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Fox News
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Diddy received standing ovation from fellow inmates after jury found rapper not guilty on RICO charge: lawyer
Sean "Diddy" Combs reportedly received a standing ovation from his fellow inmates after being acquitted on the most serious charges brought against him 10 months ago. After hearing seven weeks of testimony from prosecution witnesses, Diddy's jury returned three not-guilty verdicts. The group of 12 originally announced they were deadlocked on the racketeering conspiracy charge, but later chose to acquit the rapper. Diddy returned to a standing ovation at MDC Brooklyn after the verdicts were read, according to his defense lawyer, Marc Agnifilo. "They all said: 'We never get to see anyone who beats the government,'" Agnifilo told The Associated Press. DIDDY JUDGE RULES RAPPER MUST REMAIN BEHIND BARS AS HE AWAITS SENTENCING "I said: 'Maybe it's your fate in life to be the guy who wins,'" he added. "They need to see that someone can win. I think he took that to heart." The jury found Diddy not guilty of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking on July 2. He was found guilty on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. He could be sentenced to 20 years in prison, as each count carries a 10-year maximum. LIKE WHAT YOU'RE READING? CLICK HERE FOR MORE ENTERTAINMENT NEWS Hours after the verdicts were read in court, Judge Arun Subramanian denied Diddy's request for bail. The federal judge pointed to Diddy's violence, including the InterContinental Hotel attack on his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, as reasoning for his decision to keep the rapper behind bars. The "Last Night" rapper will remain behind bars until his sentencing hearing, which was proposed to be held on October 3. The prosecution suggested four to five years for Combs' sentence. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER According to Diddy's defense lawyer, the disgraced music mogul will reenter a program for domestic batterers after he is freed. He had begun the program shortly before his arrest in September 2024. "He's doing OK," Agnifilo told the AP. WATCH: DIDDY TRIAL WAS A 'COLOSSAL FAILURE BY THE PROSECUTION,' ATTORNEY MARK GERAGOS SAYS He claimed Diddy genuinely desires improvement and "realizes he has flaws like everyone else that he never worked on." "He burns hot in all matters. I think what he has come to see is that he has these flaws and there's no amount of fame and no amount of fortune that can erase them," he said. "You can't cover them up." CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Fox News
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Diddy received standing ovation from fellow inmates after jury found rapper not guilty on RICO charge: lawyer
Sean "Diddy" Combs reportedly received a standing ovation from his fellow inmates after being acquitted on the most serious charges brought against him 10 months ago. After hearing seven weeks of testimony from prosecution witnesses, Diddy's jury returned three not-guilty verdicts. The group of 12 originally announced they were deadlocked on the racketeering conspiracy charge, but later chose to acquit the rapper. Diddy returned to a standing ovation at MDC Brooklyn after the verdicts were read, according to his defense lawyer, Marc Agnifilo. "They all said: 'We never get to see anyone who beats the government,'" Agnifilo told The Associated Press. "I said: 'Maybe it's your fate in life to be the guy who wins,'" he added. "They need to see that someone can win. I think he took that to heart." The jury found Diddy not guilty of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking on July 2. He was found guilty on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. He could be sentenced to 20 years in prison, as each count carries a 10-year maximum. Hours after the verdicts were read in court, Judge Arun Subramanian denied Diddy's request for bail. The federal judge pointed to Diddy's violence, including the InterContinental Hotel attack on his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, as reasoning for his decision to keep the rapper behind bars. The "Last Night" rapper will remain behind bars until his sentencing hearing, which was proposed to be held on October 3. The prosecution suggested four to five years for Combs' sentence. According to Diddy's defense lawyer, the disgraced music mogul will reenter a program for domestic batterers after he is freed. He had begun the program shortly before his arrest in September 2024. "He's doing OK," Agnifilo told the AP. WATCH: DIDDY TRIAL WAS A 'COLOSSAL FAILURE BY THE PROSECUTION,' ATTORNEY MARK GERAGOS SAYS He claimed Diddy genuinely desires improvement and "realizes he has flaws like everyone else that he never worked on." "He burns hot in all matters. I think what he has come to see is that he has these flaws and there's no amount of fame and no amount of fortune that can erase them," he said. "You can't cover them up."
