Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs to stay in jail after being denied bond again

NEW YORK — Sean “Diddy” Combs will remain in federal custody while he awaits his sex trafficking trial after a second judge denied his request for bond.

The music mogul and his attorneys returned to Manhattan federal court on Wednesday to appeal a lower court’s ruling to keep Combs locked up pending trial.

A three-count indictment accuses Combs of using his sprawling empire to create a “criminal enterprise” whose members engaged in sex trafficking, kidnapping and forced labor “to fulfill his sexual desires.”  Combs pleaded not guilty Tuesday to racketeering, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.

Federal prosecutors asked that Combs be held without bail, arguing he’s at risk of fleeing the country and tampering with witnesses and poses a serious danger to the community. Combs’ attorneys said he poses no such threats and requested his release on a $50 million bond.

U.S. District Judge Andrew L. Carter concurred with the magistrate court’s ruling that federal prosecutors had proved “by clear and convincing evidence” that no conditions he could impose would ensure the safety of community or that Combs won’t tamper with witnesses.

Before issuing his ruling, Carter asked the parties to focus their arguments on witness tampering and Combs’ alleged “dangerousness,” saying they posed greater concerns than the possibility that Combs would flee the jurisdiction.

The Government’s Argument for Pretrial Detention

Assistant State Attorney Emily Johnson said the conduct of which Combs is accused reflects his alleged propensity for witness intimidation and “dangerousness.” Johnson said the evidence would show Combs used threats of violence, actual violence and extortion to force women to participate in drug-fueled “freak offs” that Combs often recorded as blackmail.

Johnson also said the government has texts, recorded phone calls and other forms of digital evidence showing that Combs was in “constant contact” in June and July with a witnesses who received a grand jury subpoena. Combs communicated with the witness through an intermediary, making obstruction “even more difficult to detect,” the prosecutor said.

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Other texts shed light on violence women experienced during “freak offs,” Johnson said. “I’m not a rag doll, I’m someone’s child,” one woman allegedly said to Combs in a text that included descriptions of her injuries.

Johnson drew the Court’s attention to March 2016 hotel surveillance video showing Combs assaulting then-girlfriend, R&B singer Casandra “Cassie” Ventura, after an alleged “freak-off.” The video is expected to become key evidence in the government’s case.

Johnson disputed the defense’s portrayal of the clash as a toxic lovers’ quarrel that amounted to misdemeanor assault. The prosecutor accused Combs of trying to cover up the attack with bribes of hotel employees and manipulative texts to Ventura.

“You gonna abandon me all alone? ” Combs allegedly said to Ventura in a text message, according to the prosecutor.

“You’re sick for thinking it’s okay to do what you’ve done,” Ventura allegedly texted Combs at some point after the attack, the prosecutor said.

Ventura shared her account of the attack in a lawsuit she filed against Combs in November 2023 that included allegations of sexual abuse. After the two settled the lawsuit days later for an undisclosed amount, Combs contacted Ventura through an intermediary and tried to convince her that she willingly had sex with him, the prosecutor said.

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Combs also continued to deny the attack occurred until CNN released the hotel surveillance video in March, the prosecutor said.

“The sequence of events make clear that you cannot take the defendant at his word when he denies criminal conduct,” she said.

The Defense Offers a “Foolproof System”

Combs’ lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, told the judge the hotel incident may be evidence of a toxic relationship but not of sex trafficking.

“This was a 10-year relationship that was very loving at times,” Agnifilo said. “The way they chose to be intimate is they’d bring in a third person… that was their thing.”

The defense lawyer said the clash began in the hotel room, when Ventura discovered evidence of Combs’ infidelity on his phone and ran out of the room with his bag of clothes.

Ventura is not identified by name as an alleged victim in the indictment but her lawsuit claims align with the criminal allegations against Combs.

Agnifilo brought a new proposal to Wednesday’s hearing to address the Court’s witness tampering concerns. The proposal, which Agnifilo described as a “foolproof system” that would make witness intimidation “virtually impossible,” included the following provisions:

• Security personnel monitor Combs’ Miami residence 24 hours a day and seven days each week
• Combs loses access to the internet or a cell phone
• No visitors except for family and friends who are approved by the Court or pretrial services
• Combs does not leave the residence
• Combs does not speak to witnesses

Judge Carter peppered Agnifilo with questions that seemed to indicate which was he leaning. For one, the judge asked how Agnifilo would ensure Combs did not contact witnesses through his visitors or other third-parties. Agnifilo proposed “spot checks” to make sure Combs was not using the phone or the internet.

Carter also pressed Agnifilo on the relevance of his explanation for what happened in the hotel to the question of Combs’ dangerousness: “What’s love got to do with that?” Carter mused.

“Nothing,” Agnifilo responded.  “The problems are related to jealousy… you have fights in both directions.”

Is that why Combs chased Ventura down the hallway, punched and kicked her and threw a vase at her, the judge pressed. “I’m saying it’s not sex trafficking,” Agnifilo said.

“I agree, it’s a hard video to watch,” the defense lawyer continued. “But that doesn’t mean he should be incarcerated… he’s not the same person he was.”

What’s next?

A status conference is scheduled for October 9.

Both sides consented to pause the clock on speedy trial deadline to give the defense time to decide if they want a speedy trial.

Agnifilo also asked if it was possible to move Combs from the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn to another federal facility in Essex County, NJ, citing “considerable difficulties” he anticipated in trying to meet his client to review evidence — especially digital evidence.

Judge Carter likened the request to something he typically hears at sentencing, where a judge can make a recommendation on a defendant’s placement, but the ultimate decision lies with the bureau of prisons. Carter said he had never encountered such a request in  pre-trial and asked Agnifilo to find precedent or statutory guidance on what (if any) authority the Court has with respect to the defendant’s placement.