New York City – US rapper Kanye West, who now goes by Ye, made a brief but notable appearance outside a Manhattan federal courthouse on Friday, showing support for music mogul Sean Combs, currently on trial for serious sex trafficking and racketeering charges.

Though Ye did not enter the courtroom, he watched part of the proceedings on a closed-circuit feed in a nearby room alongside one of Combs’s sons before quietly leaving. When asked by ABC News if he was there to back Combs, the 48-year-old rapper simply nodded, replying, “Yes.”

The high-profile trial has gripped New York for nearly a month, as jurors listen to testimonies that paint a disturbing picture of Combs’s alleged involvement in coercive sex acts. Just a day before Ye’s appearance, a woman identified only as Jane took the stand, recounting harrowing details of being pressured into drug-fueled sexual encounters with escorts linked to Combs.

Jane’s testimony closely echoed that of a previous witness, Casandra Ventura, Combs’s longtime girlfriend, who described similar encounters known as “freak-offs.”

One dramatic moment from the trial included Jane’s account of traveling to Las Vegas on a famous rapper’s private plane last year, where she recommended a male escort to the rapper and his girlfriend — details that have added complexity to the case.

Combs, 55, faces potential life imprisonment if convicted on charges of racketeering and sex trafficking. He has pleaded not guilty, with his legal team insisting that all alleged encounters were consensual and that the prosecution’s claims are exaggerated.

The trial is expected to continue through June, as both sides prepare for more testimony and evidence in this widely watched case involving some of the biggest names in the music industry.


By WafricNews Desk.