0:00

Hey Fall In listeners, we're

0:02

bringing you something special this

0:04

week. Maybe like me, you've

0:06

been following the news about

0:08

the criminal charges and lawsuits

0:10

against hip-hop mogul Sean Ditty

0:12

Combs. Well, there's a new

0:14

podcast that charts Ditty's Rise

0:16

to the top of music,

0:18

fashion, and culture, and how

0:20

it all came crashing down.

0:22

The shows called Bad Wrap,

0:24

The Case Against Ditty. It's

0:26

a six-part series from 2020

0:28

and ABC audio. For decades,

0:30

Diddy was one of the

0:32

most influential entertainers and entrepreneurs

0:34

in the world. Then a

0:36

video came out that showed

0:38

a very different, violent side

0:40

of Diddy. It wasn't the

0:42

first time that there were

0:44

whispers about Diddy's aggression, but

0:46

for the first time, the

0:48

evidence was undeniable, and everyone

0:50

could see it. Soon, a

0:52

wave of lawsuits followed was

0:54

shocking allegations of sexual abuse

0:56

and manipulation. And now... Diddy

0:58

is facing federal charges that

1:00

include sex trafficking. He is

1:02

scheduled for a trial in

1:04

May, and he denies all

1:06

wrongdoing. In this episode, you'll

1:09

hear about the reputation Diddy

1:11

established at the height of

1:13

his fame and how far

1:15

he's fallen today. If you

1:17

like it, search bad rap,

1:19

the case against Diddy, wherever

1:21

you get your podcasts. He

1:23

wasn't on the top of

1:25

the billboard charts anymore, but

1:27

he had become a fixture

1:29

of American pop culture. The

1:31

flashiest example was his annual

1:33

star-studded white party. It was

1:35

an exclusive event, and everything

1:37

had to be white, from

1:39

the decor to the dress

1:41

code. This was the early

1:43

days of smartphones. Imagine every

1:45

celebrity worth an us weekly

1:47

headline with a bedazzled smartphone

1:49

in their hand. It was

1:51

before TikTok and Instagram when

1:53

tabloid coverage claimed to break

1:55

juicy celebrity stories. Compare it

1:58

to the prominence of video

2:00

on social media today. private

2:02

celebrity parties were much more

2:04

private. But one bit of

2:06

Diddy's 2009 white party was

2:08

captured on video. Rapper and

2:10

record producer Jay Blaze caught

2:12

it on camera and posted

2:14

it to YouTube for the

2:16

world to see. Actor Ashton

2:18

Kutcher grabs onto a swing

2:20

strung over the pool and

2:22

Tarzan's across it. Diddy is

2:24

MCing in a sea of

2:26

white suits, dresses linen and

2:28

sunglasses. By the summer of

2:30

2009, Diddy had won three

2:32

Grammys. He had five songs

2:34

hit number one on the

2:37

Billboard Hot 100 chart

2:39

and three of his albums

2:41

had gone platinum. He was

2:44

successful and rich. He was

2:46

successful and rich. He was

2:49

successful and rich.

2:51

Four months from turning

2:53

40, Forbes magazine put

2:55

Diddy's net worth at

2:57

$30 million. He'd presented

2:59

himself for a long time as

3:01

a champion and model of black

3:04

excellence. And he was feeling patriotic

3:06

after the US elected its first

3:08

black president. So, he decided this

3:11

year's white party would be held

3:13

on Independence Day. He gave Marie

3:15

Claire magazine a sneak peek before

3:17

the party started. The pool, draped

3:20

in gauzy white curtains and chandeliers.

3:22

Platters of shrimp. crabcakes and barbecue

3:24

were served. Better love for July,

3:26

you know. No, not here making

3:29

movies and meeting new people and

3:31

that's what the white part is

3:33

about, about people meeting new people.

3:35

A Somaliae explains that all the

3:38

wines served would be of course

3:40

white. We are going to be

3:42

pouring some wines from the south

3:44

of the Burgundy region. Macon Village

3:46

and Puyefice. Two

3:51

of the biggest songs of 2009 were

3:54

Lady Gaga's poker face and I

3:56

got a feeling by the Black

3:58

Eye piece. None of Diddy's... was

4:00

at the top of the charts.

4:02

But this was the year he wrapped

4:04

Making the Band, the show that made

4:06

him a reality star. And reality shows

4:09

were hot. Diddy's hit show was the

4:11

perfect blend of American Idol, the number

4:13

one TV show in America that year,

4:16

and another popular show at the

4:18

time, The Celebrity Apprentice. On Making the

4:20

Band, did he presented himself as a

4:23

kind of Trump-like figure of the music

4:25

industry, who had crowned the next big

4:27

pop group group. Diddy

4:30

had been throwing these Gatsby S.

