What Is the Mann Act? Sean ‘Diddy' Combs' Conviction Explained
Sean 'Diddy' Combs, the music mogul and entrepreneur, faced a high-profile trial that concluded with a mixed verdict on July 2, 2025. While he was acquitted of the most severe charges, including racketeering and sex trafficking, he was found guilty on two counts of violating the Mann Act. Here's a breakdown of the law and its implications in this case.
The Mann Act, enacted in 1910, is a federal law that criminalizes the transportation of individuals across state lines for illegal sexual activities. Originally aimed at combating human trafficking and exploitation, the law has evolved over time but remains a powerful tool in prosecuting cases involving prostitution and coercion.
Violations of the Mann Act carry significant penalties, with each count punishable by up to 10 years in prison and substantial fines. In Combs' case, the charges stemmed from allegations that he arranged for individuals, including his girlfriends and paid male escorts, to travel across state lines for sexual encounters.
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Combs was convicted on two counts of Mann Act violations: Transportation of his ex-girlfriend, Cassie Ventura, for prostitution. Transportation of another woman, identified as 'Jane,' for similar purposes.
The jury, however, acquitted him of racketeering and sex trafficking charges, which carried much harsher penalties, including mandatory minimum sentences of 15 years. These charges were tied to allegations that Combs coerced women into participating in drug-fueled sexual encounters with other men.
The court now faces the decision of whether to impose concurrent or consecutive sentences for the two Mann Act violations. If sentenced concurrently, Combs could face a maximum of 10 years in prison. If sentenced consecutively, he could serve up to 20 years.
This mixed verdict represents a significant moment in the legal and cultural landscape. While Combs avoided the most severe charges, his conviction under the Mann Act underscores the ongoing relevance of this century-old law in addressing modern issues of exploitation and consent.
As the legal proceedings continue, including potential appeals and sentencing, the case serves as a reminder of the complexities surrounding celebrity, power, and accountability in the justice system.
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What Is the Mann Act? Sean 'Diddy' Combs' Conviction Explained was originally published on hotspotatl.com
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Business Insider
8 hours ago
- Business Insider
Meet the lawyers who defended Diddy
Family and supporters of Sean "Diddy" Combs praised his legal "dream team" after the jury verdict. The team was led by Marc Agnifilo, who is also representing Luigi Mangione. It was rounded out by a row of other formidable lawyers. Sean "Diddy" Combs was mostly victorious in the mixed jury verdict at his criminal trial — with much thanks to his stacked legal team. "Dream team! Dream team!" Combs' supporters and family chanted in the courtroom Wednesday after the jury acquitted him of racketeering and sex trafficking, the most severe charges. They were up against a formidable government team. The US Attorney's Office in the Southern District of New York is considered one of the most elite federal prosecutors' offices in America. And the team prosecuting Combs had Maurene Comey, one of the prosecutors who put Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell behind bars. Combs, though, has an eye for star lawyers. His previous defense team also won him an acquittal in 2001, when the Manhattan District Attorney's Office accused him of being involved in a nightclub shooting. At that time, Combs' team was led by his longtime attorney Ben Brafman. For this year's trial, Brafman's protégé Marc Agnifilo was in the driver's seat. Here's the "dream team" that defended Diddy: Marc Agnifilo The founding partner of Agnifilo Intrater LLP spent about two decades in the US Attorney's office in New Jersey before moving to private practice. Before the Combs trial, he had a crushing jury verdict against his client, Keith Raniere, the founder of the NXIVM sex cult, who in 2020 was sentenced to 120 years in prison. But Agnifilo has had high-profile victories, including representing former International Monetary Fund head Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who had sexual assault charges against him dropped. Together with his wife, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, Agnifilo is also representing Luigi Mangione, who is accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. In one of the final hearings in the Combs case before the trial, Agnifilo raced to another federal courthouse across the street in lower Manhattan for a hearing in the Mangione case. Teny Geragos The 34-year-old Geragos, a partner at Agnifilo's firm, handled some of the trial's biggest moments, including the defense team's opening statement and multiple cross-examinations of important witnesses. Before the trial, she vocally defended Combs on social media. And, years earlier, she represented Raniere along with Agnifilo. Geragos has also represented Roger Ng, the ex-Goldman Sachs banker convicted in 