Emergency episode alert! Anoushka Mutanda Dougherty and guests discuss the outcome of Diddy’s latest bail hearing. Rolling Stone reporter Cheyenne Roundtree dials in with the latest as the judge files the decision. BBC correspondent Mark Savage assesses what it all means, and outlines what’s on the menu for Thanksgiving dinner at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. Diddy is accused of kidnapping, drugging, and coercing women into sexual acts, and denies all the accusations.We want YOU to be part of the conversation. Have you any burning questions about the allegations? Heard a theory that doesn’t sit right with you? Send us your thoughts! Get in touch now via WhatsApp: 0330 123 555 1The Diddy on Trial podcast is here to investigate the rumours, confront the theories, and give you the answers that you need.Presenter: Anoushka Mutanda Dougherty Producer: Laura Jones Sound Design: Richard Hannaford Editor: Clare FordhamCommissioning Editor: Rhian Roberts Assistant Commissioner: Will Drysdale Commissioning Producer: Adam Eland Commissioning Assistant Producer: Rechmial Miller
Chapter 1: What is the latest update on Diddy's bail hearing?
BBC Sounds. Music, radio, podcasts. Hello and welcome to Diddy on Trial from BBC Sounds with me, Anushka Matandadawati. And welcome to our first emergency episode because we already have news. And we're going to do this every time something big happens, so make sure you subscribe. At this rate, you might be hearing from us every day. So we were all waiting for Judge Arun Subramaniam.
Will he file before the end of the week? Do we need to be on Diddy Watch all weekend? And late last night, he finally made a decision and Diddy has been denied his third bid for bail. He said that the court finds that the government has shown by clear and convincing evidence that no condition or combination of conditions will reasonably assure the safety of the community.
Now, a reminder, what is Diddy charged with? One count sex trafficking, one count transportation for prostitution, and one count racketeering with conspiracy. He denies it all. So what did he offer for his bail bid?
Chapter 2: What charges is Diddy facing?
$50 million, round-the-clock security in his three-bed New York flat, and a promise not to contact any witnesses or alleged victims, and no female visitors apart from those in his family. The judge had already thrown out the proposal that he wait for trial on his private island, saying that is not going to work. Now, it's Thanksgiving in the US and everyone is having family time.
So we are extra, extra appreciative of our friend of the pod, Rolling Stone senior investigative journalist Cheyenne Roundtree, because she sent me this message before she clocked off.
Diddy's bail was denied for a third time on Wednesday night. This comes after a judge heard oral arguments in court on Friday. and took over the weekend and three full working days of this week to decide on that.
Chapter 3: What arguments did the prosecution present against Diddy's bail?
And in his ruling, the judge sided with prosecutors and said that there were no conditions that Didi and his team could put forward that would ensure that he was not a danger to the community. Now, prosecutors have been arguing The danger to the community is twofold.
One, that they say that he has a history of extreme violence towards not only women that he's in romantic relationships with, but they also claim that he has been violent with former staffers. The second part of that is that they claim that there is this real risk of Diddy contacting potential victims or witnesses that are involved in this criminal case.
And the judge has ruled that he found that there was evidence that supported their argument. And ultimately, that's what played into his decision to deny his bail request. Now, I'm sure this is a big blow for Diddy and his team. They were probably hoping for. Good news ahead of Thanksgiving on Thursday, he had his entire family in court on Friday. This is not the end of the road just yet.
Diddy's team currently has an appeal in the Second Circuit Court here. And basically that means that he will have his chance to appeal this decision or multiple decisions at this point to a court of appeals. However, three judges ruling against his release. I don't know if that will prove any different in the Court of Appeals. However, it's just another shot at him being released.
Chapter 4: What factors influenced the judge's decision to deny bail?
That was Cheyenne Roundtree from Rolling Stone magazine. And I'm joined today by Mark Savage, the BBC's music correspondent. Hi, Mark.
Hello, how are you doing?
Are you surprised by this?
Chapter 5: What is the significance of Diddy's appeal opportunity?
Not really. I think after the first two bail applications were denied, this one seemed pretty locked on as well. The arguments that the prosecution had made in advance seemed fairly strong. You know, they said that Diddy was trying to influence his case from jail. He was accused of contacting people using other inmates' phone privileges, up to eight of them.
They said he had bribed people to use their phone accounts. And they said he was trying to conduct a public relations campaign from inside jail to influence the case. So they cited a social media post that denounced one of his alleged victims. They said that he had contacted the person that wrote that post over a hundred times from jail and inferred that he had paid them to make that post.
And they also raised the birthday video that was posted by Diddy's seven children on the 5th of November
They said that that had been orchestrated from within jail, it was an attempt to paint him in a positive light, and that after it had gone up Diddy had been analysing the metrics and working out whether or not it was having the positive influence he wanted in order to influence potential jurors. So the prosecution have been really strong on this from the start.
