Diddy's Sex Trafficking Trial: 9 Takeaways From The First Week Of Testimony

Yahoo

16-05-2025

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The sex trafficking and racketeering trial of Sean 'Diddy' Combs is nearing the end of its first week of testimonies. After a wave of accusations, civil lawsuits and a federal indictment, the 55-year-old mogul sat before a New York jury this week as prosecutors and the defense began unpacking a series of disturbing allegations against him.
Combs has pleaded not guilty to charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, and transportation to engage in prostitution. If convicted, he faces a potential life sentence in prison.
So far, three witnesses — including Combs' pregnant ex-partner and former Bad Boy Records artist, Casandra 'Cassie' Ventura — have taken the stand. Their testimonies have touched on everything from Combs' alleged 'freak-off' sex parties and years of violent abuse to the infamous 2016 surveillance footage that captured Combs assaulting Ventura in a Los Angeles hotel.
More witnesses will take the stand in the coming weeks, including Aubrey O'Day and Dawn Richard, two of Combs' former artists.
Before Ventura's emotional dayslong testimony, jurors heard from Israel Florez, a former security guard at the InterContinental Hotel, who spoke about the aftermath of the assault. Daniel Phillip, a 41-year-old male escort who claimed to have had sexual encounters with both Ventura and Combs, then testified in graphic detail about Combs' alleged sexual practices.
On Thursday, Combs' legal team began cross-examining Ventura, focusing on her complex relationship with the defendant and their alleged marathon sex sessions.
The defense has admitted to Combs' violent outbursts, but maintains that prosecutors are mischaracterizing his consensual relationships and sexual encounters as criminal acts. The prosecution, however, has argued that Combs exploited his power, wealth and celebrity status to systematically abuse women, and commit a pattern of violent and coercive acts.
Several members of Combs' family — including his mother, adult sons and young daughters — have attended the trial, as has Ventura's husband, Alex Fine.
So far, the proceedings have been dominated by emotional testimony and graphic accusations, setting the tone for how this high-stakes legal battle will play out in the coming weeks. Below are nine key takeaways from the first week.
Florez, the former InterContinental security guard who responded to the call of Combs' assault on Ventura, testified that the mogul tried to pay him off to keep the incident quiet, People reported. He claimed he encountered a towel-clad Combs sitting in a chair 'slouched down, like with a blank stare … like a devilish stare, just looking at me.' Then Combs offered him a wad of money, Florez said, and uttered three chilling words.
'Don't tell nobody,' Florez recalled, interpreting Combs' warning and cash as a bribe.
He also claimed that Combs took another guard's phone after accusing him of recording his and Florez's conversation. Florez said he then pinned Combs against the wall and demanded that he release the guard's phone.
The New York Times reported that Combs once allegedly forced a male sex worker to urinate in Ventura's mouth during one of his freak-offs because it was a 'turn on' for him. During her testimony, Ventura spoke about the incident, adding that she didn't say no at that moment because she 'thought that it was obvious that I didn't want to do it.'
'I just felt humiliated,' she said, per NBC News. 'It was disgusting, it was too much. I choked, I didn't want to be doing that. I was in a position I couldn't easily get out of. I eventually put my hands up, and Sean saw and told him to stop. I was choking, too much urine in my mouth.'
She added, 'Sean urinated on me at the same time.'
Ventura spoke about the nature of Combs' alleged freak-offs in great detail during her first day of testimony, describing the sexual encounters, which could last anywhere from 36 hours to four days, as a 'very choreographed experience,' Rolling Stone reported. She also claimed that she would sometimes stay up for 'days on end,' drinking, doing drugs and having sex with 'strangers.'
Ventura testified that once the freak-offs with Combs began, they became an almost weekly occurrence that 'took a big chunk of my life,' and left 'no space to do anything else but to recover and just try to feel normal again.' By the end of her relationship with Combs, Ventura claimed she participated in 'hundreds' of freak-offs. 'Eventually,' she said, 'it became a job for me.'
Ventura claimed that Combs tasked her with finding male escorts for their alleged freak-offs by responding to ads on Craigslist and Backpage or through the escort service Cowboys 4 Angels. 'That was just my job, really,' she said on the witness stand, according to The Times. 'It was expected of me.'
She also claimed that Combs 'had to approve' any final hires, as prosecutors argued that Combs was involved in each transaction and used his money to pay the escorts. 'I showed the photos to Sean to see if he was interested,' Ventura said. 'If he wasn't interested, I would tell them 'no' and ask for someone else.'
While describing what hotel rooms would look like after a freak-off, Ventura claimed that sometimes blood would be left on the sheets because she was menstruating, People reported. 'I was expected to have freak-offs on my period,' she testified. 'Sean would expect it. I don't think anyone wants to do that.'
According to Ventura, she participated in these sex acts, despite the circumstances, out of fear of Combs' temper. 'Something that Sean wanted to happen, that's what was going to happen,' she said.
Following Combs' September arrest, a civil lawsuit filed against him alleged that the bottles of baby oil federal agents seized from his home were laced with the date rape drugs Rohypnol or GHB, according to NBC News. But on the witness stand, Ventura refuted the claim, essentially saying that drugs were never in the baby oil that she and Combs used during freak-offs, The Times reported. It's still unclear if Combs laced baby oil with drugs during freak-offs that Ventura didn't participate in.
Combs was allegedly enraged when he found out Ventura was dating rapper Kid Cudi in 2011. Combs and Ventura were in an on-and-off relationship from 2007 to 2018, but were 'not in the greatest place' when Ventura connected with Cudi, she testified, according to People.
After coming across an email between Cudi's staff and Ventura during a freak-off, the latter said Combs tried to attack her. 'I just remember him putting a wine opener between his fingers and lunging at me,' she recalled on the stand.
Afterward, Ventura said she called Cudi on a burner phone, which she used to hide their relationship from Combs, and went to his house. She later met up with Combs at his home to discuss the situation, where she alleged he attacked her again.
'Sean kicked me in the back, I fell on the floor and then left,' said Ventura, adding that he also threatened to harm both her and Cudi, and release sexually explicit videos of her. When she returned to her hotel room, Ventura testified that it was 'torn up,' with urine on the floor, clothes thrown around and feces in the toilet.
Ventura testified that she referred to Combs by a 'weird' nickname — one he insisted upon. The topic came up as the jury viewed 2010 emails between Ventura and Combs, in which the latter's contact name read 'Pop Pop.' Ventura claimed Combs made her use that moniker because it's the same one she used for her grandfather. 'I thought it was weird,' she said, per The Times.
Toward the end of her Day 2 testimony, Ventura revealed that she started writing a book about her time with Combs in 2023 as 'trauma therapy' following a stint in rehab. She said she reached out to Combs' representatives about paying her $30 million for the rights to the story, but received no compensation at that time.
According to Ventura, she received money later when she settled her 2023 civil suit against Combs for $20 million. The settlement amount was unknown until Ventura's testimony.
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