A former assistant to Sean “Diddy” Combs who testified on Thursday that the music mogul physically and sexually assaulted her when she worked for him returned to the stand on Friday – and faced questioning from his lawyers.
Testifying under the pseudonym Mia to protect her identity, the woman shared that she worked for Combs from 2009 to 2017 as his personal assistant and director of development and acquisition for his music business, starting at the age of 25.
During her testimony on Thursday, Mia alleged that the rapper and producer assaulted her, both physically and sexually, on multiple occasions throughout the years.
“He’s thrown things at me, he’s thrown me against the wall, he’s thrown me into a pool, he’s thrown an ice bucket on my head, he’s slammed my arm into a door, and he’s sexually assaulted me,” Mia told the court.
She also recalled how Combs would sometimes treat her like a best friend or working partner, but how at other times, he treated her “like a worthless piece of crap”.
Mia testified that she felt “trapped” in the situation, describing Combs’s conduct towards her as “the most shameful thing of my life”, testifying tearfully in barely a whisper about how he raped her.
Mia told the court that she was fearful of physical harm from Combs. “I didn’t want to die or get hurt,” she said.
“I couldn’t tell him ‘no’, like, about a sandwich,” she said. “I couldn’t tell him ‘no’ about anything. There’s no way I could tell him ‘no’ because then he would know that I thought what he was doing was wrong and then I would be a target.”
Mia testified that she feared that if she had left or been fired that Combs would “ruin my future”.
Combs has denied all allegations of sexual assault.
On Friday, Mia testified that she was “scared” of Combs and that he would send her threatening messages.
She said she left his employment in 2017 and hired a lawyer to negotiate severance. After several months, she said she received a $400,000 settlement as compensation for unpaid overtime, severance and bonuses, of which around half went to her lawyers.
Mia told the court that she suffers from post-traumatic stress as a result of her employment with Combs, and said that it has impacted her ability to work.
During cross-examination on Friday, Combs’s lawyers questioned Mia about her social media posts during the time she worked for Combs and after she says he first sexually assaulted her, including photos she posted where she is seen posing next to the music mogul and captions calling him a “mentor”. Combs’s lawyers also asked about her communications with her then boss, in which she praised him, calling him an “inspiration”.
“Why would you promote the person who has stolen your happiness in life?” Combs’s lawyer asked Mia in reference to her posts on social media.
Mia testified that during her time working for Combs, “the highs were high and the lows were low”. She told the court that Instagram was a “place to show how great your life was, even if it was not true” and said that she didn’t want her family to know what she was going through.
During the cross-examination, a lawyer for Combs also suggested that Mia had fabricated her allegations of sexual assault.
“Everything I’ve said in this courtroom is true,” she responded. “I have not lied to anyone at all.”
The defense then concluded its cross-examination for the day. Mia is expected to return to the stand on Monday.
Combs, 55, faces federal charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and transportation to engage in prostitution. Arrested in September 2024, Combs has pleaded not guilty to all five counts.
While Combs’s defense team has acknowledged his history of domestic violence, they have argued that he is not guilty of sex trafficking or racketeering, and denied any criminal enterprise. They also have denied that Combs sexually assaulted anyone, and have asserted that all sexual encounters were consensual.
This week, Mia also testified that on more than one occasion, shewitnessed Combs physically assaulting Casandra “Cassie” Ventura, his on-again, off-again girlfriend of 11 years, who is a key witness in this case.
Earlier in the trial, Ventura spent four days on the witness stand detailing the physical and emotional abuse she says she endured from Combs during their relationship and testified that she was coerced and blackmailed into participating in “freak-offs” – drug-fueled sex performances with male sex workers that Ventura said Combs directed.
During cross examination, Combs’s lawyers sought to portray Ventura as a consenting participant in the “freak-offs.”
Since the trial began on 12 May, more than 16 witnesses have testified, including Ventura, rapper Kid Cudi, singer Dawn Richard, two of Combs’s former assistants, a celebrity stylist, Ventura’s former best friend and her mother, an exotic dancer, a male revue manager, a hotel security officer, a special agent from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), a forensic psychologist, a makeup artist, the general manager of a Beverly Hills hotel and a computer forensics agent from HSI.
The trial is expected to last several more weeks. If convicted on all counts, Combs could face up to life in prison.
• Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organizations. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html
