• 2 months ago

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People
Transcript
00:00Hi, I'm Faith Jenkins, former Manhattan prosecutor
00:03and host of Killer Relationship on Oxygen.
00:05And I'm here with Ebony to discuss the latest developments
00:08in the Sean Diddy Combs legal case.
00:11The charges are the following, racketeering.
00:13That involves allegations that Diddy ran
00:16a criminal enterprise engaged in sex trafficking,
00:20drug distribution, forced prostitution,
00:23and other illegal activities.
00:25The RICO Act is often used to prosecute individuals
00:28involved in organized crime, so we're waiting to see
00:31if that statute is going to be implicated here.
00:34Sex trafficking is another charge.
00:36He's accused of organizing and facilitating
00:39sex trafficking operations, including coercing women
00:43into participating in drug-fueled sex parties
00:47known as freak-offs.
00:48The prosecution alleges that these women
00:51were trafficked across state lines for these events.
00:54And lastly, he's accused of drug distribution.
00:58Authorities found large quantities of illegal drugs
01:01they say during these raids, which were reportedly used
01:04to facilitate the sex trafficking and exploitation of women.
01:09If found guilty at trial, Diddy faces significant jail time.
01:12It could be up to life in prison.
01:14He was not bailed for really two main reasons
01:18that the judge looked at in the bail hearing.
01:20One, dangerous to the community.
01:22The allegations are that he is a serial abuser,
01:25serial corruptor, and he will take the opportunity,
01:28if he can, to continue to abuse and intimidate witnesses
01:32and affect the legal process
01:33so they won't testify against him.
01:36The second factor is risk of flight.
01:38You'll see that the defense turned over
01:40not just his passport, but the passports
01:42of all of his children, including his baby,
01:45saying to the court, he's not going anywhere
01:48and his family's not going anywhere either.
01:50But those arguments were not enough for the judge,
01:52particularly the judge was concerned
01:55about witness tampering.
01:57The items found in Diddy's homes during the raids
02:00are significant for a few reasons.
02:01The prosecutors are saying they suggest
02:03a well-organized and large-scale criminal operation,
02:07which could lead to RICO charges.
02:09Here's what was discovered and how it connects
02:11to a potential broader criminal organization.
02:14One, firearms.
02:15Authorities say they found illegal firearms
02:18during the raids.
02:19The presence of these weapons,
02:21particularly if unregistered or connected to other crimes,
02:25raises concerns about the use of force or intimidation
02:29within this alleged criminal enterprise.
02:31Two, drugs.
02:33Various drugs, including meth, oxycodone,
02:37were reportedly discovered.
02:39The drugs are tied to allegations
02:41that they were used to coerce women
02:43in participating in these sex parties.
02:46Next, they say they found these freak-off supplies.
02:49Investigators recovered over 1,000 bottles
02:54of baby oil and lubricant,
02:56which they say were allegedly used during these sex parties
02:59Diddy is accused of organizing.
03:01Now, the defense is going to argue that,
03:04listen, he shops in bulk, he buys from Costco.
03:07What's illegal about having so many bottles of baby oil?
03:11But the prosecutor's statement is that,
03:13no, this is evidence of a systemic effort
03:15to plan and orchestrate these illegal activities,
03:18these parties, coercion of women,
03:21which points to this larger-scale criminal operation.
03:24The potential sentence depends on several factors.
03:27For example, racketeering,
03:28a conviction could result in a 20-year sentence per count,
03:32especially if the court finds that he was involved
03:34in an ongoing criminal enterprise with multiple violations.
03:39So what is the defense going to be?
03:41What is the defense's strongest argument?
03:43When you have a vast amount of electronic surveillance,
03:45which the prosecutors are saying they have,
03:47they said they have videos of freak-offs,
03:49cell phone videos, hard drives, plus 50 to 60 witnesses.
03:54So the defense is not gonna argue that this didn't happen.
03:57The argument is going to be that everyone involved,
04:00they're all adults, they're consensual,
04:03that they wanted to be there.
04:05But the prosecutors are having a pretty detailed outline
04:08of the charges, so we'll wait to see
04:10how Diddy will address these charge by charge.
04:13Federal authorities, including Homeland Security,
04:16will continue to investigate this case.
04:18They will continue to gather evidence,
04:20interview witnesses, examine financial transactions.
04:24There may be more developments
04:25as they uncover additional aspects
04:28of the alleged criminal enterprise,
04:31which could result in more charges being filed
04:34or even additional defendants being implicated.
04:38So you may see more co-conspirators being named,
04:41or an opposite of that,
04:43you may see more co-operators come forward
04:46because the authorities are going to give them incentives,
04:49stay out of jail cards, to cooperate in the investigation.
04:53There is still potential here for a plea deal.
04:55While Diddy has so far maintained his innocence,
04:58it's possible that as the case progresses,
05:01his legal team might explore a plea deal
05:03to avoid a lengthy trial and potentially harsher sentencing
05:07if convicted on all these charges.
05:09However, this would depend on the strength of the evidence
05:12and the willingness of prosecutors to negotiate.

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