2023 of siphoning billions of dollars from 1MDB, the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund. Her father is celebrity lawyer Mark Geragos, who represents Combs' mother and consulted with the trial defense team. Alexandra Shapiro A former clerk for former Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Shapiro is well-known in the New York bar for her appeals and white collar litigation. In Combs' case, Shapiro raised multiple legal issues during the trial that could form the basis for an appeal. She also took the lead in bail arguments, unsuccessfully trying to keep Combs out of jail ahead of the trial and between the verdict and his sentencing hearing. Shapiro is representing Sam Bankman-Fried, Combs's onetime jailhouse roommate, in the appeal of his conviction and 25-year sentence, which remains pending. She's also the author of the 2022 legal thriller "Presumed Guilty" and is an avid nature photographer. Jason Driscoll An associate at Shapiro's firm, Shapiro Arato Bach, Driscoll crafted legal arguments about the scope of what witnesses were permitted to testify about at the trial and which exhibits should have been permitted to go into evidence. He's previously worked at the Big Law firm Paul Weiss and has clerked for two federal judges in Manhattan. Anna Estevao Estevao had one of the most difficult jobs in the trial, cross-examining Cassie Ventura, Combs' longtime partner, who prosecutors had designated as his primary victim and who was visibly pregnant while she was on the witness stand. (Ventura gave birth after her testimony, while the trial was ongoing.) Estevao joined Combs' legal team while a partner at Sher Tremonte, a firm also representing him in many of the civil lawsuits against him and his companies. She joined the firm Harris Trzaskoma the same month the criminal trial began — a move that a source familiar with the matter said was in the works long before the trial. Xavier Donaldson An experienced New York City attorney, Donaldson also joined the Combs criminal case shortly before the trial began. At the trial, Donaldson cross-examined Daniel Phillip, a male dancer who participated in freak offs with Ventura, and Deonte Nash, a friend of Ventura's. Donaldson has also previously represented the "Chelsea bomber", Ahmed Rahimi. Brian Steel Fresh off a favorable plea deal for the rapper Young Thug in Atlanta, Steel joined Combs' legal team shortly before the trial. He handled the cross-examination of one of Combs' assistants, as well as security officers at the InterContinental Hotel, where Combs beat Cassie Ventura in a hallway in a notorious incident caught on video. Nicole Westmoreland Another Atlanta-based lawyer involved in Young Thug's trial, Westmoreland officially joined the Combs legal team shortly before opening statements. Westmoreland cross-examined Combs' accuser Dawn Richard and two friends of Ventura who corroborated some of her testimony.
Black America Web
9 hours ago
- Black America Web
The Diddy Trial In Pictures
Diddy has been found 'Not Guilty' on three out of five charges in the high-profile sex trafficking case that has captivated the nation for the last seven weeks. A jury acquitted Diddy of racketeering and conspiracy, sex trafficking for Cassie Ventura and Jane Doe. He was found guilty of the Mann Act, which prohibits the transportation of women across state lines for the purpose of prostitution or debauchery. The scene outside the courthouse is a combination of the Combs' family and friends, journalists, spectators, supporters, and protestors who have gathered around the U.S. federal court where the verdict just came down. Diddy's legal team has put in a request for the disgraced mogul to be released on bail to spend time at home while he awaits sentencing. Social media erupted with the reactions. While some have called it a sad day for survivors of sexual and domestic violence, others expressed that the prosecution didn't prove their case. Diddy Trial Cassie Ventura's legal team released a statement, calling her courageous. Her testimony led to Diddy being held accountable for at least one charge. 'This entire criminal process started when our client Cassie Ventura had the courage to file her civil complaint in November 2023,' Douglas H. Wigdor said in a statement obtained by PEOPLE. 'Although the jury did not find Combs guilty of sex trafficking Cassie beyond a reasonable doubt, she paved the way for a jury to find him guilty of transportation to engage in prostitution.' Armon Wiggins was outside the courthouse to capture reactions from fellow journalists and non-traditional media, who emerged as prime sources in the entertainment trial. Reactions to the verdict are polarized, but the vast majority of commentary is centered around the misunderstanding of the RICO charge and Jane Doe's testimony. Keep scrolling for images outside the courthouse during the Diddy trial. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures was originally published on 1. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty People react outside federal court as verdicts are announced during Sean Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering trial at Manhattan Federal Court on July 2, 2025 in New York City. Combs has been acquitted of the most serious charges in his case, but was convicted on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. 2. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty A Combs fan wears a pin in support of him while outside the courthouse. The scene outside the Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse for the Sean 'Diddy' Combs trial. 3. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty Members of the organization Ultraviolet advocate for survivors outside the Sean Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering trial at Manhattan Federal Court on June 27, 2025 in New York City. Defense attorneys will begin their closing arguments today, 'followed by a prosecution rebuttal argument' after the prosecution and defense resting their cases earlier this week. 'Then, Judge Arun Subramanian will instruct jurors on the law before deliberations begin'. Some of the charges have been dropped and others have been downgraded, in an effort to streamline the case at the behest of Judge Arun Subramanian. Combs, 55, faces up to life in prison if convicted on charges, which include allegations of threats, arson, violence, and drug-fueled sex parties referred to as 'freak offs.' 4. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty Attorney Brian Steel exits the Sean Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering trial at Manhattan Federal Court on June 27, 2025 in New York City. Defense attorneys will begin their closing arguments today, 'followed by a prosecution rebuttal argument' after the prosecution and defense resting their cases earlier this week. 'Then, Judge Arun Subramanian will instruct jurors next week on the law before deliberations begin'. Some of the charges have been dropped and others have been downgraded, in an effort to streamline the case at the behest of Judge Arun Subramanian. Combs, 55, faces up to life in prison if convicted on charges, which include allegations of threats, arson, violence, and drug-fueled sex parties referred to as 'freak offs.' 5. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty Holly Baird, representative for Sean Combs, exits his sex trafficking and racketeering trial at Manhattan Federal Court on June 27, 2025 in New York City. Defense attorneys will begin their closing arguments today, 'followed by a prosecution rebuttal argument' after the prosecution and defense resting their cases earlier this week. 'Then, Judge Arun Subramanian will instruct jurors next week on the law before deliberations begin'. Some of the charges have been dropped and others have been downgraded, in an effort to streamline the case at the behest of Judge Arun Subramanian. Combs, 55, faces up to life in prison if convicted on charges, which include allegations of threats, arson, violence, and drug-fueled sex parties referred to as 'freak offs.' 6. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty People try to get a view and record and photograph Sean Combs' family as they leave the courthouse at the end of the day. The scene outside the Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse for the Sean 'Diddy' Combs trial. 7. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty Attorney arrives for Sean 'Diddy' Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering trial at Manhattan Federal Court on June 30, 2025 in New York City. A jury will commence deliberating in Combs' trial after being given instructions on the law by Judge Arun Subramanian. Some of the charges have been dropped and others have been downgraded, in an effort to streamline the case. Combs faces a sentence that could extend to life in prison if convicted and has pleaded not guilty. 8. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty Journalist Touré arrives for Sean 'Diddy' Combssex trafficking and racketeering trial at Manhattan Federal Court on June 30, 2025 in New York City. A jury will commence deliberating in Combs trial after being given instructions on the law by Judge Arun Subramanian. Some of the charges have been dropped and others have been downgraded, in an effort to streamline the case. Combs faces a sentence that could extend to life in prison if convicted and has pleaded not guilty. 9. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty Marc Agnifilo, attorney for Sean 'Diddy' Combs, arrives at federal court as jury begins deliberations in Sean 'Diddy' Combs' sex trafficking trial on June 30, 2025, in New York City. On June 30, Judge Arun Subramanian will instruct jurors on how to apply the law to the evidence for their deliberations. Then, 12 New Yorkers will determine Combs's future. Combs, the 55-year-old music mogul who faces upwards of life in prison if convicted on charges including racketeering and sex trafficking. 10. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty Lila Combs and Chance Combs depart the courthouse during the Sean Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering trial at Manhattan Federal Court on July 2, 2025 in New York City. The jury has reached verdicts on all counts in the case. 11. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty People react outside federal court as verdicts are announced during Sean Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering trial at Manhattan Federal Court on July 2, 2025 in New York City. The jury has reached verdicts on all counts in the case. 12. