Sean “Diddy” Combs‘ lawyers are doubling down on their efforts to get him released from jail by accusing U.S. attorneys of presenting an “altered” video of him attacking ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura to convince a judge he should remain detained.
In new court filings obtained by USA TODAY on Thursday, Combs’ defense attorneys leveled multiple claims that cast doubt on evidence the government has produced in their arguments that Combs led a sex trafficking enterprise and that he should remain jailed until his trial.
One of Combs’ lawyers, Alexandra Shapiro, alleged in her filing that evidence provided by prosecutors to the defense last week revealed U.S. attorneys “mischaracterized and concealed critical facts” during hearings that dealt with the issue of whether the hip-hop mogul should be incarcerated as he awaits trial.
One piece of evidence presented to a federal judge was footage of Combs physically assaulting Cassie at a Los Angeles hotel on March 5, 2016 — a clip that CNN made public earlier this year.
Shapiro says the exhibit — a “principal piece of evidence” for the government — showed an “altered video that omitted key scenes and presented events materially out of order.” It was “an edited, manipulated version of the video published by CNN,” she added.
When reached by USA TODAY, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York declined to comment.