What to know as jury begins deliberations in Diddy sex trafficking trial
For seven weeks, a jury in Manhattan has listened as prosecutors laid out a criminal sex trafficking and racketeering case against rapper Sean 'Diddy' Combs.
They heard his ex-girlfriends and other witnesses deliver shocking accounts of violence and drug-fueled sexual marathons.
Next week, jurors are set to begin deliberating, ultimately deciding whether Combs was running a criminal enterprise, as the government says, or — as his lawyer insists — merely living a swinger lifestyle that included recreational drug use and, regrettably, domestic violence.
The answer will determine the future of one of the biggest music moguls and cultural figures of the past four decades. If convicted, Combs, 55, would face 15 years to life in prison.
Here's what to know about the case:
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What are the charges?
The three-time Grammy Award winner has pleaded not guilty to five felony charges: one count of racketeering conspiracy; two counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion; and two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution.
Prosecutors say Combs coerced women into abusive sex parties involving hired male sex workers, ensured their compliance with drugs like cocaine and threats to their careers, and silenced victims through blackmail and violence that included kidnapping, arson and beatings.
Sean "Diddy" Combs in court. (Source: Associated Press)
'He's the leader of a criminal enterprise. He doesn't take no for an answer," Assistant US Attorney Christy Slavik said in her closing arguments on Thursday (local time).
Combs' lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, portrayed the Bad Boys Records founder as the victim of overzealous prosecutors who exaggerated elements of his lifestyle and recreational drug use to bring charges that resulted in what he called a 'fake trial'.
What is racketeering?
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The most serious charge, racketeering conspiracy, alleges that Combs ran a criminal enterprise for two decades that relied on bodyguards, household staff, personal assistants and others in his orbit to facilitate and cover up crimes.
Federal prosecutors brought the charge under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organisations Act, or RICO. Congress passed the federal law in 1970 with the declared purpose of targeting organised crime, but its use has been more widespread.
To prove the charge, prosecutors must show that an enterprise existed and was involved in a pattern of racketeering activity. In this case, that alleged activity includes kidnapping, arson, bribery and sex trafficking.
Key pieces of evidence
Early in the trial, prosecutors showed jurors 2016 security video of Combs beating and kicking his former longtime girlfriend Cassie at a Los Angeles hotel. Cassie, an R&B singer whose legal name is Casandra Ventura, testified the assault took place as she was trying to leave one of the sexual encounters, which witnesses say he referred to as 'freak-offs" or 'hotel nights'.
Jurors saw numerous explicit clips of such encounters, some involving Cassie and others involving a later girlfriend who was identified only by the pseudonym 'Jane'.
Both women took the stand.
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Cassie testified over four days that she participated in hundreds of the events with paid sex workers while she and Combs were in a relationship from 2007 until 2018, often feeling like she didn't have a choice. She sued Combs in 2023, alleging years of abuse. He settled within hours, and dozens of similar lawsuits followed.
Cassie Ventura, left, and Sean "Diddy" Combs appear at The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute benefit gala celebrating "China: Through the Looking Glass" in New York on May 4, 2015. (Source: Associated Press)
Jane testified over six days that she was romantically involved with Combs from 2021 until his September arrest at a New York hotel, and that she, too, felt forced to have sex with the hired strangers in multiday sex marathons while Combs watched.
The Associated Press doesn't generally identify people who say they are victims of sexual abuse unless they come forward publicly, as Cassie has done.
Testimony also included hours of text message exchanges, some of which involved Combs or other people in his orbit, that were read aloud by a Homeland Security Investigations agent.
In all, 34 people took the stand, all of them called by the prosecution.
Combs did not testify.
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How will jury deliberations work?
Judge Arun Subramanian will give instructions to the jurors before sending them off to deliberate inside the Manhattan federal courthouse.
The jury of eight men and four women must unanimously decide guilty or not guilty on each count.
That means all 12 jurors must agree. If jurors don't reach an agreement, they could come back and say they are deadlocked.
Traditionally, the judge would then encourage them to continue deliberating, but if they can't reach a consensus, it would be up to the judge to decide whether to declare a mistrial.
