EXCLUSIVE Exotic dancer allegedly paid by Sean 'Diddy' Combs to perform massages on Cassie Ventura describes the 'pinch yourself' moment he realised his burqa-wearing employer was the disgraced rap mogul on new Mail podcast
Combs, 55, is currently on trial in New York facing sex trafficking and racketeering charges. If found guilty, the rap mogul could spend decades behind bars.
Combs has pleaded not guilty. His lawyers concede he could be violent, but he denies using threats or his music industry clout to commit abuse.
Sharay 'The Punisher' Hayes, a male exotic dancer who was called as a witness for the prosecution earlier in the trial, told the podcast how he came to be in the employ of Combs and Ventura and what they wanted him to do for them.
Using an alias, Hayes alleges that Ventura, Diddy's ex-girlfriend and one of two key victims in the trial, contacted him for a sexual dance in 2012. Upon arrival at the couple's hotel room, Hayes says he was greeted by a scantily clad Ventura and Combs wearing nothing apart from a 'burqa' to disguise his identity.
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The dancer claims he began performing exotic massages for the couple's amusement. Hayes told reporter Marjorie Hernandez about his 'embarrassment' at not being able to figure out who his employers were for around a year.
'I had no idea who they were', he said.
'I knew I was with some high-profile couple, but I thought they were married. I did Google searches, trying to figure out who they were. But all the searches I did drew a blank.
'They called me for one more of these sessions and put me in a waiting room. I happened to turn on the TV and there was a welcome message on the screen which read: 'Essex House would like to welcome Mr Sean Combs.'
'It was a holy cr** moment – I had followed him on social media, and I still didn't realise.'
'I grew up in Harlem and in my age range, Diddy was my culture. Being in a room with him had a wow factor and I was doing something of a sexual nature with his partner. It blew me away – it was a pinch yourself moment.'
Asked whether Hayes detected any coercive or violent behaviour from Combs towards Ventura, the exotic dancer said he 'did not see anything associated with what's going on in the trial'.
He did however feel a sense of 'frustration' from Ventura at Diddy's particular and voyeuristic demands.
Ventura has alleged Combs subjected her to rape, physical abuse, sex trafficking, and forced participation in sexual encounters with male sex workers called 'freak-offs' during their decade-long relationship.
'I did not see any indication of any issues between them', Hayes said.
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'It just seemed like a couple who were trying to expand their sex life in a kind of fetish way.
'The closest thing I noticed to what is going on in the trial – which I testified to – was that there were moments with Diddy's direction where maybe Cassie would sigh. I could see moments of frustration.
'Diddy could be very specific at times. Move the light here, turn a little bit more to the left – I did see some reactions to that specific direction.'
Having heard Ventura's testimony which alleges Combs was abusive and violent towards her over several years, Hayes said he now feels 'terrible' about being involved in the couple's sex life.
The exotic dancer said: 'The things Cassie testified to – those experiences show she was clearly in distress.
'It feels terrible to have been involved – period. I hope that, if she was in this difficult space, maybe her interaction with me wasn't too heavy on her. That it was tolerable.
'It is just rough looking back at it – understanding the circumstances. Even though I wasn't a part of it directly, I do not want to imagine what she could have been going through mentally.
'Maybe she was coerced without me knowing, which is just a terrible thing.'
Listen to the full exclusive interview with Sharay 'The Punisher' Hayes by subscribing to the Crime Desk today.
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