4:32

white parties for almost a decade.

4:34

The first was on Labor Day

4:36

in 1998, when he had just

4:38

bought a home in the Hamptons.

4:40

He hosted a bunch of them

4:42

there, and then in San-Trope on

4:44

the French Riviera. One year, he

4:46

took a helicopter to the party

4:48

and landed holding an original copy

4:51

of the Declaration of Independence. The

4:53

famous writer Norman Lear loaned it

4:55

to him. All of the big

4:57

celebrities appeared at Diddy's white parties.

4:59

Biance, Jay-Z, Jonah Hill, Martha Stewart,

5:01

Harris Hilton, Aretha Franklin, and Donald

5:03

Trump, they all orbited the Diddy

5:05

White Party sphere. As a record

5:07

exec, Diddy helped launch the careers

5:09

of artists who would become legends,

5:11

the notorious BIG, Mary Jay Blige,

5:14

Faith Evans, Usher, and many others.

5:16

So it's no surprise people wanted

5:18

the invite to Diddy's parties. If

5:20

they had got one, Then they

5:22

belonged in the list of celebrities,

5:24

politicians, and cultural icons who had

5:26

proximity to a mogul, who knew

5:28

everyone and could make things happen.

5:30

You could hang out in the

5:32

backyard with hundreds of guests who

5:34

made it through the gates to

5:37

the main party. But it still

5:39

had a VIP section, an inner

5:41

circle. There's like the party in

5:43

the backyard, and then there's like

5:45

the few people in the house.

5:47

Biance, it was never in the

5:49

backyard. She's in the house with

5:51

JZ. very, the kids, you know,

5:53

we can get to smell the

5:55

same air as Beyonce. Reality TV

5:57

personality and podcaster Jason Lee was

6:00

at the 2009 Independence Day White

6:02

Party. He remembers it as a

6:04

good time and says it helped

6:06

his career. Lee claims he never

6:08

saw any darkness or any hints

6:10

of the crimes Diddy would be

6:12

accused of years later. People like

6:14

me who went to the regular

6:16

Diddy parties, we had our chicken

6:18

and waffles, we sipped our sorat,

6:20

we danced and we went home.

6:25

Lots of people who attended Diddy's

6:27

parties never saw his alleged dark

6:29

side. For decades, A-listers were eager

6:32

to pose next to the mogul

6:34

at a Hampton's Bash. Today, many

6:36

of those celebrities are actively distancing

6:39

themselves from Diddy, not wanting to

6:41

share that toxic spotlight. At the

6:43

height of his power and influence,

6:46

Diddy had complete control over his

6:48

world. He decided who got to

6:50

be an insider, controlled what happened

6:52

when the lights went out. And

6:55

he'd tell his guest as much.

6:57

This is a legendary white party.

6:59

It's the real white party. Make

7:02

some noise if you've been here

7:04

before. Okay. And to all the

7:06

kids, the kids have like an

7:09

hour left. So get extra comfortable

7:11

kids, because after that, y'all gotta

7:13

go. It's a wrap for y'all,

7:15

because this thing turns into something

7:18

that when y'all get older, y'all

7:20

won't come to. Okay? The

7:23

curfew announcement, when kids had

7:25

to disappear and lots of

7:27

adults left to, it hints

7:29

at a turn. Diddy foreshadows

7:32

an adult world, a late

7:34

night world of secrets. And

7:36

some of those secrets have

7:38

come pouring out. Diddy's rise

7:40

and fall. It's the story

7:42

we'll tell you in the

7:44

first six episodes of this

7:46

podcast. How a man who

7:48

was on top of the

7:50

music industry and on top

7:53

of the world... is now

7:55

confined to a cell that

7:57

couldn't be less luxurious, awaiting

7:59

trial. And once the trial

8:01

begins, we'll take you there

8:03

with twice weekly updates as

8:05

the case unfolds. Two very

8:07

different versions of Diddy have

8:09

emerged over the years. The

8:12

charmer that he showed the

8:14

world and the predator that

8:16

onlookers and alleged victims are

8:18

now claiming he was all

8:20

along. Which version of Diddy

8:22

will win out in court?

