Latest news with #AllAbouttheBenjamins'
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Sean ‘Diddy' Combs Could End Up Broke Amid Lawsuits, Legal Fees and Tarnished Business Deals
As Sean 'Diddy' Combs cools his heels in the clink while awaiting sentencing on prostitution charges, experts tell the National Enquirer that the hip-hop mogul may also be facing financial ruin from an avalanche of civil lawsuits and potential lost business deals. The 'All About the Benjamins' rapper, 55, was recently acquitted of sex trafficking and racketeering charges — but found guilty on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution, which could earn him up to 20 years in prison. A judge denied a bail request from his attorney and ordered Combs to remain in custody ahead of his hearing. Prosecutors had accused the Bad Boys Records cofounder of masterminding a criminal conspiracy that used intimidation, brute force and cash to arrange drug-fueled parties dubbed 'freak offs.' Combs has long maintained that he's innocent — but he's been held in a New York City jail since his arrest in September 2024. Even if he's sprung with time served, experts tell The ENQUIRER that the former billionaire could see his estimated $400 million fortune siphoned off by legal bills and potential payouts. According to The New York Times, Combs has been clobbered with more than 50 civil lawsuits from men and women accusing him of sex abuse. His team has denied the charges and suggested that the flood of lawsuits is a money grab. Renowned New York City lawyer Pete Gleason believes that Combs has already coughed up 'millions' for his defense and tells The ENQUIRER, 'These lawsuits have the potential to bankrupt Diddy.' Combs promptly settled an explosive 2023 suit lodged by his singer ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, who was a star witness for the prosecution. The BBC reports Cassie testified that Combs was an abusive bully, who stifled her career and forced her into 'humiliating' drug-fueled hookups with male escorts during their 10-year relationship — and told the court that he paid her a $20 million settlement. Devin White, a celebrity financial advisor for rappers, tells the Enquirer that he believes Combs, who started the fashion and lifestyle brand Sean John, may also lose major revenue from dashed opportunities. White explains, 'He's going to be radioactive, so his Sean John business deals with Macy's and other stores are going to be finished.' Combs has also put his Los Angeles megamansion on the market for $61.5 million, raising concerns that a total real estate sell-off could possibly leave the scandal-scarred star without a home to hang his hat. Solve the daily Crossword
Time of India
03-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Sean 'Diddy' Combs' verdict: The music mogul is not guilty on major charges; lawyers announce 'victory'
Sean 'Diddy' Combs, the controversial rapper who had been fighting his case in court, has been found not guilty of racketeering conspiracy and sex-trafficking allegations involving his ex-girlfriends, Casandra 'Cassie' Ventura and a woman who is referred to as Jane. However, the 55-year-old has been found guilty of transporting Ventura, Jane, and other people across state lines to engage in prostitution. With the mixed verdict, the music mogul avoids a life sentence in jail, but he can face 20 years of imprisonment for the charges on transportation. Diddy's lawyers requested his bail... Diddy's lawyers requested his bail on a $1 million bond and restrictions to stay at his Miami home and limit his travel, according to NBC. However, Judge Arun Subramanian denied the request, stating that while he has been found not guilty of the pivotal charges, he poses a threat. He referenced Jane's testimony, where Combs choked and dragged her during an argument in June 2024, and issued an order to keep him at Metropolitan Detention Center until his sentencing. The 'All About the Benjamins' rapper's sentence would be decided on October 3, 2025. However, the defence attorneys are looking for a faster timeline, and the judge has set a remote sentencing hearing for July 8. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Free P2,000 GCash eGift UnionBank Credit Card Apply Now Undo Diddy's lawyers celebrated the win... Sean 'Diddy' Combs has been incarcerated for about 10 months, including his trial that commenced in May. His attorney, Anna Estevao, called the verdict a 'huge win' for the Bad Boy Records co-founder. 'He was acquitted of sex trafficking, acquitted of RICO conspiracy. He will be able to sleep well at night knowing that,' she said outside the courtroom, according to E! News. The jury's verdict was announced after three days, and the defence lawyers celebrated the win. 'Today is a great victory. It's a great victory for Sean Combs; it's a great victory for the jury system. You saw that the Southern District of New York prosecutors came at him with all that they had. They're not stopping,' Diddy's lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, said, praising the jury and the music mogul as well, according to Deadline.
