Sean 'Diddy' Combs' claim that agents leaked Cassie video is 'baseless,' prosecutors say

U.S. attorneys have responded in court to claims from Sean "Diddy" Combs' lawyers that government agents leaked information, including footage of Combs physically assaulting his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, to news outlets.

In a Wednesday night filing in Manhattan federal court obtained by USA TODAY on Thursday, prosecutors said Combs' defense lawyers did not provide adequate evidence that any information was leaked from the federal grand jury investigating him, adding that Combs and his team know the video came from elsewhere.

The referenced video was 2016 hotel surveillance footage CNN released in May showing Combs kicking, hitting and dragging Cassie near the elevators of a hotel.

"The defendant baselessly accuses '(Department of Homeland Security)' agents — who have no authority to issue grand jury process — of secretly obtaining the Intercontinental Video unbeknownst to the prosecutors," the filing reads.

In addition, the government claims that it "had been unsuccessful in obtaining any video of the assault," and investigators did not have footage of the hotel attack until CNN published the clip.

Prosecutors also called his demand for accusers' names a "thinly veiled" effort to hijack the government's case and help him defend publicly against the more than two dozen men and women pursuing civil lawsuits over his alleged sexual misconduct.

"This improper request should be denied in its entirety, particularly here, where there are serious and ongoing concerns of victim and witness safety, tampering, and intimidation," prosecutors wrote.

However, Combs' effort to unmask his accusers received a boost on Wednesday, when U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil in Manhattan said a woman suing Combs over an alleged 2004 rape cannot remain anonymous. Vyskocil cited Combs' interest in investigating the woman's credibility and the public interest in open court proceedings.

Diddy's lawyers allege government agents are impeding on his right to a fair trial

Combs' team believes that since March the government has been "strategically leaking confidential grand jury material and information, including the 2016 Intercontinental videotape, in order to prejudice the public and potential jurors against Mr. Combs."

In Wednesday's filing, prosecutors said the defense was "baselessly" claiming government agents were the source of material reported by news outlets. Attorneys wrote, "It strains credulity to suggest that law enforcement agents independently obtained the Intercontinental Video with a grand jury subpoena they had no authority to issue."

In Oct. 9 filings, the defense asked the judge for relief "related to what the defense believes was a series of unlawful government leaks, which have led to damaging, highly prejudicial pre-trial publicity that can only taint the jury pool and deprive Mr. Combs of his right to a fair trial."

His lawyers, Marc Agnifilo and Teny Geragos, said there should be a hearing to investigate alleged government misconduct and for government agencies involved in the case to reveal communications and records related to alleged "leaks" to media outlets.

Combs' team's request for an evidentiary hearing to look into alleged government misconduct is still pending.

They also asked the judge to issue an order prohibiting federal employees from disclosing evidence to the news media as well as the "suppression of any evidence leaked by government employees."

However, on Oct. 25, Judge Arun Subramanian denied imposing a gag order. Instead, he wrote, both sides are expected to abide by existing laws prohibiting lawyers, investigators and government agents from revealing grand jury proceedings and releasing non-public information that might interfere with a fair trial.

What are the claims against Sean 'Diddy' Combs?

Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York say "in or around November 2023" they started working with Homeland Security Investigations' Human Trafficking Squad and "began investigating Combs and others for violations of federal criminal law."

That same month, Cassie leveled accusations of rape, abuse and sex trafficking in a civil lawsuit against the music mogul. Combs and Cassie settled her civil suit a day later. Combs' attorneys revealed in their filing that she "received a substantial eight-figure settlement."

The hip-hop superstar was arrested at a Manhattan hotel on Sept. 16 and arraigned on sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution charges the following day. Investigators say the 54-year-old elaborately schemed to use his finances and status in the entertainment industry to "fulfill his sexual desires" in a "recurrent and widely known" pattern of abuse.

He has been incarcerated in the Special Housing Unit at Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center since then and has maintained his innocence, pleading not guilty on all federal criminal charges and denying wrongdoing alleged in mounting civil lawsuits against him over the past year.

All of Combs' attempts thus far to get him released from jail until his May 5 trial have been denied. His lawyers are seeking an appeals court judgment that would overturn a Sept. 18 decision to deny his request to be released from jail on conditions that include a $50 million bond.

Contributing: Jonathan Stempel/Reuters

If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence, RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline offers free, confidential, 24/7 support to survivors and their loved ones in English and Spanish at: 800.656.HOPE (4673) and Hotline.RAINN.org and en Espa?ol RAINN.org/es.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Prosecutors slam Diddy team's 'baseless' claim about Cassie video leak