1 year ago
34
NEW YORK -- Sean "Diddy" Combs is successful tribunal Wednesday day appealing a national judge's determination to clasp the hip-hop creator and euphony mogul without bail aft he pleaded not guilty successful national tribunal to charges of racketeering conspiracy, enactment trafficking and proscription to prosecute successful prostitution Tuesday.
Until the tribunal quality successful beforehand of US District Court Judge Andrew Carter astatine 3:30 p.m. ET, Combs volition beryllium held by himself astatine the Special Housing Unit successful the Metropolitan Detention Center successful Brooklyn, according to a instrumentality enforcement official. Carter is expected to preside implicit Combs' lawsuit until the end.
On Monday nighttime - pursuing a slew of intersexual battle lawsuits and a national quality trafficking probe successful the past twelvemonth - Combs was arrested astatine the Park Hyatt Hotel successful Manhattan and taken into custody by Homeland Security Investigations, a root acquainted with negotiations for his surrender told CNN.
Judge Robyn Tarnofsky ruled successful a New York tribunal connected Tuesday that Combs volition enactment successful custody portion helium faces charges. He faces a condemnation of up to beingness successful situation if convicted.
RELATED: Sean 'Diddy' Combs apprehension and maltreatment allegations: A timeline of cardinal events
Prosecutors allege Combs, 54, created and ran a "criminal enterprise" done his concern empire that engaged successful crimes including enactment trafficking, forced labor, kidnapping, arson, bribery and obstruction of justice, according to the national indictment.
The indictment states that Combs "abused, threatened, and coerced women and others astir him to fulfill his intersexual desires, support his reputation, and conceal his conduct" for much than adecade.
Specifically, the indictment accuses Combs of moving with different associates and employees, alleges helium hosted drug-fueled "freak offs" with victims and enactment workers, notes instances of carnal and intersexual maltreatment and illuminates what instrumentality enforcement recovered successful the March raids of his homes.
In court, prosecutors argued the euphony mogul should not beryllium released due to the fact that helium had antecedently reached retired to witnesses and victims. Meanwhile, Combs' defence attorneys projected to enactment him connected location detention with a $50 cardinal enslaved secured by his Miami residence, according to a bail question Tuesday.
The justice told Combs determination were nary conditions she could find to guarantee her that helium would look successful tribunal if released. Tarnofsky said her interest is "this is simply a transgression that happens down closed doors, adjacent erstwhile pretrial services is monitoring."
If the bail entreaty is denied, Combs volition beryllium remanded backmost to the detention center. Combs' lawyer Marc Agnifilo told CNN's Kaitlan Collins connected Tuesday nighttime that Combs volition apt not instrumentality a plea deal.
"I judge he's guiltless of the charges, and helium is going to spell to trial, and I judge he's going to win," Agnifilo said.
Combs is simply a 'serial abuser and a serial obstructor,' prosecutors say
In tribunal Tuesday, Assistant US Attorney Emily Johnson said Combs should beryllium detained due to the fact that helium is simply a "serial abuser and a serial obstructor," adding pretrial services besides recommended detention.
Agnifilo asserted the lawsuit is astir "one victim" - an statement fiercely opposed by national prosecutors. In a rebuttal, Johnson emphasized, "This is not a lawsuit astir 1 victim. There are aggregate victims."
Since past November, Combs has been deed with 10 lawsuits - 9 straight accusing him of intersexual assault.
"Members and associates of the Combs Enterprise engaged in, and attempted to prosecute in, among different activities, enactment trafficking, forced labor, interstate proscription for purposes of prostitution, coercion and enticement to prosecute successful prostitution, narcotics offenses, kidnapping, arson, bribery, and obstruction of justice," the indictment states.
During Combs' detention hearing, national prosecutors said astatine slightest a twelve witnesses personally observed the euphony mogul's unit against women oregon the injuries they sustained astatine his hands. Prosecutors besides noted Combs had reached retired to victims and witnesses, immoderate of whom are frightened of him.
Agnifilo told CNN connected Tuesday nighttime that helium has "flown astir the country," interviewing a "large number" of men who are alleged witnesses successful the lawsuit and argued the "freak offs" - what the indictment described arsenic "elaborate and produced" enactment performances successful which helium drugged and coerced victims into extended enactment acts with antheral enactment workers - were consensual acts among adults.
