Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex trafficking trial begins in NYC

Jury selection for the sex trafficking trial of music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs opens Monday in New York City.Why it matters: Combs faces several charges, including sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy, with prosecutors alleging he "abused, threatened and coerced" women and those around him for decades.Catch up quick: Combs, who has been jailed since September, has pleaded not guilty.The trial is expected to last at least eight weeks, per the Associated Press.If convicted, he could spend decades in prison.Driving the news: Prosecutors originally charged the Grammy-winning artist with racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution last year.A superseding indictment filed weeks before his trial brought two additional counts, including sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion.The big picture: Prosecutors wrote that Combs created a "criminal enterprise whose members and associates engaged in" crimes such as "sex trafficking, forced labor, kidnapping, arson, bribery and obstruction of justice," according to the September indictment.They allege he and his associates wielded his "power and prestige" to "intimidate, threaten, and lure female victims," who then under "force, threats of force, and coercion" engaged in elaborate, extended sex acts with male sex workers. Combs' staff and business associates were involved in organizing and facilitating the so-called "Freak Offs," prosecutors said. That included arranging travel, booking hotel rooms and stocking them with "supplies," like "controlled substances," baby oil and extra linens.Prosecutors say he maintained control over victims through many means, such as physical violence and promises of career opportunities, and used recordings he kept as collateral to ensure their silence.Zoom out: Combs has faced a wave of sexual assault and abuse allegations, including from his ex-partner Cassie, an R&B singer who was signed to his label.Cassie, whose legal name is Casandra Ventura, said in a 2023 lawsuit that Combs had beaten and raped her — allegations Combs denied. The suit was quickly settled. Last year, CNN published surveillance video of a 2016 incident showing Combs assaulting Ventura in a hotel hallway. He issued a public apology after the video went viral. The other side: Combs' attorneys say that he has had "complicated relationships with significant others as well as with alcohol and drugs" but that the encounters described in the indictment were all consensual.What we're watching: Opening statements are slated to begin May 12.Go deeper: Sean "Diddy" Combs slammed with 120 new sexual assault allegations

Comments

World news

Conservative U.S. Catholics hope next pope won't echo Francis, observers say

washington times

Comments

Similar News

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs sex trafficking trial is set to start with jury selection

Sean 'Diddy' Combs sex trafficking trial to begin in New York

When is Sean 'Diddy' Combs' trial and what is he charged with?

A timeline of the rise and fall of Sean 'Diddy' Combs

Sean Monahan named Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy finalist, along with Fleury, Landeskog

Sean Hannity tells liberal commentator who praised Luigi Mangione that she has a ‘missing chip’

Sean 'Diddy' Combs pleads not guilty to new criminal charges

World news

Conservative U.S. Catholics hope next pope won't echo Francis, observers say

100-year-old veteran kicks off V-E Day events as Britain thanks those who saved it during WWII

Romanian premier resigns after his coalition's candidate fails to advance to presidential runoff

Europe launches a drive to attract scientists and researchers after Trump freezes U.S. funding

Tourist boats capsize in sudden storm in southwest China, leaving 10 dead

Trump says Mexico's president rejected help from U.S. military because she's 'scared' of cartels

Israel plans to seize Gaza under a new plan, officials say

Spain crackdown as holiday let fines on brink of booming in Majorca, Ibiza and Menorca

Dramatic moment firefighter rescues trapped driver from truck dangling over bridge

Trump announced Alcatraz reopening just hours after ‘Escape from Alcatraz’ aired on a South Florida PBS station

Trump passes the buck on image of him as the Pope and falsely claims all Catholics loved it

Trump to meet with American ballerina who was held in Russian prison for 15 months

Alcatraz, Sith lords and movie tariffs: Trump’s ravings get louder as his approval rating goes lower

Trump’s crypto dinner, where plates cost $1.5m, draws ethics concerns as president could make millions from meme coin

Fired New Brunswick professor files lawsuit against Crandall University in Moncton

Man, 19, charged in fatal stabbing outside Calgary bar

Additional checkpoint at B.C.-U.S. border shocks travellers

Welcome to the city of Starbase, home to SpaceX and a huge Elon Musk bust

‘We are in the forefront’: Manitoba funds Indigenous organizations on Red Dress Day

Central Alberta crash kills 4 people from Maskwacis, including 2 teenagers

Ontario man allegedly caught at N.S. ferry dock hauling cartons of illegal smokes

Faqiri family demands answers on implementing coroner inquest recommendations

Silence Is Golden is embarrassingly unfunny

Sean 'Diddy' Combs in court as jury selection for trial gets under way

The Australian Election Wasn’t Just About Trump

Dentist who defrauded NHS and 'stole thousands' from patients dies leaving trail of despair

Brits risk hefty fines when driving abroad for making these common mistakes

Gov. Brian Kemp passes on Georgia Senate race

Newark's perfect storm: What's causing long delays at the airport?

With millions in default on student loan payments, collections will soon resume

Trump's tax fight with Harvard sends chill through nonprofit sector

Ukraine claims strike in Russia's Kursk amid reports of fresh incursion

Israel Bombs Yemeni Port City After Houthi Missile Struck Near Tel Aviv Airport

The New Yorker Wins Three 2025 Pulitzer Prizes

Majorca tourist chaos as seaside city invaded by 23 cruise ships in one week

Putin humiliated as Victory Day parade scrapped in Crimea after £35m jet destroyed

Mexican president fires warning shot to Donald Trump - 'stay in your territory!'

A GOP rep was awarded a Bronze Star for his bravery in Iraq. Those he reportedly saved can’t remember him being there

Trump renews threat of military force to annex Greenland

Trump celebrates with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to announce the 2027 NFL draft in DC

Suspect being flown from Washington to Kentucky escapes at airport and now is loose after taking train into city

Trump could be shipping deported migrants to Rwanda under newest proposal

Crowds flock to celebrate the century-old Bun Festival in Hong Kong

Officials in Puerto Rico expand state of emergency after weeks of heavy rain

Rwanda confirms early talks to host deported US migrants

Israel launches airstrikes on Yemen a day after Houthi rebels strike Israeli airport

Tourist ‘impaled himself on fence while attempting selfie’ in Rome’s Colosseum

Halifax Water applies for big rate increase. Here’s how much more you could pay

Thomas the Tank Engine’s visit to Calgary postponed due to ‘mechanical issue’

Alberta ramps up measles vaccination campaign as 3 hospitalized in intensive care

‘More chaos and uncertainty’ from Trump over film industry tariff, B.C.’s minister says

Greatest Hits: Jets and Blues doled out plenty of punishment in bruising series

Violent offenders unit makes 10 arrests in northern Manitoba: RCMP

Ford government will ‘wait and see’ if Trump follows through on film tariff threat

53-year-old Soviet spacecraft set to crash-land on Earth this week

Ontario to include expanded manufacturing tax credit in upcoming budget

Ontario includes Hwy. 401 tunnel on list of ‘nation-building’ projects

Marner to play Game 1 after birth of first child

Mum and son found dead after flash flooding in tourist hotspot as hundreds are evacuated

My predicted 37-man Lions squad to tour Australia