Sean 'Diddy' Combs defense team's only hope is to make sex acts appear consensual: Former prosecutor
Former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani on the charges against Sean 'Diddy' Combs and how he would defend the case if he were Combs' defense team.
Sean "Diddy" Combs is confident he's an innocent man nearly two weeks after he was indicted on multiple sex crimes charges.
The disgraced music mogul, 54, was recently taken "off suicide watch" at Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center while awaiting trial for allegedly running a criminal enterprise through his multiple business entities, a source with knowledge of the situation told Fox News Digital.
When asked if his client would possibly take a plea deal, criminal attorney, Marc Agnifilo, said in TMZ's "The Downfall of Diddy: The Indictment," "It's not up to me. It's up to Mr. Combs, and I don't see it happening because he believes he's innocent."
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Sean "Diddy" Combs will refuse a plea deal, according to his lawyer Marc Agnifilo. (Getty Images)
"And what's more, he believes that he needs to stand up not just for himself — for his family and for everybody who's been targeted by the federal government."
Diddy was arrested on Monday, Sept. 16, and charged the following day with racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, and transportation to engage in prostitution. The rapper entered a not guilty plea hours after an indictment detailing his alleged sex crimes was unsealed.
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If found guilty, he faces a minimum of 15 years behind bars or a maximum sentence of life in prison.
"And what's more, he believes that he needs to stand up not just for himself — for his family and for everybody who's been targeted by the federal government."
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"He feels an obligation to those people to say, ‘You know what, maybe I can break the model. Maybe I can show the world that a Black man can win in federal court,'" Agnifilo said.
Sean "Diddy" Combs pleaded not guilty; sits between his lawyers, Marc Agnifilo, left, and Teny Garagos, in Manhattan Federal Court earlier this month. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)
"And I think he probably is the only person I know of who might be able to actually accomplish that goal."
On Monday, Diddy's legal team appealed for his release from jail while he awaits trial in his sex trafficking case. From the new documents filed, Combs appears to be "building his dream legal defense team," a source close to Diddy told Fox News Digital.
In addition to trial lawyer Anthony Ricco, who served as president of the New York Criminal Bar Association, Diddy also retained criminal defense lawyer Alexandra Shapiro to his team. Shapiro previously served as a federal prosecutor in Manhattan, and was one of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's first clerks on the Supreme Court.
The "I'll Be Missing You" singer was denied bail twice, even after offering a $50 million bail proposal package, which included GPS monitoring at his home on Miami's Star Island. Diddy's team attempted to show the judge he was not a flight risk through his communications with the U.S. Attorney's Office during the ongoing investigation.
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U.S. District Court Judge Andrew Carter cited the possibility that Diddy would tamper with witnesses in his reasoning for denying bail. The judge conceded the prosecution had proven "by clear and convincing evidence that there is no condition or set of conditions" to secure community safety.
"He feels an obligation to those people to say, ‘You know what, maybe I can break the model. Maybe I can show the world that a Black man can win in federal court.'"
Combs' lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, argued for Diddy's release on bail following his arrest on racketeering and sex trafficking charges. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)
Attorney Marc Agnifilo spoke outside of the Manhattan Federal Court following Diddy's court appearance on Sept. 17. (REUTERS/Brendan McDermid)
Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily Johnson pointed to Diddy's long history of intimidating his accusers and the witnesses of his alleged abuse. Johnson claimed text messages showed Combs forced his victims into participating in sexual encounters he referred to as "freak offs." The rapper allegedly recorded the sex acts and then used the videos as leverage for their silence.
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Authorities alleged Diddy ran a criminal enterprise through his businesses, including Bad Boy Entertainment, Combs Enterprises and Combs Global, among others. He used "firearms, threats of violence, coercion, and verbal, emotional, physical, and sexual abuse" to fulfill his sexual desires, according to the unsealed indictment obtained by Fox News Digital.
Diddy and his employees would "intimidate, threaten, and lure female victims into Comb's orbit, often under the pretense of a romantic relationship. Combs allegedly then used force, threats of force and coercion, to cause victims to engage in extended sex acts with male commercial sex workers that Combs referred to as, among other things, 'Freak Offs.'" Diddy often provided IV fluids to his victims after "freak offs" to recover from physical exertion and drug use, per the indictment.
Sean "Diddy" Combs allegedly ran a criminal enterprise through his businesses. (Getty Images)
During raids on Diddy's home in March, authorities seized "freak off supplies" along with three AR-15s with defaced serial numbers, the court docs stated.
Law enforcement officials also took "cases and cases of the kinds of personal lubricant and baby oil that Diddy's staff allegedly used to stock hotel rooms for the freak offs, more than 1,000 bottles altogether," Williams said at a press conference.
One week before he was arrested, the "Victory" singer listed his Holmby Hills mansion that was raided for $61.5 million. Combs purchased the property in the coveted billionaire's row neighborhood of Los Angeles in 2014 for $39 million.
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Sources told Fox News Digital at the time that the sale of his 10-bedroom, 13-bath estate "has nothing to do with any civil litigation or investigation."
Sean Combs' LA home was raided by Homeland Security officials in March. (Getty Images)
"Diddy established his primary residence in Miami years ago and always planned to sell his LA home once his daughters grew up and moved out," the source said. "He’s an empty nester and spends most of his time in Florida. It has nothing to do with any civil litigation or investigation."
Fox News Digital's Lauryn Overhultz contributed to this report.
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