8:24

I'm Brian Buckmeyer, an attorney

8:26

and an ABC News legal

8:28

contributor. From ABC audio. This

8:30

is bad rap, the case

8:33

against Diddy. Episode 1, Parties

8:35

Over. Diddy's white parties were

8:37

glittering displays of wealth and

8:39

social capital, but to some

8:41

there were clues, even early

8:43

on, that Diddy's world had

8:45

shadows. Justin Tinsley is a

8:47

cultural reporter for ESPN's landscape,

8:49

which focuses on black culture.

8:51

He says there had always

8:53

been rumors about what Diddy

8:55

was like behind the scenes

8:58

at parties and in his

9:00

personal and professional life. It

9:02

was just a matter of

9:04

what's true, what's not, and

9:06

is somebody ever going to

9:08

come to the forefront and

9:10

really say like these are

9:12

my experiences with this guy?

9:14

In November of 2023, someone

9:16

did come forward. Diddy's ex-girlfriend,

9:18

Cassie Ventura, filed a civil

9:20

lawsuit against him alleging that

9:22

for over a decade he

9:24

trapped her in a cycle

9:27

of abuse, violence, and sex

9:29

trafficking. The lawsuit was a

9:31

bombshell. It alleged Cassie was

9:33

forced to participate in orchestrated,

9:35

elaborate sex parties Did he

9:37

called freak-offs that he would

9:39

film and keep recordings of.

9:41

A day after the lawsuit

9:43

was filed, Diddy settled with

9:45

Cassie for an undisclosed amount

9:47

and no admission of guilt.

9:49

But Cassie opened the floodgates.

9:51

Over the next 12 months,

9:54

others who had spent time

9:56

with Diddy, from a music

9:58

producer to a former model,

10:00

to a yacht Filed lawsuits

10:02

too. These lawsuits allege rape,

10:04

sexual assault, and human trafficking.

10:06

Many also allege Diddy would

10:08

spike drinks and lace marijuana

10:10

with narcotics to knock people

10:12

out or make it harder

10:14

for them to resist assault.

10:16

Some mention Diddy videotaping assaults

10:18

to further control and humiliate

10:21

his victims. Those lawsuits went

10:23

from a steady drip to

10:25

a rapid current. There are

10:27

now dozens of them. In

10:29

December of 2023, Diddy said

10:31

in a statement that he

10:33

did not do any of

10:35

the, quote, awful things being

10:37

alleged. He called them sickening

10:39

allegations by people looking for

10:41

a quick payday. His attorney

10:43

told ABC News, Combs couldn't

10:45

comment on settled litigation, wouldn't

10:47

comment on pending litigation, and

10:50

quote, cannot address every allegation

10:52

picked up by the press

10:54

from any source, no matter

10:56

how unreliable, end quote. But

10:59

in the fall of 2024, criminal

11:02

charges were filed against Diddy by

11:04

the feds. In a dramatic turn

11:06

of events, federal investigators raiding two

11:09

homes owned by hip-hop mogul Sean

11:11

Diddy Combs. A Homeland Security spokesperson

11:13

says the raid of the rapper's

11:15

properties was carried out as part

11:18

of an ongoing investigation into allegations

11:20

of sex trafficking. Music mogul Sean

11:22

Diddy Combs arrested in a New

11:25

York City hotel by federal agents

11:27

with Homeland Security investigations after being

11:29

indicted by a grand jury. We're

11:32

joining mansions where he'd once hosted

11:34

lavish lavish parties were raided. by

11:36

federal agents. In LA, more than

11:39

a dozen officers pulled up in

11:41

armored vehicles wearing fatigues guns drawn

11:43

pointing them at Diddy's sons who

11:46

happened to be at home. In

11:48

Miami, he was police officers and

11:50

t-shirts driving up to Diddy's compound

11:52

in vans. Combs is now facing

11:55

federal criminal charges that read a

11:57

lot like those earlier civil lawsuits.

11:59

taking, transportation to engage in prostitution,

12:02

and racketeering conspiracy. The charges accused

12:04

Diddy of decades of criminal behavior,

12:06

and unlike the civil lawsuits that

12:09

he faced from Cassie and now

12:11

from others, these criminal charges could

12:13

land him in prison for the

12:16

rest of his life. Combs has

12:18

pled not guilty to all charges.

