Sean 'Diddy' Combs denied an acquittal and new trial

Sean "Diddy" Combs was denied an acquittal and new trial on Tuesday (30.09.25).

The rapper, 55, is scheduled to be sentenced on Friday (03.10.25) in Manhattan after his conviction on two counts of arranging interstate travel for people engaged in prostitution, but he was acquitted of more serious offences of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy, which could have resulted in a life sentence.

As a result, Combs' team asked the judge for a new trial based only on the prostitution charges.

They claimed he had been unjustly charged under the Mann Act for consensual sexual activity between adults.

However, the acquittal and new trial request was denied.

According to The New York Times newspaper, US District Judge Arun Subramanian wrote in new court documents: "The government at trial presented overwhelming evidence of Combs’s guilt under the Mann Act on many occasions with respect to both Ventura and Jane.

"The government proved its case many times over. That by itself might be enough to dispose of Combs’s challenge."

Combs' ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura and a woman who used the pseudonym Jane both testified against the rapper during his eight-week trial.

The I’ll Be Missing You hitmaker - who has been held in Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center for more than a year, following his September 2024 arrest - faces up to 10 years in prison for each of the two counts he was convicted, but defence attorneys have asked the judge to sentence him to no more than 14 months in prison.

With good behaviour, that would mean Combs’ immediate release.

However, on Tuesday, the prosecution asked the judge to sentence Combs to at least 11 years and three months in prison.

When testifying against Combs, Ventura claimed she had been forced to participate in so-called "freak offs", and alleged she had endured sexual and physical abuse during their relationship.