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Prosecutors criticize Diddy team's “baseless” claim about Cassie's video leak

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U.S. attorneys have responded in court to allegations by Sean “Diddy” Combs' lawyers that government agents leaked information to news outlets, including footage of Combs physically assaulting his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura.

In a Wednesday evening filing in federal court in Manhattan, obtained by USA TODAY on Thursday, prosecutors said Combs' defense attorneys had not presented sufficient evidence that any information was leaked from the federal grand jury investigating him and added that Combs and his team knew the video had come from elsewhere.

The video referenced was hotel surveillance footage from 2016, released by CNN in May, that showed Combs kicking, punching and dragging Cassie near a hotel's elevators.

“The defendant baselessly accuses Department of Homeland Security agents – who do not have the authority to initiate a grand jury proceeding – of secretly obtaining the Intercontinental video without prosecutors knowing,” the filing states.

Additionally, the government claims that it was “unable to obtain video of the attack” and that investigators did not have footage of the hotel attack until CNN released the clip.

Prosecutors also described his demand for accuser names as a “thinly veiled” attempt to hijack the government's case and help him publicly defend himself against the more than two dozen men and women who have filed civil lawsuits over his alleged sexual assault engage in misconduct.

“This improper request should be rejected in its entirety, particularly here where there are serious and ongoing concerns about victim and witness safety, manipulation and intimidation,” prosecutors wrote.

However, Combs' efforts to expose his accusers received a boost Wednesday when U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil in Manhattan said a woman suing Combs over an alleged rape in 2004 could not remain anonymous. Vyskocil noted Combs' interest in investigating the woman's credibility and the public interest in a public trial.

Diddy's lawyers claim government officials are obstructing his right to a fair trial

Combs' team believes that since March, the government has been “strategically leaking classified grand jury materials and information, including the 2016 Intercontinental videotape, in order to convict the public and potential jurors against Mr. Combs.”

In the filing Wednesday, prosecutors said the defense had “baselessly” claimed that government agents were the source of the material reported by news outlets. Attorneys wrote, “It strains credibility to claim that law enforcement officials independently obtained the Intercontinental video using a grand jury subpoena that they had no authority to issue.”

In Oct. 9 filings, the defense asked the judge for relief “in connection with a series of unlawful government leaks that the defense contends have resulted in damaging, highly prejudicial pretrial publicity that will only incriminate the jury and Mr. . . . combs his right to a fair trial.”

His lawyers, Marc Agnifilo and Teny Geragos, said there should be a hearing to investigate alleged government misconduct and ask government agencies involved in the case to disclose communications and records related to alleged “leaks” to media outlets.

Combs' team's request for an evidentiary hearing to investigate alleged government misconduct is still pending.

They also asked the judge to issue an order prohibiting federal employees from releasing evidence to the news media, as well as “suppressing any evidence leaked by government employees.”

However, on October 25, Judge Arun Subramanian refused to impose a gag order. Instead, he wrote, both sides are expected to abide by existing laws that prohibit lawyers, investigators and government officials from disclosing grand jury proceedings and disclosing nonpublic information that could prejudice a fair trial.

What are the claims against Sean “Diddy” Combs?

Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York say they began working with the Human Trafficking Unit of Homeland Security Investigations “in or about November 2023” and “began investigating Combs and others for violations of federal criminal law.”

That same month, Cassie made allegations of rape, abuse and sex trafficking in a civil lawsuit against the music mogul. A day later, Combs and Cassie settled their civil lawsuit. Combs' lawyers said in her filing that she “received a significant eight-figure settlement.”

The hip-hop superstar was arrested at a Manhattan hotel on September 16 and charged the following day with sex trafficking, extortion and conveyance for prostitution. Investigators said the 54-year-old made elaborate plans to use his finances and status in the entertainment industry to “fulfill his sexual desires” in a “recurring and well-known” pattern of abuse.

Since then, he has been held in the special housing unit at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn and has maintained his innocence, pleading not guilty to all federal criminal charges and denying alleged wrongdoing in mounting civil lawsuits against him over the past year.

All of Combs' previous attempts to have him released from prison pending his May 5 trial have been rejected. His lawyers are seeking an appeals court ruling that would overturn a Sept. 18 decision to deny his request to be released from prison on the condition of $50 million bail.

Contributor: Jonathan Stempel/Reuters

If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence, RAINN's National Sexual Assault Hotline offers survivors and their families free, confidential support 24/7 in English and Spanish at: 800.656.HOPE (4673) and Hotline.RAINN .org en Español RAINN.org/es.

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