A former girlfriend of Sean “Diddy” Combs, who was subpoenaed to testify during his sex-trafficking trial but was mysteriously dropped from the case at the last minute, asked the trial judge to set the music producer free on bail as he awaits his sentencing hearing, even though she previously alleged that he “stomped” on her stomach.  

“My name is Virginia Huynh,” the letter filed on Sunday begins. “I provide this letter to share my observations about his [Mr. Combs’s] character and to respectfully request that the Court permit his release on bond while the case proceeds.” 

In her letter, Ms. Huynh wrote that Mr. Combs embodies an “energy of love, patience and gentleness” that is “different from his past behavior.” 

The model and influencer, who reportedly dated the rapper between 2014 and 2019, also openly identified herself as “Victim 3 in this case.” Prosecutors had named “Victim 3” as a witness in the case but she was mysteriously dropped from the witness list just before trial.

Federal prosecutors, who had charged Mr. Combs with racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking, and transportation for the purpose of prostitution, alleged that the rapper coerced his ex-girlfriends into having sex with male escorts while he watched and pleasured himself, using physical violence and other coercion tactics. Mr. Combs pleaded not guilty and argued that he led the lifestyle of a “swinger” and that all sexual encounters were consensual. 

At the end of the eight-week trial, the jury found Mr. Combs not guilty of the most serious charges and convicted him only of the two counts of transportation for the purpose of prostitution. 

On the day of his verdict, the presiding district judge, Arun Subramanian, denied a bail application from the defense and ordered that the rapper remain at the federal jail, the squalid Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where he has been incarcerated since his arrest in September 2024, until his sentence hearing, scheduled for October 3. 

The judge reasoned that Mr. Combs’s self-admitted history of physical violence makes a danger to the community. 

Last week, his attorneys filed yet another motion seeking bail, as the Sun reported, arguing that “exceptional circumstances” justified his immediate release and offering a bond of $50 million and proposing that Mr. Combs dwell under close supervision at his Miami estate.

Federal prosecutors responded swiftly, writing in their July 31 answer that the defendant had failed to show “exceptional reasons” and failed to prove he was “not a danger” to the community. 

“The trial record is replete with evidence of the defendant’s acts of violence towards others,” prosecutors argued, providing a detailed list of alleged physical abuse against two of the “victims” who did testify — Mr. Combs’s former girlfriend, Cassandra Ventura, as well as against another ex-girlfriend who testified using the pseudonym Jane — and several of his former employees.  

Prosecutors also mentioned Ms. Huynh in their filing, writing, “The defendant was also violent toward Virginia ‘Gina’”’ Huynh, with whom the defendant was in a relationship at the same time as Ms. Ventura.” 

Ms. Huynh, 33, had been subpoenaed to testify during the high-profile trial but mysteriously disappeared shortly before the trial began. Prosecutors did not pursue her testimony and did not publicly explain why she had been dropped from the case.

In a 2019 interview, Ms. Huynh told blogger Tasha K that Mr. Combs was violent toward her on several occasions during their five-year relationship. In one instance, she alleged that he caught her sending texts to another man, and consequently pushed her to the ground and kicked her in the stomach.  

“He started punching me in the side of my head. … And after he got done doing that … he stomped on my stomach. … It took the wind out of my breath,” Ms. Huynh told Tasha K.   

But in her recent letter, Ms. Huynh described her relationship with Mr. Combs, “like many,” as one that “was not always perfect,” saying the couple “experienced ups and downs.” 

Regarding Mr. Combs’s behavior, she wrote that he was “willing to acknowledge his mistakes and make better decisions in the future.” She insisted that Mr. Combs was not a danger to the community and that “he has not been violent for many years, and he has been committed to being a father first.” 

“I have known Sean Combs for many years in both a personal and professional capacity,” the former girlfriend wrote. “From that experience I have seen him primarily as a father, a family man and a businessman, roles that he has always striven to uphold.”  

Her letter was submitted as an exhibit in the response the defense filed on August 3 to the prosecution’s answer. 

