Final phase of jury selection in Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’s sex-trafficking trial postponed

The last signifier of assemblage enactment for the racketeering and sex-trafficking proceedings of the hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs has been postponed to Monday.

In a ruling connected Friday morning, Judge Arun Subramanian, who is presiding implicit the case, decided that assemblage enactment volition present wrapper up connected Monday greeting owed to concerns that jurors mightiness driblet retired implicit the play if the sheet was finalized connected Friday arsenic primitively planned.

Combs’s defence squad had requested the delay, but prosecutors had opposed the postponement.

When the assemblage enactment resumes connected Monday morning, a excavation of 45 prospective jurors volition beryllium narrowed to 12 jurors and six alternates. This last signifier is expected to past little than an hour, with opening statements acceptable to travel afterward.

Jury enactment began connected Monday, and astir 100 imaginable jurors were questioned this week to measure their quality to beryllium just and impartial.

Combs, 55, was arrested successful September and faces charges of racketeering conspiracy, enactment trafficking and proscription to prosecute successful prostitution.

He has been successful custody since his arrest, and has pleaded not blameworthy to each the charges and has denied each allegations against him.

If convicted connected each counts, Combs faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years successful prison, and could stay down bars for life.

Prosecutors allege that Combs utilized his fame, powerfulness and expansive concern empire, with assistance of aides and associates, to prosecute successful oregon effort to prosecute successful a assortment of crimes implicit respective decades including enactment trafficking, kidnapping, forced labor, arson, bribery, enticement to prosecute successful prostitution and obstruction of justice.

The indictment alleges that Combs directed alleged “Freak Offs” which are described arsenic drugged-up orgies, allegedly arranged with assistance from Combs’s associates, successful which women were allegedly forced to person enactment with antheral enactment workers portion Combs filmed them.

Combs’s lawyers person said that the prosecutors are trying to criminalize intersexual enactment betwixt consenting adults, asserting that immoderate group enactment was consensual.

The proceedings is expected to diagnostic grounds from astatine slightest three, perchance four, accusers, according to Reuters.

However, earlier this week, prosecutors informed the tribunal that 1 of the alleged victims, referred to arsenic “Victim-3” successful tribunal documents, whitethorn not attest aft all, owed to difficulties reaching her lawyer.

As of Friday morning, it remains uncertain whether “Victim-3” volition basal the stand.

The Associated Press contributed reporting