Diddy Pleads Not Guilty Following Arrest and Unsealed Indictment

Sean “Diddy” Combs pleaded not guilty to several charges on Tuesday, September 17, one day after his New York arrest.

Page Six reported on Tuesday that he entered a not guilty plea for charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion and transportation to engage in prostitution.

“We are not done,” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a press conference on Tuesday, following Diddy’s arrest. “This investigation is ongoing, and I encourage anyone with information about this case to come forward and do it quickly.”

He added: “The investigation is ongoing. That means both as to him and anyone else we believe committed the crime with him.”

Diddy’s not guilty plea came after the 14-page indictment detailing the allegations against him was unsealed. The music mogul allegedly “abused, threatened, and coerced women and others around him to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation, and conceal his conduct,” the court documents revealed, noting that some of the alleged incidents dated back to 2009.

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“Combs relied on the employees, resources and influence of the multifaceted business empire that he led and controlled — creating a criminal enterprise whose members and associates engaged in, and attempted to engage in, among other crimes, sex trafficking, forced labor, kidnapping, arson, bribery and obstruction of justice,” the indictment continued.

Diddy was taken into custody on Monday, September 16, after a grand jury indicted him following multiple sexual assault lawsuits and a federal investigation. The U.S. Attorney’s Office confirmed the news of Diddy’s arrest via social media after The New York Times broke the news on Monday.

“Earlier this evening, federal agents arrested Sean Combs, based on a sealed indictment filed by the SDNY,” Damian Williams, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, shared via X. “We expect to move to unseal the indictment in the morning and will have more to say at that time.”

Diddy’s attorney, Marc Agnifilo, weighed in on the arrest in a statement to Us Weekly on Monday.

“We are disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe is an unjust prosecution of Mr. Combs by the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” Agnifilo said. “Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs is a music icon, self-made entrepreneur, loving family man, and proven philanthropist who has spent the last 30 years building an empire, adoring his children, and working to uplift the Black community.”

Sean “Diddy” Combs

Agnifilo added: “He is an imperfect person, but he is not a criminal. To his credit Mr. Combs has been nothing but cooperative with this investigation and he voluntarily relocated to New York last week in anticipation of these charges. Please reserve your judgment until you have all the facts. These are the acts of an innocent man with nothing to hide, and he looks forward to clearing his name in court.”

Diddy has been making headlines since March when his Miami and Beverly Hills homes were raided by Homeland Security in connection with a sex trafficking investigation. In the months that followed, multiple men and women have alleged they were sexually assaulted by the music mogul. Diddy has denied all the claims.

Most notably, Diddy’s ex-girlfriend Cassie filed a suit against the rapper in November 2023, accusing him of rape and abuse during their on-and-off relationship, which spanned from 2007 to 2018. They settled one day after she filed.

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However, video footage of Diddy physically assaulting Cassie in a hotel in 2016 was made public in May. He has since apologized for the altercation.

Earlier this month, Diddy was ordered to pay a $100 million default judgment from a civil lawsuit filed by a Michigan inmate who accused the music mogul of sexual assault. At the time, Diddy’s lawyer claimed the rapper “has never heard” of the accuser and filed an emergency motion to vacate the default judgment, as well as dissolve a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).

If you or someone you know is a human trafficking victim, contact the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.