‘Money Is Power’: Diddy’s Lavish Prison Life Includes Hennessy and Massages, Sources Say

Sean “Diddy” Combs poses in the press room at the MTV Video Music Awards on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023, at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)

Sean “Diddy” Combs has been living a relatively lavish life in federal prison, drinking Hennessy, watching movies and receiving massages, according to a report from NBC News that said the convicted music mogul has access to smuggled liquor, contraband cellphones and a network of inmates paid to provide special services.

Combs, 56, is serving a 50-month federal sentence at Fort Dix in New Jersey after being convicted on two counts of transporting people across state lines for sexual encounters. According to four men who spent time in the same prison unit, Combs has maintained a lifestyle behind bars that includes specially prepared meals, cleaning services, massages and access to premium alcohol.

According to NBC News, one source said Combs drank Hennessy with other inmates on weekend nights, when a secret stash of liquor was allegedly brought into the prison by guards and shared among a small group.

“Hell yeah, I drank with him,” the source said.

NBC News says it reviewed photos and videos from inside Fort Dix that showed Combs appearing to use a contraband cellphone.

A spokesperson for Combs disputed the significance of the reports, saying the media’s scrutiny of his prison life has focused on “every mundane detail” and that the only real news is that he remains incarcerated while awaiting a decision on his appeal.

The Bureau of Prisons declined to comment on Combs’ specific conditions, citing inmate privacy, safety and security. The agency said contraband, including cellphones, narcotics and weapons, remains a persistent challenge across correctional facilities.

Hennessy and Other Contraband

According to NBC News’ sources, Combs has been able to obtain premium liquor despite being incarcerated at the low-security federal prison.

The sources reportedly said alcohol is among the items available through Fort Dix’s underground economy, where inmates buy and sell contraband and other goods.

One source described the prison’s black market as extensive.

“You can pretty much get anything except a key to the front door and a female,” the source said, per NBC News.

Combs’ reported access to alcohol is part of a larger system in which inmates allegedly perform services for him in exchange for money.

NBC News reported that Combs spends thousands of dollars a month, with money from people outside prison flowing into the commissary accounts of inmates who work for him.

Those services reportedly include cooking, cleaning and laundry.

Some inmates allegedly prepared special meals for Combs, including curry chicken, pizza and empanadas, using makeshift heating equipment.

“After a while, I got tired of cooking,” one inmate said, according to NBC News. “He started going to the Jamaicans.”

Other inmates reportedly clean bathroom and shower areas before Combs uses them. Sources also said inmates hold onto his phone and fan mail because he receives so much of it.

Combs has also reportedly obtained a cellphone, which sources said he uses to access Instagram and view sexually explicit photos sent by a former girlfriend.

The reported access to liquor and cellphones comes as federal authorities investigate contraband smuggling at Fort Dix.

The prison, located about 60 miles southwest of New York City, houses roughly 4,000 inmates.

NBC News reported that five people, including a current and former corrections officer, were recently charged in an alleged scheme to smuggle knives, marijuana and cellphones into the facility.

Authorities have also prosecuted people accused of using drones to drop contraband into the prison since 2020.

Combs is not the first high-profile inmate to receive unusual treatment while incarcerated, although the specific allegations about his access to alcohol and other services have not been publicly confirmed by the Bureau of Prisons.

Combs arrived at Fort Dix in October after being sentenced following his conviction. His lawyers had pushed for the facility in part because it offers a drug treatment program that can potentially reduce an inmate’s sentence.

Sources told NBC News that Combs entered the program after arriving but was later removed following a period of solitary confinement related to a fight with another inmate.

After leaving solitary confinement, the sources said, Combs resumed receiving special treatment from other inmates.

“He’s a billionaire. People are in awe of him,” one source said. “Money is power, especially behind bars.”