Sean “Diddy” Combs’ ex-girlfriend, R&B singer Cassie, has told his sex trafficking trial that the rapper used to “hit, drag and kick” her.
Cassie, whose real name is Casandra Ventura, took the witness stand on Tuesday, a day after prosecutors showed jurors video of the music mogul beating her in a hotel in 2016.
Testimony from Cassie is key to prosecutors’ efforts to portray Combs as using his power in the music industry to run a network of exploitation, coercing women into abusive sex parties he called “freak-offs” and turning violent when they refused.
Lawyers for the three-time Grammy winner admit he could be violent but deny charges of sex trafficking and racketeering, arguing the sexual encounters were consensual.
Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty. The trial began on Monday.
Cassie told the jury her relationship with Combs ranged from happy moments to arguments and physical abuse.
“If they were violent arguments, it would usually result in some sort of physical abuse and dragging, just different things,” Cassie said.
“He would smash me in my head, knock me over, drag me, kick me, stomp me in the head if I was down.”
Asked how frequently Combs became violent with her, Cassie softly responded: “Too frequently.”
Cassie sued Combs in 2023, accusing him of years of abuse. She said they met in 2005 when she was 19 and he was 37, and initially had a platonic relationship.
That changed after he signed her to his Bad Boy Records label, and at 21, kissed her without consent, she said. They began dating a few years later.
A 2016 hotel surveillance video, made public by CNN last year, showed Combs beating Cassie in a Los Angeles hallway.
The footage, played for jurors on Monday, shows him wearing only a white towel as he punches, kicks and drags her. He later apologised after the video aired.
The 38-year-old singer, now married to her personal trainer Alex Fine and mother of two, also described Combs’ “freak-offs” and said she didn’t know how to say no to them while they were together.
“Within the first year of our relationship, he proposed this idea, this sexual encounter that he called voyeurism, where he would watch me be in intercourse with a third party, specifically with another man,” she testified.
“I also felt a sense of responsibility. It was him sharing something like that with me. I was confused, nervous but also loved him very much and wanted to make him happy so.
“I knew it wasn’t something I wanted to be doing especially as regularly as it became, but again, I was just in love and wanted to make him happy.
“It got to a point where I just didn’t feel like I had much of a choice, didn’t really know what ‘no’ could be or what ‘no’ could turn into.”
What can we expect from Combs’ trial? ITV News US Correspondent Dan Rivers explains
Cassie Ventura Fine’s testimony will be critical to the case against Combs.
Combs’ defence team is expected to focus on why she remained his girlfriend for years, delving into the details of bookings she made with male escorts at Combs’ behest.
They will attempt to undermine her credibility however they can, especially as the video played in court yesterday, showing Combs hitting and kicking her in a hotel in 2016, is so central to the case.
Cassie isn’t the only victim who will appear in this trial, but she is the only one so far who has been named.
If the jury believes her story, they will likely convict the Hip-Hop mogul. The prosecution must show more than domestic violence, though, which typically would be tried at a state, not federal level.
In Combs’ case, they must show a wider conspiracy to traffic women and men across state lines, and to use his company to coerce his victims.
If he is found guilty, Combs faces spending the rest of his time in jail. Not just losing his liberty, but also his legacy as one of Hip-Hop music’s biggest figures.
Lawyers for Combs told the court on Monday that his accusers were motivated by money. They said jurors might see him as a “jerk” or disapprove of his “kinky sex”, but argued, “he’s not charged with being a jerk.”
Cassie filed a lawsuit in 2023, accusing Combs of trafficking, rape, drugging and physical abuse over a decade. The case was settled within hours.
Combs has been held in a Brooklyn jail since his arrest in September. If convicted, he faces at least 15 years and up to life in prison.
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