Diddy’s baby oil-soaked orgies were a lifestyle choice, not a crime, and do not make him the new Jeffrey Epstein, the rapper’s lawyer insisted.
Teny Geragos made these bold statements when appearing on NewsNationCuomo will defend Diddy, hours after the latter denied racketeering and sex trafficking in a federal court in New York.
“He’s innocent,” Geragos told Chris Cuomo after Diddy, 54 (real name Sean Combs), was denied bail and ordered held in pretrial detention.
The lawyer added: ‘Lifestyle and presence in activities does not mean that he has committed a crime. Those activities and lifestyle are not criminal.
“What was remarkable today, what my colleague Mark said in court, is that they never said that these women did not consent to what happened, not once.”
The rapper’s attorney, Teny Geragos, appeared on NewsNation’s Cuomo to defend Diddy, who was charged with racketeering and sex trafficking on Tuesday in New York.
Geragos also noted that Diddy was not charged with any crimes involving minors.
“The difference here between R Kelly and Epstein is that there are no charges involving minors,” he said.
Diddy went to jail Tuesday to await trial in a federal sex trafficking case that accuses him of presiding over a sordid empire of sex crimes protected by racketeering and shocking acts of violence.
He is accused of inducing female victims and male sex workers to engage in drugged sexual performances, sometimes lasting several days, called ‘freak offs’.
Searches of his properties are said to have uncovered 1,000 bottles of baby oil, and prosecutors say the women involved in the sexual encounters were so exhausted from marathon sex sessions that they needed IV fluids afterwards.
The indictment also indirectly refers to an attack on his ex-girlfriend, R&B singer Cassie, which was captured on video.
“Mr. Combs is a fighter. He’s going to fight to the end. He’s innocent,” his attorney, Marc Agnifilo, said after the trial. On Wednesday, he plans to appeal the bail decision.
Diddy, seen at right in court, headed to jail Tuesday to await trial in a federal sex trafficking case that accuses him of presiding over a sordid sex crimes empire.
“The difference here between R Kelly, between Epstein, there are no charges related to minors,” he said.
Agnifilo acknowledged that Combs was “not a perfect person,” saying he had used drugs and been in “toxic relationships,” but was receiving treatment and therapy.
He maintained the case stemmed from a long-term consensual relationship that collapsed amid infidelity. He did not name the woman, but the details matched those of Diddy’s decade-long relationship with Cassie, whose legal name is Casandra Ventura.
The ‘Freak Offs’, Agnifilo argued, were an expansion of that relationship, and not a coercive one.
“Is it sex trafficking? Not if everyone wants to be there,” Agnifilo said, arguing that authorities were intruding into his client’s private life.
Diddy’s lawyers have argued that the case stems from a long-term consensual relationship that collapsed amid infidelity. He did not name the woman, but the details matched those of Diddy’s decade-long relationship with Cassie, whose legal name is Casandra Ventura.
The indictment describes Combs as the head of a criminal enterprise that engaged or attempted to engage in sex trafficking, forced labor, interstate transportation for the purpose of prostitution, drug offenses, kidnapping, arson, bribery and obstruction of justice.
She says he then used force, threats and coercion to get the women to interact with male sex workers at “Freak Offs” – “elaborate, produced sexual performances” that Combs staged and recorded, creating dozens of videos.
According to the indictment, he ensured they participated by procuring and supplying drugs, controlling their careers, taking advantage of their financial support and using intimidation and violence. His employees were said to facilitate the “Freak Offs” by taking care of tasks such as arranging travel and hotels and supplying them with supplies such as drugs and baby oil.
The indictment describes Combs as the head of a criminal enterprise that engaged or attempted to engage in sex trafficking, forced labor, interstate transportation for the purpose of prostitution, drug offenses, kidnapping, arson, bribery and obstruction of justice.
The events could last for days, and Combs and the victims were often given intravenous fluids to recover from the exertion and drug use, according to the indictment.
During searches of Combs’ homes earlier this year, law enforcement seized narcotics, videos of performances and more than 1,000 bottles of baby oil and lubricant, according to prosecutors. They said officers also seized firearms and ammunition, including three AR-15 rifles with obliterated serial numbers in his bedroom closet in Miami.