Lavish parties, guns, sex toys and celebrities are all part of the Sean “Diddy” Combs story, but it is his alleged crimes that have shocked the United States and the world.

Combs, 54, is currently in jail, where he is expected to remain until his trial in May 2025 on three criminal charges of racketeering, conspiracy to commit sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.

Mr. Combs has denied all charges against him.

Former U.S. federal prosecutor Mitchell Epner and civilian attorney Lisa Bloom say these allegations can only scratch the surface.

“It’s virtually impossible to create an overview of the entertainment industry in which not everyone you’ve ever heard of is within two degrees of kinship with Sean Combs,” Mr. Epner told 7:30.

Mr. Epner also believes that music mogul Combs will spend the rest of his life in prison, the maximum sentence for the charges he faces.

Ms Bloom – a lawyer representing singer Dawn Richard in a civil case against Mr Combs – says the number of people who may have been complicit could be enormous.

“We allege in our complaint, which was filed a week before the government’s criminal indictment, that there were many people and entities who were complicit, aiding him, financing him, who turned a blind eye to what was going on. on,” she said at 7:30 p.m.

Notorious raids, infamous prison

The prison where Mr. Combs is housed is the infamous Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. Mr Epner says the prison has earned its fearsome reputation.

“It is infested with rats and it is dangerous,” he said at 7:30 p.m.

Mr. Combs’ legal team has tried multiple times to secure bail for their client, despite a bond offer of nearly $75 million.

Mr. Combs has been in jail since his arrest in New York.

Earlier this year, federal agents from Homeland Security Investigations raided his properties in Miami and Los Angeles.

What they found was shocking to many and included firearms with their serial numbers removed.

“Large amounts of different drugs were found,” Mr. Epner said.

“Everything from GHB… to all kinds of recreational drugs.

The basis of other civil allegations against Mr. Combs are claims of sexual control and abuse.

It was at his infamous “white parties,” which took place at his lavish estate in the Hamptons in upstate New York, that many of the allegations against Mr. Combs originated.

Alleged “Freak-Off” sex performances allege he forced and threatened victims to perform sex acts.

“What has been reported is that these Freak Offs, which took place in very large gatherings of basically public sex shows and went on for days, were fueled by drugs and were only known to a subset of the people who went to them. ” to the very posh white parties,” Epner said.

In addition to the federal charges, Houston-based attorney Tony Buzbee recently announced that his firm is representing 120 individuals who alleged they were victims of Mr. Combs.

At the time of the alleged events, a number of them were said to be minors.

‘Abuse, intimidation, discrimination’

Singer Dawn Richard first met Mr Combs more than 20 years ago when she took part in the television show Making the Band.

She has also filed a civil suit against him.

Ms. Richard says she was forced to attend these parties and perform their hits for guests.

She claims her cell phone was taken from her so she couldn’t leave without his knowledge, and says underage men and women were invited by Mr. Combs to attend these parties, use drugs and perform sex acts .

“It was a big breakthrough in her music career,” Richard’s attorney Lisa Bloom told 7:30.

“A few years later, she was selected for a second band involving Sean Combs called Diddy Dirty Money, and she has worked with him on and off since then.”

The lawsuit filed by Ms. Bloom on behalf of Ms. Richard alleges that Mr. Combs treated her “inhumanely” by forcing her to work up to 48 hours straight, depriving her of food and sleep, and sexually harassing her and abused for two years when she worked with him in the trio group Diddy Dirty Money.

The lawsuit says Mr. Combs routinely barged into her dressing room while she was getting dressed and would grope her without consent. It is also alleged that he would try to touch Ms Richard’s buttocks and breasts and disguise this by describing to their hairdresser what he would like her to wear.

“These are claims related to her not being properly paid for the work she did for Mr. Combs.”

Ms. Richard was 21 years old when she auditioned for season three of Making the Band. She was a fan favorite and would later form the girl group Danity Kane with members Aubrey O’Day, Aundrea Fimbres, D Woods and Shannon Bex.

Mr. Combs took a keen interest in her during filming, calling her “exceptional” as she danced on stage, and proclaiming that he still wanted to work with her while firing other members of the band toward the end of the series.

Danity Kane officially disbanded in 2020, but Mr Combs continued to work with Ms Richard through their group Diddy Dirty Money, which also included singer Kalenna Harper.

Inspired by his former partner

It was the abuse Mr Combs subjected his ex-partner Cassie Ventura to that inspired Ms Richard to come forward with her story.

“Even though that case was settled the next day, we can all read the allegations in the complaint, and it was very inspiring and very moving for Dawn, who knew Cassie, and who claims in her complaint to have witnessed some of the incidents. as for Cassie and Kim Porter and others,” Ms. Bloom said.

Ms. Ventura was a singer and model formerly known as Cassie. She first met Mr Combs when she signed with his record label in 2007.

In a damning lawsuit filed in New York last year, she alleged the mogul abused her during their decade-long relationship, which began when she was 19.

In May this year, surveillance footage from a hotel hallway showed Mr Comb grabbing Ms Ventura by the neck and slamming her into the carpet before trying to drag her.

Days after the video surfaced, he apologized on his Instagram page.

“It’s so hard to think about the darkest times in your life. But sometimes you have to do that. I was devastated. I mean, I hit rock bottom,” he posted.

“When the horrific video of Cassie Ventura being beaten by Sean Combs came out, it inspired (Dawn) further,” Bloom said.

Mr. Epner believes one of the main reasons Combs will remain behind bars is to protect Ms. Ventura.

“The danger to the community was the intimidation of witnesses,” he said.

“The video released earlier this year of Mr. Combs hitting his then-girlfriend Cassie in a California hotel had a huge impact.

“It showed a propensity for extreme violence, a danger to the community, and it is also widely believed that victim number one is Cassie.

“So if there is a videotape of the defendant brutally beating the key witness, that goes a long way toward denying bail.”

Watch 7:30 amMonday to Thursday at 7:30 PM ABC iview and ABC TV.