In fact, one of the reasons that he was indicted so quickly and so early in the government's investigation is that they felt he was a danger to the investigation that they were conducting, that he was contacting witnesses, that he was trying to influence people.
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Chapter 6: How are Diddy's actions from jail affecting his case?
Now, obviously, these are all things that his team denies, but the judge in this case, as the two previous judges, seems to have been swayed by those arguments. Judge Aaron Subramanian said there was evidence supporting a serious risk
of witness tampering and he added there were concerns about Diddy's propensity for violence citing some of the texts by his ex-girlfriend Cassie who is the government's main witness talking about having a black eye and a fat lip after he was seen assaulting her in that famous CCTV video that was leaked to CNN earlier this year.
I think Diddy's defence had made some arguments that needed to be taken seriously. They said it was impossible for him to prepare for the trial from behind bars because of the amount of material he had to review. They said those preparations were being hampered by the conditions at the jail, which included frequent lockdowns and officers taking away the pens that he uses to make notes.
And they had argued that the sweep of the prison that led to a lot of these illicit phone calls being made was a violation of his human rights. So I imagine the judge took all of that into account, but in the end came down on the side of the prosecution's arguments.
So it wasn't really about the flight risk element. There's no worry that he wasn't going to turn up for the trial.
There was, I think, a certain degree of risk of flight. One of the reasons that the judge denied him the opportunity to be held at his home in Miami was was because that mansion has a dock, so he could get onto a boat and head off outside of US jurisdiction. The defence came back and said, well, in that case, he could serve bail in his apartment in Manhattan. But again, that was turned down.
And the jail that he's in, the Metropolitan Detention Centre, does not have a very good reputation and might be contributing to why he wants to get out so much. What do we know about the conditions there?
It has notoriously poor conditions. Two inmates were fatally stabbed there over the summer. In 2019, there was a prison officer who was convicted of raping a detainee. And in the same year, during the winter snap, like New York has cold winters, the entire facility lost power. And prisoners were freezing cold for days and days and days. So, yes, the conditions are bad.
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Chapter 7: What role did witness testimony play in the bail decision?
Obviously, Diddy is not being held with the general prison population. He's in a special wing that houses high profile detainees. He's there in the same wing where they would have held R. Kelly and Jeffrey Epstein when they were up for trial. So the assumption is that he gets arrested.
A slightly better deal than the general prison population, but again, he's still subject to all of the prison rules. He still has to get up for the early morning wake-up call at 6am, he has to make his own bed, he has to mop the floor. These are things that he will not have been used to in his previous life.
And another thing that's going to be strikingly different, he's known for his extravagant dinner parties, gatherings, hiring out mansions, whole hotels. And now Thanksgiving, which is a big celebration, he's going to be spending in jail. I know a lot of speculation has been about what he's going to be having for Thanksgiving dinner. Have you seen some of that?
I have indeed. And actually, if you look back, one of his lawyers said a couple of months ago outside the courthouse in New York that the roughest part of the jail conditions was the food he had to eat. I think his first meal, it was reported by one of the New York tabloids, was Swedish meatballs.
I don't know what he would normally have eaten, but they have also in the New York Post managed to get a copy of the menu of for the Thanksgiving meal. So they say the Thanksgiving lunch, it sounds pretty standard. Roast turkey, mashed potatoes, mixed vegetables, cranberry sauce, gravy, dinner rolls and beverages. I mean, that's what you would expect.
But I think any of us who have had hospital food or school dinners will know that the standard in these sorts of institutions is not what you would get from a home-cooked meal by your mum.
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Chapter 8: What are the implications for Diddy as the trial approaches?
Yeah, it's not quite steak and lobster, but it's not as bad as what people were saying, which was PB&J's peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. So...
So the lunch, the main Thanksgiving lunch, which is served at 11 o'clock in the morning, very early, that is the roast turkey. In the evening, yes, there are peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, crisps, whole wheat bread, fruit and beverages. That's the evening meal. But you've stuffed yourself full of Thanksgiving dinner. You don't need anything more than a sandwich, do you?
I mean, yeah, at least we know he's eating a balanced meal.
And there is also, there's a heart-healthy option as well. You can have hot and sour tofu. I don't know what hot and sour tofu would taste like. I dread to think.
I mean, okay. So Thanksgiving's not going to happen. Do you think the next push for him will be Christmas?
I mean, I think, as we heard before, his team are appealing some of these decisions and are trying to get him released from jail ahead of the trial. I'm not convinced that after being denied the application three times that even an appeals court is going to reverse those decisions. But yes, that is the next step for his team.
Thank you so much, Mark. That was fab. When can you come back?
I'll come back anytime you'll have me. This is a fascinating case to follow.
Okay, that's our first emergency episode done. First of many, no doubt. And you know we've got the goods when Bombshell News breaks, so make sure you subscribe on BBC Sounds and turn on your push notifications so you never miss a thing. That's it from me today, I think. I'm Anushka Matanda-Doughty and you've been listening to Diddy on Trial from BBC Sounds.
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