Diddy’s latest courtroom antic suggests that he can’t read the room. Although the disgraced mogul has been charged with a series of federal crimes, including sex trafficking and racketeering, Diddy’s proven that he can’t give up one major thing: attention. On May 20, roughly a week into his trial which has included painful, disturbing testimony from his ex-girlfriend and artist Cassie Ventura about the alleged crimes he committed against her, Diddy went out of his way to connect with onlookers. “I love you all,” he reportedly said to those present in the public gallery at the close of the day (via People). “Yeah. Love.” The Sean John founder also relayed a message about his son, Justin Combs, to an unknown woman who attended the trial. “Please let Justin know I’m thinking of him,” he was overheard saying.

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Addressing onlookers should, of course, be the least of his worries, given the prison time he faces if the prosecution successfully argues that he wielded his celebrity status in order to force women into his nonconsensual sexual escapades. “As alleged in the Indictment, for years, Sean Combs used the business empire he controlled to sexually abuse and exploit women, as well as to commit other acts of violence and obstruction of justice,” said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams in September 2024 (via the Department of Justice).”Today, he is charged with racketeering and sex trafficking offenses. If you have been a victim of Combs’ alleged abuse — or if you know anything about his alleged crimes — we urge you to come forward. This investigation is far from over.”

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Diddy has pled not guilty to all charges.

Diddy’s trial has been chock full of uncomfortable testimony from people in his orbit. And while most of the attention has gone to his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura’s recounting of the alleged abuse she suffered at his hands for the better part of a decade, other notable figures have also helped to paint a photo of Diddy’s shady side. Danity Kane singer Dawn Richard, for example, alleged that she witnessed Diddy attack Ventura because she took too long to make him food. “He came downstairs angry and was saying, where the f–k was his eggs and he was telling Cassie she never gets anything right and where the f**k was his food,” said Richard per the New York Post. “And he came over to the skillet with the eggs in it and tried to hit her over the head and she fell to the ground.” Richard also alleged that Ventura dropped into a “fetal position” to protect her head.

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Diddy’s former assistant George Kaplan took the witness stand on May 21 to paint a rather grisly picture of his job responsibilities, which allegedly included stocking the mogul’s hotel rooms for his “freak offs.” According to TMZ, Kaplan would round up Diddy’s preferred products, including baby oil, drugs, and other snacks and ensure everything was unpacked before he arrived. He’d also make sure to clean up the hotel room in the aftermath to avoid hotel housekeepers from becoming aware of that activities that had taken place. Kaplan’s services, which he offered Diddy for roughly two years, amounted to $125,000 a year, though given what allegedly took place, the salary doesn’t seem worth it.

Diddy’s trial, which kicked off on May 12, is expected to last up to 10 weeks. 

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