In a live coverage of the trial of Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, Sky News reports that the jury has found the rapper guilty.
Combs was found guilty of two counts of transportation for prostitution but cleared of the more serious charges of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy.
Cassie, who was in a relationship with Sean “Diddy” Combs on and off from 2007 to 2018, spent four days testifying at the start of the trial.
She alleged she had been coerced into “freak off” sex sessions with male sex workers and subjected to violence throughout their relationship.
It was her bombshell civil lawsuit, filed in November 2023 and settled within 24 hours, that appeared to spark the criminal case against Combs.
The hip-hop mogul has now been cleared of sex-trafficking in relation to Cassie, but found guilty of transportation for prostitution.
News platform, NBC News reports that the Jurors were stone-faced and didn’t appear to look at Combs as the verdicts were delivered.
Producer Jing Feng, who was inside the courtroom, said Combs held Teny Geragos’s hand tightly as the verdicts were read out.
The defendant nodded to the jurors as Judge Subramanian thanked them for their service, Feng added.
Combs’s loved ones in court included his six children and Dana Tran, the mother of his youngest child.
A statement from Cassie Ventura’s lawyer reacting to the verdict said she paved the way
Cassie’s lawyer Douglas H Wigdor said: “This entire criminal process started when our client Cassie Ventura had the courage to file her civil complaint in November 2023.
“Although the jury did not find Combs guilty of sex trafficking Cassie beyond a reasonable doubt, she paved the way for a jury to find him guilty of transportation to engage in prostitution.
“By coming forward with her experience, Cassie has left an indelible mark on both the entertainment industry and the fight for justice.
“We must repeat – with no reservation – that we believe and support our client, who showed exemplary courage throughout this trial.”
Cassie, who testified heavily pregnant just three weeks before giving birth, displayed “unquestionable strength”, he added, and “brought attention to the realities of powerful men in our orbit”.
Decision on Diddy’s release before sentencing to be made later today
The judge has adjourned for a few hours for the prosecution and defence to submit their arguments on whether or not Sean “Diddy” Combs should be released from prison before sentencing.
He will take submissions at 1pm, which is 6pm UK time, so the court has been adjourned until then.
‘Mr Combs has been given his life by the jury’:
While the best outcome for Sean “Diddy” Combs would clearly have been to be found not guilty of all charges, it seems he is still somewhat happy with this verdict.
He is on his knees with his head on the seat of a chair, praying, and then hugs one of his lawyers, Brian Steel.
His family cheers loudly and clap as the news sinks in.
While transportation to engage in prostitution is a serious federal offence – with a maximum possible sentence of 10 years – the other charges of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy carried potential life sentences.
“Mr Combs has been given his life by the jury, he is going to get his life,” defence lawyer Marc Agnifilo says as he argues for the rapper’s release.
He tells the judge Combs would be “a fool” to do anything stupid if released before sentencing.
Defence asks for Diddy to be released from prison until sentencing
Sean “Diddy” Combs’s lawyer Marc Agnifilo has asked the court to release the rapper from federal detention, where he has been since his arrest in September 2024 as he was not granted bail.
This is because he has been cleared of the more serious charges of sex-trafficking and racketeering.
While every federal crime is serious, he says, the transportation charges are “vastly” different to the others he was accused of.
This is also Combs’s first conviction, he says. The proposal is for Combs to live at his home in Florida.
Prosecutor Maurene Comey says they oppose this application.
She added the government will seek a 20-year maximum sentence for Combs.
Combs and his defence team will be ‘pretty pleased’ with verdicts
After reading the verdicts as they came in, our US correspondent Martha Kelner says Sean Combs and his defence team will be “pretty pleased” with the outcome.
As we’ve just explained in our previous post, the maximum sentence for this offence is 10 years in prison.
“As a first time offender, it’s very unlikely that Combs will receive the top end of that prison sentence,” Kelner explains.
But when asked whether it’s likely Combs would receive a custodial sentence for the two guilty verdicts, Kelner says “that’s impossible to say right now”.
“We don’t yet know what the date for the sentencing is… it will be for them to weigh up just what sentence they will give,” she adds.