12:20

His attorney, Mark Ignifalo, called it

12:22

an unjust prosecution. He said Combs

12:25

was a quote, music icon, self-made

12:27

entrepreneur, loving family man, and proven

12:29

philanthropists who has spent the last

12:32

30 years building an empire, adoring

12:34

his children, and working to uplift

12:36

the black community. He called Combs

12:39

an imperfect person, but not a

12:41

criminal. Once these lawsuits and charges

12:43

were filed, reporters and fans started

12:46

looking at Diddy's past with more

12:48

scrutiny. And up close, knowing the

12:50

allegations against him, Even his famed

12:52

summer parties started to look very

12:55

different, like this clip from an

12:57

appearance on Conan O'Brien's show in

12:59

2002. Conan compliments Diddy on being

13:02

a legendary party host and asks

13:04

him for tips on throwing a

13:06

quote, killer party. A lot of

13:09

ladies drink water at parties. They

13:11

just, you know, so you have,

13:13

if you don't have what they

13:16

need, they're going to leave. Right.

13:18

Got to keep them there. Right.

13:20

You need lots on the lots

13:23

on the doors. A joke about

13:25

locking doors so women can't leave

13:27

lands a little differently now. I've

13:29

been captivated by Diddy's rise and

13:32

fall for two reasons. The first

13:34

one is pretty straightforward. When I

13:36

was growing up in the 90s

13:39

and 2000s, Diddy was everywhere. It's

13:41

hard to be a millennial and

13:43

not know his music or his

13:46

impact on the music industry. One

13:48

of his most popular songs I

13:50

remember playing on the radio in

13:53

elementary school Was it all about

13:55

the Benjamin's? And can't nobody hold

13:57

me down? He marketed himself as

13:59

a kingmaker in the world with

14:02

the spoilers. And can't nobody hold

14:04

me down? Can't nobody hold me

14:06

down? Oh no, I got to

14:09

keep on moving. He marketed himself

14:11

as a kingmaker in the world

14:13

of hip-hop and everything he touched

14:16

seemed to turn to gold. He

14:18

turned hip-hop from being a thing

14:20

my mom probably didn't want me

14:23

to listen to, to something that

14:25

could make you into a billionaire

14:27

businessman, something my mom would approve

14:29

of. Back then, before the lawsuits,

14:32

before the allegations and scrutiny, did

14:34

he was someone you could look

14:36

up to? But I'm not a

14:39

cultural reporter, or a music journalist.

14:41

I'm an attorney. I spent almost

14:43

10 years as a public defender

14:46

in New York City, the last

14:48

few of those in the homicide

14:50

unit. Now I litigate federal civil

14:53

and criminal cases. And to be

14:55

clear, I am not an attorney

14:57

on Diddy's case. But I have

14:59

represented people who have been accused

15:02

of the kind of crimes he's

15:04

being accused of, and people who

15:06

were victims of those types of

15:09

crimes. And even with all of

15:11

my experience, when I read through

15:13

some of the lawsuits from the

15:16

people who had sued Diddy, I

15:18

had to stop myself sometimes. The

15:20

photos and details were jaw dropping.

15:23

They were a shock to my

15:25

system. And the federal indictment is

15:27

sweeping and disturbing. Diddy is accused

15:30

of running a vast criminal enterprise

15:32

that abused, threatened, and coerced his

15:34

alleged victims and others around him

15:36

to fulfill his sexual desires, protect

15:39

his reputation, and cover up his

15:41

conduct for decades. Diddy maintains his

15:43

innocence. His trial is set to

15:46

start in May. Until then, he's

15:48

locked up, stuck in a place

15:50

that couldn't be more different from

15:53

the luxury he's used to. a

15:55

place he doesn't want to be,

15:57

a place that no amount of

16:00

money can get him out of.

16:02

A place I know well. More

16:04

after the break. In Diddy's old

16:06

life, he could choose which of

16:09

his many homes he wanted to

16:11

spend time in. A three-story mansion

16:13

overlooking the Pacific Ocean and downtown

16:16

LA. A compound in Miami, including

16:18

a nine-bedroom mansion. A New York

16:20

City apartment with views of Central

16:23

Park. homes in New Jersey and

16:25

Atlanta, and a waterfront mansion in

16:27

the Hamptons. Now, Diddy's in the

16:30

Metropolitan Detention Center, or MDC, in

16:32

Brooklyn. This bland behemoth is where

16:34

he'll stay as he awaits trial.

16:36

So we're pulling up to MDC

16:39

now. It's got like this uncapped,

16:41

unwashed, grungy-ness of it. There's a

16:43

tall metal fence around the MDC

16:46

complex, so the parking lots as

16:48

far as most reporters get. But

16:50

as a defense attorney, I'm here

16:53

almost every week, and I can

16:55

get further than most. I walk

16:57

to the gate, up the steps,

17:00

and through the doors to security.

