SEAN “Diddy” Combs has turned down a last minute plea deal just days before his bombshell sex trafficking trial starts.
The disgraced rap mogul, 55, is facing life in prison if found guilty of a multitude of serious charges lobbied against him.
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Combs was offered a chance to accept a plea deal from prosecutors in court which would have reduced any final sentence and allowed him to leave jail at an earlier date.
But at a hearing in a Manhattan federal court Combs – who was dressed in a tan prison outfit – rejected the offer.
He has continued to plead his innocence ever since being locked up last year as he now faces a trial and jury next week.
Combs will be tried over five criminal counts which include sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy ranging from across a 20-year period.
The former music producer denies all of the allegations against him.
Maurene Comey, a prosecutor with the Manhattan US Attorney’s office, said at Thursday’s hearing that Combs now faces a more severe sentence if he is convicted at trial due to the peace deal rejection.
No further details about the government’s offer have been released.
A jury of 12 from New York are set to be picked on May 5 for Combs’ case with opening statements due to kick off on May 12.
The lengthy trial is expected to last for at least eight weeks.
Combs will be allowed to wear his own clothes for the hearings, a judge confirmed in recent days.
He is currently locked up in a Brooklyn jail while awaiting trial.
The famed rapper is accused of abusing several women and leading Bad Boy Records as a “criminal enterprise” for more than a decade.
He was originally being tried over three criminal charges before an additional two were added at a later date.
These included prostitution and sex trafficking.
Prosecutors claim the rapper recruited, transported and forced this victim to engage in sex acts and prostitution from 2021 to 2024.
The 55-year-old has denied the allegations and his legal team has claimed that the activities described were “consensual.”
He has pleaded not guilty to all these charges.
Elsewhere, a slew of lawsuits are also stacked against the record producer accusing him of dozens of sexual assaults over the past 20 years.
Many of these alleged incidents are said to have occurred at meetings and Combs’ infamous parties.
The onslaught of claims was sparked after a video went viral in May of Combs beating his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura in a hotel in 2016.
However, Combs’ lawyers have called the wave of allegations “meritless” and part of a “reckless media circus.”
Earlier this year, the hip-hop mogul’s lawyer even sensationally quit the legal team – plunging the rapper into a new crisis.
Anthony Ricco issued a mysterious statement saying he “cannot continue” as he issued a surprise motion to withdraw from counsel.
Diddy’s downfall
By The U.S. Sun’s Senior Reporter Forrest McFarland, who has been reporting on Diddy’s legal battles for years
BEFORE Sean “Diddy” Combs’ arrest in September, it was highly speculated that the rap star would find himself in custody after he was repeatedly hit with disturbing accusations – and had two of his mansions raided by the feds.
His mounting legal troubles finally came to a head on September 17, when he was charged with three federal counts, including sex trafficking, for allegedly forcing victims to take part in drug-fueled sex parties he called “Freak Offs.”
Hours before his arrest, The U.S. Sun exclusively revealed the feds investigating Combs were secretly liaising with Tupac Shakur murder prosecutors on gangland activities.
The development also came after Combs was named 77 times in documents submitted by prosecutors in the Tupac murder case.
Aside from the Tupac probe, Combs was already facing a slew of lawsuits, including one he settled with his ex, Cassie Ventura, after she accused him of rape and abuse.
Disturbing hotel surveillance video from 2016 showed Combs chasing Cassie down and then punching, kicking, and beating her in a hallway.
Two months earlier, in March 2024, two of Combs’ mansions were raided by federal investigators, who seized three AR-15s, drugs, and 1,000 bottles of lube which were part of his “Freak Off” supplies.
In addition to his federal criminal charges, Combs also faces a handful of lawsuits with allegations of sexual assault, harassment, and sex trafficking dating back to the early 1990s.
Music producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones filed one suit in February 2024, claiming Combs forced him to hire sex workers and participate in sex acts while he worked on his latest album.
Combs has denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to the federal sex trafficking charges against him, but his battle is far from over.
He faces life in prison if he’s convicted on all counts.
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