Is Diddy living a ‘rich’ life behind bars? What reports claim about his prison routine

Sean “Diddy” Combs is reportedly enjoying a level of comfort inside New Jersey’s Fort Dix federal prison that is far removed from the typical experience of incarceration.

According to four men who spent time in the same unit as the music mogul, Combs has paid fellow inmates to cook for him, clean his living areas, make his bed and do his laundry. He has also reportedly had access to Chinese-style massages, contraband mobile phones, alcohol and prescription medication obtained through the prison’s black market. 

“This is not some normal s--- you see in jail. This is some rich s---,” one of the men told NBC News. “It looks crazy, but again, it’s Diddy.”

The sources spoke anonymously about life inside the prison. NBC News also said it reviewed photos and videos taken inside the facility, including footage that appeared to show Combs using a contraband phone.

Thousands spent on a prison lifestyle

Combs, 56, is serving a 50-month sentence for prostitution-related offences after being convicted on two counts of transporting people across state lines for sexual encounters. He was acquitted of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy charges at his trial.

The four sources said Combs has been spending thousands of dollars a month to maintain his lifestyle at the low-security prison. According to the report, money is transferred from people outside prison into the commissary accounts of inmates who provide services for him.

Among those services are cleaning the toilet and shower areas before Combs uses them, preparing food, making his bed and doing his laundry.

Some inmates have reportedly cooked special meals for him, including curry chicken, pizza and empanadas. The meals were prepared secretly using a makeshift heating device submerged in water.

“After a while, I got tired of cooking,” one inmate who said he had prepared food for Combs told NBC News. “He started going to the Jamaicans.”

Other inmates reportedly hold on to Combs’ phone and fan mail.

“It’s so much that he gets,” one source said. “He doesn’t have room for it.”

Also Read: Freak-offs, oil-filled sex pools, voyeurism: Cassie Ventura drops bombshell testimony against Diddy

Contraband phones, alcohol and medication

Despite being incarcerated, Combs has reportedly been able to access contraband mobile phones, which multiple sources said he uses to browse Instagram and view nude and sexually explicit photographs sent by an old girlfriend.

Two sources also said he obtained a “jailbroken” tablet, which he has used to watch films and documentaries. Among them was reportedly the Netflix docuseries “Sean Combs: The Reckoning”, produced by his longtime rival 50 Cent.

Combs has also allegedly obtained Remeron, an antidepressant prescribed to inmates experiencing depression and anxiety. The medication is known as “rem-roms” inside prison and is reportedly traded on the facility’s black market for its mood-boosting effects.

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

The sources also described Combs drinking premium liquor on weekend nights. The alcohol was allegedly smuggled into the prison by guards and shared among a small group of inmates.

“Hell yeah, I drank with him,” one of the men said, recalling drinking Hennessy with Combs.

Fort Dix and its contraband problem

Fort Dix, located about 60 miles southwest of New York City, houses around 4,000 inmates. The prison has faced wider problems with contraband, including mobile phones, drugs and weapons.

Just before the report on Combs’ prison life, five people, including a current and former corrections officer, were charged in connection with an alleged scheme to smuggle illicit items into the facility. Federal prosecutors said the contraband included knives, marijuana and mobile phones.

Authorities have also charged multiple people since 2020 over alleged attempts to use drones to drop contraband into the prison grounds or onto its roof. In one case, prison staff intercepted a 46-pound laundry bag containing contraband.

A Bureau of Prisons spokesperson said the agency does not discuss individual inmates’ conditions because of “privacy, safety and security reasons”.

“Like all correctional agencies, contraband, particularly cell phones, narcotics, and weapons, remains a constant challenge, and we continue to tackle the problem of contraband being introduced into our facilities,” the spokesperson said.

Also Read: Flowers, numbers, celebrity deaths: Diddy’s arrest and the unfolding conspiracy theories

Drug treatment programme and solitary confinement

Combs’ lawyers had sought his transfer to Fort Dix partly because of its drug treatment programme. Participation in the months-long programme can lead to a reduction in an inmate’s sentence, making it highly sought after.

Combs entered the programme after arriving at the facility in October. However, sources said he was later removed from it following a period in solitary confinement.

NBC News previously reported that Combs was placed in solitary confinement in July after a fight with another inmate. According to the sources, he returned to the privileges he had reportedly enjoyed after being released from isolation.

“Pretty much the day he arrived, the party started,” one source said.

The sources said Combs quickly gained access to a phone and alcohol and began building a group of inmates who worked for him.

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

Combs was once described as a billionaire, with hip-hop wealth expert Zack O’Malley Greenburg declaring him one in 2022. More recent estimates cited in the reports put his wealth at around $300 million to $400 million.

Combs’ response to the reports

A spokesperson for Combs dismissed the focus on his prison conditions and said the reporting amounted to excessive scrutiny of his day-to-day life.

“The continued scrutiny of every mundane detail of Sean Combs’s life in prison has reached the point where the media characterizes ordinary prison life as news,” the spokesperson said. “The only real news is that Sean continues to serve his sentence while awaiting the court’s decision on his appeal.”

Combs arrived at Fort Dix after his 2025 trial, which ended in a split verdict. A New York jury found him guilty on two counts related to transporting people across state lines for prostitution but acquitted him of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy charges.

The trial included testimony about sexual encounters known as “freak offs”, which prosecutors said involved male sex workers, costumes, drugs and Combs’ former girlfriends, including singer Cassie. Cassie had previously filed a lawsuit accusing Combs of physical and sexual abuse; the case was settled, with Combs denying wrongdoing.

Release date moved again

The latest reports about Combs’ life behind bars came as his projected release date was also reported to have changed.

According to Federal Bureau of Prisons records viewed by Page Six, Combs’ release date from FCI Fort Dix is now listed as Jan. 21, 2028. TMZ was the first to report the latest date.

His projected release date has been changed several times since he was incarcerated. His original release date had been listed as June 2028.