Sean "Diddy" Combs stays behind bars as judge weighs $50 million bail request

Sean "Diddy" Combs will stay in custody for several more days while a US judge reviews his request for release on a $50 million bail from the Brooklyn jail where he has spent the last 10 weeks.

Following a nearly two-hour hearing in Manhattan federal court, US District Judge Arun Subramanian stated on November 22 that he would make a ruling on Combs' home detention request "promptly", Caliber.Az reports citing Reuters.

This month, Combs' legal team proposed a bail package secured by his $48 million mansion in Florida, which included provisions for 24/7 security monitoring and restrictions on contact with alleged victims or witnesses.

Combs has been denied bail three times since his arrest, with multiple judges expressing concerns that he might tamper with witnesses. The rapper and producer pleaded not guilty on September 17 to charges alleging he exploited his business empire, including Bad Boy Entertainment, to sexually abuse women.

During the hearing, defence attorney Marc Agnifilo challenged the prosecution's claim that a 2016 hotel surveillance video, which showed Combs assaulting his former girlfriend Casandra Ventura, known as Cassie, indicated he posed a risk of violent behaviour if released. "There's a zero per cent chance of that happening," Agnifilo asserted.

In May, Combs publicly apologized after CNN aired the video depicting him kicking, shoving, and dragging Cassie down a hotel hallway. While Agnifilo acknowledged the incident, he argued that the video did not serve as evidence of sex trafficking. "It's our defence to these charges that this was a toxic, loving 11-year relationship," he stated.

Prosecutor Christine Slavik claimed that Combs attempted to bribe hotel staff to erase the surveillance footage, indicating a commitment to hiding his alleged crimes through illegal means. Even while incarcerated at the Metropolitan Detention Center, Combs allegedly communicated with his attorneys via unauthorized channels and attempted to launch a social media campaign to influence potential jurors, Slavik noted. "The defendant here has demonstrated that either he cannot or will not follow rules," she argued. "The defendant, simply put, cannot be trusted."

In response to the alleged social media campaign, defence attorney Alexandra Shapiro argued that Combs had the right to address news coverage that might negatively portray him before jurors.

Upon entering the courtroom led by US Marshals, Combs, dressed in a beige jail-issued outfit, blew kisses to his family seated in the audience.

Prosecutors alleged that the abuse included forcing women to participate in recorded sexual performances called "freak offs" with male sex workers, some of whom were transported across state lines. Combs, 55, has denied any wrongdoing, with his lawyers maintaining that the sexual activities described were consensual.

Combs' legal team questioned the necessity of his incarceration, particularly after federal prosecutors in Brooklyn recently permitted former Abercrombie and Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries to be released on a $10 million bond while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. The US Attorney's office countered that Jeffries is 80 years old with no criminal history, unlike Combs, who has prior arrests. They also highlighted the recovery of rifles with defaced serial numbers from Combs' properties.

This week, prosecutors were ordered to destroy their copies of handwritten notes Combs made in jail, pending a decision on whether they fall under attorney-client privilege. A government investigator had photographed the notes during a sweep of the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where Combs remains incarcerated.

By Tamilla Hasanova