Diddy, the music mogul behind the sound of ‘90s and early-2000s hip-hop and R&B, was sentenced today to 50 months in prison—a little over four years.
The sentencing closes out one of the most dramatic chapters in the Bad Boy Records founder’s life and career. It comes after an eight-week federal trial this summer in Manhattan that concluded with Diddy getting cleared of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy charges, in which he could have faced a life sentence. However, the 55-year-old was found guilty on two counts of transporting individuals across state lines to engage in prostitution.
After hours of emotional statements, Judge Arun Subramanian finally delivered the sentence late in the afternoon on Friday. The prosecution urged for a lengthy prison term, arguing that Diddy had long abused his wealth and power and had not changed since facing charges. His defense team countered with pleas for leniency, describing him as a man that lost his way due to a drug addiction.
Several of Diddy’s children spoke on his behalf and asked the judge to show compassion. When it was his turn to speak, Diddy apologized to singer Cassie Ventura, his other victim Jane, his children, his mother, and all survivors of domestic violence, according to New York Times reporters in the courtroom.
“Because of my decisions, I lost my freedom, I lost the opportunity to effectively raise my children and be there for my mother,” he told the courtroom. “I lost all my businesses, I lost my career, I totally destroyed my reputation.”
The once-revered music executive who helped launch the careers of The Notorious B.I.G., Mary J. Blige, and Faith Evans, has seen his reputation flush down the toilet over the past couple of years as allegations of abuse and sexual misconduct unraveled and mounted.
This federal case stems from a series of civil suits and federal investigations that began after Diddy’s former partner, singer Cassie Ventura, sued him in November 2023 for rape and years of physical abuse. That lawsuit was settled within 24 hours, but the lawsuit triggered a wave of similar allegations from other women and men, prompting a criminal probe.
The summer trial centered around prosecutors claims that Combs sex-trafficked three women, coercing them into days-long “freak-offs” that involved male sex workers, drugs, and alcohol. They argued that Combs used violence, money, and career manipulation to dominate his victims into doing whatever he wanted.
The defense argued that Combs’ actions were “immoral but not illegal,” painting him as a flawed celebrity whose private behavior had been distorted by the media.
Judge Subramanian presided over the case and ultimately decided how much time Combs would serve. Prosecutors pushed for a sentence of more than 11 years, while Diddy’s defense team requested for no more than 14 months, arguing that the former music executive had shown remorse and willingness to rehabilitate.
The judge previously denied Combs’ motion for a full acquittal or new trial.
In the weeks leading up to the sentencing, letters from both supporters and detractors were submitted to the court. Among those defending Diddy were his children, television executives, and City Girls rapper Yung Miami.
“I’m writing this letter because I believe it’s important for the court to know the side of Sean that isn’t always seen or spoken about—the man who poured into others, who gave opportunities,” she wrote in the letter.
She ended the letter calling Diddy “a good man.”
On the other side, Cassie Ventura, her parents, and Diddy’s former stylist Deonte Nash urged the court to impose a harsh sentence.
“For four days in May, while nine months pregnant with my son, I testified in front of a packed courtroom about the most traumatic and horrifying chapter in my life. I testified that from age nineteen, Sean Combs used violence, threats, substances, and control over my career to trap me in over a decade of abuse. He groomed me into performing repeated sex acts with hired male sex workers during multi-day ‘freak-offs,’ which occurred nearly weekly,” Ventura alleged in her letter, according to Rolling Stone. “I was forced into lingerie and heels, told exactly how to look, and plied with drugs and alcohol so he could control me like a puppet. These events were degrading and disgusting, leaving me with infections, illnesses, and days of physical and emotional exhaustion before he demanded it all again. Sex acts became my full-time job, used as the only way to stay in his good graces.”
Diddy also wrote a letter in his own defense, saying the lawsuits and trial had been the hardest two years of his life but that he’s essentially a changed man after it.
“I have no one to blame for my current reality and situation but myself,” he wrote. “In my life, I have made many mistakes, but I am no longer running from them. I am so sorry for the hurt that I caused, but I understand that the mere words ‘I’m sorry’ will never be good enough as these words alone cannot erase the pain from the past.”
He continued: "Today, I humbly ask you for another chance—another chance to be a better father, another chance to be a better son, another chance to be a better leader in my community, and another chance to live a better life.”
In the final moments before he sentenced Diddy, Judge Subramanian said the sentence would be lengthy, “to send a message to abusers and victims alike that exploitation and violence against women is met with real accountability.”
