"Diddy is gonna be Diddy no matter where he’s at" - Ex-NBA star Sebastian Telfair provides an update on Sean Combs after being released from Fort Dix 

Former NBA star Sebastian Telfair has spoken up about Sean Diddy Combs after sharing a cell with him for six months at FCI Fort Dix. The rapper has been in custody after being found guilty of transportation to engage in prostitution.

In an interview via TMZ Sports, Sebastian Telfair spoke about sharing a cell with Sean Combs in prison. Telfair said:

"My boy Diddy, he is in the spot too, man. I couldn't imagine. Y'all talk about me. I couldn't imagine, how did he fail, but did. He's holding it down. He doing what he got to do, and where he's at, they gonna help him, you know, I'm saying so he's gonna come."

Telfair was then asked in what ways are the prison authorities trying to "help" the rapper, and he continued:

"I mean, we all know Diddy business, because we got to see everything. But you know, I was smart. I was just smoking weed. I never tried another drug in my life, and I don't drink alcohol. But you know, he was living a rock star life. So I'm glad that he gonna get the time to relax. And as my boys were saying the inside, they said, it's some time for yourself. So that's what he's doing right now."

Speaking about whether Combs was in "good spirits", Sebastian Telfair mentioned:

"Um, yeah. Diddy is in good spirits. He's still him. He's still over there. Diddy's gonna be Diddy, no matter where he's at. Oh no, [he] is gonna be [him]."

Sean Combs was sentenced to four years and two months in prison in October this year, after the conclusion of his highly-publicised trial. The rapper faced charges of s*x trafficking, racketeering, and transportation to engage in prostitution.

He was found guilty of only the prostitution charges under the Mann Act, which bans the transfer of people across state borders for sexual activities. Combs is currently serving his sentence in a federal prison in New Jersey.

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Sean Diddy Combs's lawyers file appeal for the rapper's immediate release

Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Annual Legislative Conference National Town Hall - Source: Getty

In the latest developments of Sean Combs' case, the rapper's legal team has filed an appeal at the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York for his immediate release. The Bad Boy Records founder's team has maintained that the rapper's sentence was unfair and much harsher for his crimes, and has previously filed for bail multiple times.

According to Combs' team, Judge Arun Subramanian, who delivered the rapper's sentence, based his decision on evidence related to his acquitted charges. They contested that the judge's verdict was based on evidence about the sex trafficking and racketeering charges, which Combs was acquitted of.

During the verdict, Judge Subramanian mentioned that his decision was based on Combs' former girlfriends, Cassie Ventura and the anonymous Jane's testimonies. He also mentioned that he "rejects the defense’s attempt to characterize what happened here as merely intimate, consensual experiences, or just a sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll story."

In their latest filing, Combs' team urged the appeals court to either allow his immediate release or request that Judge Subramanian reduce his sentence. Their filing said:

"Defendants typically get sentenced to less than 15 months for these offenses — even when coercion, which the jury didn’t find here, is involved. The judge defied the jury’s verdict and found Combs ‘coerced,’ ‘exploited,’ and ‘forced’ his girlfriends to have sex and led a criminal conspiracy. These judicial findings trumped the verdict and led to the highest sentence ever imposed for any remotely similar defendant."

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If their appeal is not granted, Sean Combs is set to be released in May 2028, as he has been in prison since September 2024.

Edited by Pratyasha Sarkar