Rapper Diddy Offers $50 Million Bail After Being Denied Thrice

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Sean "Diddy" Combs has proposed a new $50 million bail package, hoping to secure his release from a Brooklyn jail where he has been held for eight weeks on criminal sex trafficking charges. The music mogul is offering his $48 million Miami mansion as collateral, with the bond to be co-signed by several of his family members. 

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Combs, 55, has been denied bail three times since his arrest, with judges citing concerns that he might tamper with witnesses. He was arrested on September 17 and pleaded not guilty to charges that he used his business empire, including his record label Bad Boy Entertainment, to transport women and male sex workers across state lines for recorded sexual performances known as "Freak Offs." The charges also allege that he coerced the participants, though Combs has denied these claims, asserting that the sexual activity described by prosecutors was consensual.

In a court filing on Friday, Combs' defense lawyer, Alexandra Shapiro, submitted the $50 million bail proposal. The defense is also requesting that Combs be placed under house arrest with 24-hour security surveillance and no contact with alleged victims or witnesses. Shapiro further argued that new evidence undermines part of the prosecution's case, including a 2016 hotel surveillance video showing Combs in a physical altercation with former girlfriend Cassie Ventura. Shapiro claims that the video, which depicts a tense interaction, actually shows a "complex but decade-long consensual relationship," not evidence of coerced sexual acts as alleged by prosecutors.

Combs' legal team also argued that his continued detention is hindering his ability to prepare for trial, especially given the volume of case materials that need to be reviewed. Shapiro claimed that jail conditions, including frequent lockdowns and limited access to necessary tools such as a laptop and pens, are infringing on Combs' constitutional right to prepare a proper defense.

In a separate development on Friday, U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, who is overseeing the criminal case, rejected a request from Combs' defense to issue a gag order preventing accusers from speaking publicly about the case. Combs' legal team had argued that the ongoing civil suits against him—nearly 30 cases accusing him of misconduct or abuse—were interfering with his right to a fair trial.

Combs is scheduled to go to trial on May 5. His defense has expressed hopes that the proposed bail package will lead to his release while he prepares for the trial.