Sean 'Diddy' Combs Sentencing Live Updates: Rap Mogul Brought In Court As Hearing Begins

The sentencing hearing for Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs opened with brief remarks exchanged between Judge Arun Subramanian and the defendant.

“Good morning and good morning to you, Mr. Combs,” Judge Arun Subramanian said.

“Good morning, your honor,” Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs replied.

Judge Arun Subramanian then outlined how the hearing would proceed, noting he had received and reviewed extensive paperwork from both sides of the case.

“I have read all the material and read the letters and greatly appreciate those,” he told the courtroom.

The documents include sentencing memos, exhibits, letters from family, friends and inmates, as well as a defense video prepared on Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ behalf.

The sentencing hearing for Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs has begun.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs was escorted into the packed Manhattan federal courtroom by deputy US marshals.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs was transported Friday morning from the Metropolitan Detention Center, the Brooklyn federal jail where he has been held since his arrest in September 2024.

He arrived wearing a light-colored sweater over a button-down shirt and dress pants, after receiving permission from Judge Arun Subramanian to appear in non-prison clothing, as he did throughout his trial.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs greeted his family, hugged his lawyers and supporters and then walked to the defense table.

Prosecutors submitted several victim impact statements ahead of sentencing, including one from R&B singer Cassie Ventura, who testified during the trial about her decade-long relationship with Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs.

In her written statement, Cassie Ventura said, “While the jury did not seem to understand or believe that I engaged in freak-offs because of the force and coercion the defendant used against me, I know that is the truth, and his sentence should reflect the reality of the evidence and my lived experience as a victim.”

Cassie Ventura added that she feared retaliation if Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs were released.

“I am so scared that if he walks free, his first actions will be swift retribution towards me and others who spoke up about his abuse, at trial.”

She concluded, “If there is one thing I have learned from this experience, it is that victims and survivors will never be safe. I hope that your decision considers the truths at hand that the jury failed to see.”

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs has written a letter to Judge Arun Subramanian ahead of his sentencing, describing his time in custody as a “spiritual reset” and asking for the chance to return home to his family.

“The old me died in jail and a new version of me was reborn. Prison will change you or kill you – I choose to live,” Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, 55, wrote.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs said he no longer cares about wealth or celebrity, “I no longer care about the money or the fame. There is nothing more important to me than my family.”

In the letter, Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs told the judge he hopes for release so he can be with his children and his mother.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ legal team requested that he be allowed to appear in non-prison clothing at today’s sentencing, just as he did during his trial, when he wore sweaters and collared shirts instead of a jumpsuit.

In a letter to the court, his attorneys wrote, “The sentencing proceeding holds significant importance for Mr. Combs. He wishes to appear before the Court, address Your Honor, and allocate in the most dignified and respectful fashion possible.”

The judge has not yet indicated whether the request will be granted.

One of the most powerful moments in Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ trial came from R&B singer Casandra “Cassie” Ventura, who spent four days on the witness stand. She told jurors that during their decade-long relationship, Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs ordered her to have what she called “disgusting” sex with strangers hundreds of times, often during multiday drug-fueled encounters she described as “freak-offs.”

The jury was shown surveillance footage repeatedly of Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs dragging and beating Cassie in the hallway of a Los Angeles hotel, an attack she said came after one of those marathons.

Sean “Diddy” Combs will appear in a Manhattan federal courtroom today to learn his fate after being convicted earlier this year on prostitution-related charges.

The eight-week trial, which wrapped in July, ended with a split verdict: jurors acquitted Sean Diddy Combs of the most serious accusations- sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy- but found him guilty on two counts of transporting people for prostitution.

Those convictions, under the Mann Act, carry up to 10 years each, leaving Sean Diddy Combs facing as much as 20 years in prison.

Sean Diddy Combs had been accused of coercing two former partners into drug-fueled encounters with hired escorts, allegations that jurors ultimately rejected at the highest level.

Sean Diddy Combs has asked the court to play a 15-minute video during his sentencing hearing. The footage features him spending time with his children, mourning former partner Kim Porter and delivering motivational speeches at New York fundraisers.

Described as a carefully curated compilation, the video highlights moments from Sean Diddy Combs’ life as a public figure who has long been under the camera’s gaze. His legal team hopes it will help persuade the judge that he merits a more lenient sentence and should be released soon.

US prosecutors accused Sean Diddy Combs of running a decade-long “criminal enterprise” and coercing women into drug-fueled, marathon sexual encounters with male escorts known as “freak-offs.”

In the indictment, prosecutors for the Southern District of New York alleged that Sean Diddy Combs “abused, threatened, and coerced women and others around him to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation, and conceal his conduct.”

Sean Diddy Combs pleaded not guilty and denied all allegations.

After an eight-week trial, the jury delivered a split verdict. Sean Diddy Combs was acquitted of the two most serious charges- racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion- each of which carried a possible life sentence. However, he was convicted on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution under the Mann Act, a federal law dating back to 1910 that makes it illegal to transport people across state lines for “immoral purposes.”

Sean “Diddy” Combs wrote a letter to US District Judge Arun Subramanian, describing himself as a “changed man” and expressing remorse for past violence.

In the letter, Sean Diddy Combs apologized for assaulting then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura at a Los Angeles hotel in 2016- an incident captured on security camera footage and shown repeatedly to jurors during the trial.

“The scene and images of me assaulting Cassie play over and over in my head daily. I literally lost my mind. I was dead wrong for putting my hands on the woman that I loved. I’m sorry for that and always will be.”

The letter is expected to weigh into the judge’s decision as Sean Diddy Combs faces sentencing today.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs was convicted in July on two counts of transporting women across state lines for prostitution under the Mann Act. Each charge carries up to 10 years in prison.

Prosecutors want at least 11 years.

The defense is pushing for just 14 months, arguing he’s already been in custody since last year.

The final decision will be announced by the judge today.

Convicted rap mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs has written a letter to the judge overseeing his criminal trial, asking for leniency during his sentencing.

In the four-page letter, he apologised “for all of the hurt and pain that I have caused” and said that he has been reformed after spending 13 months in a Brooklyn jail.

 The hip-hop mogul was convicted in July of flying people around the country for sexual encounters, including his girlfriends and male sex workers, in violation of the federal Mann Act.

A jury acquitted Combs, 55, of more serious racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking charges that could have put him away for life.