Attorneys representing Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs alleged on Monday that prosecutors engaged in “outrageous government conduct” by utilizing materials seized from his jail cell in an effort to keep him detained ahead of a trial scheduled for May. They claimed that information obtained during a raid on Combs’ cell at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn was referenced in documents filed by the government in Manhattan federal court on Friday, aiming to maintain the music mogul’s incarceration before his trial on May 5.
“This is a serious issue that must be addressed promptly,” the lawyers stated to Judge Arun Subramanian, who has already arranged a bail hearing for Combs on Friday. They requested an “immediate hearing” to determine who authorized the search of Combs’ cell, where personal items and documents were confiscated.
In response later that day, prosecutors sent a letter to the judge asserting that the inspection of Combs’ cell was part of a facility-wide safety sweep unrelated to Combs or his case. They explained that the search had been planned prior to Combs’ arrest and was conducted appropriately, with an investigator entering Combs’ cell and choosing not to examine a manila envelope marked “legal” that was present.
They further stated that any materials that might be privileged were first reviewed by a “filter team” of government attorneys who were not involved in the case. This team was responsible for identifying any confidential communications protected by attorney-client privilege to ensure that trial prosecutors did not access them.
Combs, 55, has been in custody since his arrest in September on charges that he coerced and abused women over the years with the assistance of a network of associates and employees. The indictment accuses him of silencing victims through blackmail and violence, including kidnapping, arson, and physical assaults. Combs has pleaded not guilty to the charges and is currently seeking release to house arrest through a $50 million bail package.
On Friday, prosecutors indicated that Combs has been attempting to evade oversight of his communications while orchestrating social media campaigns to influence the jury pool and attempting to publicly disclose materials he believes are beneficial to his defense. They also noted that he has contacted witnesses through intermediaries.
In their letter on Monday, Combs’ attorneys pointed out that prosecutors, in their bail arguments the previous week, acknowledged possessing “possibly privileged materials, such as the notes recovered from the defendant’s cell.” Combs’ lawyers characterized this as “outrageous government conduct amounting to a substantive due process violation,” accusing prosecutors of reviewing their client’s “privileged notes to his attorneys regarding defense witnesses and strategies.”
