Sean “Diddy” Combs saw the writing on the wall — and he wasn’t taking any chances.
Just before the hammer dropped on a federal sex-trafficking lawsuit, the hip-hop heavyweight quietly paid off the $18.8 million mortgage on his lavish $48.5 million Star Island mansion.
The payment, made in anticipation of impending criminal charges, was revealed during a dramatic bond hearing last week in which prosecutors alleged the rap mogul ran a secret network of “Freak Offs” – wild, drug-fueled parties with female victims and male sex. the workers.
The feds raided Combs’ Star Island pad in March, uncovering drugs, baby oil and lubricant, all used at these gatherings. A grand jury wasted no time, indicting him on charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and illegal sex trafficking.
Combs pleaded not guilty.
In an effort to secure bail, Combs’ defense team, led by attorney Marc Agnifilo, proposed a $50 million bond package. His Star Island mansion was at the center of the bid, backed by six passports – Combs’s and his family’s – to show the rapper wasn’t going anywhere.
“We paid off the mortgage because that’s what it means to build trust,” Agnifilo argued in court. But the judge contended that Combs could still flee, become violent or interfere with the investigation. Parole? Denied.
But the juicy details of the affair lifted the lid on Combs’ extravagant lifestyle, giving a glimpse into the lavish life he built over decades of success and high-profile ventures. The jewel in the crown? His Star Island spread, which appraised at $48.5 million, though the county property appraiser marked it down at $44.3 million.
Combs acquired the seven-bedroom waterfront property for $14.5 million in 2003. Fast-forward 20 years, and it’s a full-on mega-mansion — 14,800 square feet, multiple pools, a spa and even a cabana-style pool house.
Combs, anticipating the legal storm, cleared the mansion’s massive mortgage last August. Agnifilo admitted, “It was a terrible business decision,” but the defense gambled on it to build goodwill. “Nobody makes bad financial decisions just for a show,” Agnifilo insisted, making it clear they were trying to win the court’s trust.
Star Island, the elite enclave home to billionaires and celebrities like Combs, is not your average neighborhood. It’s a 55-acre piece of paradise that’s home to less than 50 grand properties.
Hedge fund titan Ken Griffin paid $75 million for his 2022 seat, and former Yankee Alex Rodriguez bought, then resold, a property for $45.5 million.
Not content with just one house on the island, Combs also purchased the adjacent residence at 1 Star Island Drive for $35 million in 2021. However, that was not on the bond package table.
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