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1News
9 hours ago
- 1News
What to know as jury begins deliberations in Diddy sex trafficking trial
For seven weeks, a jury in Manhattan has listened as prosecutors laid out a criminal sex trafficking and racketeering case against rapper Sean 'Diddy' Combs. They heard his ex-girlfriends and other witnesses deliver shocking accounts of violence and drug-fueled sexual marathons. Next week, jurors are set to begin deliberating, ultimately deciding whether Combs was running a criminal enterprise, as the government says, or — as his lawyer insists — merely living a swinger lifestyle that included recreational drug use and, regrettably, domestic violence. The answer will determine the future of one of the biggest music moguls and cultural figures of the past four decades. If convicted, Combs, 55, would face 15 years to life in prison. Here's what to know about the case: ADVERTISEMENT What are the charges? The three-time Grammy Award winner has pleaded not guilty to five felony charges: one count of racketeering conspiracy; two counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion; and two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. Prosecutors say Combs coerced women into abusive sex parties involving hired male sex workers, ensured their compliance with drugs like cocaine and threats to their careers, and silenced victims through blackmail and violence that included kidnapping, arson and beatings. Sean "Diddy" Combs in court. (Source: Associated Press) 'He's the leader of a criminal enterprise. He doesn't take no for an answer," Assistant US Attorney Christy Slavik said in her closing arguments on Thursday (local time). Combs' lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, portrayed the Bad Boys Records founder as the victim of overzealous prosecutors who exaggerated elements of his lifestyle and recreational drug use to bring charges that resulted in what he called a 'fake trial'. What is racketeering? ADVERTISEMENT The most serious charge, racketeering conspiracy, alleges that Combs ran a criminal enterprise for two decades that relied on bodyguards, household staff, personal assistants and others in his orbit to facilitate and cover up crimes. Federal prosecutors brought the charge under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organisations Act, or RICO. Congress passed the federal law in 1970 with the declared purpose of targeting organised crime, but its use has been more widespread. To prove the charge, prosecutors must show that an enterprise existed and was involved in a pattern of racketeering activity. In this case, that alleged activity includes kidnapping, arson, bribery and sex trafficking. Key pieces of evidence Early in the trial, prosecutors showed jurors 2016 security video of Combs beating and kicking his former longtime girlfriend Cassie at a Los Angeles hotel. Cassie, an R&B singer whose legal name is Casandra Ventura, testified the assault took place as she was trying to leave one of the sexual encounters, which witnesses say he referred to as 'freak-offs" or 'hotel nights'. Jurors saw numerous explicit clips of such encounters, some involving Cassie and others involving a later girlfriend who was identified only by the pseudonym 'Jane'. Both women took the stand. ADVERTISEMENT Cassie testified over four days that she participated in hundreds of the events with paid sex workers while she and Combs were in a relationship from 2007 until 2018, often feeling like she didn't have a choice. She sued Combs in 2023, alleging years of abuse. He settled within hours, and dozens of similar lawsuits followed. Cassie Ventura, left, and Sean "Diddy" Combs appear at The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute benefit gala celebrating "China: Through the Looking Glass" in New York on May 4, 2015. (Source: Associated Press) Jane testified over six days that she was romantically involved with Combs from 2021 until his September arrest at a New York hotel, and that she, too, felt forced to have sex with the hired strangers in multiday sex marathons while Combs watched. The Associated Press doesn't generally identify people who say they are victims of sexual abuse unless they come forward publicly, as Cassie has done. Testimony also included hours of text message exchanges, some of which involved Combs or other people in his orbit, that were read aloud by a Homeland Security Investigations agent. In all, 34 people took the stand, all of them called by the prosecution. Combs did not testify. ADVERTISEMENT How will jury deliberations work? Judge Arun Subramanian will give instructions to the jurors before sending them off to deliberate inside the Manhattan federal courthouse. The jury of eight men and four women must unanimously decide guilty or not guilty on each count. That means all 12 jurors must agree. If jurors don't reach an agreement, they could come back and say they are deadlocked. Traditionally, the judge would then encourage them to continue deliberating, but if they can't reach a consensus, it would be up to the judge to decide whether to declare a mistrial.
