Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs will not be allowed to go home on bail, according to a U.S. District Court judge’s Sept. 18 ruling.
By Larry Neumeister, Michael R. Sisak and Andrew Dalton
The Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — A second judge refused to grant bail to Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs on 918/, saying the government had proved “by clear and convincing evidence” that no amount of bail could guarantee the hip-hop mogul won’t tamper with witnesses.
U.S. District Judge Andrew L. Carter handed down the ruling after prosecutors and defense lawyers presented strenuous arguments for and against a $50 million bail package that would allow Combs to be released to home detention with GPS monitoring and strict limitations on who could visit him.
Combs, 54, pleaded not guilty Sept. 17 after an indictment accused him of using his “power and prestige” to induce female victims and male sex workers into drugged-up, elaborately produced sexual performances dubbed “freak offs” that Combs arranged, participated in and often recorded. The events would sometimes last days, the indictment said.
In this courtroom sketch, Sean Combs, center, is flanked by his defense attorney Marc Agnifilo, left, and Teny Garagos, in Manhattan Federal Court, Sept. 17, in New York. (Credit: Elizabeth Williams via AP)
The indictment alleges he coerced and abused women for years, with the help of a network of associates and employees, while using blackmail and violent acts including kidnapping, arson and physical beatings to keep victims from speaking out.
Combs has been in federal custody since his arrest the night of Sept.16 at a Manhattan hotel.
Arguing to keep him locked up, prosecutor Emily Johnson told U.S. District Judge Andrew L. Carter that the once-celebrated rapper has a long history of intimidating both accusers and witnesses to his alleged abuse. She cited text messages from women who said Combs forced them into “freak offs” and then threatened to leak videos of them engaging in sex acts.
