The Hip-Hop P. Diddy magnate, September 12, 2023 in Newark (AFP / Angela Weiss)
The Hip-Hop P. Diddy’s magnate was acquitted on Wednesday of sexual traffic and association of criminals, the most important accusations brought against him, but convicted of transport of people for prostitution ends at the end of a hypermediatal trial in New York.
This verdict closes weeks of debate, during which testimonies sometimes difficult to hear and muscular pleadings followed one another, P. Diddy being accused of having forced women of engaging in sexual marathons with prostituted men.
Sean Combs, whose real name, was finally found guilty of transporting people for prostitution purposes, which implies the displacement from one person from one state to another according to American law and could be worth a total of up to 20 years in prison.
But he was acquitted at the same time by the 12 jurors of the main counts, including sexual traffic and association of criminals, a crime punishable by life imprisonment.
Shortly before the jury’s decision, P. Diddy had prayed in court looking at his family on the spot. “God, please watch over my family,” he said.
And after the verdict, he joined his hands as if he prayed towards the judge and the jury, in a sign of thanks and relief.
P. Diddy’s lawyers, imprisoned for months in a Brooklyn prison, must submit a parole request later during the day and have undertaken to submit his passport and file a deposit of a million dollars.
But “it is clear that the defendant poses a danger (…). It is possible that he is trying to flee justice. He does not respect the laws,” retorted the Maurene Comey prosecutor, saying that Sean Combs deserved a “long” imprisonment.
Aged today 55 years old, P. Diddy was accused of having forced women – including her girlfriend from 2007 to 2018, the singer Cassie, and a former more recent companion having testified under the pseudonym “Jane” – to engage in sexual marathons with prostituted men while he masturbated or filmed. And also to have implemented a criminal network, of which he was at the head, to organize these marathons called “freak-offs”.
– “expected change” –
The Hip-Hop P. Diddy magnate with its ex-partner Cassie Ventura, March 7, 2016 in Los Angeles (AFP / Chris Delmas)
In 2023, his ex-partner Cassie filed a complaint against him in a civilian for rape dating back to 2018, and accused him of having had a “violent behavior” and “deviating” for a decade, like forced sex with prostituted men. If the case is settled in 24 hours, “amicably”, according to a confidential agreement, it gives rise to other complaints, having led to this criminal trial at the Manhattan court.
“By testifying to her experience, Cassie left an indelible footprint on the entertainment industry and on the fight for justice” and has shown “exemplary courage” and “undeniable force”, said his lawyer Douglas H. Wigdor in a statement transmitted to AFP.
“However, this case has proven that a change has been expected for a long time. We will continue to fight for survivors” of sexual crimes, he added.
“Bringing to justice the (authors) of sexual crimes demands that the courageous victims manifest themselves and tell their heartbreaking stories. We and our partners of the police recognize the difficulties endured by the victims (…)”, commented the prosecutor of Manhattan Jay Clayton, whose team led the accusation against P. Diddy.
Janice Combs (C), the mother of P. Diddy, when he left the court after the verdict statement in the trial against her son, on July 2, 2025 in New York (AFP / Timothy A. Clary)
During the trial, P. Diddy’s lawyers had done everything to discredit the office witnesses, including Cassie, to try to show that their client had a “polyamatrous” lifestyle that does not fall under criminal law.
Cassie and Jane admitted that their respective relationship involved love, but that they were at the same time subject to threats linked to their reputation, their financial situation and their physical integrity.
The jurors have viewed recordings of these sex marathons, as well as the recording of surveillance cameras of a los Angeles hotel showing the hip-hop magnate dragging on the ground Cassie and driving it.
“He (P. Diddy) had so far exceeded the limits that he could not even see them anymore,” said a prosecutor, Maurene Comey, saying that the rapper felt “untouchable”. “But the accused is not God,” she said to the jury, hoping, without success, a conviction for all the counts.