NZ Herald
2 days ago
- NZ Herald
Diddy used ‘power, violence and fear' prosecutors say in closing arguments
Combs, who has seemed quite at ease throughout much of his trial, appeared uncomfortable and nervous at the start of closing arguments today NZT. If convicted of the most serious charges, he could face life in prison. The prosecution, which spent more than six weeks in Manhattan federal court presenting evidence of Combs's alleged crimes, stressed to jurors that he did not need an army of co-conspirators to be found guilty of racketeering and that 'one single' act of alleged coercion against an accuser would be enough to convict him of sex trafficking. Combs' defence, which will offer its closing remarks before the jury enters deliberations, has argued that the accusers had their own motives and were willing participants in his drug-addled sex parties known as 'freak-offs'. Here are the arguments the prosecution made for each criminal count Combs is facing. Racketeering conspiracy To find Combs guilty of racketeering conspiracy, prosecutors said jurors can have their pick of a host of crimes, which include drug distribution, arson, bribery, sex trafficking, transportation for prostitution, forced labour, witness tampering, and obstruction. While the charge of racketeering conspiracy is often associated 'with the mafia or organised crime', Slavik said, it also firmly applies to the type of enforcement being carried out by Combs and his loyalists. The panel needs to find there was an agreement between Combs and another member of the enterprise that 'someone would commit two individual acts in any of these categories', she said. For example, if jurors believe Combs and his staffers distributed drugs to his alleged victims at least two times, he could be found guilty of racketeering conspiracy. Drug distribution is one of the more 'straightforward' offences of Combs' alleged criminal enterprise, the government said, as it ticked off a list of all the drugs used at freak-offs - including cocaine, meth, ketamine, oxycodone, tusi, Xanax, MDMA and GHB. Slavik called these drugs 'an essential ingredient' of the sex parties, and the means by which Combs kept his ex-girlfriends, Casandra 'Cassie' Ventura and a woman identified by the court-approved alias, 'Jane' - compliant and awake during these sexual encounters. Combs 'fed them drugs for years', Slavik said. 'And you know he didn't get those drugs on his own.' Rapper Kid Cudi leaves court after testifying at the trial on May 22. Photo / Getty Images Combs and his inner circle procured these drugs by enlisting his assistants and security staff, Slavik said. 'Giving drugs to someone else is distribution,' she added. 'Period.' Prosecutors also consider Ventura, Jane, and two former employees to be victims of forced labour. Both Ventura and Jane were coerced or forced to participate in sleep-deprived, days-long freak-offs, even when they were in pain or just not feeling up to it, Slavik said. 'This was work.' She also pointed to allegations of kidnapping, recounting testimony from Combs' former employee, Capricorn Clark, who said she was hauled into a room in New York in 2004, daily for a week where she was given a polygraph and threatened as Combs and his entourage tried to uncover who took valuable jewellery from him. Clark had also testified about being forced to accompany a furious Combs to the home of rapper Scott Mescudi - known by his stage name Kid Cudi - who was having a relationship with Ventura. An arson charge was also highlighted by the prosecution, stemming from a 2012 incident in which Mescudi's car blew up in his driveway. 'The evidence and basic logic' should lead jurors to conclude that Combs was behind the arson, Slavik argued. 'For starters, he literally said he was going to blow up Kid Cudi's car,' she said, citing Ventura's testimony during the trial. And Combs committed bribery when he and his deputies paid a hotel security guard US$100,000 ($165,000) to bury a video depicting his assault of Ventura in 2016, Slavik said, waving off the defence team's argument that the video purchase was an attempt to control public relations. Sex trafficking of Cassie Ventura 'We're not asking you to find that every instance, every freak-off, was an instance of sex trafficking,' Slavik said. Instead, she said the jury can convict Combs of sex trafficking if they believe he coerced one of his accusers even a single time. Combs's freak-offs 'were as regular as his abuse of Cassie', Slavik told jurors as she homed in on the defendant's decade-long relationship with the singer, who is central to the government's case. Slavik said these sexual encounters with male escorts and girlfriends followed a 'set playbook'. Ventura may have agreed to the first freak-off, the prosecutor said, but not the many subsequent ones. She referenced Ventura's testimony that Combs forced Ventura to have sex with men while she suffered from infections, and that he directed escorts to commit certain sexual acts against her will. 'It was a turn-on for him,' Slavik said. 'Humiliating for her.' She then brought up a slide focusing on three examples of alleged sex trafficking. The first: a freak-off that took place at the InterContinental Hotel in March 2016, when Combs was caught on camera attacking Ventura as she tried to leave the hotel room. Another clear example of Combs sex-trafficking Ventura was the time he made her perform a freak-off after he attacked her, according to the prosecution's closing argument. A male entertainer hired for that freak-off, Daniel Phillip, testified that he saw Combs throw a bottle at Ventura's head and drag her by her hair into a bedroom, where he heard slapping sounds. Phillip said Combs then told Ventura to resume the freak-off. 