Trump refuses to rule out potential pardon for Diddy if the rapper is convicted of sex trafficking

The Sun

2 days ago

DONALD Trump has refused to rule out a potential pardon for Sean "Diddy" Combs if the rap mogul is convicted of sex trafficking.
The mega-producer, who is currently on trial, is facing a potential life sentence after being accused of running a decades-long, sprawling sex trafficking operation.
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Trump said on Friday that no one has asked him to pardon Diddy Combs, but that he would look at the facts of the hip-hop mogul's case.
His comments at a White House news conference came as Diddy attended the 13th day of testimony in the rapper's criminal sex trafficking trial.
Diddy was arrested in September 2024 and is battling a massive list of civil lawsuits as he stands trial.
The Bad Boy Records founder has pleaded not guilty to five felony counts of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.
During a press conference at the White House, a reporter asked Trump whether he would consider pardoning Diddy.
The journalist noted that the MAGA prez said during a 2012 episode of his Celebrity Apprentice reality show that he was friends with the rapper.
Trump replied: "Nobody's asked. You had to be the one to ask. I think some people have been very close to asking.
"First of all, I'd look at what's happening, and I haven't been watching it too closely although it's certainly getting a lot of coverage."
Trump said he had not seen or spoken to Diddy in years.
He added: "I haven't seen him, I haven't spoken to him in years. He used to really like me a lot, but I think when I ran for politics… that relationship busted up, from what I read.
Diddy 'EXPLODED with threat to kill assistant over ex Cassie's silence'
"He didn't tell me that, but I'd read some little bit nasty statements.'
Since taking office on January 20, Trump has made extensive use of his power to pardon or commute the sentences of people accused of or convicted of federal crimes.
Diddy is accused of throwing so-called "freak-off" parties where he would illegally fly in sex workers from across the country to provide his high-profile guests with explicit entertainment.
He also would allegedly record some of his most recognizeable guests in compromising positions and use his sick videos as blackmail to keep people under his thumb, prosecutors say.
In just three weeks of proceedings, a court has already heard about Diddy allegedly bombing fellow rapper Kid Cudi's car and lashing out at his ex-girlfriend in late rock star Prince's mansion.
At the center of the trial is the rapper's nearly decade-long relationship with ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, who busted his case wide open with a graphic civil suit filed in November 2023.
That lawsuit was settled out of court, and Diddy denied all of her allegations.
The courtroom has heard gut-wrenching testimony from Combs' former assistants, Ventura, and rapper Scott Mescudi, who is best known by his stage name Kid Cudi, among others.
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Ventura, gave birth to her third child after taking the stand, testified for four days about the horrific sex marathons she was allegedly forced into by Combs.
The singer, 38, also told jurors about the physical and psychological abuse she suffered during her relationship with the music executive.
She accused Diddy of forcing her to get high and have sex with male escorts for hours on end during the horrific sessions, and claimed the executive controlled every aspect of her life.
'Control was everything from the way I looked, what I was working on that day, who I was speaking to," Cassie, who was just days away from giving birth to her third child with now-husband Alex Fine, said.
"You make the wong face and the next thing I knew I was getting hit in the face."
A growing list of celebrities has been mentioned in Diddy's sick sex trafficking trial over his perverse "freak off" parties.
The list includes Hollywood A-listers like Michael B Jordan, Suge Knight and 50 Cent.
Diddy locked eyes with us as he entered the courtroom - inside the trial of the decade
By Israel S-Rodriguez, Senior News Reporter at The U.S. Sun
The federal sex trafficking trial of Sean 'Diddy' Combs began with jury selection on May 5.
Combs is standing trial at the Southern District of New York Courthouse in Lower Manhattan - an intimidating federal courthouse where the cases of Ghislaine Maxwell, Donald Trump, and Bernard Madoff, among others, were tried.
Once a powerful founder of a music and business empire, Combs has been reduced to a defendant, inmate 37452-054, stripped of his mogul status, and now standing trial on five federal charges with the full wrath of the United States government against him.
When I attended Day 3 of jury selection at the federal courthouse on May 7, the buzz around the start of the trial was palpable.
Hours before the courthouse opened its doors, more than a dozen reporters and members of the public stood in line in hopes of securing a seat in the gallery for the high-profile trial.
As you walk through the glass door entrance of the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Courthouse, you are met by bulletproof vest-clad court officers.
All visitors must separate their electronic devices from their personal belongings, which are passed through a metal detector.
Visitors walk through a metal detector before a court officer hands them a poker chip.
The courthouse uses a poker chip system to sort the number of electronic devices visitors are in possession of.
Electronic devices, such as Bluetooth-powered headphones, voice recorders, laptops, cellphones, and smart watches, are confiscated before you're allowed to enter the courthouse's main hallway.
As about a half-dozen reporters and I waited in the gallery for jury selection, we witnessed how Combs entered the courtroom shackle-free.
Combs entered with his hands pressed together, greeted his defense team before he examined the gallery, and locked eyes with reporters and potential jurors.
The 55-year-old disgraced Bad Boy Records executive was attentive and engaged with his counsel as they grilled dozens of potential jurors.
As jury selection wrapped up for the day, Combs embraced each of his female defense attorneys before he mouthed "thank you" to a handful of supporters in the gallery.
I attended trial again as opening statements got underway on May 12 and the world media waited anxiously outside the federal courthouse before the sun rose in Lower Manhattan.
A line stretched down the block from the federal courthouse as some members of the media and from the public camped out overnight to try to obtain a coveted seat inside the gallery.
At least three overflow rooms were made available for reporters and the public, who are eager to witness the prosecutions case against the music mogul.
At least half a dozen members of Combs' family arrived at the courthouse as spectators filed in single order to enter the federal building to turn over all their electronic devices.
Combs' trial is being held on the 26th floor in Judge Arun Subramanian's courtroom and is expected to last for eight weeks.
We'll bring it all to you on The U.S. Sun.