On Thursday, American rapper, Sean Combs, professionally known as, Diddy, formally rejected the government’s offer to plead guilty and spare himself the possibility of a prolonged prison sentence.
The ‘I’ll Be Missing You’ singer said, “Yes I do, your honor”, after Judge Arun Subramanian asked him whether he rejected the offer federal prosecutors made.
55-year old Combs is scheduled to stand trial beginning Monday with jury selection on charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and prostitution that allege he compelled women into prolonged sexual encounters he called “freak-offs.”
An assistant United States attorney, Maurene Comey, said a guilty plea would have shortened the amount of prison time Combs would be exposed to compared to a trial conviction on all counts, which could result in what is effectively a life sentence.
One of the music executive’s attorneys, Teny Geragos, said, “We’re concerned with her behavior here.”
