Timeline of the charges and allegations against Sean Combs

Rap musician and mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs has been cleared of racketeering and sex trafficking but found guilty of two counts of transportation for prostitution, after a seven-week trial in New York. These charges are separate to a spate of civil lawsuits brought by dozens of women, many of which are still ongoing. Here is how the allegations against Combs have stacked up, and how the court case played out. In a civil lawsuit, singer and model Casandra Ventura, known as Cassie, alleged he set up a "manipulative and coercive romantic and sexual relationship", during which he "regularly beat and kicked Ms Ventura, leaving black eyes, bruises, and blood". She described parties known as "freak offs" - drug-fuelled, days-long sexual performances - which Combs allegedly coerced women into, and filmed for his own pleasure. Ms Ventura also accused the musician of sexual abuse and rape, and claimed that many of these incidents were witnessed by his "tremendously loyal network". Combs strenuously denied the allegations and accused Ms Ventura of extortion. They settled the case for an undisclosed amount a day after it was filed in New York. In the weeks after settling Cassie's lawsuit, Combs was accused of sexual assault dating back to 1991 by multiple women. These included allegations of sexual coercion, the rape of a 16-year-old girl and unauthorised filming. Combs denied all the allegations, and his spokesperson called them a "money grab". Another woman sued in December, claiming she was "sex trafficked" and "gang raped". He Combs responded to the flurry of lawsuits with a statement on Instagram. "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH," he wrote. "Sickening allegations have been made against me by individuals looking for a quick payday. Let me be absolutely clear: I did not do any of the awful things being alleged. I will fight for my name, my family and for the truth." Music producer Rodney Jones Jr, who produced nine tracks on 2023's The Love Album, sued Combs in February 2024, accusing the star of making unwanted sexual contact and forcing him to hire prostitutes and participate in sex acts with them. In court papers filed in New York, Mr Jones also claimed that Combs tried to "groom" him into having sex with another man, telling him it was "a normal practice in the music industry". Combs' lawyer, Shawn Holley, called Mr Jones "nothing more than a liar" and described his claims as "pure fiction". CCTV footageemergedshowing Combs assaulting Cassie in the hallway of a Los Angeles hotel in 2016. The pictures, broadcast by CNN, showed Ms Ventura being pushed to the floor and kicking her while she was on the ground. He later attempted to drag her by her shirt and throw an object at her. A day later,Combs apologised, saying: "I take full responsibility for my actions in that video. I was disgusted then when I did it. I'm disgusted now." Ms Ventura later posted a statement highlighting the lifelong impact of domestic violence. "It broke me down to someone I never thought I would become,"she wrote. Dawn Richard, a former singer in Combs' girl group project Danity Kane, is the latest to file a suit against the star. The singer, who later joined Combs in the band Diddy Dirty Money, alleged that the musician sexually assaulted her on multiple occasions by touching her body, as well as verbally abusing and overworking her. The star wasarrested in a Manhattan hotelafter a grand jury indictment. His lawyer said the star had co-operated with authorities, and voluntarily relocated to New York in anticipation of the charges. "These are the acts of an innocent man with nothing to hide, and he looks forward to clearing his name in court," he added. Combs was charged with sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution. Prosecutors also alleged that he also engaged in kidnapping, forced labour, bribery and other crimes. They described him as the head of a criminal enterprise that abused women, using threats of violence to force them into participating in drug-fuelled orgies with male prostitutes. These "freak offs" were "elaborate and produced sex performances" and were highly organised parties, prosecutors said. Combs' associates allegedly booked hotel suites, recruited sex workers and distributed drugs including cocaine, methamphetamine and oxycodone to coerce partygoers into sex and keep them "obedient". His staff allegedly arranged travel for the victims and organised the supply of intravenous fluids to help them recover from the parties, which sometimes lasted for days. Prosecutors also alleged that Combs taped the "freak offs" and would use the footage to pressure his victims into silence. Combs' lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, declared his client's innocence, and described the "freak offs" as consensual. "Is it sex trafficking?" he asked. "Not if everybody wants to be there." Combs pleaded not guilty to the charges. A lawyer saidmore than 100 people plan to sue Combsfor sexual assault, rape and sexual exploitation. Tony Buzbee said he was representing 120 people, half of whom were men, and 25 of whom were minors - the first time Combs has been accused of sexually abusing children. One was aged nine at the time of the alleged assault. More lawsuits followed, including one froma woman who accused him of raping heras "payback" for her suggestion that he was involved in the murder of rapper Tupac Shakur. In another, the alleged victim was 10 at the time. Fashion designer Bryana "Bana" Bongolanfiled a lawsuitalleging that Combs threatened to kill her and dangled her over a 17th floor balcony, during an incident in 2016. Combs' lawyer said the rapper categorically denied all the allegations. Among 10 more new lawsuits is a complaint from an anonymous male escort who claimed Combs sexually assaulted him, then threatened him to keep quiet by allegedly saying, "If I can get Pac [Tupac] hit, what the [expletive] do you think can happen to you?" Another lawsuit is filed by Kirk Burrowes, the co-founder of Combs' company Bad Boy Entertainment. In legal papers, Burrowes alleged that, on multiple occasions, Combs summoned him to his office where, upon arrival, he would find the musician engaging in sexual acts. Burrowes claimed "Combs orchestrated these encounters as a means of psychologically breaking down Plaintiff's resistance and establishing his submission". Combs' lawyers dismissed the flurry of new claims. "We live in a world where anyone