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After Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ arrest and the mounting allegations against him, the public is becoming more acquainted with a side of him that people like his assistant knew well. Phil Pines, Combs’ former assistant, said working for him was a challenge. He said Combs demanded loyalty and expected him to perform difficult tasks. Pines recalled what it was like to clean up after one of Combs’ parties.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ assistant said his job was ‘disgusting’

Pines began working for Combs in 2019 and quickly became acquainted with the job’s demanding schedule. In the docu-series The Fall of Diddy, he said he was on call at all hours and Combs was in constant contact with him. 

Roughly a month into the job, he helped Combs set up for one of his “Wild King Nights.” These were parties that took place in hotels or Combs’ bedroom. Pines obtained the supplies Combs wanted for the events. Soon, Pines was spending much of his time organizing the parties. When they were done, he also took charge of cleaning up the “wreckage.”

Sean 'Diddy' Combs wears a blue suit jacket and sunglasses.
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs | John Lamparski/WireImage

Pines recalled the “disgusting” state of the rooms following one of Combs’ parties. Per Rolling Stone, there were blood stains, bodily fluids, drugs, condoms, half-eaten food, and various debris scattered around the rooms. Pines said having to clean it up was “demoralizing.” 

“You could slip because there was baby oil all over the floor,” he said. “When I would go into these rooms, it’s like no one had any consciousness of what took place, meaning that everything was everywhere.”

He demanded complete loyalty from his employees

Pines believed Combs wanted to test his loyalty when he had him clean up.

“It’s manipulation at its finest,” he said. “It’s grooming.”

Pines said he found it difficult to leave the job, particularly after the outbreak of COVID-19. Combs also was able to convince him his work was necessary.

“He has that ability to make you feel like his world comes first,” Pines said. “Even if it’s at your expense, his needs and his life [come] before yours.”

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ assistant does not believe the trial will go in his favor

Combs’ defense team has repeatedly claimed all his sexual encounters were consensual. They’ve also said that going after Combs for what he does in the bedroom could set a bad precedent.

“We are not better off if the federal government comes into our bedrooms,” Combs’ lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, said. “They are coming into this man’s bedroom, and they are making not just judgments, they are charging him with statutes that, as they said, could put him in jail for life.”

Sean Diddy Combs posing in a white suit at the 2022 Billboard Music Awards.
Sean Diddy Combs | Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
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Pines doesn’t believe this defense will stand.

“Anybody who’s ever interacted with [Combs] in that setting, in those relationships, needs to be talked to [to] see how they truly felt,” Pines said. “I imagine there’ll be tons of people who will respond to that not in favor of the defense.”

How to get help: In the U.S., call the RAINN National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 to connect with a trained staff member from a sexual assault service provider in your area.