Singer Casandra “Cassie” Ventura, a former girlfriend of Sean “Diddy” Combs and a key witness in the federal sex-trafficking and racketeering trial of the music mogul, returned to the stand on Thursday for cross-examination.
One of Combs’s lawyers, Anna Estevao, opened her cross-examination of Ventura by asking: “You and Sean Combs were in love for 11 years, right?”
“Yeah,” Ventura said.
During Ventura’s second day of testimony on Wednesday, she provided more details about the physical and psychological abuse she alleged she experienced from Combs during their on-and-off again relationship that lasted about 11 years, and accused the music mogul of rape and blackmail.
At one point on the stand, Ventura broke down in tears as she testified that Combs raped her in 2018 at her home after they had broken up.
She told the court that she and Combs had met up for a meal, for what she thought would be a “closure conversation”. During the meal, she described Combs as “playful” and “nice”, but said that Combs drove her back to her apartment after and raped her.
“He raped me in my living room,” Ventura told the court. “I remember crying, saying no, but it was very fast.”
The alleged rape was first mentioned in 2023 when Ventura filed a civil lawsuit against Combs. The lawsuit accused him of physical and sexual abuse. Combs has denied the allegations.
The two reached a settlement in one day. On Wednesday, Ventura revealed she received $20m from Combs and his companies in the settlement.
The lawsuit prompted the federal investigation that led to Combs’s arrest in September last year.
Combs is facing charges including racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. He has pleaded not guilty and denies all allegations. If convicted, Combs, who has been jailed since his arrest last year, could spend the rest of his life in prison.
In other moments on Wednesday, Ventura testified that Combs blackmailed her by threatening to release explicit videos of her participating in the so-called “freak-offs”, the drug-fueled sex encounters with male escorts that Ventura said Combs directed and orchestrated.
Photos shown to the jury on Wednesday depicted bruises on Ventura’s face and body. The jury were also shown explicit images from the so-called “freak-offs”.
Ventura said that she had also witnessed Combs be violent with his employees and also her friends, recalling one instance when he allegedly dangled one of her friends over a balcony.
In the final hour of testimony on Wednesday, prosecutors asked Ventura why she decided to testify against Combs.
“I can’t carry this any more,” Ventura said. “I can’t carry the shame, the guilt, the way I was guided to treat people like they were disposable. What’s right is right, what’s wrong is wrong. I am here to do the right thing.”
The defense are set to begin their cross-examination of Ventura Thursday morning and it is expected to stretch into Friday.
In the US, the domestic violence hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). In the UK, call the national domestic abuse helpline on 0808 2000 247, or visit Women’s Aid. In Australia, the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. Other international helplines may be found via www.befrienders.org.
