Sean “Diddy” Combs. Credit :
Jane Rosenberg/REUTERS
Jurors have reached a verdict on four of the five counts against Sean “Diddy” Combs and remain deadlocked on the racketeering charge.
After around 12 hours of deliberations, jurors have reached a unanimous verdict on counts of sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution, but remain split on count one of racketeering.
The verdict has not been read in court.
Both the prosecution and the defense want the jury to keep deliberating on count one, though prosecutors want the judge to issue an Allen charge, which encourages the jurors to reach a unanimous verdict.
Combs’ attorneys told Judge Arun Subramanian that they oppose a potential Allen charge and prefer that the jury is instructed to continue deliberations without it.
Prosecutors had charged Combs with sex trafficking, accusing him of forcing or coercing women, including his exes Casandra “Cassie” Ventura and a woman who testified under the name “Jane,” into participating in elaborate sex performances with male sex workers, known as “Freak Offs” and “Hotel Nights.”
The indictment, which was filed in September 2024 in the Southern District of New York, alleged that Combs used his extensive business empire to commit crimes as part of a racketeering conspiracy.
Over the course of the trial, which began in May, prosecutors called 34 witnesses over the course of 29 days of testimony.
Ventura’s testimony, which occurred while she was 8-and-a-half-months pregnant, lasted several days and detailed allegations of abuse and detailed descriptions of “Freak Offs.”
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Combs’ attorneys argued throughout the trial that the sexual encounters had been consensual and introduced several exhibits, including text messages, into evidence intended to reinforce that argument.
Combs, who now sports gray hair, had spent the months leading up to his highly anticipated trial behind bars.
Combs’ legal woes began when Ventura filed a lawsuit in November 2023 accusing him of sexual assault. It was settled a day later. Since then, he has been sued by dozens of other accusers.
