Jailed hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs renewed his efforts Friday to be released from Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center, proposing new conditions including $50 million bond, round-the-clock home detention with GPS monitoring and strict limits on who he can contact outside his legal team.
The bond agreement would be co-signed by Combs’ family members, including his mom, sister and three adult sons, and be secured by the equity in his Miami home, according to a motion filed in Manhattan federal court. The property is said to be worth roughly $48 million.
Combs’ lawyers claim new evidence uncovered during the discovery process “undermines the primary bases” on which the feds initially sought for Diddy to be locked up.
His attorneys refer to a March 2016 video recording involving Diddy and a past romantic partner, described only in the documents as “Victim-1,” but believed to be Combs’ ex, Cassie Ventura.
Surveillance video released earlier this year depicted a March 2016 incident in which Diddy was seen grabbing, kicking and dragging Ventura in the hallway of a Los Angeles hotel.
“The video is not evidence of a coerced ‘freak off,’ but rather a minutes-long glimpse into a complex but decade-long consensual relationship between Mr. Combs and Victim-1,” his legal team contends.
“Freak offs” refer to the raucous sex parties allegedly hosted by the defendant. They were the primary factor in his indictment for sex trafficking and racketeering following Diddy’s arrest in September. Prosecutors claim the parties included the violent abuse of victims who were drugged with sedatives and coerced into sexual acts that were often recorded.
The 55-year-old’s attorneys contend the first allegations of any illegal activity pertaining to Victim-1 came in 2023, five years after the couple’s 2018 breakup. They claim their evidence shows the accusations were “merely attempts to obtain a financial windfall from Mr. Combs.”
Ventura filed a blockbuster lawsuit against Combs last November, alleging years of rape, sex trafficking and physical abuse. His lawyers claim she demanded $30 million. The hip-hop mogul settled the suit with Ventura the following day, though the terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
Combs’ defense also says the government’s claims of obstruction and witness tampering are baseless.
The motion argues Combs cannot adequately aid in his own defense while behind bars at MDC Brooklyn, especially considering the significant amount of data obtained from his Miami home.
Keeping Combs detained under such circumstances leaves him unconstitutionally “handicapped in consulting counsel, searching for evidence and witnesses, and preparing [his] defense,” his team says in the filing.
Combs was arrested on Sept. 16 and charged with racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, and transportation to engage in prostitution. He has pleaded not guilty.
His attorneys had no comment on Friday’s filing.
