Sean "Diddy" Combs has lost one of his key attorneys less than three months before his trial begins.
Anthony Ricco filed a motion to withdraw from the case, fueling speculation about potential ethical disagreements within his legal team or a shift in the rapper's legal strategy.
Trigger warning: sexual assault. The lawyer released a statement on Thursday (February 20) explaining that his decision was based on reasons "related to the protections afforded by attorney-client privilege."
Highlights
- Diddy's attorney Anthony Ricco quit months before trial, citing attorney-client privilege.
- Sean "Diddy" Combs has been charged with racketeering and sex trafficking; he was denied bail thrice.
- Over 100 accusers plan civil suits; alleged abuses span decades and involve minors.
"On September 22, 2024, I was retained by the defendant, Sean Combs, to serve as his counsel, and I have served as his counsel since that time," Ricco began.
Image credits: Jemal Countess / Getty
"For the reasons set forth below, this motion for withdrawal is filed so that Sean Combs may move forward with his defense and to commence jury selection and trial without any delay."
"While I am aware that the Local Rule requires that an application for withdrawal of counsel is supported and granted 'only upon a showing by affidavit or otherwise of satisfactory reasons for withdrawal,' there are sufficient reasons (related to the protections afforded by the attorney/client privilege) for brevity in my application for withdrawal as counsel in this case."
Image credits: Shareif Ziyadat / Getty
"Although I have provided Sean Combs with the high level of legal representation expected by the court, under no circumstances can I continue to effectively serve as counsel for Sean Combs, consistent with the ABA Standards for Criminal Justice."
Ricco concludes by stating that his decision "will not result in a delay of the present schedule for the commencement of jury selection and trial" and that the music producer will continue to be represented by five other attorneys.
Combs was arrested in September 2024 and indicted by a grand jury.
Anthony Ricco's decision fueled speculation about ethical disagreements within Combs' legal team or a shift in the rapper's legal strategy
Image credits: NYCBA
He has been charged with racketeering and sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion. He pleaded not guilty and was denied bail three times.
In November 2023, his former partner of 11 years, Cassie Ventura, accused him of sexual assault and physical abuse.
Though Combs and Ventura reached an undisclosed agreement and the case was dismissed, her allegations led to a series of complaints regarding alleged assaults that occurred during the 2000s and 2010s.
The plaintiffs are both male and female, and more than two dozen were minors at the time of the alleged abuse. One said they were nine years old when they encountered Combs.
Texas attorney Tony Buzbee claimed he will represent more than 100 accusers who plan to file civil suits against the 55-year-old producer.
Combs has been charged with racketeering and sex trafficking
Image credits: Jemal Countess / Getty
The September indictment accuses the hip-hop mogul of "wield[ing] the power and prestige of [his] role at the Combs Business to intimidate, threaten and lure female victims into [his] orbit, often under the pretense of a romantic relationship."
It also states that Combs carried out his criminal activity with the "assistance of members and associates" and that he "transported commercial sex workers across state lines and internationally."
One of the forms of abuse that Combs was accused of was his "Freak Offs," in which he "used force, threats of force, and coercion" to lure victims into engaging with male commercial sex workers, the document states.
Accusers claim these acts also involved the consumption of illegal substances.
He's currently detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center in New York City, awaiting his trial, which is set to begin on May 5
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"Physical abuse by the defendant was recurrent and widely known," the indictment reads. "On numerous occasions from at least in or about 2009 and continuing for years, [he] assaulted women by, among other things, striking, punching, and dragging."
Combs continues to deny the accusations. His attorneys said in a statement last October: "Mr. Combs and his legal team have full confidence in the facts, their legal defenses, and the integrity of the judicial process.
"In court, the truth will prevail: that Mr. Combs has never sexually assaulted anyone — adult or minor, man or woman."
Combs is currently detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York City. His trial is set to start on May 5.
"He's abandoning the ship before it sinks," an X user speculated
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