Sean 'Diddy' Combs seen sun bathing in Central Park before arrest for sex trafficking & racketeering charges

The 54-year-old rapper and music mogul was arrested by federal agents from Homeland Security Investigations at the Park Hyatt hotel in Manhattan on Monday night. He has since pleaded not guilty to federal sex trafficking and racketeering charges.

An indictment says the music mogul “engaged in a persistent and pervasive pattern of abuse toward women and other individuals”. He has denied many of those allegations, and his lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, said outside the courthouse on Tuesday morning that he would “fight like hell” to get his client released from custody.

Just hours before his arrest, Combs was seen relaxing in Central Park, appearing unbothered by the legal controversies surrounding him. The video, which could be the last of him as a free man, was shot on Sunday.

According to US Attorney Damian Williams, Combs’ arrest is tied to a sealed indictment, and the details of the charges remain unclear. This arrest follows Homeland Security's raids on Combs' homes in Beverly Hills, California, and Miami, Florida, back in March.

Marc Agnifilo, Combs' lawyer, expressed disappointment with the charges, calling them "an unjust prosecution" by the US Attorney's Office. In a statement, Agnifilo said, "Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs is a music icon, self-made entrepreneur, loving family man, and proven philanthropist who has spent the last 30 years building an empire, adoring his children, and working to uplift the Black community. He is an imperfect person but he is not a criminal."

Agnifilo continued: "To his credit, Mr Combs has been nothing but cooperative with this investigation and he voluntarily relocated to New York last week in anticipation of these charges. Please reserve your judgment until you have all the facts. These are the acts of an innocent man with nothing to hide, and he looks forward to clearing his name in court."

This arrest adds to a series of legal troubles for Combs. Last week, he was ordered to pay $100 million in a civil lawsuit filed by Michigan inmate Derrick Lee Cardello-Smith, who accused Combs of drugging and sexually assaulting him at a 1997 party. Following the court ruling, a payment schedule was set for Combs to make monthly instalments of $10 million, starting October 1.

Combs' attorney, Marc Agnifilo, criticized the court's decision, stating: "This man (Cardello-Smith) is a convicted felon and sexual predator, who has been sentenced on 14 counts of sexual assault and kidnapping over the last 26 years. His resume now includes committing a fraud on the court from prison, as Mr Combs has never heard of him, let alone been served with any lawsuit. Mr Combs looks forward to having this judgement swiftly dismissed."