Ye, the rapper formerly known asKanye West, briefly came to the New York sex-trafficking trial ofSean “Diddy” Combson Friday to support the hip-hop mogul, a longtime friend.
Ye, dressed in white, arrived at Manhattan federal court before noon while the trial was on a break.
Asked if he was at the courthouse to support Combs, he responded “yes” and nodded. He then hustled to an elevator and did not appear to respond when a reporter asked if he might testify on Combs’s behalf when the defense begins presenting its case as early as next week.
West did not stay long. He was reportedly directed to the overflow room, and about 40 minutes after he first entered, left the courthouse via the front entrance, perCNN. He was then seen getting into a car and driving away.
Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to sex-trafficking and racketeering conspiracy charges alleging that he used his fame, fortune and violence to commit crimes over a 20-year period.
Ye’s appearance at the courthouse came a day after a woman identified in court only by the pseudonym “Jane”finished six days of testimony.
She testified that during a relationship with Combs that stretched from 2021 until his arrest last September at a Manhattan hotel, she felt coerced into having sex with male sex workers while Combs watched.
Defense attorneys have argued that Combs committed no crimes and that federal prosecutors were trying to police consensual sex that occurred between adults.
On Thursday, Jane testified that during a three-month break in her relationship with Combs, she flew to Las Vegas in January 2023 with a famous rapper who was close friends with Combs.
Before Jane’s testimony on the subject, lawyers and the judge conducted a lengthy hearing out of public view to discuss what could be divulged about the January trip.
Jane was asked if the rapper she accompanied along with the rapper’s girlfriend was “an individual at the top of the music industry as well ... an icon in the music industry”.
“Yes,” Jane replied.
Once in Las Vegas, Jane testified, she went with a group including the rapper to dinner, a strip club and a hotel room party, where a sex worker had sex with a woman while a half-dozen others watched.
She said there was dancing and the rapper said, “hey beautiful,” and told her he had always wanted to have sex with her in crude terms. Jane said she did not recall exactly when, but she flashed her breasts while dancing.
Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organizations. In the US,Rainnoffers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK,Rape Crisisoffers support on 0808 500 2222. In Australia, support is available at1800Respect(1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found atibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html