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Diddy is down one lawyer in his federal racketeering and sex trafficking case, as Anthony Ricco has petitioned the judge to leave the Bad Boy head\u2019s legal team.<\/p>\n
On Friday (February 21), Ricco, who has been with Diddy since the case\u2019s beginning<\/a> alongside Marc Agnifilo and Teny Geragos (Jason Driscoll, Anna Maria Estevao and Alexandra Shapiro have since come aboard as well), sent a letter to Judge Arun Subramanian requesting to leave the case.<\/p>\n AD LOADING…<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cAlthough I have provided Sean Combs with the high level of legal representation expected by the court, under no circumstances can I continue to effectively serve as counsel for Sean Combs,\u201d Ricco wrote.<\/p>\n Ricco did not make his reasons public, citing attorney\/client privilege. However,\u00a0TMZ\u00a0<\/em>is reporting<\/a> that Ricco\u2019s exit is related to a difference in legal strategies, specifically when it came to the charge of sex trafficking. Earlier this week, Shapiro, Agnifilo and Estevao (with Ricco missing from the signatories), filed a motion to dismiss that charge, calling \u201cracist.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition,\u00a0TMZ\u00a0<\/em>claims that Ricco wanted more time before trial (currently scheduled to begin on May 5), while Agnifilo disagreed.\u00a0HipHopDX\u00a0<\/em>has reached out to Diddy\u2019s representatives for comment on Anthony Ricco\u2019s departure.<\/p>\n Diddy\u2019 motion to dismiss the sex trafficking charge, filed on Tuesday (February 18), focuses on the charge of transportation to engage in prostitution, one of three counts in the indictment along with sex trafficking and racketeering.<\/p>\n It claims that there has never been a similar prosecution under the Mann Act and no white person has ever been targeted with the law, which has been in place for over 100 years and was designed to prohibit the transportation of women for sex.<\/p>\n The filing claims that Diddy is the victim of racism from the government, saying: \u201cMr. Combs has been singled out because he is a powerful Black man, and he is being prosecuted for conduct that regularly goes unpunished.\u201d<\/p>\n It adds: \u201cWhat was racist in its inception has often been racist in its operation.\u201d<\/p>\n The filing also reiterates the defense\u2019s\u00a0argument that all sexual activity involving Diddy and others was consensual: \u201cThe government has concocted a criminal case based primarily on allegations that Mr. Combs and two of his longtime girlfriends sometimes brought a third party \u2014 a male escort \u2014 into their sexual relationship.\u201d<\/p>\n It also repeats the\u00a0accusation that federal prosecutors have been leaking information\u00a0about the case to the media<\/a>: \u201cThe government\u2019s handling of this case demonstrates bias and animus. It has gone out of its way to humiliate Mr. Combs and to prejudice the jury pool with pretrial publicity that plays on racist tropes. It has leaked damaging (and often times false) material to the press.\u201d<\/p>\n The prosecution have yet to respond to Diddy\u2019s motion to dismiss the charge or the allegations of racism.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n If you want to read more Like this articles, you can visit our Social Media category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\nAD<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n