17:02

I get escorted into the visitor's

17:04

area, and I meet my client

17:07

for about an hour or two.

17:09

For the parts of the jail,

17:11

I can't see. My clients fill

17:13

me in. About how boiling hot

17:16

it is in the summer. how

17:18

cold it is in the winter.

17:20

An inmate told me that at

17:23

one point when there was no

17:25

heat or hot water, he couldn't

17:27

go to the showers and instead

17:30

was dumping hot water onto his

17:32

body from the sink, washing himself

17:34

and catching the water in the

17:37

toilet. I had to come to

17:39

MDC on that cold gray day

17:41

in January to meet with a

17:43

client who was awaiting sentencing. Getting

17:46

out of my Uber, I looked

17:48

up at this complex of tall

17:50

concrete buildings. and the gate before

17:53

you come in, you can actually

17:55

hear people. It almost sounds like

17:57

they're like rec hour. Yeah,

18:00

it sounds like they're playing a

18:02

sport. Each of MDC's buildings are

18:04

10 or more stories tall. And

18:07

where the windows in a typical

18:09

apartment would be, you have red

18:11

brick slabs with narrow slats and

18:13

big sections of metal grading that

18:16

give you the impression of a

18:18

locked jail cell, even from the

18:20

outside. MDC's right on the Brooklyn

18:22

waterfront, just a few blocks from

18:25

a boogie converted warehouse space, full

18:27

of artisan shops and... upscale restaurants.

18:29

But if you're part of the

18:31

legal system in New York, you

18:34

know that MDC is not a

18:36

nice place to be. In fact,

18:38

it's been described as hell on

18:40

earth, known for its violence, corruption,

18:43

and miserable conditions. It's a federal

18:45

building, so you can see Department

18:47

of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons,

18:49

you see the American flag. And

18:52

the building has watermarks and rust

18:54

on the metal parts and things

18:56

of that way. Over the years,

18:58

it's housed some people you've probably

19:01

heard of. Like our Kelly, Michael

19:03

Cohen, Gilead Maxwell, Sam Bankman Fried,

19:05

Luigi Mangioni, and Sean Diddy Combs.

19:07

Combs has been at MDC since

19:10

he was arrested last September. According

19:12

to his attorney Mark Ignifolo, Diddy

19:14

had flown to New York to

19:16

cooperate with authorities. He came here

19:19

to turn himself in. He's been

19:21

looking forward to clearing his name

19:23

and he's going to clear his

19:25

name. Paparazzi and onlookers caught snippets

19:28

of Diddy's visit to New York

19:30

last September. And from those photos

19:32

and videos, it looked like he

19:34

was enjoying his time. Talking and

19:37

smiling with fans, playing hackysack in

19:39

Central Park, strolling for the city

19:41

with his family. If did he

19:43

had plans to turn himself in?

19:46

He didn't do it for the

19:48

first 12 days he was in

19:50

New York. But on the night

19:52

of September 16th at the Park

19:55

Hyatt Hotel in Midtown Manhattan Homeland

19:57

Security Investigations caught Diddy by surprise.

19:59

You can see on the hotel

20:01

security footage that Ditty walked into

20:03

the front door and the agents

20:06

approached him. They separated him from

20:08

the group he was with, put

20:10

handcuffs on him, and took him

20:12

away. The day after Combs' arrest,

20:15

the prosecutor at the time held

20:17

a news conference to announce the

20:19

charges. Combs allegedly planned and controlled

20:21

the sex performances, which he called

20:24

freakoffs, and he often electronically recorded

20:26

them. The freak-off sometimes lasted days

20:28

at a time, involved multiple commercial

20:30

sex workers, and often involved a

20:33

variety of narcotics, such as ketamine,

20:35

ecstasy, and GHB, which Combs distributed

20:37

to the victims to keep them

20:39

obedient and compliant. Because of how

20:42

serious and violent the alleged crimes

20:44

are, Combs was ordered held without

20:46

bail. ABC News Chief investigative correspondent

20:48

Aaron Katerowski was in the courtroom.

20:51

Sean Combs entered in a black

20:53

t-shirt, gray sweatpants, and sneakers. He

20:55

actually looked a little stunned as

20:57

he surveyed the imposing room several

21:00

of his children and his sister,

21:02

where they're watching as he pleaded

21:04

not guilty, and then they saw

21:06

him led out by the marshals

21:09

after the judge ordered him into

21:11

custody without bail. It didn't surprise

21:13

me that things didn't go ditty's

21:15

way with bail. The allegations and

21:18

trafficking charges are very serious. And

21:20

if ditty were out on bail...

