In closing words to jury, prosecutors cast Combs as a racketeering kingpin

NEW YORK — In their closing argument at the sex-trafficking and racketeering trial of Sean Combs, federal prosecutors on Thursday depicted the music mogul as a brazen criminal who abused women for years without consequence, aided by pliant employees who helped him control the women and cover up his acts.

“He thought that his fame, wealth and power put him above the law,” Christy Slavik, a prosecutor, told the jury. “But over the course of this trial his crimes have been exposed.”

Over seven weeks, jurors heard from 34 witnesses and saw countless text messages, as well as explicit videos of two women who the government contends were coerced into drug-fueled sex marathons with hired men that were directed and sometimes filmed by the famed producer. In the government’s summation, Slavik sought to present a narrative from threads of evidence that the government says illustrate that Combs is guilty of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and transportation to engage in prostitution.

If found guilty on the most serious charges, Combs could face life in prison. He has pleaded not guilty and denied responsibility. His lawyers were set to deliver their closing argument Friday.

The trial has drawn extraordinary attention, with continuous coverage in the news media and big crowds at the U.S. District Court in lower Manhattan; at one point on Thursday, the court provided four overflow rooms for the many visitors who could not fit in the main courtroom.

Slavik’s summation lasted nearly five hours as the prosecutor walked jurors through the specifics of its case.

To secure a conviction under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO, which was originally written to target organized crime groups like the Mafia, the government must prove Combs agreed that he or a co-conspirator would commit at least two criminal acts to further the enterprise. The categories of crimes that the government says were part of the conspiracy include sex trafficking, drug distribution, kidnapping, arson, bribery, forced labor, transportation for purposes of prostitution and witness tampering.

Drug distribution alone, Slavik argued to the jury, was sufficient evidence to convict Combs because she said the trial had established that he had participated in “hundreds of acts of drug distribution.”

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