4 months ago
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NEW YORK - Sean “Diddy” Combs was sentenced on Oct 3 to more than four years in prison over his conviction on prostitution-related charges, with the judge rebuking the hip-hop mogul for subjecting two former girlfriends to years of abuse.
Combs, 55, was stoic as US District Judge Arun Subramanian announced the 50-month sentence at the end of a day-long hearing in Manhattan federal court.
He could be released in less than three years after receiving credit for the time he has already spent locked up at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn since his Sept 16, 2024 arrest.
Combs had faced a maximum possible sentence of 20 years behind bars over his conviction in July on two counts of arranging for paid male escorts to travel across state lines to take part in drug-fueled sexual performances with Combs’ girlfriends while he recorded video and masturbated.
The jury acquitted him on the more serious charges of racketeering and sex trafficking, which could have earned him a life sentence.
Those charges hinged on prosecutors’ accusation that Combs used violence and threats to coerce two of his girlfriends - the rhythm and blues singer Casandra Ventura, and a woman known in court by the pseudonym Jane - to take part in the performances, sometimes known as “Freak Offs”.
Despite his acquittal on those charges, Justice Subramanian said a significant sentence was justified given the harm Combs had caused Ventura and Jane.
“The court rejects the defence’s attempt to characterise what happened here as merely intimate, consensual experiences, or just a sex, drugs, and rock-and-roll story,” the judge said. “This was subjugation, and it drove both Ms Ventura and Jane to thoughts of ending their lives.”
Combs pleaded not guilty and is expected to a...
English (US)