Diddy trial live: Diddy 'threatened' to release 'explicit' sex tapes of Cassie; exotic dancer known as 'Punisher' giving evidence

Sky News

20-05-2025

17:25:57
'The Punisher' takes the stand
Male escort Sharay Hayes now steps onto the stand. The 51-year-old from Harlem, New York City, is wearing a suit.
He explains that he is a male exotic dancer, whose stage name is "The Punisher", and says he performs stripteases in New York City for bachelorette parties.
He explains he first got his nickname in his teens from playing basketball, rather than stripping.
17:16:50
'I was trying to hit him but I wasn't successful'
Cassie's mum is now shown photos she took of her daughter in December 2011, showing her with visible injuries.
Regina Ventura says she took them because "[Cassie] was bruised, and I wanted to make sure we memorialized it".
She says Cassie shaved her head in 2009 and kept it like that for four to five years.
Ms Ventura goes on to describe arguing "bitterly" with Diddy outside Cassie's apartment in early 2012 after the holidays, when she says he took Cassie's phone.
She says she tried to hit him, "but wasn't successful".
She says Diddy then drove off in Cassie's Jaguar.
Ms Ventura has now finished giving evidence, and there are no defence questions for her. She leaves the stand.
17:09:00
Diddy 'threatened to release two explicit sex tapes' of Cassie
Regina Ventura has just been shown an exhibit of an email sent by Cassie on 23 December 2011, telling her mother that Diddy was going to "release two explicit sex tapes" of her.
Cassie said Diddy planned to release one on Christmas Day and a second shortly after.
The message also said Diddy had told Cassie he would "have someone hurt her and Scott Mescudi [the real name of rapper Kid Cudi] physically".
Cassie wrote: "He made a point that it wouldn't be by his hands... He actually said he would be out of the country when it happened".
When asked what she thought when she saw the email, Ms Ventura says: "I was physically sick. I did not understand it. The sex tape threw me, he was trying to hurt my daughter."
The prosecution asks if Diddy demanded $20,000 (£15,000) because Cassie was having a relationship with Mescudi.
Ms Ventura says: "We took a home equity loan and that was the only way we could get the money."
She says Diddy was angry that Cassie was dating someone else after he had spent money on her.
She says her bank account shows they sent the money to the Bad Boy Records account, and says they took out the loan to pay it "because [Diddy] demanded it".
16:59:15
Cassie's mother recalls meeting Combs for first time
Regina Ventura is being questioned by Emily Johnston for the prosecution.
She says she is retired, with two children - Robert and Cassandra - and lives in Connecticut.
She is shown a photo, and confirms it is Sean "Diddy" Combs, saying "he dated my daughter".
She says she met him for the first time in 2006, when Diddy signed Cassie to his record label. She says they subsequently started dating, living first in New York, and later moving to LA.
Regina confirms she saw Cassie around two to four times a year, with her daughter "always" coming home for the holidays.
16:44:42
Court is now back in session
And we're back.
David James's testimony is now over, and Cassie Ventura's mother, Regina Ventura, is taking the stand.
16:32:44
The court is now taking a brief break
Court will resume in just a few minutes
16:32:21
'I did not want to make a false report'
James is now being re-questioned by the prosecution.
He is asked by Christie Slavik if he ever witnessed violence between Combs and his personal chef Jourdan Atkinson.
James says he did, in Alpine, New Jersey. He says chef Jourdan was not there, and they were trying to find a replacement for the day.
He says Combs told him to "make a police report that Chef Jourdan hit him first".
He says he did not file it "because I did not want to make a false report".
James says: "I went out and came back and told him I made the report".
16:24:19
'Write her a note and buy her a gift'
James describes the "camaraderie" among Combs's staff, saying: "We were employees, we worked for Bad Boy Entertainment... We were all there to support Mr Combs, to make sure he was happy and prepared for the day".
He recalls Combs's mother, Janice, who he refers to as "Mama Combs", once calling him "her son".
She has been supporting Diddy in court, but is not present today.
James is asked who in Diddy's staff he was closest to, and he says he was closest to the chef.
He is asked if he ever "choked" the chef, and answers: "No".
James says an incident occurred between him and the chef in a kitchen on Star Island in Miami. He says: "She was telling me how to do my job. I grabbed her wrists and told her to stay in her lane."
He says it was reported to corporate headquarters and Combs heard about it and called him to his room.
James says Combs told him to "write her a note and buy her a gift" and warned him that he would be fired if it happened again.
16:09:29
One key item on Diddy's rider
Briefly discussing riders (the specific list of requirements given by an artist ahead of their appearance at a venue), James says Diddy had "different riders for different situations".
He says Heinz 57 was one of Diddy's key rider items, explaining: "In the UK they didn't have Heinz and ketchup was a big part of his diet."
James appears to be referring to a tangy, spicy blend of the well-known ketchup, more widely available in the US than the UK.
16:01:30
'You get tired, you get fired'
Earlier in his testimony, we heard from James that he frequently worked 20-hour days and six-day weeks, for weeks on end.
Agnifilo, who is leading Diddy's defence, asks: "You're a hard worker, and you enjoyed it?"
James says: "I did at times. The security detail would always say, 'If you get tired, you get fired'."
He recalls one time he ran a red light and Combs asked him what he was doing.
James says: "I turned around and said 'I'm f***ing tired'."
Agnifilo says: "You didn't get fired?"