Sean “Diddy” Combs has learned his fate after being found guilty on a pair of prostitution-related charges in a closely watched federal trial in July.
The disgraced music mogul was sentenced to 50 months, or just over four years, in prison Friday for two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution, according to the New York Times and the Associated Press. Combs, 55, reportedly clasped his hands and cast his eyes downward as Judge Arun Subramanian handed down the sentence in Federal District Court in Manhattan.
After hearing arguments from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and Combs’ defense team, Judge Subramanian reportedly held that Combs’ convictions were “serious offenses that irreparably harmed two women,” adding, “The court is not assured that if released these crimes will not be committed again.” The judge held that he took Combs’s “immense financial resources” into account, saying they “enabled his crimes.”
Combs was also reportedly hit with a $500,000 fine — the maximum — and given five years of supervised release once he leaves prison.
A maximum sentence would have put Combs behind bars for 20 years. Prosecutors sought no less than 11 years and three months, while Combs’ defense attorneys asked for no more than 14 months, which would have allowed him to walk free by the end of the year. He’ll have more than a year of credit toward his incarceration.
Entertainment Weekly has reached out to representatives for Combs and the Department of Justice for comment.
Despite Combs’ partial conviction on July 2, the verdict was widely seen as a legal victory for him, as he was acquitted of sex trafficking and racketeering charges that could have seen him sentenced to life in prison.
Federal prosecutors accused Combs of leading a criminal enterprise that “abused, threatened, and coerced women and others around him to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation, and conceal his conduct,” according to an indictment.
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The prosecution’s star witness, Combs’ ex-girlfriend Casandra “Cassie” Ventura, testified through tears about enduring “freak-offs,” voyeuristic drug-fueled sex marathons with male escorts that she said were orchestrated by Combs and left her feeling “humiliated.”
Combs’ lawyers maintained that all the sex at issue in the case was consensual. He did not testify in the trial.
Ventura’s attorneys Douglas Wigdor and Meredith Firetog said Friday in a statement to EW, “While nothing can undo the trauma caused by Combs, the sentence imposed today recognizes the impact of the serious offenses he committed. We are confident that with the support of her family and friends, Ms. Ventura will continue healing knowing that her bravery and fortitude have been an inspiration to so many.”
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Alternately known as Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, and Love, Combs was one of the most prominent figures in hip-hop for decades, after founding Bad Boy Records in 1993. But the rapper, producer, and entrepreneur’s public image came under intense scrutiny in recent years as he was hit with a string of civil lawsuits accusing him of a range of sexual abuses. He has consistently denied the allegations.
Federal agents raided two of Combs’ properties in Los Angeles and Miami in March 2024, and he was arrested in Manhattan six months later, following a grand jury indictment.
Weeks after Combs’ conviction, one of his attorneys acknowledged that Combs’ team had reached out to the Trump administration seeking a presidential pardon.