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty People react outside federal court as verdicts are announced during Sean Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering trial at Manhattan Federal Court on July 2, 2025 in New York City. Combs has been acquitted of the most serious charges in his case, but was convicted on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. 13. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty Janice Combs (R) and Chance Combs react as they leave federal court after verdicts were announced during Sean Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering trial at Manhattan Federal Court on July 2, 2025 in New York City. Combs has been acquitted of the most serious charges in his case, but was convicted on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. 14. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty Janice Combs, mother of Sean 'Diddy' Combs, King Combs and Justin Combs, sons of Sean 'Diddy' Combs, depart federal court as jury continues deliberations in Sean 'Diddy' Combs' sex trafficking trial on July 1, 2025, in New York City. Jurors on June 30 started deliberating on whether Sean 'Diddy' Combs used his celebrity, wealth and business empire to set up a decades-long criminal ring that allegedly saw him force women into drug-fueled sexual performances with escorts. After the judge completed his instructions, the jury in New York began the task of weighing evidence from phone and financial records, and 34 people who testified against Combs over the past seven weeks. 15. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty Quincy Brown, son of Sean 'Diddy' Combs', walks out during a recess of Comb's sex trafficking and racketeering trial on July 01, 2025 in New York City. The jury continues deliberating in Combs trial after being given instructions on the law by Judge Arun Subramanian. Some of the charges have been dropped and others have been downgraded, in an effort to streamline the case. Combs faces a sentence that could extend to life in prison if convicted and has pleaded not guilty. 16. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty King Combs (L), son of Sean 'Diddy' Combs, and Quincy Brown (R), stepson of Sean 'Diddy' Combs, arrive at a federal court as jury continues deliberations in Sean 'Diddy' Combs' sex trafficking trial on July 1, 2025, in New York City. A jury has reached a partial verdict in the sex trafficking trial of Sean 'Diddy' Combs but has been unable to agree on the most serious charge facing the music mogul — racketeering, US media reported on July 1, 2025. 17. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JULY 01: Sarah Chapman, a former partner of Sean 'Diddy' Combs, leaves Manhattan Federal Court after court adjourned for Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering trial on July 01, 2025 in New York City. The jury will continue deliberating in Combs' trial after reaching a verdict on the two counts each of sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution, but were deadlocked on a decision on racketeering conspiracy. Combs faces a sentence that could extend to life in prison if convicted and has pleaded not guilty. 18. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JULY 02: Stephanie Rao, Justin Combs, Quincy Taylor Brown and Chance Combs arrive at the Sean Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering trial at Manhattan Federal Court on July 2, 2025 in New York City. The jury continues deliberation on the final verdict of racketeering conspiracy in Combs' trial after reaching a verdict yesterday on the four other counts, two each of sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. Combs faces a sentence that could extend to life in prison if convicted and has pleaded not guilty. 19. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty King Combs (R), son of Sean 'Diddy' Combs (R), departs at Manhattan's Federal Court as jury continues deliberations in Sean 'Diddy' Combs' sex trafficking trial on July 2, 2025, in New York City. Jurors in the trial of music mogul Sean 'Diddy' Combs head back into deliberations Wednesday, aiming to reach a unanimous decision on the case's most serious charge of leading a criminal organization. 20. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty Family members of Sean 'Diddy' Combs, departs at Manhattan's Federal Court as jury continues deliberations in Sean 'Diddy' Combs' sex trafficking trial on July 2, 2025, in New York City. Jurors in the trial of music mogul Sean 'Diddy' Combs head back into deliberations Wednesday, aiming to reach a unanimous decision on the case's most serious charge of leading a criminal organization. 21. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JULY 2: Lila Combs and Chance Combs depart the courthouse during the Sean Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering trial at Manhattan Federal Court on July 2, 2025 in New York City. The jury has reached verdicts on all counts in the case. 22. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JULY 2: People react outside federal court as verdicts are announced during Sean Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering trial at Manhattan Federal Court on July 2, 2025 in New York City. The jury has reached verdicts on all counts in the case. 23. