Diddy trial replay: Former aide George Kaplan says Combs threatened his job

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This page reflects the news from Sean "Diddy" Combs' trial on Wednesday, May 21. For the latest updates from Diddy's trial, read USA TODAY's live coverage for Thursday, May 22.
This story contains graphic descriptions that some readers may find disturbing.
A federal agent. A psychologist. A former top aide.
A handful of witnesses took the stand in Sean "Diddy" Combs' sweeping federal sex-crimes trial on May 21. Gerard Gannon, a Homeland Security Investigations special agent, was up first, describing the massive raid on Combs' Miami mansion last year where agents found illegal drugs, weapons and more.
Psychologist Dawn Hughes took the stand next, explaining the complexities of physical, sexual and psychological abuse, factors at the center of the allegations against Combs. George Kaplan, a former executive assistant for Combs, also told jurors the rapper repeatedly threatened his job.
Scott Mescudi, better known as rapper Kid Cudi, will also take the stand in the coming days. Diddy allegedly threatened the musician after he and Combs' former girlfriend Cassie Ventura Fine dated briefly over a decade ago.
Combs' alleged abuse of Ventura Fine has played a major role in the embattled hip-hop mogul's trial. Regina Ventura, Cassie's mother, told the court on May 20 she was "physically sick" over the rapper's actions, and she was once pressured to send him $20,000 after he raged at her daughter.
Combs, 55, was arrested in September 2024 and charged with sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution. He has pleaded not guilty.
Diddy on trial newsletter: Step inside the courtroom as music mogul faces sex-crimes charges.
Kaplan worked as an executive assistant for Combs' holding company Combs Enterprises, which houses the rapper's various business ventures. While taking the stand on May 21, Kaplan detailed the tasks and responsibilities that comprised his intimate role.
Kaplan, 34, said he carried Combs' bags and ensured they had the necessary items, including clothing, medicine, computers, iPads and sometimes food.
The former assistant, who worked for Combs from 2014-2015, testified he later began spending late nights with Combs as he worked on a mixtape, which involved more time in studios and setting up Combs' hotel rooms. Kaplan said he worked 80-100 hours per week and that his starting salary was $125,000 for the first 12 months.
Kaplan said he increasingly earned Combs' trust during their time working together and met many of his staffers, including Combs' "right hand" and former chief of staff Kristina "KK" Khorram. When shown a photo of Khorram in court, Kaplan said Khorram "essentially ran Mr. Combs' life."
Kaplan testified that the rapper threatened his job "maybe monthly." Combs' tone during the alleged threats was "sometimes angry, sometimes motivational," Kaplan said.
He recalled being asked to obtain a one gallon water bottle for Combs, but when the store did not have any, he brought Combs two half-gallon bottles. Combs was upset and got in Kaplan's face when telling him as much, Kaplan testified.
"He was only to be surrounded by the best," he said of Combs.
Hughes took the stand on May 21, called by prosecutors to explain the wide-reaching impacts of physical, sexual and emotional abuse in the sex-crimes trial. Hughes and told jurors it's "very common" for victims to stay in abusive relationships.
Hughes explained that people need "tangible resources to leave" unhealthy relationships. She also discussed the concept of "love bombing," noting that an abuser often showers their victim with love and gifts to get them back if they're trying to leave.
"These relationships start with love," Hughes said of abusive ties, describing the "honeymoon phase" after an assault episode, which includes convincing the victim with love and care. A victim may feel their abuser is the only person they can speak to about the abuse, she said.
Hughes also testified on "trauma bonds," where a victim can be attached to an abusive partner and will try to chase nice moments with them "in spite of the violence."
When the prosecution asked why victims may reconcile with an abusive partner, Hughes said "they return for the companionship" and for "the good version of the partner they do love."
Hughes also explained different kinds of self defense and coping mechanisms victims of abuse may use to try to protect themselves. She said victims are more likely to disclose rape by a stranger than a partner, and they will usually disclose to a mother, sister or close friend first.
Hughes also discussed the impact of trauma on memory and how victims' brains will often assign significance to sensory details. That can range from the smell of alcohol on their abuser's breath to chipped paint they notice on a ceiling.
Victims may also remember the core gist of what happened to them, she said, but still feel their memories are fragmented. After long stretches of violence or other mistreatment, "events are going to blend together," she said, given "the routine of all this abuse happening."
Victims of abuse using substances while facing violence is one common coping mechanism, Hughes told the court. Her testimony comes after Cassie told jurors last week that she frequently used drugs to to get through "freak offs," the alleged sexual performances Combs organized for years.
"Substances allow us to numb our pain," Hughes said, explaining that alcohol or drugs can be used to get rid of fear and other anxieties.
"Many victims will wait months, even years," to disclose abuse, she said, explaining they may have a "fear of not being believed." That fear may be connected to losing friends or economic security, and it can be worse if their abuser benefits from wealth and privilege, Hughes explained.
More: What kind of a physical toll does an emotionally abusive relationship take on someone?
