Donald Trump recently revealed that convicted music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs wrote to him, asking for a pardon. Last year, the rapper was found guilty on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution and sentenced to 50 months in prison. Notably, the President has previously addressed the prospect of granting Diddy a pardon. In addition, in some interviews, Trump revealed that he and Diddy were on good terms before he entered politics.
Donald Trump talks about Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs
In a The New York Times interview, Donald Trump revealed Sean Combs asked for a pardon. He said Diddy had requested a pardon “through a letter.” The president did not produce the letter — the details of which are unclear — shared that he wasn’t considering a pardon request.
This isn’t the first time Diddy has requested a pardon from President Trump. On October 7, 2025, the President told reporters that Diddy asked to be pardoned (via USA Today).
Sometime later, TMZ alleged that Trump was considering commuting the Bad Boy Records founder’s prison sentence. The outlet said, citing a source, that some White House staff urged Trump not to commute Diddy’s sentence. However, the latter allegedly decided to do as he pleased and release Diddy shortly.
The White House later refuted it, telling USA Today that there was “zero truth” to TMZ’s story. They elaborated, “The president, not anonymous sources, is the final decider on pardons and commutations.” However, TMZ defended their claims, which they said were “accurate.”
Previously, President Trump had also discussed the possibility of pardoning Diddy at one point. In May 2025 — two months before Diddy’s conviction on prostitution charges — while speaking to reporters, the President said no one asked him about the pardon. However, he added that he was aware of “people thinking about [the pardon]” and being “very close to asking.”
President Trump shared that he needed to look into Diddy’s case, which he admitted he wasn’t following closely. He added that he and Diddy had lost touch and hadn’t “spoken for years.” The President recalled that Diddy was fond of him until he ran for President in 2016 and alleged that the latter made “nasty statements” about him at the time.
President Trump also noted that he would “certainly look at the facts” when it came to Diddy’s case. He added, “If I think somebody was mistreated, whether they like me or don’t like me, it wouldn’t have any impact” (via ABC).
Originally reported by Abdul Azim Naushad on Mandatory.