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty King Combs leave the Sean Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering trial at Manhattan Federal Court on June 27, 2025 in New York City. Defense attorneys will begin their closing arguments today, 'followed by a prosecution rebuttal argument' after the prosecution and defense resting their cases earlier this week. 'Then, Judge Arun Subramanian will instruct jurors on the law before deliberations begin'. Some of the charges have been dropped and others have been downgraded, in an effort to streamline the case at the behest of Judge Arun Subramanian. Combs, 55, faces up to life in prison if convicted on charges, which include allegations of threats, arson, violence, and drug-fueled sex parties referred to as 'freak offs.' 24. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty (L-R) D'Lila Combs, Jessie Combs, and Chance Combs depart federal court as jury begins deliberations in Sean 'Diddy' Combs' sex trafficking trial on June 30, 2025, in New York City. Jurors on Monday started deliberating on whether Sean 'Diddy' Combs used his celebrity, wealth and business empire to set up a decades-long criminal ring that allegedly saw him force women into drug-fueled sexual performances with escorts. After the judge completed his instructions, the jury in New York began the task of weighing evidence from phone and financial records, and 34 people who testified against Combs over the past seven weeks. 25. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty Diddy's close friend Charlucci Finney is seen after Combs' sex trafficking case in a Manhattan Federal Court, New York City, United States, on July 02, 2025. 26. The Diddy Trial: In Pictures Source:Getty A person wears a 'FREE PUFF' pin outside Manhattan's Federal Court after a verdict were announced in Sean 'Diddy' Combs' sex trafficking trial on July 2, 2025 in New York. Music mogul Sean 'Diddy' Combs was found not guilty of racketeering and sex trafficking on Wednesday but convicted of a less serious prostitution charge after a high-profile seven week trial in New York.
USA Today
10 hours ago
- USA Today
Sean Combs' ‘Diddy Inc.' empire of mansions, cars and jet likely spared by verdict
With Combs not guilty of racketeering, the US is likely limited in what it can seek through asset forfeiture, legal experts and former prosecutors say Sean 'Diddy' Combs's acquittal on the most serious criminal charges, including racketeering, doesn't just mean he'll likely serve significantly less prison time. The music mogul will likely also get to keep his vast 'Diddy Inc.' empire of mansions, business entities, exotic cars and other perks of his high-flying, near-billionaire lifestyle accumulated over several decades, legal experts told USA TODAY. 'The government overreached. They wanted a RICO conviction so they could then go seize Comb's assets under RICO forfeiture laws,' said Los Angeles-based civil trial lawyer David Ring, who specializes in high-profile sexual assault cases. 'Thats not going to happen now.' 'He was facing life in prison if convicted of the RICO charges,' Ring said of Combs. 'Instead, he likely serves a couple years in prison and returns to his business empire.' The sweeping indictment of Combs under a federal racketeering, or RICO, statute, meant the Justice Department intended to go after anything of Combs' that was used to help facilitate his alleged crimes, said James Trusty, the former longtime chief of the DOJ's Organized Crime and Gang Section. On July 2, in finding Combs guilty only of transportation to engage in prostitution, the jury also effectively shut down the Justice Department's ability to go after most of Combs' assets, Trusty said. 'I think that with the acquittal on the most serious counts, the universe of potential harm to his empire is greatly diminished,' said Trusty, who now specializes in representing clients in RICO and other complex federal cases. Inside the trial: Abusive lifestyle vs. a criminal enterprise: Inside the Diddy trial and what the verdict means The Justice Department had no immediate comment about whether it would seek to go after any of Combs' assets. According to Trusty and another former top DOJ official, it is still possible for the U.S. government to seek forfeiture of a far narrower range of Combs' assets. To do so, they must prove they were used in furtherance of the two charges of transportation to engage in prostitution in connection with 'freak offs' involving Combs' two former girlfriends, Cassie Ventura Fine and 'Jane,' a pseudonym. But, Trusty said, 'I think that the RICO case told a decades-long story' of how Combs allegedly used his empire as part of a criminal racketeering enterprise from 2008 to the present. Without Combs' conviction on the RICO and sex trafficking charges, Trusty said, 'The forfeiture is going to be much narrower in terms of both time and reach.' 