New York Post
02-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Sean ‘Diddy' Combs verdict: Mogul acquitted on sex trafficking charges, convicted on prostitution counts in bombshell NYC trial
Hip-hop icon Sean Combs was stunningly acquitted on federal charges of forcing his former lovers to live out his degrading sexual fantasies — but found guilty of lesser prostitution raps. Combs, better known by his stage name Diddy, dodged charges that carried a possible life sentence after a two-month-trial that revealed twisted details about the mogul, including his taste for 'freak offs' — watching his girlfriends have grueling, drug-fueled romps with male escorts. The embattled entrepreneur, 55, had faced life in prison after being charged with racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking. But a jury convicted him only of prostitution charges stemming from shipping the escorts across state lines. The verdict is the latest twist in the downfall of a Harlem native who grew his Bad Boy Records label into an empire worth nearly $1 billion, became one of the music world's most recognizable figures, and hosted celebrity-packed 'White Parties' in glitzy locales like The Hamptons and Beverly Hills. The two-month trial revealed twisted details of the mogul's sex life. Combs pleaded not guilty. REUTERS 'He thought that his fame, wealth and power put him above the law — but over the course of this trial, his crimes have been exposed,' Assistant US Attorney Christy Slavik told jurors in closing statements. Prosecutors called 34 witnesses as they painted Combs as the kingpin of a crew that plotted a slew of crimes over two decades, including setting Kid Cudi's Porsche on fire and breaking into his home in a jealous rage over the rapper's relationship with Ventura. The 12-person jury was repeatedly shown infamous surveillance video of Combs shoving, kicking and dragging Ventura in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016 — and heard evidence that he bribed security guards with $100,000 in a failed bid to bury the footage. Jurors also heard evidence that Combs had multiple employees buy him illegal drugs and fly them across state lines for use during his sex romps. Follow the latest on Sean 'Diddy' Combs' federal sex-trafficking trial: Combs — who has been held at a Brooklyn lockup since his September 2024 arrest at a Midtown hotel — did not testify during the sensational trial, which drew scores of observers to the courtroom, including the mogul's mother, children and his supporters. The 'All About the Benjamins' rapper sat at the defense table throughout the trial in a revolving outfit of five muted sweaters over crisp white button-down shirts — and with his hair growing grayer by the day — in a striking shift from his snazzy looks featured on red carpets and celebrity parties. Combs has maintained his innocence. His lawyers argued at trial that the women consented to the encounters, that the feds improperly criminalized his 'swinger' lifestyle and that he was guilty of domestic abuse, but not the sex crimes he was charged with. 'He did what he did,' Combs' lead attorney Marc Agnifilo said in his closing statement. 'But he's going to fight to the death to defend himself from what he didn't do.' The jet-setting tycoon's fall from grace began when Cassie, whose legal name is Casandra Ventura, filed a bombshell November 2023 lawsuit accusing Combs of forcing her into the 'freak-offs' and viciously beating her throughout their decade-long relationship. Combs had grown an empire of nearly $1 billion and hosted famous celebrity-packed parties before his sudden downfall. Bryan Bedder/CP Combs paid Ventura $20 million to settle the case just one day later — but her allegations spurred the feds' criminal probe into Combs. The case heated up with theatric March 2024 raids on his Los Angeles and Miami mansions and the release of the shocking surveillance footage showing Combs shoving, kicking and dragging Ventura to the floor by her hair. Inside the packed lower Manhattan courtroom, the jury of eight men and four women heard evidence that Combs controlled every aspect of the marathon sex sessions, dictating his lovers' outfits, demanding that they apply copious amounts of baby oil and plying them with ecstasy so they could stay awake. Ventura, 38, quietly wept as she told jurors excruciating details about Combs beating her for years and pressuring her into the humiliating freak-off 'performances.' At first, she consented to the sexual escapades, despite being 'confused and nervous,' because she loved Combs and 'wanted to make him happy,'' Ventura testified. But the singer, whom Combs had signed to his record label, said she soon felt forced to yield to his demands that she have 'hundreds' of encounters with male sex workers. The disgraced music producer threatened to release tapes of the 'freak-offs' if she stopped participating, said Ventura, who took the stand while nine months pregnant. 