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New York Post
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs faced 2001 NYC shooting trial, was acquitted by jury
By Kyle Schnitzer, Priscilla DeGregory,
4 hours ago
Freshly indicted Sean “Diddy” Combs faced a trial in New York City more than 20 years ago for firing off a gun inside a Manhattan club — but he was acquitted by a jury at the time.
Combs, then 31, went before a jury in Manhattan Supreme court over a shooting at the Club New York on West 43rd Street on Dec. 29, 1999 that left three clubgoers injured.
Prosecutor Matthew Bogdanos, left is questioning Wardell Fenderson, 42, second left, in this courtroom sketch in New York, Thursday, Feb. 15, 2001, at the trial of rapper Sean ‘Puffy’ Combs in New York Supreme Court. AP
The music mogul was accused of firing a shot into the ceiling of the Midtown dance club and then trying to bribe his chauffeur, Wardel Fenderson, to take the blame for a second gun found inside a getaway car he shared with his then-girlfriend, Jennifer Lopez .
During his testimony, Combs told jurors he only fired the gun in self-defense.
“I thought I was being shot at,” he said from the witness stand at the time.
Sean ‘Puffy’ Combs shaking hands with African-American activist Cornel West outside the Supreme Court during his trial for gun possession. New York Post
Combs and his bodyguard, Anthony “Wolf” Jones, who was also charged, were later found not guilty.
The jury deliberated for 22 hours before handing down the verdict on March 16, 2001.
Sean ‘Puffy’ Combs walking out of courthouse at 111 Centre St. in Manhattan after his gun possession trial. New York Post
Combs had been facing up to 15 years in prison if convicted on the top charges in the nightclub shooting.
Meanwhile, young rapper Jamal “Shyne” Barrow – who was also embroiled in the ordeal — was convicted of first-degree assault for shooting two bystanders.
Combs and his bodyguard Anthony “Wolf” Jones were both found not guilty on March 16, 2001, after the jury deliberated for 22 hours. REUTERS
Details of Combs’ first brush with the law resurfaced after the embattled rapper and hip-hop mogul was charged Tuesday with sex-trafficking and racketeering charges over alleged abuse he inflicted on women for more than a decade.
The indictment alleges, in part, that he carried guns to “intimidate and threaten” his victims and those who witnessed the abuse.
When the feds raided his Miami and Los Angeles mansions roughly six months ago as part of the long-running sex-trafficking probe, they seized three AR-15s with “defaced serial numbers”, as well as other guns, ammunition and a drum magazine, the filing alleges.
Combs has long denied the accusations against him and his lawyer said he would plead not guilty to the latest charges.
Additional reporting by Emily Crane
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