Missing witnesses and lingering questions plague prosecution as Diddy trial nears conclusion: expert

The government is expected to wrap up its case against Sean “Diddy” Combs on Monday after more than six weeks of testimony from a number of witnesses.

Jury selection for the rapper’s sex crimes trial began on May 5, and the prosecution called its last witness to the stand Friday after hearing Diddy’s former assistant, alleged “drug mule” Brendan Paul, testify about his time employed by the Bad Boy Records founder.

Diddy’s legal team, headed by Marc Agnifilo and Teny Geragos, initially indicated they would need upwards of two weeks to plead their case, but told Judge Arun Subramanian last week that they may be able to rest by Tuesday or Wednesday. 

Despite the trial coming to a close, former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani admitted that lingering questions remain with the case, including questions about missing key witnesses. 

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“What happened to Gina, who was Victim 3 in the indictment? The government said they were unable to get a hold of her, and she did not testify,” Rahmani said. “Was she afraid, embarrassed, paid off by Combs, or was there another reason why she didn’t comply with the subpoena? Regardless, it was a mistake by the prosecution to list her as a victim when they did not have assurances that she would appear. They should have known Combs has the resources to threaten or pay witnesses not to testify and have planned accordingly.” 

There have been no allegations in court that Diddy threatened or paid witnesses not to testify.

Rahmani also wondered why Diddy’s chief of staff, Kristina “KK” Khorram, wasn’t called to testify. Brendan Paul testified Friday that KK “basically ran the enterprise.”

During the testimony of summary witness Anaya Sankar, the jury was shown text messages between Diddy’s ex Cassie Ventura and KK dated May 2, 2017. Cassie was telling KK that the “Last Night” singer allegedly had locked the door and dragged her by her hair. 

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More text messages between Cassie and KK dated April 20, 2018, showed Cassie saying she can’t take the violence and being kicked out of her own home. KK responded, “I don’t know what else to say, but I’m here…” Cassie then wrote, “I just want to stay focused.”

The jury was then shown text messages between KK and Diddy’s more recent ex-girlfriend, who testified under the pseudonym Jane. She alleged that Diddy had forced her to have sex with male escorts during “hotel nights” and that occasionally the sex session was recorded.

A text message sent to KK from Jane was shown to the jury, which claimed Combs was threatening to release the alleged sex tapes. Jane wrote, “You’re his righthand woman…maybe he’ll listen to you…” The message was sent on Feb. 18, 2024.

“Many consider her to be Combs’ Ghislaine Maxwell because she knows where the proverbial bodies are buried,” Rahmani told Fox News Digital. “Khorram was actually involved in the alleged sex and drug trafficking and could have been charged as a co-conspirator. The government should have leaned on her to flip against her former boss. Instead, they gave her a pass by simply reading her text messages into evidence.”

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Rahmani questioned why Diddy’s ex-girlfriends, including Cassie, Mia and Jane, didn’t leave if they had been sexually assaulted and trafficked.  

“The government put on expert Dawn Hughes to explain the psychology of abuse, but that is the biggest question in the case,” Rahmani admitted. “Did the victims stay because they wanted the money and fame that came with being Combs’ partner? If so, did they consent to the ‘freak offs’ while they were happening?” 

“Was this rape, or really regret and resentment? I’m not sure prosecutors have fully answered this question and this is the same argument the defense raised with some success in the Harvey Weinstein retrial.”

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What the jury will decide remains the biggest question in the case. Attorney Nicole Blank Becker, who represents R. Kelly, told Fox News Digital that jurors, just like anyone else, have a difficult time separating emotions from charges.

“When you hear about the horrible actions of P. Diddy, not only here, but then you see the actions on a video, and at some point, the jury will be told, ‘OK,’ perhaps that it was a domestic violence, but that’s not really what this is about. It’s about something bigger,” Becker said. “The idea that the jurors will be able to separate that in their mind is highly unlikely, even though they will be told to. And there’s a lot of demonstrative evidence in this case, is my understanding. 

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“My experience when I was in the case with R. Kelly, those types of things are often used not only to show what the government’s trying to bring, show in their case, but it definitely brings an emotional side to a human, and sometimes that emotional part – It’s very difficult to overlook when you’re back there as a juror.” 

She added, “I can only imagine the difficulty that there must be when you were back in a jury room to sort of separate if you think he’s a good person or a bad person, because that’s not what they’re there for, right? Therefore, they’re back there to basically check off boxes. If the government has done this, check it off. If the government has done that, check it off. Better bet that they’re also back there talking about, ‘Oh my god, can you believe what he did in this video?'”

Becker noted that testimony and evidence may get misconstrued, and that the jury has to separate emotions from fact.

“Some of it, I think it gets minced,” Becker said. “It becomes … extremely difficult actually to say to yourself, ‘OK self, I’m not supposed to let myself be emotionally involved in this. I’m supposed to just listen to the law, and then put the facts in where the law is appropriate.'” 

“I know in [R. Kelly’s] case, I can only imagine how difficult that must have been. And I think that that’s going to also be another difficult part of the Diddy case as well.”

