Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs on suicide watch while awaiting trial

Sean “Diddy” Combs has been placed under supervision on suspicion of suicide at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where he awaits trial on three felony charges stemming from years of alleged abuse.

The music mogul’s attorney, Marc Agnifilo, told TMZ that the directive issued by prison staff was a routine measure for all “new, high-profile inmates.” He added that Diddy is “not at all suicidal” and described him as “strong, healthy, confident and focused on defending himself.”

Diddy has been in federal custody in New York since his arrest Monday night. He was booked at the Park Hyatt Hotel in Midtown and initially placed in the MDC’s special housing unit, or SHU, before being transferred to the East Side jail.

His arrest came after a months-long investigation by the Department of Homeland Security and the federal government in which agents searched Diddy’s homes in Miami and Los Angeles in connection with allegations of drug trafficking and sex work.

The Bad Boy Records founder pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges of conspiracy to commit extortion, sex trafficking and transportation for the purpose of prostitution. He is accused of using money and influence to coerce women into attending his “high-flying” sex parties, which allegedly included degrading and physically aggressive acts that were often recorded.

He was ordered held without bail.

District Judge Andrew Carter denied the music producer’s bail request for a second time Wednesday. His lawyer had suggested he be released on $50 million bail, GPS monitoring and strict visitor restrictions.

Carter, however, said the offer was insufficient because “no condition or set of conditions” governing Diddy’s release could protect him from the risk that he would threaten or harm witnesses.

Speaking to the press after the hearing, Agnifilo vowed to continue his fight to free Diddy from the MDC, an organization that has for years struggled with rampant violence, severe staffing shortages and widespread smuggling of drugs and other goods.

“Mr. Combs is a fighter, he will fight to the end, he is innocent,” Agnifilo said. “We will fight this case with all our might, just like he did.”

Agniflo will then ask the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit to overturn Carter’s ruling and release his client from prison.

In the meantime, he wants Combs to be transferred from a Brooklyn jail that has housed other high-profile inmates, including disgraced R&B singer R. Kelly, Epstein supporter Ghislaine Maxwell, “Pharma Bro” Martin Shkreli and NXIVM sex cult leader Keith Raniere. Agniflo has requested that Diddy be transferred to Essex County Correctional Facility in Newark, N.J.

As of November 2023, Diddy has also been named in eight separate lawsuits, most of which allege allegations of rape, sexual assault, drugging and physical abuse.

Originally published: September 20, 2024 at 1:14 PM