'He was demanding that Cassie have sex with a paid escort,' Slavik said. 'That's sex- trafficking.' Further, when Combs allegedly showed Ventura sex tapes of herself on a flight from Cannes, France, to New York City and threatened to release them to her family, he was coercing her into a freak-off, Slavik argued. When they landed, Combs and Ventura had a freak-off that very night. Sex trafficking of 'Jane' The government also walked through Combs' relationship with Jane, who dated the music producer from 2021 to 2024. Slavik broke down their relationship into four stages for the jury: a period of 'love bombing', during which Combs showered Jane with attention, gifts and trips, followed by the introduction of 'hotel nights', or freak-offs. Then, later in the relationship, came the period when Combs used the home he leased for her as 'leverage', Slavik argued. The final stage of their relationship was the aftermath of Ventura's lawsuit, she said. Hotel nights with Combs were never about Jane's sexual desires, despite her attempts to exert some control over them, Slavik said, pointing to Jane's testimony about why she accepted the drugs Combs gave her during these encounters: 'I didn't want it to feel too real,' Combs' ex-girlfriend said. 'It just made things easier.' The prosecutor also pointed to a clip of a freak-off the jury had seen earlier in the trial, when Jane expressed her wish that a male entertainer wear a condom. 'You heard it in the recording, 'ain't no condoms around here,'' Slavik said, quoting Combs. Slavik said it was important that Combs was planning freak-offs without Jane's knowledge, even as he was promising her romantic dinners and shopping sprees. Combs didn't make good on those promises and never intended to, the prosecutor argued, thus coercing Jane's participation by fraud. Slavik also described Combs beating and choking Jane during a fight last summer, forcing her to flee her home shoeless and without a phone. After she returned, bruised and in pain, Combs allegedly forced Jane to have sex with an escort. Combs told Jane she would not 'ruin' his night and demanded she get dressed up, Slavik said. Slavik said Combs knew he was again committing the very crime he was being investigated for and that he intended to continue trafficking Jane. She acknowledged video evidence showing Jane enjoying herself during 'freak-offs,' but she contended that 'what those videos really show is that she was super, super high.' And Slavik reminded jurors of Combs' alleged effort to silence Jane as his reputation was crumbling in the wake of sexual assault allegations. 'I just needed to tell you that I need your friendship,' Combs said in a call he recorded in November 2023 with a tearful Jane, played during the prosecution's closing arguments. Transportation to engage in prostitution Slavik also walked jurors through the federal indictment's two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution: one for each alleged victim, Ventura and Jane. The government has a trove of records supporting these charges - including bank statements showing Combs or his associates purchasing flights for alleged male escorts, airline records, hotel reservations and bank deposits, as well as communications with the men or escort services themselves. It 'doesn't matter' that the men consented to these sex acts, or even that Ventura and Jane sometimes did, Slavik said. 'It's still a crime.'
NZ Herald
3 days ago
- NZ Herald
Demonstrations against police brutality in Kenya have spread across the country
A procession of demonstrators carried white crosses with the names of those killed by police over the past year; others held up huge hearts or marched with flowers. Unemployed truck driver Daniel Maina, 33, watched them pass: 'Today, I am here to remember our fallen heroes,' he said. As day turned to night, it became clear there would be new names to commemorate. At least eight people were killed nationwide, according to the Independent Medico-Legal Unit, a leading association of medical professionals, including two deaths each in Machakos and Makueni, areas south of the capital. The circumstances of the deaths were not immediately clear. The protests a year ago were sparked by a tax bill that would have hiked rates on basic foodstuffs while allowing what critics see as the Government's self-dealing to continue. Kenya's legislators are among the highest paid in the world and enjoy lavish perks, while the country's public schools and hospitals routinely struggle for funding. Within an hour of the bill's passage, the Parliament was in flames. Some of those arrested that day turned up dead. Others were abducted by plainclothes security forces weeks or months later. In the aftermath, there have been repeated showdowns between heavily armed police and young demonstrators demanding justice for the dead and missing. During protests against police brutality last week, triggered by the death in custody of a blogger critical of police, a photographer from the Associated Press captured images of two officers shooting an unarmed vendor in the head at close range as he tried to flee. Kenya is East Africa's wealthiest nation, seen by Washington as a bulwark of stability in a deeply troubled region. Kenyan security forces serve as peacekeepers in United States-backed missions in Somalia and Haiti. A joint statement today from the US Embassy and other Western diplomatic missions said that 'protecting the right to protest is vital to preserving civic space and a cornerstone of Kenya's vibrant democracy'. The statement also said that 'we are troubled by the use of hired 'goons' to infiltrate or disrupt peaceful gatherings'. It referred to armed gangs that appeared at protests last week, attacking demonstrators with wooden planks and looting shops as police officers looked on. As the protest anniversary neared, Kenyan officials struck a note of defiance. 