This story may contain accounts and descriptions of actual or alleged events that some readers may find disturbing.
This is week seven of testimony in the trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs.
The highly anticipated trial of hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs is underway. Combs has been accused of sex trafficking by force, transportation to engage in prostitution, and racketeering conspiracy as part of a blockbuster federal indictment originally filed in September 2024. He later faced two additional superseding indictments. Combs has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.
Combs is accused of being the ringleader of an alleged enterprise that “abused, threatened and coerced women” into prolonged, drug-fueled sexual orgies with male prostitutes, which he called “freak offs,” and then threatened them into silence. Combs has said that all of the sex was consensual and that while his relationships sometimes involved domestic violence, he wasn’t engaged in trafficking.
Combs’ lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, said Combs was simply part of the swinger lifestyle and that he “vehemently denies the accusations made by the SDNY.”
Federal prosecutors said Monday that they now expect to rest their case on Tuesday once special agent Joseph Cerciello of Homeland Security Investigations concludes his testimony.
The defense said it plans to rest without calling any witnesses, only submitting some evidence.
Given the revised schedule, the judge will hold a charging conference Wednesday followed by summations on Thursday.
Federal prosecutors in New York expect to rest their case against Sean “Diddy” Combs today, relying on the testimony of nearly three dozen witnesses and hundreds of exhibits to try to prove their contention that the hip-hop impresario ran a criminal conspiracy that trafficked women and transported prostitutes.
The final witness for the prosecution, Joseph Cerciello of Homeland Security Investigations, walked the jury through reams of travel records, hotel invoices and money transfers that prosecutors hope will convince the jury that Combs and his associates trafficked his ex-girlfriend, who testified earlier under the pseudonym “Jane.”
Combs’ former assistant, Brendan Paul, who was granted immunity from prosecution in exchange for his testimony, previously told the jury that he bought and carried drugs for Combs. Paul was arrested in March 2024 for cocaine possession while aboard a private plane with Combs.
“Was the cocaine yours, Mr. Paul?” prosecutor Christy Slavik asked.
“No,” Paul testified in response.
“Whose cocaine was it?” Slavik followed up.
“Mr. Combs,” Paul testified.
The drug charges against Paul were dropped last year after he completed a pre-trial intervention program.
The criminal enterprise Combs is accused of operating committed drug offenses, according to federal prosecutors. Combs has conceded that he used illicit drugs but has denied running a criminal enterprise. He has pleaded not guilty to all of the government’s charges.
Paul also told the jury that Combs wanted his assistants to “move like SEAL Team Six” and anticipate his every need. He testified that it was part of his job to buy a pound of marijuana every two months and to procure a powdery mix of ketamine and molly, known as tusi, that was “dyed pink for the aesthetic.”
Paul further testified that he set up hotel rooms for so-called “freak-off” sexual encounters, which he knew as “wild king nights,” stocking items like lubricant and baby oil. The jury saw photos of the items arranged in Combs’ Los Angeles homes.
On cross-examination, Paul testified that he never noticed “Jane” being hesitant or apprehensive about participating in what she called “hotel night” sexual encounters.
Once prosecutors rest their case, defense attorneys have said their case will likely take a day or two to present.
Click here to catch up on everything from the sixth week of the Sean Combs trial.
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