Sean 'Diddy' Combs is "scared to death" of staying in prison

According to People magazine, the 55-year-old star - who was acquitted of sex trafficking and racketeering charges - noted he had "failed my children as a father" and begged to be allowed out of prison to be with them and his mother, 84-year-old Janice Combs, who recently underwent brain surgery.

He wrote: "I ask you for mercy today, not only for my sake, but for the sake of my children. God blessed me with 7 beautiful children - 3 sons and 4 daughters. I have failed my children as a father...

"I am unable to be there for my mother when she needs me most. As I write you this letter, I am scared to death. Scared to spend another second away from my mother and my children. I no longer care about the money or the fame. There is nothing more important to me than my family.(sic)"

The All About the Benjamins hitmaker wrote he had missed three of his daughters' graduations and wasn't able to help teach two-year-old Love Sean Combs how to speak.

Combs wrote he had lost his businesses, his charter schools and his career because he had "destroyed" and "stained" his reputation and hopes to use his downfall to help others.

He wrote: "Between of all of my losses and lessons, I can state for a fact that I will never be in another criminal Courtroom again and I do not believe any other person would do anything similar from fear of similar punishment.

"If you give me a chance, I would like the opportunity to share my story with people to prevent at least one person from making the mistakes that I've made...

"Make me an example of what a person can do if afforded a second chance."

Combs insisted he is taking "full responsibility and accountability for my past wrongs" and is "sincerely sorry for all of the hurt and pain that I have caused others."

He noted he had been through the "hardest two years" of his life and only had himself to blame for his "current reality and situation."

He wrote: "I lost my way. I got lost in my journey. Lost in the drugs and the excess. My downfall was rooted in my selfishness. I have been humbled and broken to my core. Jail is designed to break you mentally, physically and spiritually.

"Over the past year there have been so many times that I wanted to give up. There have been some days I thought I would be better off dead. The old me died in jail and a new version of me was reborn.

"I can't change the past, but I can change the future.

"I know that God put me here to transform me. Since incarceration, I have gone through a spiritual reset. I'm on a journey that will take time and hard work."

Surveillance footage previously surfaced of the rapper hitting and kicking ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura and photos of the injuries he allegedly caused her were shown during the trial and he admitted he was "dead wrong" to have lashed out.

He wrote: "I literally lost my mind. I was dead wrong for putting my hands on the woman that I loved. I'm sorry for that and always will be. My domestic violence will always be a heavy burden that I will have to forever carry."

The I'll Be Missing You rapper spent his time in prison "reading books, writing, working out, or in therapy" and has become "sober for the first time in 25 years".

Prosecutors have asked for a sentence of more than 11 years in prison, while Combs' team are seeking no more than 14 months behind bars, which would include time already served since his arrest.