'I feared for my career. I feared for my family. It's just embarrassing. It's horrible and disgusting. No one should do that to anyone,' she testified. Jane, who dated the globe-trotting impresario for a couple of years until his arrest, testified about numbing herself with drugs to endure 'robotically' having sex with three escorts in a row at Combs' behest — after what she thought would be a quiet Miami birthday dinner date in 2023. 'At this point I've done so many of these, that I just know how to tune out and get in a zone,' she haltingly told jurors, wiping away tears from her face. 'I just turn on this person,' she added. 'I just put my thoughts away.' Jane, a social media influencer, repeatedly texted Combs that she wanted to stop the escort-filled encounters — once telling him 'I'm not a porn star. I'm not an animal' — yet he kept pushing 'freak-offs,' or 'hotel nights,' on her until a month before his arrest, jurors heard. In one of hundreds of text messages read in court, Combs made an implicit threat that he'd stop paying Jane's rent if she didn't comply with his demands. She also recounted Combs choking, kicking and punching her during an hours-long abusive onslaught on June 18, 2024 at her Los Angeles home — before forcing her into a 'freak-off' that same night. When she pushed back, Combs — aware that he was under federal investigation over allegedly coerced sex acts — moved an inch from her face, where the 'golf ball sized' welts from his assault were still faintly visible, she said. He leaned in, Jane recalled, and chillingly mock-asked her, 'Then is this coercion?'
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Diddy Pardon: Donald Trump 'Certainly' Would Consider Clemency For Sean Combs As Old Pal Faces Sex-Trafficking Trial & Life Behind Bars
Sean 'Diddy' Combs is facing life behind bars if found guilty in his sex-trafficking trial, but old pal Donald Trump today hinted he could prove the 'All About the Benjamins' performer's pardoning guardian angel – maybe. 'I would certainly look at the facts if I think somebody was mistreated, whether they like me or don't like me,' Trump said in the Oval Office when asked if he would pardon the currently under trial Diddy. 'It wouldn't have any impact on me,' Trump added, teasing the situation out as he loves to do. More from Deadline Artificial Intelligence Influencers To Get D.C.'s Acclaim At The AI Honors Ceremony "I Didn't Want To Die Or Get Hurt" Sean "Diddy" Combs' Ex-Aide Says Of Not Telling Anyone About Rapes By Bad Boy Records Founder Donald Trump Urges Judge Not To Dismiss CBS '60 Minutes' Lawsuit As Paramount And POTUS Teams Talk Settlement Listening to his defense lawyer Brian Steel cross-exam his former personal assistant 'Mia,' Combs was in court in New York City today as he has been at almost every hearing since being arrested last fall and since this criminal trial started on May 12. Facing off against the tumultuous but powerful U.S. Attorney's office for the Southern District of New York, the much-accused Combs is up against on racketeering, sex trafficking, transportation to engage in prostitution and more, charges. Just a few feet away from Combs himself and the jury of eight men and four women, 'Mia' told the lower Manhattan courtroom that she was raped multiple times by the Bad Boy Records founder. That testimony is very similar to that of previous witness and ex-Combs girlfriend Cassie Ventura, who spoke at grueling length on the violence and filmed sex marathon 'freak-offs' she says she was forced to participate in over the couple's decade long relationship. Like other witness in the trial, 'Mia' also spoke of watching Combs beat, abuse and manipulate Ventura, as he did to many of the people in his orbit. Insisting that 'no one has asked' for a pardon for Combs yet, Trump went on to say 'I know people are thinking about it.' With a nod to the increasing rumors of outreach from Combs' crew to Trump's team, the former Apprentice host added: 'I know they're thinking about it. I think people have been very close to asking.' Always one to reward friends, armed supporters and donors, Trump recently gave pardons to Todd and Julie Chrisley, the reality show stars who were sentenced in 2022 after fraud and tax evasion convictions. 