ALBAWABA - Sean "Diddy" Combs will remain in custody until his trial for sex trafficking and other charges, a federal court in Manhattan determined Monday.
Following his not-guilty plea in a case accusing him of sexually and physically assaulting women for over a decade, Combs, 54, was sent to the notoriously harsh and tragic Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn on Tuesday.
Judge Andrew Carter denied the defense's request to release the heavily accused founder of Bad Boy Entertainment on a variety of conditions, including a $50 million bond, frequent drug testing, home detention in Miami, and a ban on female visitors, during a bail appeal hearing that lasted just under two hours on Wednesday at the Thurgood Marshall U.S. Courthouse.
As she did on September 17, Assistant US Attorney Emily Johnson continued to argue on behalf of the government, severing most of the defense's arguments. At its core, the matter revolved around the dual nature of Combs's danger to others and his efforts, both historical and prospective, to obstruct justice. In front of the courthouse, Johnson proclaimed, "You cannot take the defendant at his word" (with Combs sat nearby).
In response to the defense's letter requesting Judge Carter to free Combs, the U.S. Attorney's Office submitted a response just before today's appeal hearing. You can find the U.S. Attorney's opposition to Combs' defense bail appeal here. The feds listed the toxic trinity of "dangerousness, obstruction, and risk of flight" and noted that new concerns about witness interference and interference with a fair trial have emerged within the first 24 hours of the case's unsealing.
During his turn at the lectern this afternoon, defense counsel Marc Agnifilo made a number of promises, including that his client will pay a substantial sum, spend most of his time in isolation, abstain from drugs and alcohol, and have constant security guard protection. Private investigator Herman Weisberg, who worked for Harvey Weinstein, heads the planned private security agency Sage Intelligence.
Agnifilo also assured that Combs would not be able to digitally contact witnesses or anybody else since he would not have access to a smartphone or the internet.
Judge Carter, who lauded the government's evidence and efforts, clearly thought it wasn't satisfactory enough.
Charges of racketeering, sex trafficking, and transportation to participate in prostitution led to Combs' arrest on September 16, after months of a federal investigation, home searches, and almost a dozen civil lawsuits. After pleading not guilty on Tuesday, the 54-year-old musician faces the possibility of a life sentence in a federal prison upon conviction.
