From tycoon to disgrace: How America has been engulfed by the Diddy trial .
For weeks now, America has been getting tantalising insights into one of the biggest celebrity trials for a generation.
Music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs faces multiple sex trafficking and racketeering charges.
The complex case will go to court on Monday amid a barrage of media coverage.
From documents already filed and procedures during jury selection, we know celebrities such as actors Mike Myers, Michael B.Jordan, and music figures such as Gloria Estefan and Michelle Williams have all been mentioned in court documents.
In some cases their connection to Combs is opaque, in others it is much clearer.
Whatever their role, this promises to be a trial in which the witness list will read like a who’s who of the entertainment industry.
At the centre of the case stands Combs, who came to define the 1990s hip-hop scene, but for months has languished behind bars in a detention centre in Brooklyn awaiting trial.
His appearance has changed dramatically during this time; his hair is now completely grey, along with his beard.
At the heart of the case is the nature of his relationship with a number of victims, who his lawyers will try to suggest was completely consensual.
The trial will delve into the sordid details of his notorious ‘freak off’ parties defined by a toxic mix of sex, drugs and alcohol.
Prosecutors will seek to show he was involved in trafficking women to these parties, where they were compelled to take part in non-consensual sex, often after being drugged. If found guilty, Combs faces spending the rest of his life in jail.
Last year America watched as its President was tried and found guilty, in a trial for the ages. Now it again, the country awaits the start of another mega-trial , this time of its most celebrated rap stars.
Combs didn’t just write and perform, but redefined an entire genre, founding his own label and business empire.
Combs may have boasted about his wealth and invincibility in his lyrics, but now we are about to find out if his status resulted in a sense of impunity, which has finally collided with American justice
From$ tycoon to disgrace:# How America has been engulfed by the #Diddy trial .