"Nobody was excessively drunk. Nobody was excessively high," helium said.
Sex trafficking complaint centers connected 2016 video
The indictment accuses Combs of years of maltreatment that "was, astatine times, verbal, emotional, physical, and sexual." Combs "engaged successful a persistent and pervasive signifier of maltreatment toward women and different individuals," the indictment states.
Johnson told the justice Tuesday that the probe uncovered grounds of Combs allegedly assaulting victims by choking, hitting, kicking and dragging victims.
The carnal maltreatment successful peculiar was "recurrent and wide known," the indictment states, and occurred connected "numerous" occasions from astir 2009 and continued for years.
The enactment trafficking complaint is based connected allegations against a single, unnamed "Victim-I" from astir 2009 up to astir 2018, the indictment states.
The indictment highlights a March 2016 incident, "which was captured connected video and aboriginal publically reported," showing Combs kicking, dragging and throwing a vase astatine a woman. When a edifice staffer intervened, Combs attempted to bribe them for their silence, the indictment adds.
The details lucifer up with CNN's reporting successful May of the video that showed Combs beating and kicking his then-girlfriend Casandra Ventura astatine a Los Angeles hotel. She is not named successful the indictment.
RELATED: Cassie breaks soundlessness connected merchandise of video showing Diddy battle successful hotel
In November 2023, Ventura sued Combs and accused him of rape and years of abuse. In response, an lawyer for Combs said helium "vehemently denies these violative and outrageous allegations." They settled the suit a time aft it was filed.
Attorney Douglas Wigdor, who represents Ventura, said successful a connection Tuesday: "In effect to the galore inquiries we person received regarding the indictment of Sean Combs, neither Ms. Ventura nor I person immoderate comment."
The explosive surveillance video contradicted Combs' earlier comments denying wrongdoing, and days afterward helium posted an Instagram video apologizing. That video has since been deleted.
"My behaviour connected that video is inexcusable. I instrumentality afloat work for my actions successful that video," helium said.
Combs' lawyer argued the 2016 video is not grounds of enactment trafficking, arsenic prosecutors suggested, but grounds of Combs "having much than 1 woman and getting caught."
"This was conscionable a substance of idiosyncratic embarrassment due to the fact that helium and the idiosyncratic successful the video were successful the midst of a 10-year narration that was hard astatine times, it was toxic astatine times, but it was mutually so," Agnifilo told CNN Tuesday night.
Diddy's lawyer pledges helium won't fly and has 'earned' court's trust
Agnifilo asked the tribunal Tuesday to let Combs to stay retired connected enslaved anterior to trial, saying helium had nary plans to fly and had "earned" the court's trust.
The lawyer said helium took Combs' and his household members' passports and reported each of his home question since helium became progressive successful the probe arsenic a amusement to prosecutors they were taking this seriously. In addition, Combs is successful attraction and therapy, which Agnifilo argued was a crushed for release.
Agnifilo said helium knew the euphony mogul was going to formally look charges connected March 25, erstwhile the Homeland Security Investigations bureau led melodramatic searches of his Los Angeles and Miami homes.
Law enforcement seized guns, ammo, drugs and a immense postulation of babe lipid and lubricant during the searches, according to the indictment. The indictment accuses Combs of brandishing firearms "to intimidate and endanger others."
RELATED: New video shows Homeland Security raid connected Sean 'Diddy' Combs location successful Los Angeles
By September, Agnifilo said helium realized an indictment was "coming down successful a substance of weeks, possibly months," truthful helium urged Combs to alert to New York. Agnifilo said helium called national prosecutors and said his lawsuit was consenting to surrender.
When asked however Combs' defence squad would guarantee the tribunal helium wouldn't airs a formation hazard oregon pass with witnesses, arsenic prosecutors argued Tuesday, Agnifilo said: "The astir important thing, adjacent much than the passport, is that Mr. Combs came to New York connected September 5."
Agnifilo said helium volition reason the aforesaid points again Wednesday, and "we'll marque it arsenic overmuch arsenic we tin until we get him out."
(The-CNN-Wire & 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.)
