Diddy convicted of transporting women for prostitution, but not trafficking or racketeering

Jurors in rap mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs' trial found him guilty of transporting women for prostitution, but not guilty of sex trafficking others, including an ex-partner. He was also cleared on a racketeering charge. The result, delivered this morning at federal court in New York, was seen by Coombs' cheering fans as a win: he faced decades in prison on the trafficking and racketeeting charges, whereas sentences for transporting are often counted in months. The maximum sentence, theoretically, is 10 years.

The BBC explains why jurors may have found it hard to convict him on the more serious charges, despite dozens of witnesses.

But to gain a conviction on the racketeering charge, prosecutors needed to prove that Combs established a criminal enterprise – a co-ordinated plan between the musician and at least one other person to commit at least two crimes over a span of several years. "That was always going to be the most challenging charge for prosecutors to get a conviction on," Mintz said. "It's a very complicated charge, used typically in the past in organised crime prosecution and so it's not surprising that that is the one charge giving the jury the most difficulty."

Though there was security video of Coombs violently abusing Cassie Ventura, one of the women he was accused of trafficking, he was not charged over the conduct in the footage.

Previously:
• Sean 'Diddy' Combs complains about how unpleasant New York's jails are
• Diddy lawyer scolded by judge after calling prosecutors 'a six-pack of white women'
• Second lawsuit accuses Sean 'Diddy' Combs of sexual assault (Update: and now there's a third)