The verdict is guilty for Sean “Diddy” Combs as the trial of the hip-hop mogul reaches its conclusion on Wednesday, July 2. The rapper was found guilty of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. The jury consisted of eight men and four women. Their mixed verdict found Combs not guilty of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy.
Combs was accused of one count of racketeering conspiracy, two counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion, and two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. The founder of Bad Boy Entertainment pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.
The judge praised the jury for its work in this tense trial. “I want you to know that it is inspiring to all of us,” the judge said on July 2, per Deadline. “You listened, you worked together, you were here every day, rain or shine.”
The engaging in prostitution charges carry a maximum sentence of 10 years each, so Combs is facing up to 20 years in prison for his two guilty verdicts. Prosecutors don’t believe he should be let out on bond. Combs and his legal team are likely to file an appeal.
If Combs was found guilty and convicted of sex trafficking, he could have faced the mandatory minimum prison term of 15 years with the possibility of a maximum sentence of life in prison.
During the trial, prosecutors alleged that Combs coerced, threatened, and physically harmed former girlfriends during drug-fueled orgies he referred to as “freak offs.” He was accused of abusing and intimidating women, and of forcing them to engage in sex with male sex workers to satisfy his own desires at these private events.
During closing arguments on Thursday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Christy Slavik revisited allegations of arson and kidnapping, despite those charges no longer being pursued against Combs. The arson claim was based on evidence linking Combs to the 2012 firebombing of rapper Kid Cudi’s Porsche. The kidnapping allegation stemmed from claims that Combs forced an employee to join him in breaking into Cudi’s private residence after learning the rapper was dating his girlfriend.
“The Government is no longer planning to proceed on these theories of liability so instructions are no longer necessary,” prosecutors wrote in a letter to the judge the previous week.
“Over the last several weeks, you’ve learned a lot about Sean Combs. He’s the leader of a criminal enterprise. He doesn’t take no for an answer. And now you know about many crimes the defendant committed with members of his enterprise: Kidnapping of one of the defendant’s employees; arson by trying to blow up a car; forced labor, including of an employee the defendant repeatedly sexually assaulted; bribery of a security officer to keep damning evidence against the defendant buried; and of course, the brutal crimes at the heart of this case — sex trafficking,” she said.
Defense attorney Marc Agnifilo downplayed the prosecution’s evidence, using the bizarre nature of the case to argue that Combs was being unfairly targeted.
“I guess it’s all worth it because they found the Astroglide. They found it in boxes, boxes of Astroglide taken off the streets. Whew, I feel better already,” said Agnifilo about the authorities seizing hundreds of bottles of baby oil and Astroglide lubricant.
“It takes a lot of courage to acquit,” Agnifilo told the jury in his closing arguements on June 27. “You should feel bold. You should feel the courage that you will need to call this as you see it, and I am asking you to summon that courage and to do what it needs to be done.”
During closing remarks, Agnifilo said this was “tale of two trials” and said that the prosecution’s case is “badly exaggerated.” He presented Combs as a family family of great character who enjoyed a deviant lifestyle, and nothing more.
The jury began deliberations on the verdict on June 30. A 42-year-old mother of two known as Juror No. 5 acted as the forewoman.
Deliberations were off to a rocky start as issues began arising between the jurors. Within about two hours of deliberations, the jury sent a note to U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian expressing a concern over one of the jurors, stating the person “does not follow” the judge’s instructions.
Throughout deliberations, additional notes were sent, including questions regarding the distribution of controlled substances and Casandra Ventura’s testimony.
The jury reached a partial verdict on Tuesday afternoon after failing to reach a decision on the racketeering charge during the second day of deliberations. The judge instructed jurors to continue their efforts as deliberations resumed on Wednesday.