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Combs arrives at court Wednesday. He disputes prosecution witness testimony that he possessed a gun the night of the shooting.

Witness says he saw Combs fire gun in club

CNN Producer Shannon Troetel

NEW YORK (CNN) -- A sworn statement from a key prosecution witness in the trial of rap star Sean "Puffy" Combs said Combs fired a gun in a crowded nightclub in December. The statement, from Matthew "Scar" Allen, was introduced into evidence Wednesday.

In it, Allen said he was near the bar in Club New York when someone reached over him and knocked him and his drink into the bar. When he turned around and pushed the person away, he realized it was Combs. The two men insulted each other while their friends kept them apart.

ON THE SCENE CNN's Shannon Troetel on the Sean ‘Puffy’ Combs trial  VIDEO CNN's Michael Owku has more on the trial of Sean 'Puff Daddy' Combs Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)   ANALYSIS Is rap music on trial along with Sean 'Puffy' Combs?   ALSO Will Puffy's career profit or perish from his trial?

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"Puffy was in front of me and Shyne was off to my right," Allen's statement said. "At just about the same time, one of the guys at the bar threw money at Puffy. It was a lot of money and it came down like snow. Shyne then dipped down and came back up with a gun and started firing. At that point, Puffy had a gun in his right hand. As I was running out, I could see both Shyne and Puffy firing guns."

Combs and two others face charges stemming from the 1999 shooting in which three people were injured. He is not charged in the shooting, but faces counts of gun possession and bribery.

Rapper Jamal "Shyne" Barrow is charged with attempted murder and Combs' bodyguard, Anthony "Wolf" Jones, is charged with gun possession and bribery.

Combs, who took the stand last week, disputed prosecution witness testimony that someone had thrown a wad of money at him, sparking the scuffle that led to the shooting.

Combs was hustled out of the club by bodyguards and drove off with Jones and actress/singer Jennifer Lopez, Combs' girlfriend at the time. After they were stopped, police found a gun in the car. Combs and Jones were charged with bribery for trying to get the car's driver to claim the gun was his.

Witness testimony ended in the trial Wednesday after the prosecution called seven witnesses and the defense called one in the rebuttal stage.

Closing arguments are expected to begin Monday, and Judge Charles Solomon is likely to hand the case over to the jury for deliberations Tuesday.

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