Diddy sentenced to more than four years in prison
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Sean “Diddy” Combs has been sentenced to more than four years in prison over the hip-hop mogul’s July 2 conviction on prostitution-related charges.
Combs, 55, was convicted on two counts of arranging for paid male escorts to travel across state lines to take part in drug-fuelled sexual performances – sometimes known as “Freak Offs” – with Combs’ girlfriends while he recorded video.
The jury acquitted him on the more serious charges of racketeering and sex trafficking, which could have earned him a life sentence.
Combs pleaded not guilty and is expected to appeal his conviction.
Combs, the founder of Bad Boy Records, is credited with elevating hip-hop’s stature in US culture.
The New York-born entrepreneur is one of the most prominent men in the entertainment industry to have faced trial on sex crimes charges.
The sentence was imposed by US District Judge Arun Subramanian at a hearing in Manhattan federal court.
Prosecutors had pushed for Combs to spend 11 years in prison while defence lawyers pushed for his swift release.
Combs has been behind bars at a Brooklyn jail since his September 16, 2024 arrest.
Combs’ children have earlier on Friday urged leniency for their father, telling the judge that he had become a better man in the year since his arrest on sex crimes charges.
“We aren’t here to excuse any of his mistakes,” Combs’ 18-year-old daughter Jessie Combs said through tears.
“But your honour, he is still our dad, and we still need him present in our lives.”
Those charges hinged on prosecutors’ accusation that Combs used violence and threats to coerce his girlfriends to take part in the encounters.
Addressing Subramanian, Jessie’s twin sister D’Lila Combs said she and her siblings were scared about being without their father after the 2018 death of their mother, the actress and model Kim Porter.
“We’ve already lost so much,” she said.
“Please, your honour, please, give our family the chance to heal together.”
Combs put his head down as his children spoke, and had tears in his eyes when their remarks concluded.
Subramanian thanked them.
After the children spoke, his lawyers showed the court a video about Combs’ background and philanthropy.
The video showed Combs playing with his children, speaking to public school students and running the New York Marathon to raise money for charity.
Several minutes into the video, Combs put a hand over half his face and began to cry, his shoulders at times heaving.
Defence lawyers said the appropriate sentence is 14 months, which would mean Combs would be released by the end of the year after receiving credit for time served.
In a four-page letter to Subramanian, filed with the court on Thursday, Combs apologised “for all the hurt and pain that I caused others by my conduct,” and asked the judge for mercy, saying, “I lost my way”.
Subramanian acknowledged that Combs had expressed remorse for some of his conduct but said he had not apologised for the prostitution offences at the heart of the conviction.
Reuters
