Trial date set for Sean “Diddy” Combs in sex trafficking case
Written by ABC AUDIO on October 11, 2024
The sex trafficking trial against music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs is set to begin May 5, a judge announced Thursday.
The trial is expected to last about a month, but prosecutors said the length could change if more charges are added.
Combs is already charged with sex trafficking by force, transportation to engage in prostitution and racketeering conspiracy.
“Our investigation is very much ongoing,” prosecutor Emily Johnson said. The possibility of a superseding indictment could affect the length of the trial, she added.
Prosecutors said federal authorities have seized 100 electronic devices from Combs and are still working to extract data from them.
Johnson also said the government served Combs’ company, Combs Global, with a subpoena the same day his home was raided on March 25. The company is still turning over records.
Thursday’s hearing came after Combs accused federal agents and prosecutors in a court filing of unlawfully leaking the hotel security footage that showed him attacking his then-girlfriend Casandra Ventura at a Los Angeles hotel in 2016.
Prosecutors denied leaking the video. They called the accusation “baseless” and said it was a defense attempt “to exclude a damning piece of evidence” from the trial.
In response to Combs’ accusation, the judge agreed to impose an order meant to protect grand jury material and nonpublic evidence.
“The concern is the agents have been leaking grand jury information,” defense attorney Marc Agnifilo said.
Johnson also took issue with statements Agnifilo made to TMZ asserting Combs is being prosecuted because he is Black.
“He baselessly accused the government of engaging in a racist prosecution,” Johnson said, adding the defense statements “seriously risk a fair trial.”
The defense declined to pursue a previously suggested move from a federal lockup in Brooklyn to a jail in Essex County, New Jersey.
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