Sean 'Diddy' Combs, 55, gets 50 months' jail on prostitution-related charges

Sean “Diddy” Combs was sentenced to four years and two months in jail following his conviction on prostitution-related charges, U.S. media reported.

A New York federal judge handed out the sentence to the disgraced music mogul on Oct. 3 (U.S. time).

Combs gave no reaction when the sentence was read.

Acquitted of more serious charges

The sentencing came after a federal jury in July acquitted the 55-year-old of the most serious charges – racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking – but found him guilty of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution.

Each count carried a maximum sentence of 10 years.

Combs had pleaded not guilty.

In custody the past 13 months

The Bad Boy Records founder has been held at the Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center since his arrest in September 2024.

The 13 months he served in custody will be counted as part of his 50-month sentence.

He has about three more years in prison to serve.

He was also ordered to pay a US$500,000 (S$644,200) fine.

The judge ordered five years of supervised release after his prison sentence.

Combs' legal team asked for 14 months' jail

Combs’s lawyers had requested a sentence of no more than 14 months in prison.

Combs would have been allowed to walk free given his time in custody.

Federal prosecutors sought a 135-month sentence, which translates to 11 years and three months, and a US$500,000 fine.

They called Combs "unrepentant" and that “his history and characteristics demonstrate years of abuse and violence”.

The U.S. probation department recommended a sentence of five to seven years.

Addressed court

Combs addressed the court before his sentence.

He apologised to his former girlfriends, his family, “all the victims of domestic violence” and his community.

He also called his conduct “disgusting, shameful and sick”.

“No matter what anybody says, I know that I’m truly sorry for it all,” he said.

“Your honor, I know that the prosecution wants you to make an example of me,” Combs added.

“I just want you to think about making an example of what a person can do if they get another chance.”

Five of of Combs’s lawyers, as well as his six adult children and others, delivered remarks.

Timeline

Combs' trial began on May 12.

The jury delivered its verdict in July 2025 after 13 hours of deliberation across three days.

Judge Arun Subramanian has denied two bail requests and rejected a motion to overturn the convictions.

What was Combs accused of

Federal prosecutors accused Combs of coercing two of his former girlfriends into participating in “freak-offs”.

These were described as drug-fuelled sexual marathons with male escorts.

Combs orchestrated, watched, masturbated to and sometimes filmed these sessions.

The litany of offences that Combs was accused of included working to cover up a range of crimes, including sex trafficking, kidnapping, forced labour, drug distribution, arson and bribery, enticement to engage in prostitution and obstruction of justice.

Two former girlfriends testified against him, which was central to the prosecution's case.

Both women testified that Combs sexually abused them.

Combs’s legal team acknowledged past instances of domestic violence, but denied that any coercion or sex trafficking took place.

They said all sexual activity was consensual and part of a "swinger's lifestyle".

Judge's remarks

Subramanian also delivered remarks in court and said that Combs “abused the power and control with women you professed to love”.

“You abused them physically, emotionally and psychologically,” he said.

Civil suits filed

Combs still faces more than 50 civil lawsuits accusing him of sexual abuse and other misconduct.

He has denied all allegations in those filings.

Top photos via Diddy Facebook