Federal prosecutor questions Sean Combs’ former employee Clark – SABC News


Former Sean Combs’ employee Capricorn Clark took the witness stand at a federal court on Tuesday to testify in the hip-hop mogul’s high-profile sex-trafficking trial.

Two weeks into the trial, witnesses have accused Combs of everything from breaking into a rival’s home to taking ecstasy and attempting to intimidate or pay off witnesses in the case.

Combs is not charged with any of these alleged crimes, but legal experts say these allegations could provide powerful fodder for the prosecution’s use of a sweeping mafia-busting law that has widened the scope of the case against Combs, the founder of Bad Boy Records who helped turn hip-hop mainstream.

Known as the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, “RICO” allows prosecutors to introduce evidence of crimes that are not charged in the indictment or even tied directly to the defendant, known as predicates or “bad acts.”

That has allowed the prosecutors in Combs’ case to show jurors evidence they would not have seen if he was charged only with sex trafficking, helping prosecutors paint a more compelling picture of his alleged criminal activity, said Bobby Taghavi, a defense lawyer and former prosecutor.

Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty in Manhattan federal court to one count of racketeering conspiracy, two counts of sex trafficking and two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution.

The trial, which could last two months and will enter its third week of testimony on Tuesday, has drawn intense media attention.

The jury of 12 must vote unanimously to convict on any of the charges. If convicted, Combs faces 15 years to life in prison.



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