On the morning of November 22, Sean “Diddy” Combs entered an NYC courtroom for a pretrial hearing. Wearing prison khakis, the rapper’s face “lit up” when he spotted his family members seated in the second row, says an eyewitness. Led by his mom, Janice, six of his seven children had arrived a few minutes earlier and were sitting together and holding hands when their dad appeared. “He smiled, waved, blew them kisses and mouthed ‘I love you’ to them,” the eyewitness tells Us Weekly, adding that the music mogul appeared to be in good spirits.
Not for long. Five days later, Diddy’s request for bail was denied for a third time. He spent Thanksgiving behind bars — and is now set to celebrate Christmas while incarcerated at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. The rapper, 55, was arrested and indicted on charges of sex trafficking and racketeering on September 16, and he pleaded not guilty the following day. (His trial is scheduled to begin in May 2025.) Since his arrest, more than 20 civil suits have been filed against him, and he has denied all charges.
It will be a Christmas unlike any other for Diddy, one marked by loneliness and without his usual luxuries. “He’s trying to stay positive,” says a source in the latest Us Weekly cover story. In years past, the Sean John founder has been surrounded by famous friends and loved ones, including his mother and children (he’s dad to Quincy, 33, Justin, 30, Christian, 26, Chance, 18, twins D’Lila and Jessie, who turn 18 on December 21, and 2-year-old Love). Adds the source: “The holidays will be especially hard for the family without their father.”
Mixed Emotions
The cement halls of MDC aren’t very festive this time of year. “There are no decorations,” says federal prison consultant Sam Mangel, noting that contraband and anything with sharp edges or pins are prohibited at the facility. Visitors are welcome on the holiday, but stays are brief — Mangel says they usually last 30 minutes to an hour — and are limited to four people at a time. Phone calls are capped at 15 minutes. “When their family leaves, inmates become very solemn,” says Mangel. “It becomes very depressing.” Former inmate Brad Rouse, who spent time at MDC between 2008 and 2009 and now works as a mentor assisting criminal defendants and their families, tells Us that Christmas was especially tough on fathers with young kids at home. “The holidays were more painful for them,” he says, adding, “It’s a very hard, difficult place.”
The inmates are cut a few breaks. Mangel says staffers give prisoners time in the enclosed recreation yard to play sports tournaments, and they’re free to enjoy dominos, chess and card games. Religious services are usually offered, and TVs are on and tuned into major sports events. There can be a sense of camaraderie. “It wasn’t easy to be in jail during holidays,” says Rouse, “but we were all in it together.” (He recalls an inmate drawing customized holiday greeting cards featuring sketches of Santa or their kids for fellow prisoners to mail to their families in exchange for tins of mackerel.) Another former inmate who was incarcerated in the ’90s and early 2000s agrees the mood is lighter, at least for a little while. “Everybody gives a pass that day,” he tells Us. “Like, if somebody’s gonna get hurt, don’t do it on Christmas. Wait until tomorrow, you know?”
The inmate remembers getting a goody bag on Christmas Day, filled with things like Reese’s candy, coffee and powdered drink mixes. “When everybody was locked in their cells, they would bring bags on a push cart and give them out,” he says, adding, “It was cool. It really felt like a gift.” For about 10 days before and after Christmas, the prison commissary would carry special items, including pepperoni and provolone cheese, that inmates try to collect as currency. Mangel says inmates make something called “FOGU” with the sweets they receive. “It’s like a hodgepodge of candies and cookies, and then they put a little bit of water or milk into it, and they mash it into a ball and it’s their version of a little holiday treat.”
Mangel predicts that Diddy may eat his holiday meal with fellow famous inmate Sam Bankman-Fried, the crypto mogul who was convicted of fraud and is housed in the same unit. “I think they’ll probably eat together and discuss what part of the world they were in last year with their families,” he says. “They’re from higher socioeconomic backgrounds before coming in there. So they can reminisce [about] what island they were on last year.”
Hanging In
On the outside, Diddy’s family is doing their best to remain strong. On November 4, Quincy, Justin, Christian, Jesse, D’Lila and Chance posted a video to their Instagram accounts showing them all on a call with their dad, who could be heard on speaker as Love sang “Happy Birthday.” The source says the older boys have been caring for the younger kids and that the family “believes in Diddy’s innocence and that he’ll be exonerated.”
Janice, notes the source, has been there emotionally for her grandchildren, who are being cared for by a close family friend in Florida. “Diddy’s mom is based in Los Angeles but has been back and forth visiting.” She’s also been a part of holiday planning, trying to keep things festive for the kids. “The family will be honoring [Diddy] on Christmas,” the source adds, “they’re trying to speak to him as much as they can.”
Diddy is focused on his defense, but the hits keep coming. During his November 22 hearing, prosecutors claimed he’d been attempting to obstruct his case by orchestrating social media campaigns aimed at tainting the jury pool; they included redacted notes that had been found during a jail sweep and alleged he has “contacted witnesses through third parties” and used phone accounts of other inmates. Diddy denied the claims, and his lawyers argued that seizing the notes violated attorney-client privilege.
In late November, fashion designer Bryana Bongolan filed a lawsuit claiming he dangled her from a 17th-floor balcony while threatening to kill her in 2016. And on December 8, his longtime friend Jay-Z was named in an October lawsuit in which a woman alleges both the rappers raped her in 2000. Diddy denied all the allegations. “He’s been lining up character witnesses and people who can speak for his side,” says the source. “This is the toughest time of Diddy’s life, but he’s not giving up on himself.”
For more on Diddy, watch the exclusive video above and pick up the latest issue of Us Weekly — on newsstands now.
With reporting by Travis Cronin, Molly McGuigan, Andrea Simpson and Amanda Williams
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