Sean 'Diddy' Combs asks judge for leniency in letter a day before his sentencing on prostitution charges

Sean "Diddy" Combs made a last-ditch plea for leniency from a Manhattan federal judge on Thursday, a day before he’s scheduled to be sentenced on prostitution-related charges.

The hip-hop producer and founder of several multi-million-dollar fashion and lifestyle companies begged U.S. District Court Judge Arun Subramanian for forgiveness and mercy.

"I take full responsibility and accountability for my past wrongs," he told the judge. "This has been the hardest 2 years of my life, and I have no one to blame for my current reality and situation but myself. In my life, I have made many mistakes, but I am no longer running from them."

Combs was convicted in July of two counts of transporting male escorts across state lines for the purpose of prostitution, a violation of the Mann Act. A Manhattan federal jury acquitted him of more severe charges of racketeering conspiracy, which carried a life sentence, and two counts of sex trafficking.

His defense lawyers have asked the judge to release Combs in November after 14 months in prison. The judge will hand down his sentence on Friday morning at 10 a.m.

Prosecutors charged that Combs used the resources of his multinational companies to stage elaborate drug-fueled sex binges, dubbed "freak-offs," in which the male prostitutes would have sex, sometimes for days on end, with his then-girlfriends.

When the women grew weary of what they described as exhausting and demeaning sex marathons, Combs would threaten their careers, their homes and sometimes become violent with them.

Prosecutors showed the jury a surveillance video taken in 2016 of Combs kicking and beating his former girlfriend, Cassandra Ventura, a former pop start who performed under the name "Cassie," when she tried to leave in the middle of a freak-off.

"I have to admit, my downfall was rooted in my selfishness," he told the judge. "The scene and images of me assaulting Cassie play over and over in my head daily. I literally lost my mind. I was dead wrong for putting my hands on the woman that I loved. I'm sorry for that and always will be. My domestic violence will always be a heavy burden that I will have to forever carry."

Combs also blamed his drug use for his crimes and said that he had sobered up during the last 12 months while he has been in jail.

"I lost my way," he wrote. "I got lost in my journey. Lost in the drugs and the excess. My downfall was rooted in my selfishness. I have been humbled and broken to my core. Jail is designed to break you mentally, physically and spiritually. Over the past year there have been so many times that I wanted to give up. There have been some days I thought I would be better off dead. The old me died in jail and a new version of me was reborn. Prison will change you or kill you — I choose to live."

Combs also touted his work behind bars, teaching his fellow inmates about success in life and business.

His six-week course, called "Free game," teaches them how to set goals and how to achieve them.

"I don’t just teach about my success, I also teach about my mistakes and failures. It has truly been a blessing to do something positive in a negative situation," he told the judge. "It has been beautiful to see the newfound hope in my fellow inmates’ eyes. The most shocking thing was to see the unity and the peace this class has produced."

He said that the normally segregated jail block has been unified around this classes and even the gang members are getting along. Combs claimed that there had been no fights in his unit since classes began.

The rap music entrepreneur also asked the judge to consider his adult children and 2-year-old daughter, who would be raised without a father if he is given a lengthy prison sentence.

"As I write you this letter, I am scared to death," he said. "Scared to spend another second away from my mother and my children. I no longer care about the money or the fame. There is nothing more important to me than my family."

Federal prosecutors have asked the judge for an 11 ½ year prison sentence for Combs, citing his violence and manipulation over the 15 years in the way he conducted his freak-offs.

Defense attorneys have unsuccessfully sought to get his conviction overturned by the judge, arguing at times that his behavior was protected under the First Amendment because he video recorded the episodes. His lawyers also claimed that the women involved were willing participants and became disenchanted and disgruntled after he started seeing other women.