Ex-assistant who alleges Sean ‘Diddy' Combs raped her returns to stand in trial

The Guardian

3 days ago

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 morning.
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.
'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.
The 55-year-old music mogul 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.
On Thursday, Mia also testified that on more than one occasion, she also witnessed 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