2 days Ago
Topline Rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs was arrested Monday and pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges including sex trafficking and racketeering and will remain in custody until his trial, provoking a range of sharp reactions from rapper and longtime critic 50 Cent, and other celebrities in the hip-hop and R&B communities. Key Facts Get Forbes Breaking News Text Alerts : We’re launching text message alerts so you'll always know the biggest stories shaping the day’s headlines. Text “Alerts” to (201) 335-0739 or sign up here.
50 Cent’s Yearslong Feud With Combs 50 Cent has long criticized Combs in the leadup to his indictment. In May, 50 Cent reshared a post from the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office condemning a video showing Combs assaulting his ex-girlfriend, Cassie Ventura, at a Los Angeles hotel in 2016. The attack took place beyond the statute of limitations, provoking 50 Cent to say the office released the video knowing “they can’t charge him with what we saw, but they know we can’t [unsee] Tangent O’Day is a former member of R&B girl group Danity Kane, which was signed to Combs’ record label, Bad Boy Records, in 2005.
Key Background Combs was denied bail Tuesday and will remain in federal custody until his trial over the three charges, which carry a minimum sentence of 15 years and a maximum sentence of life in prison. Prosecutors accused Combs of engaging in “verbal, emotional, sexual and physical abuse” and manipulating women into engaging in “extended sex acts with male commercial sex workers.” The charges against Combs follow months-worth of allegations made by women against the rapper accusing him of rape, sexual assault and abuse dating back several years.
The allegations, which mainly materialized from late last year to this summer, were denied by Combs’ attorneys, who told Forbes some of the lawsuits against the rapper were money grabs , “ baseless ” or “ sickening .” Further Reading Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Denied Bail After Pleading Not Guilty To Sex Trafficking, Racketeering Charges (Forbes) Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Arrested On Racketeering, Sex Trafficking Charges: A Complete Timeline Of Allegations Against Him (Forbes).
