Why Is Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Charged With Racketeering?
Sean “Diddy” Combs is currently on trial on charges of sex trafficking and racketeering. While he has pleaded not guilty to these charges, he faces a heavy sentence; if convicted, Combs could spend the rest of his life in prison. Federal prosecutors bolstered their case against Combs by using the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO. What is racketeering and why is Combs facing prison time for it?
What is RICO?
RICO is a federal law enacted in 1970 to help the government combat organized crime. To violate RICO, a person engages in racketeering activity in connection with an organization.
Per Herman Law, racketeering activity includes crimes like arson, kidnapping, embezzlement, homicide, wire fraud, witness tampering, and more. While prosecutors once used RICO to go after mafia organizations, in recent years, they have used it to go after criminals like R. Kelly and NXIVM leader Keith Raniere.
“While it’s typically been used to apply to in the past, to mob and street gangs, it can just as easily be used to apply to a totally otherwise legitimate business,” former Manhattan federal prosecutor Rachel Maimin told ABC News. “These are sort of more innovative, creative, broader uses of racketeering than we’ve seen before.”
Racketeering carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.
Why did prosecutors charge Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs with racketeering?
In Combs’ case, prosecutors allege that Combs used his business empire to coerce people into sex. They also allege he used his power and influence to cover up his illegal activity. In order to secure a conviction, they must prove that he worked with others within his organization to at least two underlying crimes within 10 years.
“The prosecution has to prove this organization was an enterprise run by various people who had an agreement that they would engage in certain illegal behavior to further that enterprise, and they have to prove that there were various predicate acts that were committed,” said white-collar criminal defense attorney Michael Bachner.
Prosecutors allege that Combs relied on the help of others, such as personal assistants, in order to carry out crimes. They allege that he used “the power and prestige” of his various businesses to “intimidate, threaten and lure female victims into Combs’ world” and “to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation, and conceal his conduct.”
“To the public, he was Puff Daddy, or Diddy – a cultural icon, a businessman, larger than life. But there was another side to him, a side that ran a criminal enterprise,” prosecutor Emily Johnson said. “During this trial, you are going to hear about 20 years of the defendant’s crimes. But he didn’t do it alone. He had an inner circle of bodyguards and high-ranking employees who helped him commit crimes and helped him cover them up.”
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ lawyers have pushed back against the racketeering charge
Combs has pleaded not guilty to the racketeering charges. His lawyers are arguing that his relationships had nothing to do with his businesses.
“This case is about those real-life relationships, and the government is trying to turn those relationships into a racketeering case,” his attorney, Teny Geragos, told jurors in her opening statement. “The evidence is going to show you a very flawed individual, but it will not show you a racketeer, a sex trafficker, or somebody transporting for prostitution.”
