The exotic male dancer and ex-escort known as “The Punisher” thinks the jury got it right on the Diddy verdict. And not only that, but he thinks HE was the one who influenced the jurors into deciding the way they did on the split verdict in that Manhattan courtroom this week!
So, if you’ve been following the Diddy trial at all, you’ve heard the name Sharay Hayes. He took to the stand to testify about being hired to party with Diddy and the mogul’s ex Cassie Ventura. Party, as in, he participated in the freak offs. Sharay hasn’t been shy in speaking to the media about his takes on the trial — and his own witness testimony! So, it makes sense that he’s at it again now.
Related: Diddy DENIED BAIL After Cassie’s Lawyer Asked Judge To Keep Him Locked Up!
This time around, “The Punisher” had a hot take for TMZ — he believes the jury got it right on splitting the verdict! Remember, Diddy was found guilty on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution, but acquitted on sex trafficking and racketeering charges, which would have seen much more serious jail time.
From Hayes’ POV, that was right. And Sharay believes his own testimony might have “influenced” the jury into going that way! Hayes told the outlet that he thinks his testimony made it clear Diddy and Cassie were in a long-term relationship in which a “certain amount of consent” was involved:
“In regards to [Cassie’s] situation, directly with me being one of the two guys that they brought up [on the stand] to corroborate, obviously, my experience would not lead you to believe somebody was sex trafficked.”
In a second interview with DailyMail.com on Wednesday, the Punisher went on to add that even though Diddy may have been a “terrible partner,” the feds didn’t do enough to convince a jury that the mogul was guilty of the most serious charges.
Hayes said:
“Honestly, I think today was the proper verdict. I think the jury’s decision was the right one based on the law. Was he a terrible partner? Yes, absolutely. He did a lot of things that I’m sure everyone would agree was heinous behavior. But that doesn’t mean they proved the case that he was guilty of sex trafficking and racketeering. You can’t convict someone just for being a bad person.”
No one is suggesting imprisoning him for talking at the movie theater or voting against cancer research. We’re talking about using horrific violence against the women in his life, so much so they are now saying they were too scared to say no to all his sexual proclivities.
Anyways, Hayes went on to share more thoughts on why the version of Diddy that he and other witnesses testified about and the version of Diddy that people expected to be locked up forever were not the same:
“Some of the behavior was undeniably egregious, I don’t want to minimize that. But I can’t overlook the fact these were his girlfriends, he was with them for long periods of time. There were moments he treated them badly and went too far. But does that mean these women were sex trafficked? It doesn’t align with the charges, for me.”
Hayes also maintained his longtime stance that he never personally viewed Cassie as being coerced or otherwise trafficked during their late-night trysts held in front of Diddy’s watchful eyes:
“They were in a ten-year relationship, albeit a toxic and dysfunctional one. I did not get any sense that she was under the influence of alcohol or drugs. She would end each session in a good mood saying, ‘see you next time.’ Nobody ever said directly to me, ‘you have to have sex or we’re giving you this money to have sex.’ Perhaps that was done purposefully.”
Yeah…
But here’s the REAL kicker: the Punisher thinks Diddy can make a comeback. Seriously!
Pointing to how OJ Simpson managed to (uh, somewhat?) resurrect his reputation after being acquitted for the infamous 1994 double murder that claimed the life of his wife, Hayes said Diddy could “attach himself to another hit record” and “get past this” one day. Seriously:
“We live in a society now where people can recover from everything. One of the most amazing things I’ve seen recently is how there was such a resurgence and positivity for OJ Simpson before he died. Young people have an especially short attention span. If Diddy can attach himself to another hit record, I think he can get past this.”
WTF?!
There’s absolutely no way. Right? …Right??? Ugh. Don’t answer that.
For more information on violence against women, go to https://www.justice.gov/ovw/resources-for-survivors.
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence and would like to learn more about resources, consider checking out https://www.rainn.org/resources.
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