21:22

The fear was he'd had the

21:24

ability to reach witnesses and possibly

21:27

intimidate them. I didn't think there

21:29

was a chance he was getting

21:31

out. But that didn't stop Diddy

21:33

or his attorneys from trying. Diddy's

21:36

attorney told reporters before the start

21:38

of the bail hearings, MDC was

21:40

no place for his client. I

21:42

told Mr. Combs, I'm going to

21:45

try and get his case to

21:47

trial as quickly as possible. I'm

21:49

going to try and minimize the

21:51

amount of time he spends in

21:54

very very difficult and I believe

21:56

in humane housing conditions and the

21:58

in the special housing unit of

22:00

the metropolitan detention. Over and over

22:03

again, did he try to get

22:05

released? He tried offering a $50

22:07

million bond. He tried offering home

22:09

confinement. He tried to prove he

22:12

wasn't a flight risk, attempting to

22:14

sell his private plane, and saying

22:16

he'd surrender his passport to his

22:18

attorney. He was trying to be

22:21

a cooperative defendant. But no. Sean

22:23

Combs was denied bail four times.

22:25

ABC News live, a judge has

22:27

denied bail for Sean Diddy Combs.

22:30

Of course... Sean Diddy Combs has

22:32

been denied bail once again. That

22:34

judge in New York denied Music

22:36

Mobile, Sean Combs' request for bail,

22:39

saying Combs is potentially dangerous to

22:41

the community. The judges were also

22:43

concerned heat-up struck justice and intimidate

22:45

witnesses. That last part, witness intimidation,

22:48

has become a big issue in

22:50

Combs' case in recent months. In

22:52

one of his first bail hearings,

22:54

prosecutors presented calls Diddy made and

22:57

Texie sent before his arrest. They

22:59

said Diddy reached out to potential

23:01

witnesses, telling them that he'd be

23:03

taken care of financially if they

23:06

stuck by his side. And then

23:08

in November, after he'd been at

23:10

MDC for about two months and

23:12

was up for a third chance

23:15

at bail, prosecutors alleged Combs had

23:17

been paying other inmates to access

23:19

their phone accounts and according to

23:21

the government, avoid law enforcement monitoring.

23:24

And prosecutors said they caught combs

23:26

on recorded calls from jail, asking

23:28

family members to reach out to

23:30

potential victims and witnesses and urge

23:33

them to come up with narratives

23:35

to sway the jury in his

23:37

favor. Prosecutors wrote in their court

23:39

filing, the defendant has shown repeatedly,

23:42

even while in custody, that he

23:44

will flagrantly and repeatedly flout rules

23:46

in order to improperly impact the

23:48

outcome of his case. The defendant

23:50

has shown, in other words, that

23:53

he cannot be trusted to abide

23:55

by rules or conditions. Diddy's attorneys

23:57

responded to prosecute his arguments by

23:59

saying the nonstop drumbeat of negative...

24:02

publicity has destroyed Combs' reputation and

24:04

will make it virtually impossible for

24:06

him to receive a fair trial.

24:08

So Combs isn't back in his

24:11

$48 million mansion on an island

24:13

in Miami Beach, where at one

24:15

point he'd asked to await trial.

24:17

Instead, he's being detained far from

24:20

the pools, hot tubs, cabanas, and

24:22

ocean views he's used to. So

24:24

what's it like being an inmate

24:26

at MDC? What's it like being

24:29

a celebrity and a lead sex

24:31

offender in MDC? A notoriously dangerous

24:33

and neglected jail? After the break,

24:35

we meet someone who gives us

24:38

an inside view of MDC, most

24:40

people don't get to see, and

24:42

a window into Combs's life behind

24:44

bars? Just

24:56

a few weeks ago, I talked

24:58

to someone who's been past a

25:01

visitation area at MDC, who's really

25:03

been on the inside. And I

25:05

will try my best to make

25:08

this not feel like a cross-examination,

25:10

even though that is my typical

25:12

practice. Oh, that's okay. You can

25:15

ask me anything. I mean, that's

25:17

Cameron Lindsay. He's worked in corrections

25:19

for 25 years. He was a

25:22

warden of five different correctional facilities,

25:24

including MDC Brooklyn, and since retiring

25:26

in 2014, he's continued to work

25:29

in jails and prisons around the

25:31

country as a consultant and also

25:34

serves as an expert witness, often

25:36

testifying on behalf of a plaintiff

25:38

who was hurt or even killed

25:41

while incarcerated. So he's seen some

25:43

stuff in this country's correction system.

