Sean 'Diddy' Combs 'throwing tantrums' over Luigi Mangione's celebrity status behind bars

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Sean “Diddy” Combs is reportedly “throwing tantrums” about the attention fellow inmate Luigi Mangione is getting as they both remain behind bars in the same New York City jail.

According to a source speaking to the Daily Mail, Mangione, 26, who is accused of gunning down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in midtown Manhattan in early December, has achieved celebrity status among inmates being housed inside Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC).

“Diddy has been throwing tantrums over the fact that Luigi is getting all of the attention in prison and is being revered as a hero after literally murdering someone on camera,” a source told the publication. “Even in prison, Diddy’s ego is bigger than life.”

Mangione’s newfound fame has sent him rocketing to the top of Combs’ “s*** list” another insider tells the New York Post.

“He has to be the biggest star wherever he goes. It’s all that matters to him,” they said.

One person who claims to have been part of Combs’ inner circle says that the disgraced music mogul “always wants to be the centre of everything.”

“If he feels like anyone takes his attention, he doesn’t take it well. He gets pissed off, and if he has the power to do it, he makes the other person’s life miserable,” they told the outlet.

Following an extensive investigation, Combs, 54, was arrested by federal authorities in September and is facing charges that include racketeering conspiracy, transportation to engage in prostitution and sex trafficking.

In the months since his arrest, the Bad Boys Records founder has also faced a slew of lawsuits from women and men who allege he abused them behind closed doors at his lavish parties.

Combs, who has maintained his innocence, has repeatedly tried and failed to secure bail as he awaits trial later this spring.

Back in October, Combs’ lawyer attorney Marc Agnifilo described the horrific conditions his client was facing in jail.

“The food is inedible, from what I’ve been told,” Agnifilo told Us Weekly after Combs was denied bail for the first time. “It’s violent. Someone like Mr. Combs might be a target for certain things. We can’t let that happen.”

Former inmates told the magazine that Combs and Mangione are being housed in a “terrible, horrible place.”

“There’s no air movement, and the food is slop,” they said. “(There’s) chilli, shredded chicken with rice (and) Wednesday is murder burgers — a thin patty like shoe leather.”

Prison consultant Sam Mangel told Us Weekly that sections of the facility as “pure hell,” adding, “The MDC is probably the worst federal detention center in the country.”

Combs’ fame and financial worth — he has an estimated fortune that is reportedly in the neighbourhood of $600 million — means very little now at MDC.

“People on the outside would view you as a 10, but you automatically become a 5 in prison. It is a whole other world,” one former inmate says. 

Another one-time prisoner says that guards can conduct strip searches at any time. “You’re gonna take off all your clothes. (The guard) is gonna check your mouth. He’s gonna tell you to turn around, bend over, spread your butt, cough, turn back around (and) lift your genitals and squat.”

Before his arrest, Combs owned several homes, including a $35 million, 8,000-square-foot mansion in Miami.

Last month a source told the U.S. Sun that Combs had a meltdown while he was locked up over Christmas.

“Spending the holidays behind bars was a nightmare for him. He eventually managed to calm himself down with the meditation technique he’s been using while he’s been behind bars,” they said. “It took him a few hours of deep breathing and focusing to get out of the bad space he was in, but he finally managed it.”

But a person close to him maintains that Combes is “fit, healthy, and fully focused on his defence,” Page Six reports.

Combs is expected to argue that all of his sexual encounters were between consenting adults, but if convicted the I’ll Be Missing You hitmaker could spend be spending decades in prison.

Meanwhile, Mangione is facing the possibility of the death penalty after he was charged with a litany of crimes that include first-degree murder. 

Mangione has pleaded not guilty.

mdaniell@postmedia.com