What to know as Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex trafficking trial starts

Sean "Diddy" Combs, the music mogul accused of sexually assaulting, trafficking and otherwise exploiting women in recurring incidents over multiple decades, is standing trial in New York City this month. Jury selection begins Monday, and opening statements are scheduled to follow on May 12.

Combs, 55, faces multiple charges, including sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy. He has been jailed since September, when he was ordered held without bail. He has pleaded not guilty and at his final pre-trial hearing, rejected a plea deal.

As the trial gets underway in Manhattan federal court, here's what to know.

One of the most powerful figures in hip-hop, Combs is accused of running a criminal enterprise, with help from associates and employees, since at least 2004 that engaged in or attempted to engage in sex trafficking, forced labor, kidnapping, arson, bribery, obstruction of justice and other offenses, according to an indictment.

Combs was initially charged in September 2024 with one count of racketeering conspiracy, one count of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, and one count of transportation for purposes of prostitution. A superseding indictment brought two additional counts — one of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, and one of transportation for purposes of prostitution — against him in early April.

The indictment alleges Combs "engaged in a persistent and pervasive pattern of abuse toward women and other individuals," which was "verbal, emotional, physical, and sexual." It accuses him of manipulating women into participating in commercial sex acts with him and sometimes with male sex workers. He allegedly arranged for women and the sex workers to be flown to him.

The acts with sex workers, which prosecutors say Combs called "Freak Offs," are described in the indictment as elaborate performances that Combs directed and often filmed with or without participants' consent. Prosecutors have alleged the events involved excessive drug use, "in part to keep the victims obedient and compliant," and sometimes lasted multiple days.

Combs is also accused of assaulting women repeatedly over many years by "striking, punching, dragging, throwing objects at, and kicking them," the indictment said. The violence extended to his employees and people who witnessed his alleged abuse, prosecutors say. In one instance, Combs is accused of dangling a victim over an apartment balcony, according to the indictment.

In addition to abuse, Combs allegedly maintained control over victims with money, drugs and threats to their careers, among other means. Prosecutors also allege Combs used bribes and blackmail to hide evidence of his conduct.

According to prosecutors, the racketeering conspiracy charge involves allegations that Combs sex-trafficked three victims and forced a fourth, one of his employees, into sexual activity with him. The indictment refers to three female victims as Victim-1, Victim-2 and Victim-3.

Four accusers are expected to testify against Combs, according to prosecutors.

If Combs is found guilty on all counts, CBS News legal contributor Jessica Levinson said he could end up facing decades in prison. He has pleaded not guilty to each of the charges against him.

His attorneys have said the allegations against him came from "former long-term girlfriends, who were involved in consensual relationships."

"This was their private sex life, defined by consent, not coercion," the defense said in a statement in April following the superseding indictment.

A security tape showing Combs attacking his then-girlfriend, R&B singer Casandra Ventura, who performs under the name Cassie, in 2016 is expected to serve as a key piece of evidence for prosecutors during the trial.

The video shows Combs throwing Ventura to the floor in the hallway of a Los Angeles hotel, kicking her and dragging her. CNN obtained and published the footage last year following public allegations of physical and sexual violence against Combs.

Ventura accused Combs of rape and physical abuse in a lawsuit in November 2023 that was settled the day after she filed it. The lawsuit also alleges Combs paid the hotel $50,000 for the 2016 security footage.

Combs apologized for his behavior seen in the video but denied the allegations in the lawsuit.

Prosecutors contend the assault in the video happened during a "Freak Off." Combs lawyers, who tried to convince the judge to exclude it from the trial, argue the footage was nothing more than a "glimpse into a complex but decade-long consensual relationship" between the two.

U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian said Combs' lawyers failed to convince him that the footage should be excluded. Its relevance to the case outweighs any potential prejudice to Combs, the judge said.

Ahead of jury selection, Combs' legal team and prosecutors disagreed on what to include in the questionnaire used to evaluate potential jurors.

In court filings, Combs' attorneys argued that prosecutors' proposed questionnaire did not "explore at all the prejudices and biases that are central to an effective inquiry to seating a fair jury" nor acknowledge "the unprecedented and negative media attention they may have been exposed to, related to Mr. Combs."

They requested that jurors be questioned about their views regarding sex, drugs, violence and people with multiple sexual partners.

Prosecutors criticized the defense's proposed questionnaire as too long and touching on subjects that would be better asked in person by the judge, if at all. They said some of the questions were "utterly irrelevant to the ability to serve on a jury."

Elias E. Lopez, Pat Milton, Nicole Sganga, Alex Sundby, Andres Triay and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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