Defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo acknowledged that Combs had never denied the incident but argued that the video was unrelated to the sex trafficking charges.
“It’s our defense to these charges that this was a toxic, loving 11-year relationship,” Agnifilo told the court.
(Source: IMAGES/DAWN)
BD-Pratidin English/Mazdud
