Benedict Smith
17 September 2024 10:26pm
In 2014, Sean “Diddy” Combs beamed in a black gown and mortar board as he was awarded an honorary degree by Howard University.
For Combs, who had dropped out of the prestigious college after two years, being embraced by academia was the latest honour in a career that had seen him feted with awards and made him one of the most wealthy rap stars in the world.
But authorities now say that Combs, who urged graduates to “close your eyes and dream” in his commencement address, was a violent sex trafficker who used his polished public image for cover during this time.
The music mogul, who was recently arrested in New York, has been charged with sex trafficking that allegedly took place between 2009 and 2018, transportation to engage in prostitution allegedly between 2009 and 2024, and racketeering, which allegedly began in 2008.
The charges, which Combs denies, centre around allegations that he intimidated and threatened women into days-long orgies, that he referred to as “Freak Offs”, with male prostitutes.
According to an indictment unsealed on Tuesday, Combs directed and occasionally filmed these encounters, administering drugs to keep the participants docile.
At times, the 54-year-old is said to have become violent during these “Freak Offs”, beating and kicking his female victims and dragging them about by their hair. Some of these injuries took weeks to heal, the indictment claims.
Combs, who would allegedly masturbate during the “Freak Offs”, and his victims are said to have received intravenous drips to recover from the physical exertion and drug use.
From thousands of bottles of baby oil to guns – the items seized
The rapper allegedly distributed illegal drugs to his victims, including ecstasy, ketamine, and opioids, which would keep them “obedient and compliant.”
During the searches of Combs’ homes earlier this year, law enforcement seized narcotics, videos of the “Freak Offs” and more than 1,000 bottles of baby oil and lubricant, according to prosecutors.
They said agents also seized firearms and ammunition, including three AR-15s with defaced serial numbers — two of them, broken into parts, in his bedroom closet in Miami.
Combs’ lawyer said his client didn’t own the guns at his house, noting that he employs a security company.
Authorities will not say how many victims Combs allegedly abused during his years of “Freak Offs”. All they will claim is that “multiple” women were involved.
During these years while prosecutors claim these “Freak Offs” took place, Combs was reaping the rewards of his decades as a kingpin on top of the music business.
The indictment alleges that his public image was kept clean by a criminal enterprise tasked with satisfying his sexual desires while keeping the stories out of the public eye.
In September 2023, Combs was given the key to the city of New York by its mayor, Eric Adams – an irony that prosecutors pressed home after the indictment was unsealed.
“A year ago Sean Combs stood in Times Square and was handed a key to New York City,” Damian Williams, the US attorney for New York’s southern district, told reporters at a press conference on Tuesday.
“Today he’s been indicted and will face justice in the Southern District of New York.”
In 2008, the year that the earliest charges date from, Combs was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame – one of a series of awards in his glittering career.
Photographs show the music mogul posing on the ground for the cameras, grinning in a crisp white suit and sunglasses.
In 2023, the rap billionaire was handed a Global Icon Award for his contribution to music since the mid-1990s, when he worked with artists including Notorious BIG and Mary J Blige.
Combs is alleged to have built up a “criminal enterprise” made up of employees and associates that made his “Freak Offs” possible” and maintain the reputation of the man who renamed himself “Love” in 2017.
The public face of the Comb’s businesses included operations that spanned across record labels, a clothing line and a television network.
But it was also tasked with “enhancing the power, reputation and brand” of Combs, fulfilling his “sexual gratification, enabling sex trafficking, and using violence and threats to achieve its ends, according to the indictment.
The group is said to have operated in New York as well as other locations across the US.
Stocking up and cleaning up, the Freak Off way
Allegedly made up of Combs’ security and household staff, personal assistants among others, the indictment claims they stocked up hotel rooms for “Freak Offs” and cleaned up afterwards.
It also claims they would even deliver large sums of cash for Combs to allegedly pay the prostitutes, and schedule the delivery of IV fluids once the orgies had finally concluded.
Combs and his associates are said to have engaged in violence against witnesses and anyone who threatened to derail his public image, including by multiple acts that included kidnapping and arson. Authorities declined to reveal further details about these alleged crimes on Tuesday.
The 54-year-old allegedly brandished firearms to intimidate and threaten his victims, while three AR-15 semi-automatic rifles were found at raids on his homes earlier this year.
Combs also allegedly threatened to harm the careers of the women who did not want to join in his “Freak Offs”. If that failed, according to the indictment, he had recordings made during previous encounters to “ensure the continued obedience and silence of the victims”.
‘Nothing is off the table’
Damiam Williams did not rule out further charges being brought against Combs’ employees and associates who made his alleged crimes possible. “Nothing is off the table,” he said.
While the indictment marks another blow to Combs’ shattered reputation, his public image has been in free-fall for months now amid press allegations and lawsuits brought by multiple women.
Footage from 2016, released earlier this year, showed the rapper assaulting his then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura at a Los Angeles hotel.
Wearing a towel, he punched and kicked her before dragging her along the floor by her hoodie.
Combs apologised for assaulting Ventura after the video emerged, saying he was “disgusted” with himself and had “sought out professional help” in therapy and rehab.
The New York indictment alleges that a member of the hotel security staff attempted to intervene during the incident, and that Combs attempted to bribe them to keep it quiet.
Outside court on Tuesday, Marc Agnifilo, Combs’ lawyer, said his client would plead not guilty to the charges and pledged to “fight like hell” to get him released from custody.
“His spirits are good,” Mr Agnifilo added. “He’s confident.”
A judge later ordered Combs to be held in jail without bail.
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