Sean 'Diddy' Combs sex trafficking trial: Jurors hit snag on first day of deliberations

Jurors in Manhattan federal court hit a small glitch on the first day of deliberations in the Sean "Diddy” Combs racketeering and sex trafficking trial a half hour after the judge handed them the case on Monday morning.

The panel of four women and eight men sent a note to U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian complaining that one of the members had trouble following the rules in a trial, where federal prosecutors argued Combs allegedly used his global music, entertainment, clothing and liquor conglomerate to force women into drug-fueled sex marathons under the threat of violence and blackmail.

"We have a juror, No. 25, who we are concerned cannot follow your honor’s instructions,” the judge read aloud to the courtroom just past noon.

The judge suggested probing the jury further about whether the juror refused to follow his instructions, did not understand his instruction or some other issue.

Prosecutors suggested bringing the jury back into the courtroom and inquiring further about the point of contention.

Lead defense attorney Marc Agnifilo took a more neutral stance, arguing that it would be best to ask the jurors to try to work through the issues themselves rather than coloring deliberations with an admonishment or further inquiry.

"We can always ratchet it up,” the lawyer said. "We can’t ratchet it down.”

Subramanian agreed, in part, writing a note reminding them of their oath and their duty to deliberate on the case and asked them to resolve the issue among themselves.

Just before 5 p.m., the panel sent two more notes to the judge. The second note of the day asked about the law governing drug distribution.

Combs, 55, has been charged with racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transporting male escorts for the purpose of prostitution.

The racketeering charge is an umbrella statute that covers various criminal activities — in this case arson, kidnapping, drug distribution, forced labor, witness tampering, sex trafficking and transporting prostitutes.

The jurors must agree that Combs committed at least two of the same crimes in order to be able to convict him of racketeering conspiracy.

Combs, who pleaded not guilty to all of the charges, is accused of coercing his girlfriends to participate in drug-fueled threesomes with male escorts for days on end.

Prosecutors charge that he used his power, money and influence to bend the women to his will, threatening financial and reputational ruin if they refused to continue participating in the sex binges — dubbed "freak-offs” or "wild king nights.”

During the trial, jurors saw a 2016 surveillance recording from the InterContinental Hotel showing Combs pull his ex-girlfriend Casandra Ventura to the ground and kick her repeatedly, then drag her down a hotel hallway. They also viewed recordings of Combs, Ventura and other men performing in the freak-offs.

Ventura, who won a $20 million settlement from Combs after she sued him for sex trafficking and rape in 2023, said she spent two or three days in hotel rooms on and off for 11 years, high on ecstasy and having sex with multiple male prostitutes while Combs watched. He also recorded the sex binges, testimony showed.

Agnifilo accused federal prosecutors of overreaching and targeting Combs' personal life when their investigation turned up nothing criminal about his businesses.

"They go into the man's most private life," Agnifilo said during closing arguments. "Where's the crime scene? The crime scene is your private sex life. That's the crime scene. Nobody invited the government. Nobody went to the police."

In the second note to the judge, the jurors wanted to know if a person is guilty of drug distribution if the recipient asks for the drugs that are being taken.

“If a recipient wants, requests, or asks for controlled substances, and an individual hands over controlled substances to the requester, has the individual who hands over the controlled substances distributed?” the judge said, reading the note.

Subramanian offered to answer the question in the morning after giving the prosecution and defense lawyers more time to weigh in on the response.

A third note to the judge said the jurors were done with deliberations for the day at 5 p.m.

Several of the jurors nodded their heads vigorously when the judge agreed to let them go home for the day, thanking them for their service.

Combs, who faces a potential life sentence if convicted of the racketeering charge alone, has taken on a subdued air.

The Bad Boy Records founder, who led the East Coast faction of the deadly 1990s rap music feud against the West Coast hip-hoper Suge Knight, turned to the gallery on Monday to flash two self-help books that he kept with him through the trial — “The Power of Positive Thinking” by Norman Vincent Peale and "The Happiness Advantage” by Shawn Anchor.

The jury will return on Tuesday morning to resume deliberations. The courthouse is closed on Thursday and Friday, so if they don’t reach a verdict by Wednesday afternoon, they won’t return until the following Monday.