25:45

And he says for anyone, going

25:48

into detention is a shock to

25:50

the system, but especially for someone

25:52

like Sean Combs. Just utterly upending,

25:55

utterly shocking. I mean, for somebody

25:57

like you're pointing out, sir, who

25:59

has boatloads of money, who is

26:02

used to... to a lifestyle of

26:04

just doing whatever he wants. It's

26:06

like 100 miles an hour and

26:09

slamming into a wall. It's small

26:11

things, like having to wear the

26:13

same beige prison-issued drumsuit as everyone

26:16

else, and it's big things too,

26:18

like where and how he's housed.

26:20

Diddy's lawyer has said he's in

26:23

what's called the special housing unit,

26:25

which means he's separated from the

26:27

general population. If it were up

26:30

to retire and ward and Lindsay,

26:32

he'd go even further, putting Diddy

26:34

in almost complete isolation. In my

26:37

humble estimation, an individual like Mr.

26:39

Combs, P. Diddy, he should be

26:41

quartered separately in a lockdown situation,

26:44

which would entail 23 hours in

26:46

a lockdown cell by himself. He

26:48

would be afforded one hour of

26:51

recreation every day. He would be

26:53

afforded three showers per week. His

26:56

meals would be delivered to him

26:58

and his cell. But that doesn't

27:00

seem to be MDC's approach. Did

27:03

he reportedly has access to at

27:05

least some other inmates? Convicted crypto

27:07

fraudster Sam Bankman Freed said in

27:10

the interview with Tucker Colson that

27:12

did he has been kind to

27:14

people in the unit and he's

27:17

been quote, kind to me. We

27:19

also know did he sell a

27:21

small. not what he's used to.

27:24

They have a toilet sink combo,

27:26

they have a desk, and they

27:28

have a bunk. And that's it.

27:31

They are afforded certain privileges, reading

27:33

materials, commissary. They keep Diddy separated

27:35

from the jail's general population to

27:38

keep him safe. His wealth and

27:40

notoriety could make him a target.

27:42

When somebody has this much money

27:45

and they have been alleged to

27:47

have committed these heinous crimes, like

27:49

in this case, with P. Ditty,

27:52

all those things add up to

27:54

the likelihood of a potential threat.

27:56

It's right for MDC officials to

27:59

take Ditty's safety... Seriously, the

28:01

facility is infamously dangerous.

28:03

The Associated Press reported that

28:05

just in the last three years,

28:07

there has been a stabbing death,

28:09

a death after a brawl, and

28:11

at least four deaths by suicide.

28:13

And in the time Diddy's been

28:16

at MDC, an inmate was

28:18

charged with orchestrating a murder-for-hire

28:20

plot from inside. A Southern

28:22

District of New York judge

28:25

said in a 2024 opinion

28:27

that defendants at MDC Brooklyn

28:30

complain of, quote, near perpetual

28:32

lockdowns, dreadful conditions, and lengthy

28:35

delays in getting medical care.

28:37

He and other federal judges

28:39

have refused to send defendants

28:41

to MDC on the grounds

28:43

that conditions are so bad.

28:45

Conditions at MDC sank to

28:48

their lowest in 2019, with what

28:50

Lindsay calls the freeze-out, when nearly

28:52

1,700 inmates had to live in

28:54

below freezing temperatures for a week.

28:57

It couldn't get the power on

28:59

for like a week, and I was

29:01

just so perplexed by that. And so

29:03

that was the first thing that started

29:05

getting my attention, like, what the heck's

29:08

going on with the agency? There was

29:10

a heat and power outage at the

29:12

same time. Cells were dark. Cells were

29:14

dark. Toilots wouldn't flush, and access

29:17

to food, medical care, and phone

29:19

calls were cut off. Inmates sued,

29:21

the Department of Justice

29:23

investigated, and a settlement was

29:26

reached for about $10 million.

29:28

When you're incarcerated, sometimes

29:30

getting the bare necessities can

29:32

be a struggle. But what

29:34

happens when your clientele includes

29:37

people with means. People who

29:39

are used to buying whenever they

29:41

want. Lindsay doesn't know anything

29:43

about Diddy specifically, but I

29:45

asked him about corruption in

29:47

general. So if I tell you that

29:50

I've heard stories like, well, people are

29:52

buying cell phones inside of MDC

29:54

and people are having sometimes lobster

29:56

dinners or dinners brought to them

29:58

that you're one. How are you

30:01

eating like this in MDC?

