Prosecutors seek substantial prison term for Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs as they oppose bail

NEW YORK (AP) — Prosecutors are urging a judge to reject this week’s renewed request for bail for hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, saying nothing has changed since his conviction last month on prostitution-related charges to warrant a fresh look.

They also said their initial calculations that federal sentencing guidelines would call for a prison term of at least four to five years at his Oct. 3 sentencing was substantially less than what the guidelines will actually recommend.

The government’s written submission to a Manhattan federal court judge was filed late Thursday after a defense lawyer two days earlier made a renewed $50 million bail request for Combs, saying the founder of Bad Boy Records deserves to be free while awaiting his October sentencing.

Combs, 55, was acquitted of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking charges carrying the potential for life in prison but was convicted of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution for arranging transportation for girlfriends and male sex workers to engage in sexual encounters that he filmed.

On the day of the verdict, prosecutors won a bail fight after defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo argued that Combs should be freed immediately on bail.

Judge Arun Subramanian denied bail, saying Combs had not met the burden of showing by clear and convincing evidence a “lack of danger to any person or the community.” But he said Agnifilo could renew the request.

In doing so Tuesday, Agnifilo cited other cases he said were comparable to Combs’ conviction in which defendants were granted bail. And he cited severe conditions at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where Combs has been held since his September arrest at a New York hotel.

Prosecutors, though, said conditions at the federal lockup had improved considerably before Combs was arrested. A federal judge in January 2024 had blasted conditions at the jail, including its extensive lockdowns and inadequate medical care.

Prosecutors said cases cited by Agnifilo in which other defendants received bail were not comparable to the crimes Combs was convicted of carrying out.

“The defendant’s detention pending sentencing is mandatory, there are no exceptional circumstances justifying his release, and even if there were, the defendant cannot demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that he is not a danger the community,” prosecutors wrote.