Dramatic moment Sean 'Diddy' Combs fell to his knees after learning his fate
The disgraced hip-hop mogul fell to his knees and buried his head in a chair at the defence table where he had just spent two months on trial for sex trafficking and racketeering.
Before the verdict came down, Combs sat quietly in his chair, looking forward, wearing the same off-white sweater and pants he wore for much of his trial.
The court grew quiet as the jury foreperson handed the verdict sheet to the court deputy. Then it was handed back to the foreperson.
And they began to read.
As the sound of the "not guilty" rung out in court for the first time, acquitting Combs of the most severe crime of racketeering, the rapper kept his head low.
By the time the foreperson announced Combs was not guilty of sex trafficking, Combs had his head in his hands.
The jury did find him guilty on the least severe charges of transporting people to engage in prostitution. As they confirmed their decision, Combs buried his face in his hands.
A flurry of small celebrations followed for Combs, who has been in a federal jail in Brooklyn since September. He made a prayer sign with his hands to the jury, then turned around and made the same gesture to his family - twin daughters, sons and 85-year-old mother.
He appeared to mouth: "I'm coming home."
The moment seemed equally emotional for Combs' many lawyers, including Teny Geragos, seated next to him and wiping away tears with a tissue after the verdict was read.
Combs' attorneys wasted no time in telling the judge that the verdict, reached after roughly two days of deliberations, meant Combs should be able to walk out of the Manhattan courthouse a free man that very day.
His acquittal on the most serious charges meant he no longer needed to be jailed, his attorney Marc Agnifilo told the court, noting that his client's plane was inaccessible - chartered and in Maui.
"Mr Combs has been given his life by this jury," he said. "He will not run afoul of anything this court imposes on him."
Then, in the perhaps the most emotional gesture of the day for Combs, he appeared to express his gratitude by pressing his head into his chair at the defence table.
He rose, clapping his hands loudly, to hug several of his lawyers. Many family members and supporters in the main courtroom and a packed overflow room joined him, cheering.
Then, with one final hug to his lawyer and a wave to his family - blocked by a mass of people and court benches - he was escorted out of the court.
The hip-hop mogul's homecoming hopes were later dashed as Judge Arun Subramanian denied him bail at another hearing on Wednesday afternoon.
Outside the Manhattan court, there were repeated calls of "free Diddy" in a large crowd behind barriers.
But he will remain behind bars until his sentencing later this year.
Get all the latest trial updates on the BBC Sounds 'Diddy on Trial' podcast available wherever you get your BBC podcasts.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
Virginia Has Become a Hotbed for Immigration Arrests
The pace of immigration arrests has shot up across the country under the second Trump term, but few places have seen a spike quite as sharp as in Virginia. Arrests in the state by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are up more than 350 percent since 2024, one of the steepest increases in the country. This outpaces the growth in ICE arrests in Democratic-run states like California and New York and Republican-controlled states like Florida and Texas. Nearly 3,000 people were arrested by ICE in Virginia in the first five months of 2025, on par with numbers in a much larger state like New York. It is not entirely clear why Virginia, a politically middle-of-the-road state, has become such a magnet for immigration enforcement. The state's immigrant population has increased dramatically in recent decades, and Virginia is now home to more than a million immigrants, most of them citizens or legal residents. But compared to some other states where arrests haven't risen as much, like neighboring Maryland, people born in foreign countries make up a smaller percentage of the population. One difference may be that ICE has the unqualified backing of Virginia's leaders, as well as sheriff departments across the state. Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican nearing the end of his term, has been full-throated in his support for President Trump's immigration crackdown. Sounding a constant refrain about the perils of 'dangerous criminal illegal immigrants,' Mr. Youngkin has championed the work of a federal-state task force aimed at combating 'transnational organized crime.' He has directed his state's law enforcement agencies to partner with federal immigration authorities and threatened to withhold funding from local governments that do not fully cooperate with ICE. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
Under Trump's Crackdown, a New Crop of Immigrant Rights Groups Rises
The call came into the hotline one afternoon in March: A group of officers, masked and in plainclothes, were taking away a young woman in a hijab. ''Someone is being kidnapped!'' the caller said to Danny Timpona, the operator who answered the phone. His group, the LUCE Immigrant Justice Network of Massachusetts, had been preparing for such a moment. Within minutes, Mr. Timpona sent out volunteers to verify the report in Somerville, a suburb northwest of Boston. When they arrived to empty streets, they began knocking on doors, looking for anyone who could help them piece together what occurred. One neighbor offered footage from a home security camera. The video, which has since racked up millions of views, captured agents from the Department of Homeland Security surrounding Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish citizen and doctoral student at Tufts University who spent the next six weeks in detention. It gave the nation one of the earliest scenes of the Trump administration's crackdown on immigration. A crop of grass-roots immigrant rights networks like Mr. Timpona's has been rising across the country to try to halt President Trump's agenda of mass deportation. They aimto quickly corroborate the presence of immigration officers. They document apprehensions that might otherwise go unnoticed. And they spread the word on social media about people being detained. These groups have recently been most visible in Los Angeles, where an immigration raid at a clothing wholesaler prompted a rapid response from activists who confronted federal agents. Days of protests followed. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
How slain MS deputy Martin Shields' colleagues will honor him and help Jackson-area grads
Mississippi law enforcement agencies and first responders are taking the court for a cause on Saturday, July 12, for the "Battle of the Badges Basketball Tournament." The basketball event is presented by the Deputy Martin L. Shields Jr. Memorial Foundation in honor of fallen Hinds County Deputy Martin Luther Shields Jr., 37, who was fatally shot on the evening of Feb. 23 while responding to a domestic dispute call at a home on Midway Road in Terry. Born on July 14, 1987, Shields dedicated his life to serving his community and protecting his fellow citizens. This was evident in the hundreds of people who showed up at Shields' celebration of life service to pay their respects, including Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves. Teams scheduled to participate in the event include the Hinds County Sheriff's Department, Jackson Fire Department, Jackson Police Department, Ridgeland Police Department and Mississippi Highway Patrol. Homicides continue to drop in Jackson: Jackson sees 40% reduction in homicides in first half of 2025 compared to last year. Who are the victims? When: Doors open at 2 p.m., July 12 Where: Jackson Academy, 4908 Ridgewood Road in Jackson Cost: $5 for kids 12 and under. $20 for general admission Pre-purchased tickets can be bought online through Eventbrite. All proceeds will go toward scholarships for graduating seniors in the Jackson Metro area. Pam Dankins is the breaking news reporter for the Clarion Ledger. Have a tip? Email her at pdankins@ This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Hoops battle honors deputy Martin Shields, killed in the line of duty