Hughes explained she's testifying as a "blind expert," meaning she hasn't interviewed Combs or any of the witnesses in the case. For her work in this case generally, she said she's getting $600 an hour, and for her court testimony, she's earning $6,000 a day.
More: Cassie's harrowing testimony, the myth of 'mutual abuse' and what domestic violence really looks like
During Hughes' cross-examination, Combs' defense lawyers clarified to her that she was not "providing opinion" on the rapper's specific case – nor was she there to provide commentary on any "particular witnesses."
Combs' legal team underlined the fact that this is "general subject matter testimony." The defense also said Hughes has been hired by several different prosecutors for many years to give this kind of testimony, "even though none of them involve the same people" or "the same evidence."
The jury was asked to retire to the jury room as the defense tried to introduce a new piece of evidence: A document from a training session where Hughes advised female abuse survivors on how they might prepare to go to court. The session covered topics such as their personal appearance, demeanor and court etiquette.
The defense wanted to introduce the document as they argued Hughes has made "a cottage industry" out of being a professional witness. But the judge said he did not see a basis to admit the document as evidence, concluding it "doesn't say anything about anything."
Hughes was also a witness in the Depp v. Heard trial in Virginia in 2022 involving Johnny Depp and his ex-wife Amber Heard. The televised trial pitted the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise star against the "Aquaman" actress as both raised their own allegations of abuse.
During the trial, Heard's team called Hughes to testify after the domestic violence expert evaluated Heard for nearly 30 hours and diagnosed her with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) that she attributed to intimate partner violence.
During Gannon's testimony, jurors were shown photos from the 2024 raid on Combs' mansion in Miami Beach, Florida. Federal investigators found three cell phones hidden inside of a pair of boots from the designer brand Balenciaga. A black Gucci bag was allegedly filled with drugs including Xanax, cocaine, ketamine and MDMA.
In the master bathroom of the home, agents said they found a wooden box with a gold plate on top that said "Puffy" – one of Combs' nicknames – which contained MDMA and Psilocybin, a hallucinogenic.
In the mansion's guest house security room, a loaded .45 caliber handgun was found inside a red suitcase.
Drawers in a hallway closet contained 25 bottles of baby oil and 31 bottles of Astroglide lubricant. Prosecutors have alleged that Combs used the substances in his drug-fueled "freak offs" at the center of his sex-crimes charges.
Before Gannon took the stand, lawyers on either side sparred over showing a photo of Combs' late partner, Kim Porter, as evidence. Prosecutors argued against it, saying the "relevance is extremely low" and arguing the photo risks "tugging at the jurors' heartstrings."
Prosecutors also worried that it would confuse jurors, implying that if Combs was convicted, his children would be without a parent. Combs and Porter share four children.
Gannon told the court that on March 24, 2024, he was part of a team that searched of Combs' Miami mansion.
Nearly 90 agents were involved in the search, which happened while Combs and his family were not in the home. Gannon said law enforcement found the upper receivers of AR-15 weapons, as well as gun magazines.
Agents also found sex toys, lubricant and baby oil in the home, all parts of the alleged freak offs Combs conducted for years, as well as illegal drugs.
Judge Arun Subramanian, the judge hearing Combs' federal sex-crimes trial, appeared to reject a request from the rapper's lawyers to subpoena Ventura Fine.
It wasn't immediately clear why Combs' team made the request, which the judge turned down May 20, but his lawyers have repeatedly tried to target her claims of his physical, sexual and emotional abuse in their relationship.
While on the stand May 20, Ventura was quickly asked by prosecutors about an email her daughter mentioned in previous testimony. In the message, sent on Dec. 23, 2011, Ventura Fine confessed to her mother that Combs was threatening to release a sex tape of her on Christmas Day. Around the same time, Ventura Fine told her mother about the alleged physical abuse she was facing from Combs.
Ventura said she was told she needed to wire $20,000 to Combs because he was "angry that he spent money on her (Cassie) and that she had been with another person." Although she wired the funds to Combs' company, the woman said the money came back four to five days later.
Combs is facing federal sex-crimes and trafficking charges in a sprawling lawsuit that has eroded his status as a power player and kingmaker in the entertainment industry.
He was arrested in September 2024 and has been charged with racketeering, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. He has pleaded not guilty to all five counts.
Racketeering is the participation in an illegal scheme under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Statute, or RICO, as a way for the U.S. government to prosecute organizations that contribute to criminal activity.
Using RICO law, which is typically aimed at targeting multi-person criminal organizations, prosecutors allege that Combs coerced victims, some of whom they say were sex workers, through intimidation and narcotics to participate in "freak offs" — sometimes dayslong sex performances that federal prosecutors claim they have video of.
The trial will not be televised, as cameras are typically not allowed in federal criminal trial proceedings.
USA TODAY will be reporting live from the courtroom.
Contributing: USA TODAY staff
If you are a survivor of sexual assault, RAINN offers support through the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800.656.HOPE (4673) and Hotline.RAINN.org and en Español RAINN.org/es.
If you or someone you know is a victim of domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or text "START" to 88788.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Diddy trial replay: Who is George Kaplan? Former aide testifies