Lawyers for Sean 'Diddy' Combs preview his legal defence in his sex trafficking case, arguing that the rapper led the 'lifestyle' of a 'swinger' and was not a criminal.Jury selection gets underway on 5 May, with potential jurors asked a range of questions, including whether they watch crime shows.Anoushka Mutanda-Dougherty goes through all the latest pre-trial news with criminal defence attorney Shaun Kent and Rolling Stone’s senior investigative reporter Cheyenne Roundtree.The Diddy on Trial podcast is here to investigate the rumours, confront the theories, and give you the answers that you need.We also want YOU to be part of the conversation. Have you any burning questions about the cases or the upcoming trial? Heard a theory that doesn’t sit right with you? Get in touch now via WhatsApp: 0330 123 555 1.Presenter: Anoushka Mutanda-Dougherty Series Producer: Laura Jones Sound Design: Richard Hannaford Video producer: Daniel Raza Production Coordinator: Hattie Valentine Editor: Clare FordhamCommissioning Editor: Rhian Roberts Assistant Commissioner: Will Drysdale Commissioning Producer: Adam Eland Commissioning Assistant Producer: Rechmial MillerSean ‘Diddy’ Combs - who has also gone by the names Puffy, Puff Daddy, P Diddy, Love, and Brother Love - emerged into the hip-hop scene in the 1990s. He founded Bad Boy Records, which launched the careers of the Notorious B.I.G. and Mary J Blige.His current legal issues began when he was sued by his ex-girlfriend Casandra Ventura, also known as Cassie, in late 2023. She accused him of violently abusing and raping her. That lawsuit was settled for an undisclosed amount a day after it was filed, with Mr Combs maintaining his innocence.His controversial history with Ms Ventura resurfaced in 2024, when CCTV footage emerged showing Mr Combs kicking his former girlfriend as she lay on a hotel hallway floor in 2016.Multiple people have filed lawsuits accusing Mr Combs of sexual assault, with accusations dating back to 1991. He denies all claims.He is accused of the federal charges of kidnapping, drugging and coercing women into sexual activities, sometimes by using firearms or threatening them with violence. He denies the charges.
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BBC Sounds. Music, radio, podcasts. Hello and welcome back to Diddy on Trial from BBC Sounds with me, Anushka Matanda-Doughty. 11 days till opening statements are expected in the trial of rapper Sean Diddy Combs. He is fighting for his freedom against federal charges of sex trafficking, transportation for prostitution, and racketeering with conspiracy, and Diddy denies them all.
Now, you already know we're going to be in New York bringing you the latest updates and you already know to turn on those push notifications and subscribe. But on the 25th of April, there was a pretrial court hearing in the Southern District of New York. And this gave us a really clear view of how Diddy's team are gearing up to fight those sex trafficking allegations.
In short, his lawyers told the court that he's a swinger and, quote, he thought it, it being the swinging, was appropriate because it was common. Also, later on, we'll be taking a look at the questions potential jurors are being asked, including ones you may not expect, like whether they're into crime shows. Don't forget you can send your questions in to WhatsApp at 0330 123 5551.
That's 0330 123 5551. Joining me today is our resident Dream Team. We have criminal defence attorney, Sean Kent. Hi, Sean.
Hey, how are you doing?
And Rolling Stone's senior investigative reporter, Cheyenne Roundtree. Hi, Cheyenne. Hi, morning. Cheyenne, can you just explain to us a little bit more about what was decided at this hearing?
Sure. So this is one of the last hearings that we'll have before Diddy is in court. And so this hearing was to kind of hash out some last issues on the table. One of the big things was the CNN hotel video that I think everyone has seen where Diddy is seen kicking, dragging Cassie in a hotel as she was supposedly leaving a freak off.
Diddy's team had claimed that the video was deceptive, that CNN had sped up Certain aspects of the video that there was different camera angles that the sequences events weren't exactly accurate. So they didn't want the video to be included at trial.
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