Sean 'Diddy' Combs Reacts in Court After Hearing Verdict
Sean 'Diddy' Combs is feeling hopeful.
Just moments after the music mogul was found guilty on two out of five counts in his trial—during which he pleaded not guilty to charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion, as well as transportation to engage in prostitution—Combs reacted within the courtroom.
According to NBC News, after hearing the verdict, Combs got on his knees with his head down in a chair, seemingly praying after avoiding life in prison in his case. The outlet noted his family stood in the background, clapping and cheering. The defense attorneys hugged each other, while Combs hugged lawyer Brian Steel.
The trial for the 55-year-old lasted for seven weeks in New York City, during which the prosecution brought a number of witnesses to the stand, including his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, her ex Kid Cudi as well as multiple former assistants, sex workers and investigators.
The defense, however, announced on June 24 it did not plan to call any witnesses, according to NBC News reporters in the courtroom, and instead planned to submit evidence and expand on issues brought up by the prosecution. And while Combs himself didn't take the stand, he did address the court on June 24, the same day the defense rested, to emphasize to presiding Judge Arun Subramanian it was his decision to not testify as well as share insight into how he was doing.
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"I'm doing great, your honor," he said. "I wanted to tell you thank you, you're doing an excellent job."
Among the many allegations examined during the trial were the relationship between Ventura and Combs as well as the 'freak offs' he, as the prosecution said, coerced the singer into participating in alongside various sex workers as well as the abuse she allegedly faced at his hands.
During her testimony in May, Ventura alleged it is 'impossible to know' how many freak offs she participated in throughout their decade-long, on-off relationship, but she estimated the number was in the 'hundreds.'
The 38-year-old—who gave birth to her third baby with husband Alex Fine at the end of May, shortly after her testimony ended—also alleged Combs would film the highly-orchestrated sexual performances, later using the threat of releasing the tapes as blackmail.
"He would mention them when he was upset about something. It was just a pretty common thing," Ventura testified. "I feared for my career. I feared for my family. Just embarrassing, all of it. It's horrible and disgusting. No one should do that to anyone."
Throughout the trial, images of text exchanges between Ventura and Combs were shared—including one, shared in June, in which Ventura referenced the footage that showed Combs physically assaulting her in a hotel in 2016.
'I give you love, and as soon as I turn my head for a second and you get fucked up, you drag me down the hall by my hair. I'm 30 years old,' Ventura wrote to Combs in May 2017. 'This isn't play anymore. I felt like I was dead last night and it wasn't happening to me bc seeing my light was so beautiful."
When footage of the incident was first shared, before the trial began, in May 2024, Combs issued a public apology.
"It's so difficult to reflect on the darkest times in your life, but sometimes you got to do that," the rapper said in a response video shared to Instagram two days after the footage was made public. "I was f--ked up. I hit rock bottom. But I make no excuses. My behavior on that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video."
For more revelations from the weekslong trial, keep reading.
(E! and NBC News are both part of the NBCUniversal family.)
Ex-Girlfriend Cassie Ventura's Lawyer Reacts to VerdictSean "Diddy" Combs Reacts to Split VerdictJurors Reach a Verdict in Sean "Diddy" Combs Sex Trafficking CaseProsecutors Conclude With Nearly Five-Hour Closing ArgumentsProsecutors Seek to Streamline Charges Against Sean 'Diddy' CombsSean 'Diddy' Combs Confirms He Won't Be TestifyingDefense Shares Estimation on Closing ArgumentsJuror Sees Apparent Footage From 'Freak Offs'Hotel Rooms Were Stocked With Baby Oil, Plan-B Pills For 'Freak Offs'Cassie Ventura and Sean 'Diddy' Combs's Texts About His Alleged Abuse RevealedSean 'Diddy' Combs' Former Assistant Denies Being Drug Mule But Says He Bought Thousands of Dollars in Drugs for the RapperJudge Cancels Court on Day 26 of Sean 'Diddy' Combs Trial Over Sick JurorSecond Sean 'Diddy' Combs Jury Member Faces Possible DismissalKanye West Supports Sean 'Diddy' Combs With Courthouse VisitSean 'Diddy' Combs' Ex Says Mogul Was Upset After She Attended Another Man's 'Freak Off'Prosecutors Seek Removal of Juror in Sean 'Diddy' Combs' TrialSean 'Diddy' Combs' Ex Has Heated Exchange With Defense Team During Cross-ExaminationSean 'Diddy' Combs' Ex Says She Wondered What Was 'Driving Him' SexuallySean 'Diddy' Combs' Ex Mentions Koby Bryant, Shaquille O'Neil and Michael Jordan During TestimonySean 'Diddy' Combs' Ex Says Mogul's Chief of Staff 'Influenced a Great Deal' of Their RomanceJudge Denies Sean 'Diddy' Combs' Defense Team's Second Motion for a MistrialSean 'Diddy' Combs' Ex Details Hourslong 2024 BeatingSean 'Diddy' Combs' Ex Says Attack By Rapper Left Her 'Golfball-sized' WeltsSean 'Diddy' Combs' Ex Details Homeland Security Raid at Her Home
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