FILE – Sean “Diddy” Combs appears at the premiere of “Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop: A Bad Boy Story” on June 21, 2017, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (AP Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)
LOS ANGELES – Nearly six months after his homes in Holmby Hills and Florida were raided simultaneously by federal agents, Grammy winner Sean “Diddy” Combs was accused in an indictment unsealed Tuesday of leading a decade-long racketeering and sex-trafficking operation that prosecutors say included forced labor, staged sex parties, bribery and arson.
Combs, 54, was taken into custody by federal agents with Homeland Security Investigations at the Park Hyatt hotel in Midtown Manhattan on Monday.
His attorney issued a statement denying wrongdoing by his client and insisting Combs has been cooperating with authorities, and even moved to New York to surrender to federal agents.
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At a morning news conference, US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams outlined details of the newly unsealed New York indictment that charges Combs with racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.
“As alleged in the Indictment, for years, Sean Combs used the business empire he controlled to sexually abuse and exploit women, as well as to commit other acts of violence and obstruction of justice,” Williams said in a statement. “Today, he is charged with racketeering and sex trafficking offenses. If you have been a victim of Combs’ alleged abuse — or if you know anything about his alleged crimes — we urge you to come forward. This investigation is far from over.”
Williams said that as part of the Combs’ alleged criminal enterprise, he and his conspirators would stage what were known as “Freak Offs,” which were elaborate sex parties or performances in which women were forced to participate with male commercial sex workers. The events were usually filmed.
ADVERTISEMENTProsecutors contend that Combs would force victims to participate in such events through violence and intimidation and leveraging his power over them, “power he obtained through obtaining and distributing narcotics to them, exploiting his financial support to them and threatening to cut off the same, and controlling their careers,” according to the US Attorney’s Office.
According to prosecutors, members of Combs’ business empire would facilitate the “Freak Outs” by arranging travel for sex workers and victims, setting up hotel rooms that were stocked with lubricants and other sex-party supplies, then cleaning the rooms after the events concluded.
Prosecutors also said Combs would control women through physical abuse.
ADVERTISEMENTDuring his Tuesday news conference, Williams referenced 2016 surveillance video taken at a Century City hotel that emerged earlier this year, showing Combs physically assaulting his then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura.
The video shows Combs — wearing only a towel — attacking Ventura in a hotel hallway and attempting to drag her back to a room. He is also seen throwing a vase in her direction.
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Combs issued a public apology after the video surfaced, saying in an Instagram video, ““It’s so difficult to reflect on the darkest times in your life, but sometimes you got to do that. “I was (expletive) up. I mean I hit rock bottom, but I make no excuses. My behavior on that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video. Disgusting. I was disgusting then when I did it, I’m disgusted now.
“I went and I sought out professional help. I’m going to therapy, going to rehab. I have asked God for his mercy and grace. I’m so sorry, but I’m committed to be a better man each and every day. I’m not asking for forgiveness. I’m truly sorry.”
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Williams noted that after the 2016 confrontation with Ventura, Combs attempted to bribe a hotel security guard with a stack of cash in an effort to keep the attack quiet.
Williams said that during the March searches of Comb’s’ homes in Holmby Hills and Miami, investigators seized evidence including a trio of AR-15 rifles with their serial numbers obscured, a high-capacity “drum magazine,” and hundreds of bottles of the personal lubricant used in the “Freak Offs.”
Combs’ lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, responded to the arrest of his client in a statement, calling it “an unjust prosecution.”
“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. 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,” Agnifilo said in the statement.
“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,” Agnifilo added.
Ventura had claimed in a lawsuit filed last November that Diddy physically assaulted her in 2016 at the Century City hotel, saying the rapper was drunk and punched her in the face. She alleged that when she tried to leave, Diddy followed her and eventually threw glass vases that were on display in the hallway at her. According to the suit, Ventura eventually got into an elevator and took a cab back to her apartment.
The lawsuit also made more serious allegations of sexual assault and other acts of physical abuse inflicted by Diddy. The lawsuit was settled one day after it was filed, but no details were released.
In addition to Ventura, two other women filed lawsuits against Combs alleging sexual abuse.
Music producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones Jr. filed a lawsuit earlier this year accusing Diddy of groping him while the pair worked together on Diddy’s album “The Love Album: Off the Grid.” The lawsuit also included allegations that Diddy and his son engaged in a “sex-trafficking venture.”
Diddy’s attorney, Shawn Holley, issued a statement in response at the time saying, “Lil Rod is nothing more than a liar who filed a $30 million lawsuit shamelessly looking for an undeserved payday. His reckless name-dropping about events that are pure fiction and simply did not happen is nothing more than a transparent attempt to garner headlines.
“We have overwhelming, indisputable proof that his claims are complete lies.” (CNS)
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