'Let me tell you some home truths you stupid young people,' David Ndii, an economic adviser to Kenyan President William Ruto, posted on X. '… My generation also had its heroic stupid young men. They were hanged. We learnt.' A youth movement On Wednesday morning local time, the protesters streamed into downtown Nairobi carrying vuvuzelas. James Kariuki, a 24-year-old chef, was holding a bouquet of yellow roses in memory of his friend Boniface, who was killed by security forces last year. 'We are fighting for our rights. They will never send us home,' he said. The protesters controlled the main thoroughfare of Kenyatta Avenue for most of the day. Some lit bonfires while others sped past on skates, the scene at times resembling a chaotic carnival. Moh, 40, a doctor, said she was there for her patients. 'They cannot get services unless they have money,' Moh said. Like others interviewed, she spoke on the condition that she be identified by only her first name, for fear of government retaliation. 'Especially with the USAid cuts, people are really worried about HIV medication,' she said. US President Donald Trump's cuts to American foreign aid have upended the lives of Kenyan families battling HIV, leaving them to depend on a beleaguered national medical system. A lawyer, Tess, 29, said Ruto has 'no respect for the law, and without respect for the law, everything crumbles'. 'They are just stealing from us,' she said. As afternoon approached, the crowd in Nairobi's central business district swelled. Protesters carried placards and posters: 'Scared of Youth? You have not seen anything yet,' one read. 'Real patriots ask questions,' another said. Samuel, 24, said he was friends with Rex Masai, one of the first protesters shot during last year's demonstrations. Samuel was back on the streets, he said, because 'no one is safe'. More than 60 protesters have been killed by security forces over the past year, according to rights groups, and over 1000 have been injured. Dozens have been abducted by plainclothes agents, and at least 26 are still missing, according to the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights. As protesters marched, they sang the national anthem and held up one finger, chanting 'one term', a now-common slogan among Ruto's critics, who are demanding that he not seek re-election in 2027. 'I voted for Ruto the first time,' said Shadrack Kioko, 21, 'but I am so disappointed, because he is killing our generation'. The latest protests, like most previous ones, drew a heavy-handed police response. In one instance, officers fired tear gas directly into a medical camp treating protesters. As the police vehicle approached, a line of volunteers held up their hands in a cordon; one waved his fluorescent vest over his head, yelling 'Medics!' just before the acrid smoke was unleashed. One woman was hit in the mouth with a canister. Bleeding patients and medics stumbled away, retching. Wala Amakove, a doctor who was co-ordinating the medics, said that by 6pm local time they had treated 500 wounded people. Of those, she said, 83 needed hospital referrals for wounds from rubber bullets and live fire, direct hits by tear gas canisters and beatings. 'And we treated three officers,' she said. 'Make sure you put that in, because they are the ones who attacked us.' Some police whipped and beat protesters as they sat on the ground, witnesses said. One woman bleeding heavily from the forehead said she was clubbed twice on the head, and her friend was also hit when she lifted an arm to defend her. Kenyan police did not respond to a request for comment. Kenyan authorities ordered television and radio stations to stop their live coverage of the protests, and the messaging app Telegram had been restricted, according to the monitoring group NetBlocks. There were protests across the country as well, including in the coastal city of Mombasa and the lakeside town of Naivasha. Waiting for justice Some chose to stay home Wednesday. Jedidah Ombura, 46, watched the protests on television from her home in Homa Bay, a town in western Kenya. Her 23-year-old son, Denzel Onyango, an engineering student, was among the crowd that stormed the Parliament building on June 25 last year. Two weeks later, his body was found floating in an abandoned quarry. 'I am pacing, moving in the house. It's too emotional for me. Today is just too emotional,' she said tearfully over the phone. 'No one has ever called us to tell us the killers.' A postmortem report found bruises and blood clots at the back of Onyango's head. The pathologist told the family he had been hit with a blunt object. 'All we want is justice,' Ombura said.
