Judge denies Sean 'Diddy' Combs appeal for bail

ByPhil Taitt WABC logo
Thursday, September 19, 2024
Judge denies Sean 'Diddy' Combs appeal for bail
Jim Dolan has more on the big decision that could keep Sean "Diddy" Combs behind bars for the rest of his life.

LOWER MANHATTAN (WABC) -- Sean 'Diddy' Combs' appeal for bail has been denied by a second federal judge.

Judge Andrew Carter denied bail and ordered Combs remanded into custody, where his attorney said he would be held in the special housing unit of MdC-Brooklyn.

Carter said the government had provided sufficient evidence Combs is a danger to the community and a danger to obstruct justice and intimidate witnesses.

Carter said the defense proposed bail package was "insufficient" to assure Combs wouldn't obstruct justice or tamper with witnesses.

Combs did not appear to react but has his eyes cast downward while seated at the defense table.

His lawyers were trying to get him out of jail after a U.S. magistrate judge in Manhattan ordered Combs held without bail on Tuesday.

They offered a $50 million bail package - using his mansion as collateral - in exchange for releasing him to home detention with GPS monitoring and strict limitations on who could visit him.

Combs, 54, pleaded not guilty Tuesday after an indictment accused him of using his "power and prestige" to induce female victims and male sex workers into drugged-up, elaborately produced sexual performances dubbed "Freak Offs" that Combs arranged, participated in and often recorded. The events would sometimes last days, the indictment said.

The indictment alleges he coerced and abused women for years, with the help of a network of associates and employees, while using blackmail and violent acts including kidnapping, arson and physical beatings to keep victims from speaking out.

Combs has been in federal custody since his arrest Monday night at a Manhattan hotel.

Judge Carter said at the outset of Wednesday's hearing that "certainly Mr Combs is a risk of flight" but he said he was more concerned about the danger Combs represents and his obstruction.

"That's the real concern," Carter said.

Another judge denied bail on Tuesday citing substance abuse and anger issues. She also noted that his release could be a danger for witnesses and victims in the case.

"There's a longstanding pattern of abuse here," prosecutor Emily Johnson told the judge in arguing on Wednesday to keep Sean Combs held without bail.

She said his victims have "extreme fear" of Combs because of his influence in the entertainment industry.

The prosecutor said Diddy called a victim in November 2023, after Cassie's civil lawsuit was filed, seeking to maintain this victim's public support.

According to prosecutors, the victim told Diddy that when she read Cassie's lawsuit "I feel like I'm reading my own sexual trauma." Diddy allegedly tried to convince her she willingly participated but the woman pushed back.that was "not how she saw things," Johnson said.

Diddy allegedly told the woman, whom he supports financially, that "she ain't got nothing to worry about" if she kept up her support of him. Prosecutors said it made clear Diddy would use financial coercion to keep victims close.

Mindful of the judge's stated concern about potential witness tampering, defense attorney Marc Agnifilo offered to place at least one, possibly two, retired police officers at Combs' house at all times to control who enters and to keep a visitors log.

The head of a private security firm, Sage Intelligence, appeared in court.

There would be a pre-approved list of visitors and Combs would have no access to a cell phone or the internet under the defense proposal.

"What I am trying to fashion is a situation where any witness intimidation...would be virtually impossible," Agnifilo said.

The defense also raised concerns about trial preparation if Combs is placed into the Special Housing Unit at MDC-Brooklyn where his access to electronics would be limited. The case involves many recordings, photos and other electronic evidence.

"We believe we have very significant defenses," Agnifilo said.

In upholding the decision to deny bail, Judge Carter said that the government had proven the defendant is a danger.

The government proved "by clear and convincing evidence that there is no condition or set of conditions" that will ensure the safety of the community and that the hip-hop mogul won't tamper with witnesses, Carter ruled.

Combs faces several federal charges, including racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation for prostitution. In this indictment, there are claims he allegedly hit and abused women for over a decade and presided over an empire of sexual crimes.

According to his legal counsel, he was brought to New York because they knew federal agents were getting closer to making an arrest.

These federal charges come as prosecutors say authorities seized the recordings, along with firearms, drugs and "more than 1,000 bottles of baby oil and lubricant" during raids last march on Diddy's homes in Miami Beach and Los Angeles.

The attorney for the Southern District of New York gave greater insight to the charges comb's faces.

"Combs used force, threats of force and coerced to cause victims to engage in extended sexual performances with male commercial sex workers, some of whom he transported or caused to be transported over state lines. Combs allegedly planned and controlled the sex performances which he called 'freak offs' and he often electronically recorded them, Damian Williams, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said.

Meanwhile, lawyers for Diddy said, "Mr. Combs is a fighter. He's going to fight this until the end. He's innocent."

---
Some information from ABC News and the Associated Press

ALSO READ: Optics of scandal: Adams says he isn't worried about probes, resignation wave

N.J. Burkett has the latest on Mayor Eric Adams and the optics during a scandal, resignations.

----------

* Get Eyewitness News Delivered

* More New York City news

* Send us a news tip

* Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts

* Follow us on YouTube

Submit a tip or story idea to Eyewitness News

Have a breaking news tip or an idea for a story we should cover? Send it to Eyewitness News using the form below. If attaching a video or photo, terms of use apply.