Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ found not guilty of racketeering and sex trafficking, but convicted on lesser charges

Sean “Diddy” Combs, the only world hip-hop Titan whose criminal trial has unveiled heartbreaking testimonies accusing him of sexual abuses against women and forced drug addicts, has been acquitted of racketeering and sex trafficking, but was made guilty of less accusations in his federal trial.

The jury’s verdict, returned on the third day of the deliberations, said Combs, 55, not guilty of a racketeering conspiracy chief and two sexual traffic leaders by force, fraud or coercion, but guilty of two transport leaders to engage in prostitution.

During the conviction, the accusation of transport of prostitution brought up to 10 years in prison.

The partial conviction puts an astonishing fall for Combs, a self-taught rapper from New York who rose to the top of hip-hop culture and has become a familiar name. After a race of three decades under the spotlight, it was the allegations of her ex-girlfriend, the singer R&B Cassie, who began her precipitated fall from Impresario to the condemned criminal.

During a seven -week trial in New York, a jury of eight men and four women heard the US government accuse the founder of Bad Boy Records to take advantage of his power, his wealth and his influence as a leader of a “criminal enterprise” to sexually abuse and exploit women for his own satisfaction for two decades.

His defense devoted to the jurors that the case against Combs was “strongly exaggerated”, and he was simply judged for a “swingers” lifestyle – a behavior tinged with violent behavior and included drugs of drugs and baby oil – which was ultimately consensual.

Duel representations threw an image distant from the Hitmaker born in Harlem, which formerly directed the hip-hop and R&B charts, was a must of celebrity circles and propelled his exuberant personality, his lifestyle and an ambassador of life and brand.

The trial heard nearly three dozen witnesses to the government, former personal assistants to stylists to label the artists, some willingly testifying against Combres, while others obtained immunity in exchange for their testimony.

Three women, including the former girlfriend of Combs, the singer R&B Cassie, were central personalities in the case because they provided graphic testimonies of allegations of sexual assault and violence or threats of blackmail.

The lawyers of Combs did not call any witness to their own and the defendant himself decided not to testify, because a large part of the defense case was presented during long counter-examination of witnesses to the government.

The high -level trial of a Federal Palace of Lower Manhattan was not televised. The main audience room was systematically excited because the mother of Combs and six adult children regularly presented themselves in support, with combs – often in a sweater and kakis – bubbling, “I love you” or by forming her hands in the shape of a heart.

On the accusation of racket conspiracy, a jury must be convinced out of any reasonable doubt that a defendant was involved in a company among two or more people to engage in at least two criminal acts affecting interstate trade-offenses which may include kidnapping, criminal fires, corruption, forced labor, sexual traffic and other underlying crimes.

For the accusation of autonomous sexual traffic, prosecutors must demonstrate that the defendant by force or threat forced others to commit sexual commercial acts in which something of value, such as money, has been received.

During his closing argument of almost five hours, the assistant prosecutor of the United States Christy Slavik reminded the jury the various witnesses of the government who testified on the alleged crimes. She said that an ex-combat assistant, Capricorn Clark, had been subject to an abduction and forced work, while a romantic rival of Combs, rapper Kid Cudi, had his car bombed in an act of criminal fire.

A former assistant who testified under the pseudonym of “MIA” and accused of the comb of sexually assault on several occasions was another example of forced work, said Slavik.

On the two chiefs of sexual trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, Slavik told the jurors that they did not need to believe Cassie, whose full name is Casandra Ventura, or another ex-girlfriend, who testified under “Jane”, engaged in sexual acts against their will in all cases.

Women testified to “Freak Offs” and “Hotel Nights”, which were the names of the sexual meetings induced by drugs with the male escorts in which the banks regularly manipulated them – if not, the recorded videos of explicit sexual acts could be shared with others. (The jurors and the combs were read of the clips of the videos as part of the proof of the accusation, but they were not shown throughout the courtroom.)

“So, if there was only once, one panic, when the defendant knew or recklessly ignored that Cassie or Jane participated because of his lies, his threats or his violence, then that’s all,” said Slavik, “he is guilty.”

The Combs’ defense team argued that it operated a legitimate company and that it was unjustly targeted by too zealous prosecutors.

“Sean Combs has become something that is very, very difficult to become, very difficult to be,” said the main defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo in his four -hour closing arguments. “He is a self-fabricated black entrepreneur.”

While Agnifilo did not denote Combs was consumed by episodes of jealousy and embarked on angry tirades which involved domestic violence, the women, finally, chose to stay with him, while those of his inner circle had the agency to leave, he said.

“If Racket’s plot had a opposite, it would be their relationship,” said Agnifilo about Combs and Ventura, who dated and outside 2007 to 2018.

A key evidence played for the jury several times and categorically by frame was security images showing that combits physically attacked Ventura in a corridor of the Los Angeles hotel in 2016. She testified that he was angry because she was trying to leave a monster.

“We have domestic violence. We have it. I hope you know it,” said Agnifilo to the jury, while denying Combres was a brain that plotted with its employees to commit crimes.

“If he was charged with domestic violence, we would not all be here at a trial because he would have pleaded guilty because he did it,” said Agnifilo. “He did not do the things he is responsible for.”

Combs was detained without surety at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn since its arrest last fall.

Regardless of the criminal affair, Combs is due to face a series of prosecution that included accusations of rape and sexual assault. Combs, which denied such allegations, accused various complainants of continuing rapid “pay days”.

This is news. Please check the updates.