30:03

Are those shocking to you

30:05

at all that I'm talking

30:07

to you about lobster dinners

30:09

and cell phones in MDC?

30:11

No, not at all. There's

30:13

an element of corruption in

30:15

every correctional facility. I can

30:17

tell you that MDC Brooklyn,

30:19

my experience was there was

30:22

a core of really, really

30:24

solid staff in MDC Brooklyn

30:26

that held the facility together.

30:28

Unfortunately, however, there is a

30:30

disproportionate element of misconduct and

30:32

corruption within the Metropolitan Detention

30:34

Center Brooklyn. So it's true

30:36

and disappointing. It's hard to

30:38

know the precise impact Diddy's

30:40

presence has had on MDC,

30:42

but retired warden Cameron Lindsay

30:45

says it's reasonable to think

30:47

there's been increased scrutiny on

30:49

the facility from higher-ups. We

30:51

do know since he's been

30:53

in there have been lockdowns

30:55

and contraband sweeps involving other

30:57

inmates in which investigators have

30:59

seized drugs, homemade weapons, and

31:01

electronic devices. I can't even

31:03

imagine the pressure that's coming

31:05

down from the top of

31:08

the administration down. I would

31:10

think that the word coming

31:12

down is you better keep

31:14

these people safe and make

31:16

sure that you're doing your

31:18

job. So

31:23

we started with Diddy at his

31:25

peak, the host of the party

31:28

that everyone wanted to go to,

31:30

the center of an industry that

31:32

so many wanted to be part

31:35

of. The key that could unlock

31:37

success and fame for those around

31:39

him. But now he's locked up

31:42

and can't even control the most

31:44

basic things, like when he eats

31:46

or bathes. How did he go

31:49

from Mogul to In-May? How did

31:51

he build not just a career,

31:54

but an empire? And if the

31:56

allegations against them are true, how

31:58

did he get away with the

32:01

violence, abuse, and manipulation for so

32:03

long? Coming up on bad rap,

32:05

the case against Diddy. I've seen

32:08

a lot of death, you know.

32:10

I don't know why. Believe me,

32:12

I asked myself the same question.

32:15

Like, you know, why have I

32:17

been chosen to see all of

32:20

this, you know, death at such

32:22

a young age? Diddy's success comes

32:24

at a price. But time and

32:27

time again, he doesn't seem to

32:29

be the one paying. This is

32:31

the beginning of this sense of

32:34

invincibility. In our next episode, we'll

32:36

trace the path of Diddy's rising

32:38

star from College Dropout to the

32:41

cover of Rolling Stone. And later

32:43

in our series, the early signs

32:46

of Diddy's alleged dark side start

32:48

to emerge. We began to see

32:50

her more in the public as

32:53

Diddy's girlfriend unless as the artist

32:55

Cassie. The culture of silence was

32:57

colossal. It kept people silent for

33:00

a really long time. And I

33:02

would venture to say it still

33:04

is keeping people silent right now.

33:07

Stay with us as new episodes

33:09

drop every week in the lead-up

33:12

to Diddy's trial. Once it starts,

33:14

we'll keep you posted with updates

33:16

throughout. If you enjoy this episode,

33:19

we'd love if you share it

33:21

and give us a rating on

33:23

Apple podcast or Spotify. Bad rap,

33:26

the case against Diddy, is a

33:28

production of ABC audio. I'm Brian

33:30

Buckmire. This podcast was written and

33:33

produced by Vika Aronson, Camille Peterson,

33:35

and Nancy Rosenbaum. Tracy Samuelson is

33:38

our story editor. Associate producer, Amira

33:40

Williams. Production help from Shane McKeon.

33:42

Fact checker, Audrey Moss Tech. Story

33:45

consultant, Sweeney St. Phil. Supervising producer,

33:47

Sasha Aslanion. Original music by Evan

33:49

Viola. Mixing by Rick Kwan. Ariel

33:52

Chester is our social media producer.

33:54

This podcast was powered by the

33:56

journalists at Impact by Nightline. 2020,

33:59

GMA, and the ABC unit,

34:01

thanks to those teams.

34:03

Unit. And special thanks

34:05

to teams. And Liz Alessi,

34:08

and Katie to

34:10

Josh Kohan is

34:12

ABC Audio's director

34:14

of podcast programming. Dendas.

34:16

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34:19

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