Sean Combs is facing accusations of attempting to interfere with the investigation into his alleged crimes by reaching out to potential witnesses, among other actions.
Known by his stage name ‘Diddy’, Combs finds himself at the heart of a controversial case involving allegations of sex trafficking, drugging, and abusing women and others, reportedly using his ‘freak-off’ parties to coerce individuals into compliance.
Following his arrest, he was charged with sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, and offenses related to prostitution. Prosecutors have accused him of trying to influence the jury pool from inside the Metropolitan Detention Center.
It’s alleged that Diddy has been using other inmates’ mobile phones to contact individuals on and off his approved contact list, as well as initiating a social media campaign.
Prosecutors revealed in a recent court filing that they had listened to his recorded calls, discovering that he allegedly used at least eight different inmate phones to skirt monitoring.
According to prosecutors, Combs compensated these inmates through intermediaries, a breach of the rules outlined for inmates.
For those not on his approved contact list, Diddy reportedly used three-way calls to bypass restrictions and utilized a non-authorized third-party system to send ‘hundreds of text messages’ to various individuals, both on and off the approved list.
“The defendant has shown repeatedly — even while in custody — that he will flagrantly and repeatedly flout rules in order to improperly impact the outcome of his case. The defendant has shown, in other words, that he cannot be trusted to abide by rules or conditions,” prosecutors wrote in a submission.
It added: “The defendant’s efforts to obstruct the integrity of this proceeding also includes relentless efforts to contact potential witnesses, including victims of his abuse who could provide powerful testimony against him.”
These claims were filed in court on November 15, with Combs scheduled to appear in court again on November 22. Prosecutors are arguing against another bail hearing due to his behavior while in custody.
Despite pleading not guilty, Combs has also denied the various complaints made against him during his time at the Center.
The prosecutors assert that Combs has tried to contact potential witnesses and even his accusers, allegedly seeking to intimidate them into not testifying or to testify in his favor.
“Since the defendant has been detained at MDC, he has continued to try to evade law enforcement monitoring, corruptly influence witness testimony, and further attack the integrity of these proceedings,” the prosecutors wrote.
They also allege that ‘while attempting to evade law enforcement monitoring, the defendant has, among other things, orchestrated social media campaigns that are, in his own words, aimed at tainting the jury pool; made efforts to publicly leak materials he views as helpful to his case; and contacted witnesses through third parties.’
During the opposition to his motion for bail on Friday, prosecutors claimed that Diddy ‘rehashes the same arguments’ previously dismissed by two judges.
They contend that ‘the defendant offers nothing new and material justifying a third bail hearing.’
Given his behavior while in federal custody at the Detention Center, the prosecution is convinced that he would not comply with any bail conditions imposed by a judge.