Defense attorneys disputed the government’s argument that conditions at the federal detention facility had “made enormous strides” and improved since Mr. Combs’s arrest, arguing that due to recent budget cuts the conditions were inhumane, and Mr. Combs’ food is infested with maggots.      

“Contrary to the government’s contention, living conditions at the MDC remain inhumane and the conditions seem unlikely to improve due to the aggressive government budget cuts,” the defense attorneys lamented. “MDC routinely serves food that is expired and infested with maggots. … Lockdowns also remain common, despite the government’s claims.” 

It seems unlikely that the living conditions at the jail, which are not up to the standard of the former billionaire’s lifestyle, will sway the judge’s decision. After all, Mr. Combs is not the first billionaire incarcerated at MDC. A fallen crypto king, Samuel Benjamin Bankman-Fried, was also detained at the Brooklyn facility before and during his trial in 2023, which resulted in a conviction of fraud and conspiracy, for which he was sentenced to 25 years in prison. 

Also incarcerated there for some time was Ghislaine Maxwell, the associate of Jeffrey Epstein. She complained during her incarceration that she was served “rotten” food, including an apple with a maggot in it, that there were rats scurrying past her while she sat on the toilet, and that guards ogled her while she showered. 

Regarding Mr. Combs, the judge will most probably focus on the question of whether other defendants convicted of similar prostitution charges remained incarcerated as they awaited their sentencing. Both the defense and the prosecution cited case law in favor of their respective arguments. 

The prostitution charges are crimes laid out in the Mann Act, a federal law that prohibits the interstate or foreign transportation of individuals “for the purpose of prostitution or debauchery, or for any other immoral purpose.” Each count carries a maximum of 10 years in prison but similar convictions have mostly been sentenced with more leniency, ranging from three to four years or less.

“Hellbent on punishing him for being a user of prostitution services in a more draconian manner than anyone in U.S. history, the government continues to target him unfairly, just as it has done from the inception of this provably misplaced investigation,” the defense attorneys fumed in their letter.

But federal prosecutors insist that “there is nothing unusual about a defendant being detained after being convicted only on Mann Act counts.” 

The judge has yet to rule on the bail request. 

In the meantime, Mr. Combs’s allies have been rattling at the gates of the White House, hoping that President Trump will issue a pardon. 

Although the president appeared to be somewhat inclined to consider a clemency deal, according to numerous media reports, he told a Newsmax host, Rob Finnerty, on Friday that he would probably not pardon the rapper.   

Mr. Finnerty directly asked if Mr. Trump’s tendency was “more likely a ‘no’ for Combs,” and the president answered, “I would say so.” 

The president confirmed that people had spoken to him “about Sean,” but admitted he had not forgotten the negative comments Mr. Combs made about him when he ran for office in 2020. 

“I got along with him great, and [he] seemed like a nice guy,” the president said, referring to the 1990s, when Messrs. Combs and Trump moved in the same social circles in New York, attending the same parties, as both men were rising to stardom. “I didn’t know him well, but when I ran for office he was very hostile,” Mr. Trump said.

Shortly before the 2020 election Mr. Combs gave an interview to a radio host and television presenter, Charlamagne tha God, who recently criticized Mr. Trump’s presidency, which in return triggered the president to call him a “racist sleazebag” and a “Low IQ individual.”

In that interview, Mr. Combs, then a multimillionaire at the height of his powers, said, “I really think if Trump gets elected, I really do believe in my heart there’ll be a race war. … This man is really trying to turn us against each other.” He later added, “White men like Trump need to be banished.”

The president appears to remember these statements well. “It’s hard, you know, like, we’re human beings, and we don’t like to have things cloud our judgment, right? But when you knew someone and you were fine, and then you run for office, and he made some terrible statements — so, I don’t know, it’s more difficult,” the president concluded, referring to the possible pardon. “It makes it more — I’m being honest — it makes it more difficult to do.” 

Mr. Combs is scheduled to be sentenced on October 3.