A juror in artist Sean “Diddy” Combs’ high-profile sex trafficking trial was removed from the case on Monday, June 16th, following alleged contradictory statements about his residence, leading to accusations of racial discrimination from the defense.

Consequence reported that the juror, identified as a 41-year-old Black man, originally informed the court during jury selection that he lived in the Bronx with his fiancée. However, he later told a court staff member that he had moved in with his girlfriend in New Jersey. This conflicting information prompted concerns from prosecutors, who cited a “lack of candor” regarding his place of residence.

Judge Arun Subramanian addressed the issue after a private discussion with the juror on Friday. By Monday, he ruled the man’s statements were too inconsistent to ignore. 

“There’s nothing that the juror could say at this point that would put the genie back in the bottle,” the judge stated, according to The New York Times.

Combs’ legal team objected to the dismissal, claiming the government’s action was racially motivated. Defense attorney Alexandra Shapiro called it a “thinly veiled effort to dismiss a Black juror,” emphasizing that the individual in question was one of only two Black men selected for the panel.

Judge Subramanian responded, “To be perfectly clear, from the outset of this proceeding to the current date, there has been no evidence and no showing of any kind of any biased conduct or biased manner of proceeding from the government.”

Following the juror’s removal, a 57-year-old white accountant from Westchester County was chosen as a replacement.

As for the trial, despite the controversy with the juror, for the first time during the trial jurors were shown video footage of alleged explicit sexual encounters. During other testimonies throughout the trial, photographs and audios were played of alleged encounters.