'I'd look at what's happening, and I haven't been watching it too closely, although it's certainly getting a lot of coverage,' Trump stated Friday at the White House of the intensively profiled Diddy trial. 'I haven't seen him. I haven't seen him. I haven't spoken to him in years. He used to really like me a lot, but I think when I ran for politics, sort of that relationship busted up.' Other than the Combs question, facing a just published New York Times expose of Elon Musk's ketamine and other drug use, Trump's Oval Office farewell to his top donor and Department of Government Efficiency chief became another freewheeling exercise in deflection and softballs. To put that exercise in perspective, when querried about the Gray Lady's story that last year on the campaign trail stumping for Trump, the world's richest man had been 'using drugs far more intensely than previously known,' Musk flipped the question to an attack on the NYT. Mocking the paper over its investigative coverage of Vladimir Putin and Russia's interference in the 2016 Presidential election and more and a recent court ruling over their Pulitzer Prize on the topic. Musk quipped: 'That New York Times? Let's move on.' And the press corp did, with no one asking a follow up question. With questions about martial advice for French President Emmanuel Macron and Joe Biden's mental state from a carefully curated press pool, the softballs represented a clear example the squeeze the media has gotten from this White House and the injection of MAGA supporting outlets. The few serious questions about tariffs, banning foreign students in Ivy League universities, the war in Ukraine, and a Middle East ceasefire got short shrift from Trump and Musk and more partisan rhetoric. Covered live by all the cable news networks and streamed on multiple feeds on multiple platforms, Trump and Musk's mutual admiration club saw POTUS seated at the Resolute desk reading in great part from a binder in front of him while the SpaceX boss loomed over Trump in his traditional all-black uniform with 'Dogefather' t-shirt and a MAGA ballcap uniform. Starting a bit later than its scheduled 1:30 p.m. ET time, the bulk of the presser was more a meandering Trump monologue of half-truths, outright lies and falsehoods, the 'rigged' 2020 election, Biden autopen and the usual greatest hits, with some Oval Office redecoration praise tossed in from a fast and loose with the facts Musk. About to hit the deadline on his time as an official advisor to Trump, Musk announced earlier this week he would leave his controversial role in the administration to refocus on his stock market and sales huritng businesses. Under regulations around financial disclosure and more, an individual like Musk can only serve as special government employees a period not exceeding 130 days per year. Perceived to be crossing the line ethically with benefits to his companies from his administration position and close proximity to Trump, Musk's chainsaw approach became the opposite of an exercise in cost saving and a clown show in execution. Promising to save the taxpayers up to $2 trillion dollars, Musk and his DOGE crew claimed in the end to bring in around $175 billion. More than a few analysts actually pegged the number at closer to $16 billion. Not chump change on any level, but a number dwarfed by the estimated expenditures of Trump and Project 2025 to add up to $5 trillion to the already ballooning federal deficit Even today, Musk swore that DOGE would cut and save $1 trillion from the federal government. Combs' trial is expected to last another four weeks. Working on a 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. ET daily schedule, with wiggle room to go an hour longer here and there if required, Judge Arun Subramanian has promised the jury they will be done by July 4 – exactly when a round of Independence Day pardons could be coming from Trump. Best of Deadline 2025-26 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For Tonys, Emmys, Oscars & More Everything We Know About Netflix's 'The Thursday Murder Club' So Far 2025 TV Series Renewals: Photo Gallery
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Kid Cudi To Testify Thursday In Sean 'Diddy' Combs' Sex-Trafficking Trial About Threats Against Him & Cassie Ventura
