A start date for Sean “Diddy” Combs’ trial has been scheduled following his arrest on charges of sex trafficking and racketeering.
During a hearing on Thursday, October 10, the judge offered the rapper a trial date of May 5, 2025. Diddy’s attorneys requested earlier this week that his trial begin in April or May of next year. Prosecutors noted that they believe their case will take three weeks to argue, while Diddy’s lawyers said they’d need about a week to make their case.
Diddy, 54, was taken into custody in Manhattan on September 16 after a grand jury indicted him.
“We are disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe is an unjust prosecution of Mr. Combs by the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” his attorney Marc Agnifilo told Us Weekly in a statement at the time. “Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs is a music icon, self-made entrepreneur, loving family man and proven philanthropist who has spent the last 30 years building an empire, adoring his children and working to uplift the Black community.”
The statement continued: “He is an imperfect person, but he is not a criminal. To his credit Mr. Combs has been nothing but cooperative with this investigation and he voluntarily relocated to New York last week in anticipation of these charges. Please reserve your judgment until you have all the facts. These are the acts of an innocent man with nothing to hide, and he looks forward to clearing his name in court.”
The indictment against Diddy was subsequently unsealed, revealing that he was charged with sex trafficking and racketeering. The legal documents accused Diddy of abusing, threatening and coercing women for years “to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation and conceal his conduct,” with allegations dating back to 2009.
According to the indictment, Diddy “relied on the employees, resources and influence of the multifaceted business empire that he led and controlled — creating a criminal enterprise whose members and associates engaged in, and attempted to engage in, among other crimes, sex trafficking, forced labor, kidnapping, arson, bribery and obstruction of justice.”
One day after his arrest, Diddy pleaded not guilty to charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion and transportation to engage in prostitution. He was ultimately denied bail after prosecutors claimed he was a flight risk.
Agnifilo addressed the indictment allegations during a September 17 interview with CNN’s The Source With Kaitlan Collins. “He’s innocent. I believe he’s innocent. I believe he’s innocent of the charges,” Diddy’s attorney said at the time. “He is going to go to trial. And I believe he’s going to win.”
The formal charges against Diddy came after multiple people accused him of sexual assault and sex trafficking, beginning with his ex Cassie’s November 2023 lawsuit, which they settled one day after it was filed. He has denied all of the allegations against him.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
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