Yahoo
22-06-2025
- Yahoo
Gun dealer to judge: Don't punish me for keeping shank in violent MDC Brooklyn jail
A gun trafficker says he shouldn't get a longer sentence after being caught with a makeshift weapon in his cell at MDC Brooklyn – because the federal lockup is so violent he needs it for protection. Federal prosecutors want Raymond Minaya, 29, to spend more than 15 years behind bars for his role in a gun-dealing ring — six years more than the ring's leader received — in part because of the sharpened metal rod and cell phones found stashed in his jail cell last year. Minaya's lawyers essentially called the contraband a necessary reality in MDC Brooklyn, pointing out that guards found the weapon last November, just a few months after a string of violent attacks and two murders at the troubled Sunset Park lockup. 'Possessing an object to protect himself against the well-documented dangers of the MDC cannot fairly be said to be evidence that Mr. Minaya has not accepted responsibility for his conduct or withdrawn from criminal activity,' wrote Jeffrey Dahlberg and Mia Eisner-Grynberg of the Federal Defenders on Wednesday. 'Mr. Minaya did not use or threaten to use the object, nor was he ever seen brandishing it; it was merely inside his cell, arguably as a deterrent to others or as emergency protection given the recent violent incidents there.' And the cell phones, they argue, can be the only way to reach family members due to the frequent lockdowns at the jail. Several federal judges — including Brooklyn Federal Court Judge William Kuntz, who's scheduled to sentence Minaya on Tuesday — have railed against the notorious conditions at MDC Brooklyn and have shaved months or years off some defendants' sentences to account for the conditions inside. The jail currently houses Sean 'Diddy' Combs and alleged CEO-killer Luigi Mangione. Prosecutors have a different perspective on Minaya's motives: the Gorilla Stone Bloods member has a long history of violence and rule-breaking behind bars when he served time in state prison, including three separate assaults on inmates, they argue. 'The government expects that the defendant, like many other MDC inmates, will use those conditions as a reason for this court to impose a lesser sentence,' prosecutors wrote in a letter to Brooklyn Federal Court William Kuntz. 'But he cannot simultaneously contribute to the dangerous conditions at the MDC and then claim them as a reason he should be granted leniency.' Photos on his contraband phone show bags of pot and him smoking on a video call with other inmates, prosecutors note. 'Additional images appear possibly related to a contraband smuggling scheme, including images of pellets, money transfers, and dried leafy substances,' federal prosecutors wrote in a Tuesday filing. Minaya and three other men were busted in 2023 on charges they sold more than 50 firearms to an undercover cop in Brooklyn, making the sales in a crowded waterfront park and on a playground. Minaya sold 12 of those guns personally, including one weapon used in a 2021 shooting at a Bedford-Stuyvesant family day celebration that left eight people wounded. All four suspects took plea deals last year. The ringleader, David McCann, was sentenced to nine years, while accomplice Tajhai Jones got just over eight years. The remaining defendant, Calvin Tabron, awaits sentencing.
New York Post
15-06-2025
- New York Post
Luigi Mangione's fellow jailbird dishes on his job, daily routine and demeanor inside NYC jail
Luigi Mangione's job in federal lockup is cleaning showers — and he's a one-man welcoming committee, according to a fellow jailbird. When Michael Daddea arrived at the Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center in Sunset Park, a guard told him he would be housed in the same unit as the accused assassin of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, he revealed in a video posted to X. 'I'm like, 'Yeah, he's being a wise ass'. . . I look out the cell, Luigi is standing there and he's like, 'Hey, how's it going?' Like, super nice. Introduced himself to me first thing. I've literally – I've been in the unit for 10 minutes,' Daddea, 29, recalled in the June 7 clip, which amassed over 80,000 views before it was deleted from his profile this week. 4 Accused UnitedHealthcare CEO killer Luigi Mangione's job inside Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center is cleaning the showers, according to a fellow jailbird. via REUTERS Daddea was slapped with federal charges in February for allegedly 3D-printing more than 25 untraceable 'ghost guns' – not unlike the firearm Mangione, 27, is accused of using to kill Thompson, 50, on a Midtown sidewalk on Dec. 4. The Tampa native only spent two nights in the federal lockup's 4G unit before making $250,000 bail at his March 7 arraignment, according to the Brooklyn US Attorney's office. But he claims he, a fellow inmate nicknamed 'V,' and Mangione wasted no time becoming buddies. 'I go up and I go to shake Luigi's hand, I'm like, 'Yo, it's an honor to meet you.' . . . He turns around and he goes to me, 'You two are the first kids that came in here who knew who I was or even cared about it,'' Daddea recalled. 'I guess he must have seen another white kid and he was like, 'Finally,'' Daddea theorized in the clip. 4 Former MDC Brooklyn inmate Michael Daddea recalled hanging out and sharing meals with Mangione in the since-deleted X video. Michael Daddea/ X Mangione – who has been a 'model prisoner' in his over 175 days of pre-trial detention, according to his lawyers – is a 'collie,' which is a term used to refer to inmates with prison jobs, Daddea explained in the clip. 'So a collie could be like a unit boss that tells you what cell you're going to. Luigi just happened to be a collie that cleans the showers,' he said, adding that other 'collie' jobs include preparing meals and cleaning food trays. 4 When Mangione is not scrubbing the jail's washrooms or running 'laps around the unit,' he scours local newspapers for his name, Daddea said. Paul Martinka When Mangione is not scrubbing the washrooms or running 'laps around the unit,' he scours local news for his name, Daddea said. 'Luigi gets the NewYork newspaper everyday . . . he would have me help look through some to see if there's articles about him [sic],' he wrote in the comment section of the X video. Daddea said he and Mangione, both Catholics, 'did Ash Wednesday,' when a priest came in and put the charcoal crosses on their foreheads on March 5, and ate every meal together. 'So we sat together. Luigi would grab his sh-t and come sit with us every day. We would just eat, bulls–t,' he said. Daddea declined to comment when reached by The Post. 4 Mangione, who has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder, is due back in Manhattan court June 26. NYPD In an electronic communication sent from jail on June 3, Mangione listed things he was thankful for – among them, the Bureau of Prisons' music catalog, 'Chicken Thursdays and Sweet Baby Ray's bbq sauce,' and the thousands of books and letters people have mailed him. He wrote that his cellmate, J, 'tolerates the clutter of all my papers, shares his unique wisdom, and doesn't hesitate to humble me when I need it,' and that the MDC staff and correctional officers 'are nothing like what 'The Shawshank Redemption' or 'The Stanford Prison Experiment' had me to believe' – despite 'the occasional minor dissent.' Mangione also thanked those who have donated to his commissary account, noting that their contributions have bought him a tablet, songs, stamps, hygiene products, barbecue sauce, Goya Sazón flavoring, peanut butter and tuna packets. Mangione has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder.
