Lockdowns and fights: Sean ‘Diddy' Combs back in Brooklyn jail ahead of sentencing
Two weeks after Combs' arrest, prosecutors announced criminal charges against nine MDC inmates for crimes including assault, attempted murder and murder at the facility in the months before Combs arrived. In January last year, a federal judge in Manhattan declined to order a man charged with drug crimes detained pending trial at the MDC, calling the conditions there an 'ongoing tragedy'.
Last August, another judge said he would convert an older defendant's nine-month jail term to home incarceration if he were sent to the MDC, citing the jail's 'dangerous, barbaric conditions'.
The US Bureau of Prisons, which operates the MDC, said it was engaged in 'intensive efforts to improve conditions at MDC Brooklyn'. The agency said it confiscated drugs, weapons and other contraband during a sweep of the jail last October and November.
During the eight-week trial, US marshals transported Combs to and from the courthouse in Lower Manhattan every day from the facility in Brooklyn's Sunset Park neighbourhood, which has also housed former cryptocurrency entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried and Luigi Mangione, accused of killing a health insurance executive.
Bankman-Fried has since been moved to a low security prison in California and is appealing his fraud conviction and 25-year sentence. Mangione has pleaded not guilty to murder charges.
A jury found Combs not guilty on Wednesday on sex trafficking and racketeering charges, sparing him a potential life sentence, but convicted him on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution that could land him in prison for several years. He had pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Combs' defence lawyer Marc Agnifilo said in court on Wednesday Combs had been housed in 'a very difficult part of the MDC' where there have been fights. His lawyer Alexandra Shapiro said in a November 2024 court filing that frequent lockdowns at the facility had impaired Combs' ability to prepare for trial.
On Wednesday, Combs' lawyers praised MDC staff, who they said had facilitated their access to him during the trial.
Defence lawyer Teny Geragos told reporters after the verdict: 'Despite the terrible conditions at the MDC, I want to thank the good people who work there.'
Reuters
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Mail & Guardian
8 hours ago
- Mail & Guardian
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The Herald
15 hours ago
- The Herald
Lockdowns and fights: Sean ‘Diddy' Combs back in Brooklyn jail ahead of sentencing
His hopes of returning to one of those homes and the embrace of his family after being cleared of the more serious charges were soon dashed. The judge denied Combs' request for bail, citing evidence of his violent behaviour presented during the trial. In recent years, the MDC has been plagued by persistent staffing shortages, power outages and maggots in inmates' food. Two weeks after Combs' arrest, prosecutors announced criminal charges against nine MDC inmates for crimes including assault, attempted murder and murder at the facility in the months before Combs arrived. In January last year, a federal judge in Manhattan declined to order a man charged with drug crimes detained pending trial at the MDC, calling the conditions there an 'ongoing tragedy'. Last August, another judge said he would convert an older defendant's nine-month jail term to home incarceration if he were sent to the MDC, citing the jail's 'dangerous, barbaric conditions'. The US Bureau of Prisons, which operates the MDC, said it was engaged in 'intensive efforts to improve conditions at MDC Brooklyn'. The agency said it confiscated drugs, weapons and other contraband during a sweep of the jail last October and November. During the eight-week trial, US marshals transported Combs to and from the courthouse in Lower Manhattan every day from the facility in Brooklyn's Sunset Park neighbourhood, which has also housed former cryptocurrency entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried and Luigi Mangione, accused of killing a health insurance executive. Bankman-Fried has since been moved to a low security prison in California and is appealing his fraud conviction and 25-year sentence. Mangione has pleaded not guilty to murder charges. A jury found Combs not guilty on Wednesday on sex trafficking and racketeering charges, sparing him a potential life sentence, but convicted him on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution that could land him in prison for several years. He had pleaded not guilty to all charges. Combs' defence lawyer Marc Agnifilo said in court on Wednesday Combs had been housed in 'a very difficult part of the MDC' where there have been fights. His lawyer Alexandra Shapiro said in a November 2024 court filing that frequent lockdowns at the facility had impaired Combs' ability to prepare for trial. On Wednesday, Combs' lawyers praised MDC staff, who they said had facilitated their access to him during the trial. Defence lawyer Teny Geragos told reporters after the verdict: 'Despite the terrible conditions at the MDC, I want to thank the good people who work there.' Reuters
IOL News
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