“It is unlikely he would receive the top end of that sentence simply because Sean Combs is a first-time offender.”
Diddy makes praying gesture to jury
Sean “Diddy” Combs made a praying hands gesture in a thank you to the jury after the verdicts were confirmed.
Judge Arun Subramanian thanks jurors for all their hard work over the last seven-and-a-half weeks and says it has been “inspiring”.
They have found Sean “Diddy” Combs is:
Not guilty of Count 1: Racketeering conspiracy
Not guilty of Count 2: Sex-trafficking of Cassie Ventura
Guilty of Count 3: Transportation for prostitution of Cassie and others
Not Guilty of Count 4: Sex-trafficking of Jane*
Guilty of Count 5: Transportation for prostitution of Jane and others
*Jane, who dated Diddy between early 2021 and his arrest in 2024, testified using a pseudonym.
Count 5 – Transportation for prostitution in relation to Jane*: Guilty
Sean “Diddy” Combs has been found guilty of transportation for prostitution in relation to his former girlfriend Jane* and sex workers.
Count 4 – Sex-trafficking of Jane*: Not guilty
Sean “Diddy” Combs has been found not guilty of sex-trafficking in relation to his former girlfriend, Jane*, who testified under a pseudonym.
The couple were together on and off from 2021 until his arrest in 2024.
Count 3 – Transportation for prostitution in relation to Cassie Ventura: Guilty
Sean “Diddy” Combs has been found guilty of transportation for prostitution in relation to his former girlfriend Cassie Ventura and sex workers.
Count 2 – Sex-trafficking of Cassie Ventura: Not guilty
Sean “Diddy” Combs has been found not guilty of sex-trafficking in relation to his former girlfriend Cassie Ventura.
The former couple were together on and off from 2007 to 2018.
Count 1 – Racketeering conspiracy: Not guilty
Sean “Diddy” Combs has been found not guilty of racketeering conspiracy.
Tension palpable in court as Diddy awaits verdict
The tension and anxiety in the courtroom is palpable as Sean “Diddy” Combs awaits the verdict.
He is seated with his head down.
Judge Arun Subramanian asks for order to be maintained, and calls for jurors to be brought back in.
‘Waiting game’ in court as we await verdicts after just an hour of further deliberations today
Things have happened “remarkably quickly this morning” in New York, our US correspondent Martha Kelner has just been telling us..
She explains there was a dramatic moment in court yesterday when the jury revealed they had reached verdicts on four of five criminal counts against Sean Combs, but were deadlocked on a fifth criminal count.
“They’ve been deliberating for just one further hour this morning,” she says.
“It does now appear that they have reached a verdict on all five charges.”
Kelner adds everyone is now present in the courtroom, and it’s “a waiting game” until we hear their verdicts.
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs in the courtroom now
Family members of Sean “Diddy” Combs have arrived in the courtroom and he has walked in with his hands in prayer.
He takes a seat in court and puts his hand on his heart.
The rapper is about to learn his fate.
Jurors have reached verdicts on all charges
Jurors have reached a verdict on the one remaining charge.
Yesterday, they reached a verdict on four of the five counts, but deliberations on the charge of racketeering continued today.
They have now reached a verdict on this one.
Prosecutors and defence teams are in the courtroom now.
Combs prays with family before leaving courtroom
Sean “Diddy” Combs has now left the courtroom as he awaits news from the jury.
Before leaving, he stood up to face his family and joined them in prayer.
“Let us pray, please watch over my family,” the hip-hop mogul said. “Amen.”
They all bowed their heads and clapped as they finished.
‘A fake trial’: The defence’s closing statement
Defence lawyers for Diddy painted a very different picture to the prosecution, telling the court this was a “fake trial” in which his unusual sexual preferences had been unfairly criminalised.
The hip-hop mogul’s lead counsel Marc Agnifilo said his private sex life and consensual “swinger” lifestyle had been turned into a “crime scene”.
Frequently adopting a sarcastic tone, Agnifilo mocked the government’s case against Combs, belittling the agents who seized hundreds of bottles of Astroglide lubricant and baby oil at his properties last year.
You can read our report on the defence’s closing argument here.
The defence’s closing statement
Sky News
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