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As Sean “Diddy” Combs prepares for an end to his federal s*x trafficking trial, a major legal development has turned the terrain in his favor. Prosecutors have dismissed several high-profile charges, including attempted kidnapping, attempted arson, and aiding/abetting s*x trafficking. The move comes as both sides are gearing up to present closing arguments in the Southern District of New York to the jury.
Federal prosecutors, in a June 24, 2025, court filing, said they would abandon three key allegations that they had been using to support a RICO (racketeering) charge:
Attempted kidnapping (related to allegations involving former employee Capricorn Clark and ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura)
Attempted arson (stemming from the 2012 firebombing of Kid Cudi’s car)
Aiding and abetting s*x trafficking
Social media personality Zack Peter took to his podcast, No Filter, on June 25 to react to the dropped charges. He said,
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“Listen, I said that those were not strong charges from the beginning. And now that the prosecution is pulling back some of their charges against Diddy tells me exactly that I was right, you know? That the case was not very strong, they overhyped it in the press.”
Prosecutors narrow RICO charges in Diddy trial as case moves toward closing arguments
On June 24, 2025, three theories of liability were excluded from the RICO count by the prosecutors: attempted kidnapping, attempted arson, and aiding/abetting s*x trafficking. The government dropped all original charges but continued to pare down its case to allegations of s*x trafficking and forced labor.
Diddy’s defense lawyers submitted a motion for acquittal, claiming there was no evidence for the remaining charges.
The trial, now in its seventh week, has heard from 34 witnesses, including Combs’s ex-employees and former romantic partners. Prosecutors have accused the music executive of running a criminal operation that engaged in coercive s*x acts, while the defense contends all the encounters were consensual.
During six weeks, the 34 witnesses, including Cassie Ventura and another ex-girlfriend, “Jane,” testified about Diddy’s purported “freak off” parties where drugs and financial motivation were employed to control the attendees.
In contrast, the defense took just five minutes to rest its case without calling any witnesses and instead introduced text messages that showed friendly exchanges between Combs and the accusers. Attorney Alexandra Shapiro argued that the evidence was “thin,” adding that the government did not prove its core contentions.
“There’s, at best, thin proof any of the other employees participated,” Shapiro stated.
Diddy did not testify but offered Judge Arun Subramanian a compliment, saying,
“You’re doing a great job, Your Honor.”
Legal experts say the prosecution’s move to abandon some of the charges is a normal trial strategy, not evidence that their case is flawed. Former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani told Fox News,
“There are no charges being dropped... They’re simplifying the charges for the jury. This doesn’t really change anything.”
Combs still faces five federal counts, including racketeering conspiracy, s*x trafficking, and transportation to engage in prostitution.
Closing arguments are set to start on June 26, 2025, and jury deliberations are expected by June 30. If convicted on the remaining charges, Diddy faces a minimum of 15 years.
