Sean Diddy Combs: An indictment released on Tuesday charges Sean “Diddy” Combs with sex trafficking, conspiring to commit racketeering, and providing transportation for the purpose of engaging in prostitution.
The allegations were made public following the hip-hop mogul’s apprehension by federal authorities in New York the previous evening, as several law enforcement sources informed CBS News. The actions were related to a continuing investigation conducted by Homeland Security Investigations.
The court appearance for Combs is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon. Federal prosecutors will be pursuing Combs’ imprisonment, according to U.S. Attorney Damian Williams of the Southern District of New York, who made this announcement at a press conference.
Prosecutors contend in the indictment that Combs was a member of a criminal organization that attempted and/or participated in acts of forced labor, kidnapping, arson, bribery, obstructing the course of justice, and sex trafficking.
Williams begged people to come forward to authorities and stated that there were several victims in the case, though he did not specify how many.
The indictment accuses Combs of abusing women on multiple occasions beginning in 2009 and continuing for years.
“The indictment alleges that between at least 2008 and the present, Combs abused, threatened, and coerced victims to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation, and conceal his conduct,” Williams told reporters on Tuesday.
“As alleged in the indictment, to carry out this conduct, Sean Combs led and participated in a racketeering conspiracy that used the business empire he controlled to carry out criminal activity.” Combs “manipulated women to participate in highly orchestrated performances of sexual activity with male commercial sex workers,” according to the indictment.
Combs is also accused of arranging the flight of women and commercial sex workers to him. Combs, 31, “ensured participation from the women by, among other things, obtaining and distributing narcotics to them, controlling their careers, leveraging his financial support and threatening to cut off the same, and using intimidation and violence,” according to the indictment.
Williams stated that more charges were a possibility and that the investigation against Combs was still underway. In the case, he added, there could be charges against others. “This office is determined to investigate and prosecute anyone who engages in sex trafficking, no matter how powerful or wealthy or famous you may be,” Williams stated.
Read the indictment
The 2016 event captured on hotel surveillance footage is mentioned in the indictment. The video, which CNN first released this year, seems to show Combs assaulting singer Cassie—whose real name is Casandra Ventura—in a Los Angeles hotel corridor.
Combs expressed regret for the event in May, calling his actions “inexcusable” and accepting “full responsibility” for them.
The indictment claims that Combs made an attempt to buy off a hotel security guard who broke up the altercation so they would not speak.
Combs called the incidents “Freak Offs,” the indictment claims. According to the prosecution, Combs gave orders to these “Freak Offs,” frequently videotaped them, and gave the victims controlled medications, all of which helped the victims become docile and cooperative.
“He used the embarrassing and sensitive recordings he made of the ‘Freak Offs’ as collateral against the victims, and the indictment alleges that he maintained control over the victims in several ways, including by giving them drugs, by giving and threatening to take away financial support or housing, by promising them career opportunities, by monitoring their whereabouts and even by dictating their physical appearance,” Williams stated.
Refusing Combs was not an option for the victims “without risking their security or facing more abuse,” according to Williams.
Combs was also charged by the prosecution with threatening and intimidating witnesses and victims by carrying a gun or brandishing it.
Williams claimed that weapons and ammunition, including three vandalized AR-15s and a large-capacity drum magazine, were discovered by Homeland Security Investigations investigators during a raid on Combs’ houses in Miami and Los Angeles in March.
Investigations by Homeland Security failed to comment. Combs’s attorney, Marc Agnifilo, released a statement saying, “We are disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe to be an unjust prosecution of Mr. Combs by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.”
He called Combs “a music icon, self-made entrepreneur, loving family man, and proven philanthropist,” adding, “He is an imperfect person but he Is not a criminal.” Agnifilo stated that Combs “has voluntarily moved to New York last week in anticipation of these charges and has been nothing but cooperative with this investigation.”
Please wait to make a decision until you have all the information. These actions are that of an innocent individual who has nothing to conceal and is eager to have his reputation cleared in court.”
According to the unsealed indictment, the case is:
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
V.
SEAN COMBS,
a/k/a “Puff Daddy,”
a/k/a “P. Diddy,”
a/k/a “Diddy,”
a/k/a “PD,”
a/k/a “Love,”
Defendant.
In recent months, Combs has been the target of several lawsuits alleging sexual misconduct, abuse, and violence. Combs and his proxies have refuted each and every allegation. Ventura sued Combs in November 2023, alleging that he had raped and mistreated her during their relationship. Combs refuted the allegations. The next day, they came to an agreement.