Diddy’s Guilty Split: Convicted on Prostitution Counts, Acquitted on Trafficking Charges
Listen up, gossip addicts—here’s the tea you absolutely need on Sean “Diddy” Combs’s sex-trafficking trial, simplified in case you missed the headlines. After seven weeks of courtroom drama and 12 hours of jury deliberations, a New York jury handed down a mixed verdict on July 2: guilty on two prostitution-related counts, not guilty on three more serious charges including sex trafficking and racketeering, per NBC News and CNN reports.
The prosecution called 34 witnesses over 29 days, from ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura to a pseudonymous accuser dubbed “Jane,” along with former employees George Kaplan, Brendan Paul and “Mia” laying out alleged “freak-off” parties orchestrated by the Bad Boy Records founder (E! News). They claimed Combs marshaled his team of assistants and escorts across the country to cater to his “king”-level demands—complete with drugs and sex workers—while he watched. Security supervisor Eddy Garcia even testified that the mogul paid $100,000 to suppress 2016 hotel footage of him assaulting Ventura, evidence later released by CNN.
Meanwhile, Combs’s defense team breezed through in about 20 minutes after prosecutors rested, presenting stipulations and choosing not to call any witnesses—nor did Combs himself testify, as he confirmed to Judge Arun Subramanian that the decision was “solely” his. They argued that these were private life incidents, not criminal conspiracies, and insisted the government failed to prove coercion beyond a reasonable doubt (NBC News).
Prosecutor Christy Slavik delivered a nearly five-hour closing that painted Combs as a man who “used power, violence and fear to get what he wanted,” citing a 2024 alleged assault on Ventura and threats against rapper Kid Cudi—testimony backed by both Paul and Cudi himself, who recounted a Molotov cocktail thrown at his car. Slavik drove home that Combs treated his inner circle as “subjects in his kingdom.”
Now with a split verdict secured—prostitution convictions but trafficking acquittals—Combs faces sentencing that could reshape his empire. Stay tuned to see if the music mogul’s legacy survives these shocking convictions, and what legal maneuvers his team will pull next.
Sources: Celebrity Storm and NBC News, CNN, E! News
Attribution: Creative Commons Licensed
