Marc Agnifilo, Sean “Diddy” Combs’ attorney in the case, is a veteran of high-profile cases.

Singer Cassie Ventura’s lawsuit against Sean “Diddy” Combs, alleging shocking allegations of sex trafficking and a decade of physical and sexual abuse against women, sent shockwaves through the music industry last November and sparked a series of lawsuits against the mogul.

It also sparked the largest federal sex crimes investigation in years. On September 17, prosecutors detailed what they found: a so-called “criminal enterprise” led by Combs that trafficked, solicited, and abused women since at least 2008. Combs has denied the allegations.

Sean “Diddy” Combs

If convicted, Combs, 54, faces 15 years to life in prison. As the founder of Bad Boy Entertainment, Diddy is credited with helping commercialize hip-hop music, with an estimated net worth of $1 billion.

And the person defending Combs in this case that shook the music industry is Marc Agnifilo, a lawyer with extensive experience in handling complex cases involving criminal enterprises, like the one Combs is facing.

Agnifilo, a former Assistant District Attorney in Manhattan and a former supervisor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, is best known for spending nearly two decades working for Combs’ longtime attorney, Ben Brafman. Brafman previously represented Combs for decades, notably defending him in the 1999 New York nightclub shooting and several high-profile civil lawsuits in the years that followed.

Earlier this year, Agnifilo and his colleagues formed their own criminal law firm, and Agnifilo, with the help of Teny Geragos, became the team defending Combs in this case.

Previously, both had defended many famous people accused of serious crimes such as former Goldman Sachs CEO Roger Ng on bribery and corruption charges and Keith Raniere, founder of the sex cult NXIVM on sex trafficking charges. But things did not go in a favorable direction when Keith Raniere was sentenced to 120 years in prison in 2019.

Marc Agnifilo (Ảnh: Getty Images)

“I specialize in sensitive and high-profile cases,” Agnifilo said, most of which involve charges brought by the Southern District of New York, including those related to the black market website Silk Road and the international prostitution ring linked to the downfall of former Gov. Eliot Spitzer.

The duo was hired by Combs in March to coordinate his defense in federal court. Agnifilo said at the Sept. 17 hearing that they immediately began researching potential indictments and have interviewed several witnesses over the past six months.

It is predicted that Agnifilo will counterattack in the direction that many women and prostitutes who have relationships with Combs are willing and have their own reasons – maybe for money or career advancement.