As Sean 'Diddy' Combs' defence team draw up their closing statements, federal prosecutors have narrowed the music mogul's racketeering conspiracy charges.
One day before closing arguments, prosecutors removed claims of arson and kidnapping. However, Diddy still faces five federal counts of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. He has denied all allegations and pleaded not guilty in court.
In the racketeering indictment, prosecutors accused Diddy of 'creating a criminal enterprise whose members and associates engaged in, and attempted to engage in, among other crimes, sex trafficking, forced labour, kidnapping, arson, bribery, and obstruction of justice.'
Why have prosecutors dropped some of Diddy's charges?
The government has since written to Judge Arun Subramanian proposing that three theories relating to this charge be dropped to 'streamline' jury instructions. 'The Government is no longer planning to proceed on these theories of liability so instructions are no longer necessary,' the prosecutors wrote.
However, all five federal charges against Diddy hold, despite his lawyer Alexandra Shapiro arguing for a judgement of acquittal on all counts. She claimed they were 'deficiencies' to each count and told the court why she thinks each charge should be dropped.
In once instance, Diddy's former employee, Capricorn Clark, testified about being driven to a dilapidated building by Diddy's head of security where she endured five days of lie detector tests. She told the court she was told she'd be thrown in the East River if she failed. Diddy's defence argued that he did not know this was happening.
The arson allegation rose from Kid Cudi's testimony, whose real name is Scott Mescudi, where he claimed Diddy firebombed his car in 2012 after he had briefly dated Diddy's on-off girlfriend Cassie Ventura. Again, Shapiro argued there was no evidence Diddy was involved in the incident and Mescudi did not witness the firebomb himself. The defence said there was female DNA on the bottle used to blow up the vehicle.
When will there be a verdict in Diddy's trial?
Now prosecutors plan to focus on the racketeering charges. Closing statements are set to begin today. After closing arguments, the jury will retire to deliberate and reach a verdict - something that could take minutes or weeks. After more than a month of testimony from several witnesses, a verdict has not yet been reached in Diddy's criminal case.