Sean ‘Diddy' Combs denied bail after mixed verdict clears him of top sex crimes charges
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At a hearing in Manhattan federal court hours after the verdict was read, US District Judge Arun Subramanian said Combs must remain in federal lock-up in Brooklyn for now given the ample evidence presented at trial of violent acts Combs had committed.
The verdict was overall a win for Combs, a former billionaire known for elevating hip-hop in American culture.
The 12-member jury unanimously convicted him on two counts of transport to engage in prostitution.
It acquitted Combs of racketeering conspiracy and two counts of sex-trafficking two of his former romantic partners: the rhythm and blues singer Casandra 'Cassie' Ventura, and a woman known in court by the pseudonym Jane.
A man displays a T-shirt outside court after Sean 'Diddy' Combs was found not guilty of racketeering and sex trafficking but convicted of a less serious prostitution charge in New York on Wednesday. Photo: AFP
Prosecutors acknowledged in a court filing that federal sentencing guidelines appeared to recommend a maximum sentence of 5¼ years. Combs' lawyers argued that two years would be the outer limit.
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