Newsweek
13-06-2025
- Business
- Newsweek
Luigi Mangione Says He's Thankful for Conservatives
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Luigi Mangione, accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on December 4, 2024, in Manhattan, said in an electronic communication sent from jail that he was thankful for conservatives. In the June 3 message sent from MDC Brooklyn and obtained by TMZ, Mangione lists 27 things he is grateful for, in recognition of his 27th birthday last month. The 23rd item on the list is "the conservatives, who fiercely conserve the aspects of our society that make us great." He also thanks "the liberals, who liberate us from the outdated aspects of our society that prevent us from being greater." Luigi Mangione, accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City and leading authorities on a five-day search, appears in court for a hearing on February 21, 2025, in New York. Luigi Mangione, accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City and leading authorities on a five-day search, appears in court for a hearing on February 21, 2025, in New York. Steven Hirsch/New York Post via AP, Pool, File Why It Matters Mangione faces federal charges and state charges in New York and Pennsylvania in the killing of Thompson. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges. What To Know Mangione opened the list by thanking his family, friends and "the many talented and generous individuals who—if not for my current predicament—I never would've crossed paths with." He also thanked people for sending letters, where they share fears, triumphs, advice and other aspects of their lives. "The monotony of my physical environment is offset by the variety and richness of the lives I experience through letters: multi-page life stories, retellings of workplace conversations, stream of consciousness journal entries," Mangione wrote. Mangione said he is grateful for the MDC Mail Room, which has processed thousands of letters from more than 40 countries. He also gave a nod to memes, the books that have been sent to him, and independent media and creators. The letter reveals information about Mangione's cellmate, who is identified only as "J." "Despite spending half of every day inside a shared birdcage and being sentenced to a decade away from his six kids who he loves—[he] tolerates the clutter of all my papers, shares his unique wisdom, and doesn't hesitate to humble me when I need it," Mangione said. The MDC staff and correctional officers are "nothing like 'The Shawshank Redemption' or 'The Stanford Prison Experiment,'" Mangione said. He said there is the "minor occasional dissent," but they are "largely there to help." Mangione said he is grateful for "Chicken Thursdays" and keyboard shortcuts. He thanked the people who have contributed more than $1 million to his legal defense fund. He said he is grateful for Friedman Agnifilo and the rest of his legal team. Mangione also lists "Latinas for Mangione," people who donated to his commissary account, the Federal Bureau of Prisons music catalogue, the trials he has endured, his "lucky long sleeve," hearts, creatives, being born in America and free speech as things he is grateful for. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi directed federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty in Mangione's federal case. What People Are Saying Luigi Mangione, in his message: "I spend each day between the same four walls of my unit, where I receive both holiday cards sent in December and birthday cards sent between March and May, creating a bizarre and disorienting Groundhog Day scenario where every day is both Christmas and my May 6th birthday. Nonetheless, I'm incredibly grateful." U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, in an April 1 statement: "Luigi Mangione's murder of Brian Thompson—an innocent man and father of two young children—was a premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America." Defense Attorney Karen Friedman Agnifilo, in an April 1 statement: "While claiming to protect against murder, the federal government moves to commit the pre-meditated, state-sponsored murder of Luigi." What Happens Next Mangione's next appearance in state court is scheduled for September 16. He is scheduled to appear in federal court on December 5. Do you have a story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have any questions about this story? Contact LiveNews@