It's not exactly the rap battle anyone ever likely envisioned, but May 22 will see Sean 'Diddy' Combs and Kid Cudi going head-to-head as the Happy Gilmore 2 star gives testimony in the Bad Boy Records founder's sex-trafficking trial. Kid Cudi (a.k.a. Scott Mescudi) will take the stand in Judge Arun Subramanian's lower Manhattan courtroom on Thursday, prosecutors confirmed today. More from Deadline Violent & Jealous Sean 'Diddy' Combs Demanded $20K 'Recoup', Cassie Ventura's Mother Testifies In Sex-Trafficking Trial; Family Had To Take Out Home Loan To Pay Multi-Millionaire Sean 'Diddy' Combs Sex-Trafficking Trial Updates: Cassie Ventura's Testimony, $10M Hotel Settlement, Drugs, Violence, & The Feds "Disingenuous Charade": Blake Lively Mocks Justin Baldoni's Long Delayed HR Probe Of Her Sexual Harassment Claims Starting off Wednesday's hearing before the jury was in the room by informing the judge and defense team that the 'Man on the Moon' rap star would not be testifying today, the feds unveiled at the end of the day, after the jurors had exited, that Kid Cudi would now be in the witness box on Thursday. According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Maurene Comey (Yes, as we've noted before, daughter of former FBI Director, U.S. Attorney and Trump foe James Comey), the feds expect Kid Cudi to be a brief witness. Along with the Grammy winner, the prosecution intends to call a total of five witnesses on Thursday – all to be dealt with quite quickly, they insist. RELATED: Joining the likes of Cassie Ventura, a couple of male escorts who were paid to have filmed sex with Ventura in the much-discussed 'freak-offs,' Ventura's mother and some law enforcement officials, Mescudi will be the 13th witness for the U.S. Attorney's office for the Southern District of New York in Combs' criminal case. Like every day of the trial, jury selection and pre-trial hearings, Combs was in court today, and will be tomorrow. Predicted to last eight weeks, the criminal trial of the much-accused Diddy follows his arrest last September on charges of racketeering, sex trafficking, transportation to engage in prostitution and more. Incarcerated at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn since his arrest, after a trio of failed $50 million bail attempts, Diddy has always insisted he is innocent. He has taken the same position in the dozens of civil suits of abuse and assault that have been filed in the court dockets over the past several months. Rejecting a plea deal from the government, Combs could face life behind bars if found guilty in this criminal trial. RELATED: From the moment Cassie Ventura filed her very quickly settled ($20 million) abuse and assault suit against ex-boyfriend Combs in late 2023, the name of Kid Cudi has been connected to the self-described 'toxic relationship' between the 'Me & U' singer and the 'All About the Benjamins' performer. As various filings, plus testimony from Ventura and her mother have stated, the singer and Mescudi had a short romantic relationship in 2012. Along with various threats against the duo, a jealous Combs promised to blow up Kid Cudi's car in his own driveway to keep him away from Ventura. As Ventura's 2023 filing bluntly said: 'Around that time, Kid Cudi's car exploded in his driveway.' At the time, reps for Kid Cudi confirmed the car destruction from a decade before. Cudi will testify right after the jury has heard more from former Diddy executive assistant George Kaplan. In court Wednesday under the duress of a subpoena, like fellow Combs ex-EA David James who testified earlier this week, Kaplan entered the witness box around 11:45 a.m. PT. Detailing his gofer duties today to the court, Kaplan is known to have left Combs' employ after a year, in some part due to the violence he is said to have seen. Before Kaplan, this third day of the second week of Combs' May 12-starting trial heard testimony from psychologist Dawn Hughes and Homeland Security Investigations special agent Gerard Gannon. The latter was involved in the raid on Combs' Miami residence in the spring of 2024. Along with the Combs' trial, Kid Cudi will be back in lower Manhattan next month in a completely unrelated manner. Co-starring Kiernan Shipka, Brittany Snow, Haley Joel Osment, Cary Elwes and Brandon Scott, the rapper's short vampire themed film Neverland is set to have its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 7. Directed by Ti West and produced by Jordan Peele, the short is connected to Kid Cudi's latest single of the same name. Best of Deadline Everything We Know About 'Jurassic World: Rebirth' So Far 'Nine Perfect Strangers' Season 2 Release Schedule: When Do New Episodes Come Out? Everything We Know About The 'Hunger Games: Sunrise On The Reaping' Movie So Far
