Prosecutors Portray Sean Combs as a Sexual Predator

Sean Combs (right), one of America's most influential music moguls, was accused by federal prosecutors on May 12 of leading a criminal enterprise that enabled his abuse of women and worked to cover it up.

- Julia Jacobs, Ben Sisario, Benjamin Weiser and Thomas Fuller

NEW YORK —

As his trial got under way in United States District Court in Lower Manhattan, prosecutors painted him as a serial sexual predator who orchestrated drug-fueled sex marathons with prostitutes. Combs' lawyers acknowledged that he was responsible for domestic violence, but denied that he had committed sex trafficking or run a racketeering enterprise.

In lurid detail, Ms. Emily Johnson, the prosecutor who delivered a 50-minute opening statement for the U.S. government, portrayed Combs as a man who ordered the performance of sex acts and "called himself the king."

"To the public, he was Puff Daddy or Diddy," Ms. Johnson said. "A cultural icon, a businessman — larger than life. But there was another side to him, a side that ran a criminal enterprise."

Combs, 55, one of the most successful producers and entrepreneurs in the history of hip-hop, faces charges of sex trafficking, transportation to engage in prostitution and racketeering conspiracy, a federal crime best known for its use in prosecuting organized crime syndicates.