- Sean “Diddy” Combs, a renowned music mogul, is set to begin his s3x trafficking case on May 5, 2025.
- Rapper appeared before a judge on October 10 after being arrested on racketeering, sex trafficking, and prostitution charges in New York City.
- Judge Arun Subramanian, who replaced Andrew L. Carter Jr., set a trial date for May 5, 2025 during the hearing.
Music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs will continue to be incarcerated as his sex trafficking trial is set to commence on May 5, 2025.
Following his arrest at a hotel in New York City on charges including racketeering, sex trafficking, and utilizing transportation for prostitution, Combs appeared before a judge for a status hearing on October 10.
During this hearing, Judge Arun Subramanian, who recently took over the case from Andrew L. Carter Jr., established the trial date for May 5, 2025.
This hearing occurred just one day after Combs’ legal team submitted a new appeal requesting bail for the rapper, who has been held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, for three weeks. The lawyers contended that concerns regarding his potential to “intimidate” witnesses were “unfounded,” as stated in court documents.
The appeal, filed on October 9, claimed that Judge Carter’s previous denial of Combs’ bail request was based on “speculation” rather than concrete evidence of interference with the criminal investigation. Combs’ attorneys, Alexandra A.E. Shapiro and Jason A. Driscoll, further asserted that the rapper’s recent travel to New York to address his charges, along with their proposed monitoring measures (which would restrict access to phones, the internet, and include video surveillance when necessary), supported his release, emphasizing that their client is “presumed innocent.”
“He took extraordinary steps to demonstrate that he intended to face and contest the charges, not flee,” the filing stated. “He presented a bail package that would plainly stop him from posing a danger to anyone or contacting any witnesses.”
Despite the appeal, Judge Subramanian ruled that Combs would remain in custody during the hearing on October 10.
According to the federal indictment issued following his arrest on September 16, Combs faces allegations of involvement in sexual performances referred to as “Freak Offs,” which reportedly lasted for several hours or even days. Prosecutors claim that the 54-year-old “arranged, directed, masturbated during, and often electronically recorded.”
Additionally, the indictment states that Combs is accused of “distributed a variety of controlled substances, in part to keep the victims obedient and compliant,” according to the filing, as well as using “force, threats of force, and coercion” to get victims to “engage in extended sexual acts with male commercial sex workers.”
Combs has entered a plea of not guilty and asserts his innocence.
He will remain in custody at the Brooklyn jail until his trial, scheduled for May 5.