Music producer sentenced to four years and fined $500,000 for prostitution offences

Sean “Diddy” Combs is expected to remain in prison until May 2028 after being sentenced to four years and two months for prostitution offences earlier this month, according to US federal inmate records.

The 55-year-old music producer and entrepreneur was handed a 50-month term and fined $500,000 for transporting people across state and national borders for sexual encounters, including with his then-girlfriend and male sex workers, in violation of US prostitution laws.

According to NBC News, citing the Federal Bureau of Prisons, Combs’ projected release date is 8 May 2028. Prosecutors had sought a significantly longer sentence of 11 years, arguing that Combs’ alleged conduct over several years had exploited others and demonstrated what they called a “pattern of coercion and abuse”.

Combs, who has been in custody since his arrest in September 2024, was acquitted of more serious racketeering and sex trafficking charges. The conviction marks his first criminal offence.

The former hip-hop mogul and founder of Bad Boy Records pleaded not guilty and has maintained his innocence throughout the proceedings. His legal team has confirmed that he intends to appeal both the conviction and the length of the sentence.

During the trial at a federal district court in New York, prosecutors presented evidence spanning a seven-week period, including video clips of Combs physically assaulting his former partner, the singer Cassie — now Cassie Venture Fine — in a Los Angeles hotel corridor. Jurors were told the footage was recorded shortly after one of the encounters central to the prosecution’s case.

Ms Fine testified over four days, telling the court that she had been coerced and, at times, blackmailed into sexual acts with male workers. In a letter submitted to the judge before sentencing, she described Combs as “a manipulator” and said she feared for her safety if he were released immediately.

In his own remarks to the court, Combs said he accepted that aspects of his past behaviour were “disgusting, shameful and sick” but continued to deny that he had committed any criminal acts.

Combs has been held at the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn since his conviction. He could be eligible for early release based on time served and credit for good behaviour.

The case has drawn widespread public attention due to Combs’ long-standing prominence in the entertainment industry. Known for shaping the careers of artists including The Notorious B.I.G. and Faith Evans, he built a multibillion-dollar empire encompassing music, fashion and spirits before facing multiple civil allegations of assault and abuse in recent years.

His conviction follows a series of lawsuits and public claims made against him by former associates and partners, several of which he has denied. In 2024, he reached an out-of-court settlement with Ms Fine in a separate civil case filed in New York.

Neither Combs nor his representatives have commented publicly since his sentencing earlier this month. His legal team said they would file an appeal notice “in due course”, arguing that the court had “misapplied federal statutes” in reaching the verdict.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons has not disclosed where Combs will serve the remainder of his sentence but confirmed that his release date is set for 8 May 2028.