Sean 'Diddy' Combs denied bail for the third time

A court denied Sean "Diddy" Combs' most recent request for release, meaning the rapper and music producer will stay behind bars as he faces trial for sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy.

On Wednesday, Combs' team's plea for parole was refused by Judge Arun Subramanian. Following a two-hour court session on Friday, during which he seemed to consider other choices and questioned the prosecution' claim that Combs was still obstructing the continuing investigation, he made his decision.

“The Court finds that the government has shown by clear and convincing evidence that no condition or combination of conditions will reasonably assure the safety of the community,” the judge wrote in a five-page order.

According to the ruling, Combs must stay at the Metropolitan Detention Center, a massive federal building on the Brooklyn waterfront, until his trial in May. Following a nearly ten-month federal investigation, Mr. Combs, 55, was arrested in September and has been in custody ever since.

Because Combs disregarded the judge's and jail's restrictions, federal prosecutors contended that he could not be trusted on bond. Even while in federal detention at the Metropolitan Detention Center, they claimed he was interfering with witnesses and a risk to women. Prosecutors said Combs attempted to avoid police surveillance by contacting witnesses via a number of methods, including three-way calling. They also claimed that he disregarded his attorneys' advice and broke the judge's own order restricting contacts by planning a social media campaign around his birthday in an attempt to sway the prospective jury pool.

In making his ruling, the court cited evidence that Combs was not abiding by the jail's regulations, including his continuous use of a texting app. “Underscoring the Court’s concern, despite defense counsel’s assurances to the Court at the November 22, 2024 hearing that Combs stopped using ContactMeASAP as of November 16, 2024, … the government indicates that Combs has continued to use this service as recently as this past Sunday, November 24, 2024.”

His lawyers pointed to a three-bedroom condominium on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, where they said he would be watched by security around-the-clock to keep an eye on phone conversations and visitors. Combs would also be required to deposit a $50 million bond as part of their proposed bail deal. The court dismissed the idea that Combs might remain at his Miami house with a boat dock for Friday's hearing, stating that it was "not going to work."

Two other federal judges had already refused Combs bail, citing a lack of restrictions that would guarantee he would not attempt to impede the investigation or pose a threat to the community. After first appealing one of those decisions, Combs requested that the appeals court postpone the matter until he could retry it with Judge Subramanian, who was reassigned to the case.