'There may be some property, there may be some financial component, that is considered either facilitating property or proceeds' of those two counts, Trusty said. What Combs was convicted of, he said, 'Is really a glorified prostitution charge. It's just literally like prostitution across the state lines.' Trusty told USA TODAY in May that federal prosecutors wrote a "very broadly worded forfeiture allegation.' That included places where so-called marathon sex 'freak offs' between two of his girlfriends and paid escorts occurred and any vehicles used in getting the participants there. Combs was also indicted on federal charges of sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. Hiring a former DOJ asset forfeiture expert When Combs was first charged, his all-star defense team was so alarmed that it hired as a consultant Stefan Cassella, the former deputy chief of the Justice Department's Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section, USA TODAY reported exclusively at the time. At the time of his hiring, and after the verdict, Cassella said he could not comment on the specifics of the case because of his involvement in it. Broadly speaking, though, he said that by charging Combs under RICO, formally the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, the government was taking an aggressive approach to seizing as many of Combs' assets as possible. 'As alleged in the Indictment, for years, Sean Combs used the business empire he controlled to sexually abuse and exploit women, as well as to commit other acts of violence and obstruction of justice,' U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said after Combs' arrest in September 2024. A forfeiture target with $400 million in assets By becoming a successful entrepreneur in the music, fashion, liquor and other realms, Combs had amassed a personal wealth of at least $740 million by 2019, according to Forbes magazine. (Combs and his team would later claim he had reached billionaire status.) At its founding in 2013, Combs Enterprises included his New York City-based Bad Boy Entertainment, Combs Wines and Spirits, the AQUAhydrate water firm, Revolt Media, Sean John fashion and fragrances, Capital Preparatory Charter Schools and The Sean Combs Foundation. Over the years, it expanded to include new business units and ventures such as Empower Global, Our Fair Share and Love Records, which focused on R&B. Combs owned multimillion-dollar mega-mansions in Los Angeles and Miami and a Gulfstream G550 jet valued at more than $25 million, which he used to ferry his entourage from one party hotspot to another. Also potentially open to forfeiture was Combs' Bad Boy Records, which has generated big profits from recordings and music publishing rights since he launched the company in 1993. Combs is also believed to have an extensive art collection, including works by Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring. In 2018, he was revealed as the mystery buyer of the renowned painting 'Past Times' by Kerry James Marshall for $21.1 million. And at one time, his fleet of at least 20 luxury cars included a Rolls-Royce, Bentley, Ferrari, Lamborghini and an ultra-luxury Mercedes known as a Maybach. 'A much narrower basis' to go after Combs' assets In November 2023, Combs' empire began to crumble following allegations of rape, beatings and abuse by his former girlfriend Cassie Ventura Fine. In her testimony against Combs during the trial, Ventura Fine said she settled that case with Combs agreeing to pay her $20 million. He has also lost significant other business after Ventura Fine's allegations prompted a spate of other lawsuits and accusations. Forbes more recently estimated his net worth at closer to $400 million. Now it will likely be up to the jury that found Combs not guilty of racketeering and sex trafficking to determine whether any of his assets should be forfeited, said Trusty. He said it's likely that Combs and his legal team could offer up some small piece of his empire to settle that aspect of the case. 'With the acquittal, you just have a much narrower basis, factually and legally, to go after his assets,' Trusty said. 'I think it cries out for an agreement where the defense will offer up something like $100,000 or a million, and use that sentencing to say, he's already paid this severe price. He's had civil settlements with complainants, and now he's forfeiting X amount of dollars.' 'So now we'll see how hyper aggressive the government wants to be about it,' Trusty said. Combs still faces dozens of civil lawsuits Besides the federal criminal case, Combs still faces dozens of civil lawsuits from men and women who claim the rapper abused them, which could also cut into his fortunes significantly. To date, more than 70 lawsuits have been filed against Combs. In October, Texas-based attorney Tony Buzbee announced he would represent 120 individual accusers. Alleged victims represented by Buzbee now account for about half of the lawsuits filed so far. The music mogul was hit with yet another civil suit as jurors began deliberating in the sweeping federal sex-crimes case against him. In that one, Combs was accused in a civil complaint of drugging and raping an Orange County, California man in 2021, according to the lawsuit obtained by USA TODAY. In a statement to USA TODAY June 30, Combs' legal team said, "No matter how many lawsuits are filed, it won't change the fact that Mr. Combs has never sexually assaulted or sex trafficked anyone — man or woman, adult or minor."