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Thunder’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wins NBA Finals MVP

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was a key player the Oklahoma City Thunder received when the organization traded Paul George to the Los Angeles Clippers before the 2019-20 season.

The Thunder weren’t very good to start the new era with Gilgeous-Alexander leading the way, but once the team saw Lu Dort, Jalen Williams and eventually Chet Holmgren play together and stay healthy together, it turned out to be a complete game-changer.

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It culminated in the Thunder’s Game 7 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Sunday night. Gilgeous-Alexander, already the regular-season MVP and the Western Conference Finals MVP, scored 29 points and dished out 12 assists in the 103-91 victory.

With his clutch performance, Gilgeous-Alexander was given the Bill Russell MVP trophy recognizing him as the NBA Finals MVP. He had 38 points in a Game 1 loss and followed it up in Game 2 when Oklahoma City needed to tie the series. He scored 31 points in Game 5 to push Indiana to the brink.

He raised the trophy in front over an overjoyed crowd in Oklahoma City.

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“This isn’t just a win for me. This is a win for my family. This is a win for my friends. This is a win for everybody that was in my corner growing up. This is a win for the fans – the best fans in the world,” he told ESPN’s Lisa Salters after receiving the Finals MVP.

The NBA Finals MVP puts a cap on a phenomenal season for Gilgeous-Alexander.

He led the NBA with 32.7 points per game on the way to winning the first NBA MVP of his career. It was the third straight season he was an All-Star.

Oklahoma City finished with a 68-14 record – the best in the NBA. It’s the first title since the team moved from Seattle to Oklahoma City. The SuperSonics won an NBA title in 1979.

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Thunder blow out Pacers in Game 7 to win NBA championship

The Oklahoma City Thunder won the NBA championship over the Indiana Pacers, 103-91, running away with Game 7 of the NBA Finals on their home court in exciting fashion.

The last time this franchise won an NBA title was 1979, when they were still known as the Seattle Supersonics. Since relocating to Oklahoma City in 2008 and rebranding as the Thunder, they have not won a title until Sunday night.

League MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and his teammates made sure to change that on Sunday night, as their dominant regular season and NBA Playoffs run was capped in the best way possible in a do-or-die Game 7. 

This is a developing story. More to come.

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Pacers lose Tyrese Haliburton to nightmare leg injury in NBA Finals Game 7 matchup vs Thunder

Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton managed to power through a calf injury he suffered in the middle of the NBA Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder but the big guard appeared to reaggravate the issue in Game 7 on Sunday night.

Haliburton was already off to an incredible start to the do-or-die game for the NBA championship, nailing three 3-pointers in the first quarter to give Indiana an early edge. Haliburton was near the Thunder bench when he tried to drive toward his left.

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He put the ball onto the floor with Thunder MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on him. He appeared to slip and fall forward, losing the ball in the process. As the camera panned to Haliburton, he was down on his stomach, hammering his first onto the ground, writhing in pain.

The Pacers bench gathered around Haliburton as trainers attended to him. The game was paused for a few moments as Haliburton was helped off the floor.

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Indiana said Haliburton suffered a lower right-leg injury and would not return.

Jonh Haliburton, Tyrese’s father, said that his son had suffered an Achilles injury.

Haliburton had been the catalyst for the Pacers’ success throughout the playoffs. He made key shots in the first round against the Milwaukee Bucks, he brought heartache to Cleveland Cavaliers fans in the second round and sent a message to the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals.

In the NBA Finals against the Thunder, Haliburton continued to make huge shots to help the Pacers stay afloat against the league’s best team.

He was injured in Game but had 14 points in the Pacers’ Game 6 win on Friday night to force Game 7.

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White House calls CNN ‘fake news’ for report claiming Democratic leadership wasn’t briefed on Iran strike

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt demanded CNN retract a story on Sunday that claimed Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries were not briefed on President Donald Trump’s strike on Iran.

Trump launched “Operation: Midnight Hammer” on Saturday and struck three of Iran’s key nuclear facilities in a surprise attack. The White House announced the success of the attack later that night.

CNN reported that House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, both Republicans, were briefed on the strikes ahead of time, with Schumer and Jeffries, both Democrats, receiving notifications only before the public announcement and well after the attack.

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Leavitt called the report “fake news” on X.

“This is Fake News. The White House made bipartisan courtesy calls to Congressional Leadership and spoke to @SenSchumer before the strike. @RepJeffries could not be reached until after, but he was briefed. @CNN please retract,” Leavitt wrote.

Fox News Digital reached out to Schumer and Jeffries’ offices for comment. 

The CNN report added that Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., and Rep. Jim Himes, D-Ct., who are members of the intelligence committees in the Senate and House respectively, were not told until after the strikes.

CNN didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. 

Both Schumer and Jeffries released statements over the weekend condemning Trump for the strikes on Iran.

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Although both criticized Trump for not seeking congressional authorization for the attack, neither claimed that they were not briefed or notified before the actual strike.

In his statement, Schumer called on Thune to enforce the War Powers Act.

“No president should be allowed to unilaterally march this nation into something as consequential as war with erratic threats and no strategy,” Schumer said.

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