Brendan Paul, who is allegedly connected to Sean Diddy Combs, has been charged with felony cocaine possession. This comes after his arrest last month, which occurred alongside federal sex trafficking accusations against the hip-hop mogul.
According to court documents, the additional felony charge against Paul for marijuana-laced candy has been dropped.
Paul’s attorney, Brian Bieber, entered a plea of not guilty during a short hearing at the Richard E. Gerstein Justice Building in Miami, Florida on Wednesday, April 24th.
Paul, a former Syracuse University basketball player, was taken into custody on Monday, March 27 for alleged felony charges related to the possession of cocaine and marijuana.
As per an affidavit, he was apprehended at Opa-Locka airport by Miami-Dade police in collaboration with Homeland Security agents, who conducted simultaneous raids on Combs’ two residences on the same day. According to the affidavit, Paul was apprehended when authorities discovered suspected cocaine and marijuana in his travel bags.
He had previously faced allegations in a civil lawsuit filed by Combs’ former producer and videographer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones, who accused Paul of being involved in the acquisition and distribution of drugs and guns on behalf of Combs. A bond of $2,500 has been set.
Nevertheless, there seemed to be no apparent connection between his arrest and the artist, who is 54 years old.
In a statement to PEOPLE on March 27, attorney Bieber emphasized that the case will be handled exclusively in court, without any intention of engaging in media trials.
The Miami-Dade police department did not provide any comment on the matter at that time.
Federal agents raided Combs’ homes in Miami and Los Angeles on Monday, March 24, in response to sex trafficking allegations made in two lawsuits against him. As reports of the raids emerged, FOX11 aired aerial footage showing the two sons of the Bad Boy Records founder, Justin Combs, 30, and Christian ‘King’ Combs, 26, being handcuffed outside their Beverly Hills residence and conversing with authorities.
At that time, Combs’ private jet made a landing in Antigua, while he was seen at the Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport with Paul.
Reference: PEOPLE