Sean “Diddy” Combs, the notorious hip-hop entrepreneur, faces federal sex trafficking and racketeering allegations in an indictment unsealed on Tuesday. He was arrested on Monday in New York after being indicted by a federal grand jury. The arrest and indictment after a months-long sex trafficking investigation and 10 months after a slew of women came forward with sexual and other mistreatment claims.
Prior to the unsealing of the indictment, Combs’ attorney, Marc Agnifilo, stated that they knew what the allegations would be and that Combs was “innocent of these charges.”
What To Know About Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ Indictment
Here are the essential details from the three-count indictment.
Alleged assaults stretch back to 2008.
The indictment includes extensive details about Combs’ alleged assaults on several women since 2008. He is accused of “verbal, emotional, physical, and sexual” abuse, as well as having “hit, kicked, threw objects at, and dragged victims, at times, by their hair” in assaults that took “days or weeks to heal.”
According to the indictment, Combs orchestrated sexual encounters between his victims and male sex workers he referred to as “Freak Offs” — “elaborate and produced sex performances that Combs arranged, directed, masturbated during, and often electronically recorded.”
According to prosecutors, these encounters may last for days and frequently included many commercial sex workers, with Combs drugging the participants to “keep the victims obedient and compliant.” The raids on Combs’ houses in Los Angeles and Miami resulted in the seizure of supplies for the “Freak Offs,” including pills and more than 1,000 bottles of baby oil and lubricant, according to prosecutors.
Combs is accused of leading a criminal business.
The indictment claims that Combs and others he knew were members of a criminal organization that engaged in a variety of illegal activities, including sex trafficking, forced labor, prostitution-related transportation and coercion, narcotics offenses, kidnapping, arson, bribery, and obstruction of justice. Combs is accused of leading the illicit operations, and the indictment alleges that individuals who worked for him, such as security personnel, domestic staff, personal assistants, and “high-ranking supervisors,” were all involved in the criminal activity, either consciously or unknowingly.
According to prosecutors, Combs’ supporters used violence to maintain and safeguard his control, including the use of weapons, threats of violence, coercion, and verbal, emotional, physical, and sexual assault.
“Combs did not do this all on his own,” stated Damian Williams, the United States Attorney in Manhattan, at a press conference on Tuesday morning. “He used his business and employees of that business and other close associates to get his way.”
Williams also said that Combs workers were involved in organizing and coordinating the “Freak Offs,” including supplying items, cleaning hotel rooms after the encounters, and assisting in the cover-up of the assaults.
Prosecutors allege that Combs used firearms to intimidate and threaten victims and witnesses of his crimes, leading them to remain silent. Law enforcement officials said they discovered guns and ammo, including three AR-15s with “defaced” serial numbers, during raids on his houses in Los Angeles and Miami.
The indictment also accuses Combs of exploiting his victims’ desire to advance their careers in the music industry by utilizing his money and influence. Officials also claimed that Combs exploited recordings of the “Freak Offs” to prevent the victims from coming forward. According to authorities, Combs controlled his victims’ housing, tracked their location, dictated their looks, monitored their medical records, and supplied them with narcotics.
Another court filing outlines Combs and his colleagues’ other acts of violence and intimidation, such as kidnapping one individual at gunpoint and ripping open a car’s convertible top to drop a Molotov cocktail inside, causing the car to explode. According to the lawsuit, these events can be corroborated by police reports, fire department records, and witnesses.
What To Know About Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ Indictment
The investigation is ongoing, and further arrests are possible.
Prosecutors say they’ve interviewed over 50 victims and witnesses to Combs’ abuse, but they expect more to come forward with their stories.
Due to the ongoing nature of the investigation, prosecutors have stated that they are unable to divulge certain specifics, such as information regarding the witnesses who have submitted or will provide testimony.
Williams said Tuesday that he wants Combs imprisoned while he awaits trial. When asked if Combs’ acquaintances or employees will face charges, Williams said he “can’t take anything off the table.”
“Our investigation is very active and ongoing,” she said.
SOURCE | AP