can file a lawsuit for any reason," they said in a statement. Prosecutors amended their case against Combs, adding accusations that the hip-hop mogul forced employees to work long hours and threatened to punish those who did not assist in his alleged two-decade sex trafficking scheme. Combs appeared in court a week laterto plead not guilty. Federal prosecutorsamended the indictment against Combs for a third time,adding two new charges of sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. Both charges related to a woman described as "Victim-2". Prosecutors alleged that Combs used force, fraud or coercion to recruit, harbour and transport the woman across state lines, with the intent of engaging in prostitution between 2021 and 2024. Combs appeared in court on 14 May to plead not guilty. At a pre-trial hearing, Combs' lawyers laid the foundations of their defence - arguing that the rapperled a "swinger" lifestyle, but that this was not criminal. His attorneys told the court the rap mogul thought it "appropriate" and commonplace to have multiple sexual partners, including sex workers. Separately, federal prosecutors revealed to the court that Combs had rejected their offer of a plea deal. The court heard opening statementsfrom the prosecution, who accused Combs of using fame and violence to abuse women. Prosecutor Emily Johnson focused on two central alleged victims - Combs' former girlfriend Cassie Ventura, and another unnamed former girlfriend, known as "Jane". She told the jury that Combs would order sex acts and engage in a pattern of violent, sexual behaviour. This included threatening to damage Ms Ventura's music career as a way to force her to perform non-consensual, humiliating sexual acts with male prostitutes, during "freak-offs" filmed by Combs. The rapper's attorneys defended his "swinger" lifestyle and rejected sex trafficking claims. Lawyers for Mr Combs said the infamous hallway video was evidence of Combs' "flawed" character, including domestic abuse, but not of a larger criminal enterprise. "Domestic violence is not sex trafficking," argued Teny Geragos, Combs' attorney. He added that the government had overstepped with its charges and were trying to portray consensual sex between adults as evidence of crimes. The R&B startook the witness stand for four days, describing in emotional detail the years of beatings and drug-fuelled sex encounters with prostitutes that she allegedly endured at the hands of Combs, who she dated for more than a decade. The relationship, although initially loving, quickly became coercive she said, and violence followed. Ms Ventura testified that the hotel hallway incident took place after she tried to leave a "freak-off". She said that while she initially participated in these sexual encounters with escorts to please him, they eventually left her feeling "worthless". She estimated these happened "hundreds" of times throughout their relationship and would sometimes last as long as four days. The strain would force her to take drugs to stay awake and cause physical injuries and urinary tract infections. The trauma, she testified, pushed her to the brink of suicide. In response, Combs' defence team confronted Ms Ventura with text messages in an attempt to show she had been a willing participant. The singer pushed back, saying she felt she had no choice but to comply. US rapper Kid Cudi, whose legal name is Scott Mescudi,took the stand to testify about Combs' jealous ragewhen the mogul found out he was dating Cassie Ventura. Mr Mescudi alleged that Combs broke into his home and bombed his Porsche with a Molotov cocktail. The star said he rushed home following a call from his dogsitter to find a hole cut in the car's roof, with an explosive inside. Images of damage were shown to the court. In response Combs' lawyer emphasised that there was no evidence of his client's involvement in either incident. A witness using the pseudonym "Jane", who dated Combs from 2021 until his arrest in September 2024,took to the stand for the first of six days. Her testimony mirrored that of Ms Ventura by describing how she felt pressured into sexual acts with male escorts while Combs watched. Jane said Combs continued to insist she participate in "hotel nights" despite her making clear the emotional distress they caused. She added these acts left her with physical pain and infections, but she tried to hide this to avoid appearing negative. Jane also testified that Combs used a network of employees to procure drugs for their encounters with escorts - allegations used by the prosecution as evidence of racketeering. In response, Combs' lawyers said she had stayed of her own free will. According to the New York Times, when asked under cross-examination about messages that appeared to show enthusiasm for the nights, she said: "I resent him for knowing how much I loved him and knowing I couldn't say no to him." As the case reached its conclusion, legal counsels for both sides presented highly-charged closing arguments. Prosecutor Christy Slavik told jurors Combs abused his power and business empire to traffic women and commit other crimes. The prosecution pointed to patterns of coercion and abuse, from the testimonies of Ms Ventura and Jane. They argued Combs ran a "criminal enterprise" to facilitate his sexual abuse of women and hide his conduct, including allegedly setting fire to Kid Cudi's Porsche. But the defence said the sex trafficking and racketeering case against Combs "badly, badly exaggerated". His lawyer Marc Agnifilo argued that the government was criminalising Combs and his girlfriends' "swingers lifestyle" in what amounted to a "fake trial". He attacked the credibility of Combs' ex-girlfriends who testified against him, claiming they were both willing participants in an active sex life. In a rebuttal, prosecutor Maurene Comey added: "There is no separating the violence from the sex. They were trapped emotionally, physically and financially." Combs is found not guilty of racketeering and sex trafficking - the most serious charges he faced. He is however found guilty on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution of Ms Ventura and "Jane". It means the jury found Combs guilty of transporting the two women to places where they would participate in sex acts and prostitution. Each charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years. But while the verdict has been delivered he's yet to learn exactly how long he might spend in prison as a result. That will come at a later date during a separate sentencing hearing.