Sean “Diddy” Combs has pleaded not guilty to an amended indictment that includes new allegations of forced labour.
The superseding indictment alleges the rap mogul forced employees to work long hours under threat of physical and reputational harm and forced at least one worker to engage in sex acts with him.
Mr Combs’s lawyers have denied that the rap mogul has ever forced anyone into sex acts and that the case revolves around consensual relationships with his girlfriends, the New York Times reports.
His lawyers have also “vehemently” denied all the accusations made against him in the federal case and dozens of civil lawsuits that have been filed against him in recent months.
“He looks forward to his day in court when it will become clear that he has never forced anyone to engage in sexual acts against their will,” his lawyer Marc Agnifilo has said.
Mr Combs, one of the most successful rappers in the US, is soon expected to stand trial in a federal sex trafficking and racketeering case.
The new allegations detailed in the amended indictment come under the racketeering charge.
Separately, Mr Combs faces dozens of lawsuits accusing him of rape and assault. His lawyers have dismissed the lawsuits as “clear attempts to garner publicity.”
Mr Combs was led into a wood-panelled courtroom on Friday in New York’s southern district federal court wearing a greenish-tan prison jumpsuit, with overgrown grey hair and a beard.
He chose to stand as he entered his not guilty plea. Asked by a judge if he had seen and read the indictment, he responded, “Yes, I have sir”.
Behind him, in the public benches, his son Christian, his daughter Chance, his mother Janice Combs – wearing large sunglasses, and friend Marvet Britto (a publicist) came to support him, along with two other men who described themselves as part of the family’s “support system”.
Mr Combs was smiling in court, waving and blowing kisses to his family and hugging his lawyers.
As well as the new allegations, there was also much discussion in court between the prosecution and defence’s lawyers over a video published by CNN last year appearing to show CCTV footage of Mr Combs kicking his former girlfriend, Cassandra Ventura, on a hotel hallway floor in 2016.
Mr Combs’s lawyers repeated their claims that the video was “deceptive” and that a visual expert had found that parts of the video were taken out of order, the actions sped up, and timestamps covered up.
Prosecutors on the other hand described it as “critical” and “direct evidence” of their case that they will submit as an exhibit in the trial. The judge urged them to reach a compromise.
CNN and a lawyer for Ms Ventura have denied what Mr Combs’ lawyers said about the video.
After the video was released in 2024, Mr Combs apologised for his behaviour, saying: “I take full responsibility for my actions in that video. I was disgusted then when I did it. I’m disgusted now.”
On Friday, the judge said jury selection was expected to start on 5 May, and opening statements on 12 May.
By BBC News
Email your news TIPS to Editor@Kahawatungu.com — this is our only official communication channel
