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The government has decided to simplify a few notable charges against Sean "Diddy" Combs just a day before closing arguments in the mogul's criminal trial.
Prosecutors sent a letter to Judge Arun Subramanian on Wednesday, June 25, in which they informed him of their decision to clarify several charges to comply with the judge's request to "streamline" the jury instructions. Combs was originally indicted last year on five counts of sex trafficking, racketeering, kidnapping, and transportation to engage in prostitution. However, the feds are no longer focusing on allegations of kidnapping, attempted arson, and aiding and abetting sex trafficking.
It seems like the feds failed to prove that Combs allegedly kidnapped his former assistant, Capricorn Clark, and his former girlfriend, Cassandra "Cassie" Ventura. Clark testified that Combs and his associate, "Uncle Paulie," took her to an undisclosed area on the sixth floor of a building in New York City to take a lie detector test after she was accused of stealing her boss's jewelry. She claimed she was forced to return to the location for five days and said Combs would've thrown her in the East River if she failed the test.
They also removed the attempted arson allegation because they couldn't connect Combs to the fire that destroyed Kid Cudi's Porsche in 2011. The Cleveland rapper, Cassie, and Capricorn Clark all pointed the finger at Combs for allegedly starting the blaze while in a jealous rage after he found out that Cudi and Cassie were dating. Despite their testimonies, the prosecution didn't provide direct evidence that Combs was responsible. The attempted arson and kidnapping allegations were related to the racketeering charge Combs faced. The prosecution will also keep the sex trafficking charges in place, but will remove select pieces of them, including aiding and abetting.
The move comes a day after both the defense and the prosecution rested their case. Prosecutors wrapped things up after the jury heard testimony from their final witness, a Homeland Security Investigations special agent named Joseph Cerciello. Combs declined to testify and thanked the judge for his service before the defense rested. Closing arguments from both sides are scheduled for Thursday. Afterward, the jury could reach a verdict by Friday.