Los Angeles: Disgraced rapper Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs has withdrawn his bail appeal, keeping him in jail until his trial in May 2025.
The rapper had unsuccessfully requested for bail three times. He was first denied bail during his arraignment in federal court on September 17, a day after his arrest in a Manhattan hotel room on federal sex crime charges, ‘People’ magazine reported.
His second bail request was rejected a day later on 18 September by a different judge, who cited concerns about witness tampering.
According to ‘People’, his third and most recent request for bail was denied on Wednesday, November 27. At the time of the third ruling, Judge Arun Subramaniam of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York cited several reasons. The decision, given that Combs is a danger to the community and the seriousness of the violent crimes he has been charged with.
As a result of Combs’ new motion, he will remain in jail until his May 5, 2025 trial. Combs remains behind bars following his September indictment, in which he was charged with sex trafficking by force, transportation to engage in prostitution and racketeering conspiracy.
The indictment accuses Combs of being the ringleader of a “criminal enterprise” that allowed him to sexually, physically, emotionally and verbally abuse his victims for years. According to the indictment, Combs “abused, threatened, and coerced women and others around him to satisfy his sexual desires, protect his reputation, and conceal his conduct”. He is also accused of drug crimes, arson, bribery, kidnapping, forced labor and other crimes.
According to the BBC, lawyer Tony Buzbee, who is representing several alleged victims, claimed Combs is likely to face around 300 counts. He estimated that his team had received about 3,000 calls after urging potential victims to come forward through social media and a press conference on October 1.
“I think there’s potential [number of] The cases are probably between 300, but I think realistically, ultimately it will be about 100 to 150”, he told the BBC. Nearly equal numbers of men and women have come forward to accuse Combs of abuse, and The allegations span a 20-year period, the BBC reported, citing Buzbee.
The lawyer has so far filed 20 lawsuits on behalf of men and women seeking damages from the rapper.
