Diddy jury are deadlocked on racketeering charge - but what is it?

The trial of American music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs, who is accused of running a sprawling sex trafficking operation, is almost over.

The 12 jurors at a federal court in New York have announced they have come to a decision on four of the five counts faced by Mr Combs, although these decisions have not been disclosed.

But the jurors are unable to decide on the racketeering charge, the most serious of the five, which carries a possible life prison term.

Mr Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty and denied all allegations against him.

So what is the racketeering charge, which is more commonly used against mobsters - and what are the other charges faced by the rapper?

Racketeering conspiracy, or directing an illegal enterprise under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (Rico), is the formal name for the charge.

The law was created to take on mob bosses, but it has since been used in other trials, including for sex trafficking - such as in the case against disgraced R&B singer R Kelly.

It is also sometimes used against a group of defendants. US President Donald Trump and his allies were accused of conspiring to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia - charges that Trump denied.

To convict Mr Combs on this charge, prosecutors must prove he used his loyal network of associates to run a criminal enterprise to commit crimes including sex trafficking, kidnapping, drugging and obstruction of justice.

In this case, that network would include his employees, who prosecutors say played a part in setting up the "freak-offs" at the centre of the case.

These were prolonged sexual encounters at which the prosecution's key witnesses say they were coerced to have sex with male escorts while Mr Combs watched.

In a raid on his Los Angeles mansion, police found supplies that they said were intended for use in freak-offs, including drugs and more than 1,000 bottles of baby oil.

The defence has sought to undermine the racketeering allegations by asking witnesses whether Mr Combs' employees ever witnessed the freak-offs.

Cassie Ventura, the star witness for the prosecution, said she did not think they were present.

Defence lawyers argue that the case cannot be considered to be racketeering if members of Mr Combs' staff were not knowingly complicit.

"Are you kidding me? Are you kidding me?" said defence attorney Marc Agnifilo. "Did any witness get on that witness stand and say 'yes, I was part of a racketeering enterprise, I engaged in racketeering'?"

Robert Mintz, a criminal defence lawyer and former federal prosecutor, told the BBC that the racketeering charge was always going to be the most challenging one for prosecutors to prove to a jury.

To gain a conviction, lawyers needed to prove that Combs established a co-ordinated plan between Combs and at least one other person to commit at least two crimes over a span of several years, Mr Mintz said.

"It's a very complicated charge, used typically in the past in organized crime prosecution and so it's not a surprising that that is the one charge us giving jury the most difficulty," Mr Mintz added.

In the New York case, Mr Combs is charged with two counts of sex trafficking and two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution - alongside the racketeering conspiracy charge.

Separately, Mr Combs faces a number of lawsuits accusing him of rape and assault.

Tony Buzbee, a Texas lawyer handling some of these cases, said that more than 100 women and men from across the US had either filed lawsuits against the rap mogul or intended to do so.

In December 2023, a woman known in court papers as Jane Doe alleged that she was "gang raped" by Mr Combs and others in 2003, when she was 17. She said she was given "copious amounts of drugs and alcohol" before the attack.

Mr Combs's legal team dismissed the flurry of lawsuits as "clear attempts to garner publicity."

Mr Combs' current legal issues began in late 2023 when he was sued by Ms Ventura, also known as Cassie, for violent abuse and rape.

That lawsuit was settled for an undisclosed amount a day after it was filed, with Mr Combs maintaining his innocence.

Since then, dozens of other people have filed lawsuits accusing Mr Combs of sexual assault, with accusations dating back to 1991. He denies all the claims.

His controversial history with Ms Ventura resurfaced in 2024, when CNN published leaked CCTV footage from 2016 showing Mr Combs kicking his ex-girlfriend as she lay on a hotel hallway floor.

He apologised for his behaviour, saying: "I take full responsibility for my actions in that video. I was disgusted then when I did it. I'm disgusted now."

In a statement to the BBC about the federal criminal charges, Mr Combs' lawyer said: "In court, the truth will prevail: that Mr Combs never sexually assaulted or trafficked anyone - man or woman, adult or minor."

Diddy's lawyers later filed a motion to dismiss one part of the federal indictment in which he is accused of transportation to engage in prostitution. His team argued he was being unfairly targeted due to his race.

In a hearing in New York a week before the trial officially began, his attorneys told the court that the rapper led the "lifestyle" of a "swinger" and was not a criminal.

They said he thought it was "appropriate" to have multiple sex partners, including sex workers.

At the same hearing, prosecutors revealed that Mr Combs had rejected a plea deal.

Mr Combs' lawyers have consistently denied the allegations made against him in the civil lawsuits, describing them as "sickening" and suggesting they were made by "individuals looking for a quick payday".

If convicted on the racketeering charge, Mr Combs faces up to life in prison.

He faces another statutory minimum sentence of 15 years if he is found guilty of sex trafficking.

Transportation for purposes of prostitution carries a maximum sentence of 10 years.

Mr Combs has been held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, since his arrest on 16 September 2024.

Critics describe the prison as overcrowded and understaffed, with a culture of violence.

His lawyers argued for his release, citing the jail’s “horrific” conditions, but a New York federal judge denied the bail request, describing Mr Combs as a “serious flight risk”.

Mr Combs - who has also gone by the names Puffy, Puff Daddy, P Diddy, Love, and Brother Love - emerged in the hip-hop scene in the 1990s.

His early music career success included helping launch the careers of Mary J Blige and Christopher Wallace - aka Biggie Smalls, or The Notorious B.I.G.

His music label Bad Boy Records became one of the most important labels in rap and expanded to include Faith Evans, Ma$e, 112, Mariah Carey and Jennifer Lopez.

Mr Combs also had a prolific business career outside of music, including a deal with British drinks company Diageo to promote the French vodka brand Cîroc.

In 2023, he released his fifth record The Love Album: Off The Grid and earned his first solo nomination at the Grammy awards. He also was named a Global Icon at the MTV Awards.

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Dozens of potential jurors were vetted by the court.

The process included potential jurors looking through a long list of places and people that could be mentioned during trial, with names like Kanye West and Kid Cudi.

Potential jurors also had to fill out questionnaires that asked whether they had "views about hip hop artists" or "feelings concerning violence, sexual assault".

The judge reminded the court several times of the importance of choosing a fair and impartial jury.