US rapper Kanye West made a brief appearance at a Manhattan federal courthouse on Friday, lending his support to embattled music mogul Sean Combs, who is facing charges of sex trafficking and racketeering.
West, who now goes by the name Ye, did not enter the courtroom but instead stayed in an adjacent room, where he watched part of the proceedings on closed-circuit video. Joining him was one of Combs’s sons. After a short stay, West left the building.
When asked by broadcaster ABC if he was there to support Combs, West, 48, simply nodded and replied, "Yes."
His appearance came just a day after the prosecution’s key witness concluded her testimony. The woman, identified only by the pseudonym Jane, gave an emotional and graphic account of how Combs allegedly coerced her into participating in drug-fueled sexual encounters with escorts.
Her testimony closely mirrored that of another witness, Casandra Ventura, Combs’s longtime girlfriend, who previously described the encounters as "freak-offs."
During her testimony, Jane recalled traveling to Las Vegas last year aboard a well-known rapper’s private plane. She further claimed that she had recommended a male escort to the rapper and his girlfriend during the trip.
For weeks, the jury has listened to accounts from various witnesses detailing the influence Combs allegedly wielded over his staff and former partners.
If convicted of racketeering and sex trafficking, the 55-year-old music mogul could face life in prison.
Combs has pled not guilty to all charges. His legal team maintains that the relationships and encounters described were consensual, challenging the prosecution’s framing of the events as sex trafficking.
The trial is expected to continue through June.