Diddy assaults ex-girlfriend Cassie in new footage shown in court
Credit: US Department of Justice
Sean 'Diddy' Combs's violent attack on his ex-girlfriend Casandra Ventura at a Los Angeles hotel has been made public after the entire unedited video was shown in court on Tuesday.
Ms Ventura, an R&B singer known as Cassie, testified that she participated in Combs' drug-fuelled parties known as 'Freak Offs' for a decade, fearing he could become violent if she didn't.
Jurors were shown surveillance footage from the hallway of a Los Angeles hotel where a towel-clad Combs threw Ms Ventura to the ground and began to kick her.
She said the video was taken after a 'Freak Off' where Combs gave her a black eye.
'I made it to the elevators, I got my sneakers on, and the next thing I knew, I was thrown to the ground,' Ms Ventura, 38, told the court on Tuesday.
Asked by a prosecutor why she stayed on the ground, Ms Ventura said: 'I felt like it was the safest place to be.'
Combs shook his head from side to side as jurors were shown the footage in full for the first time.
The court fell silent as the video played without sound.
The footage showed Ms Ventura walking down the hallway at the InterContinental Hotel in Century City with a bag before Combs runs after her.
Combs catches up to Ms Ventura near the lift, slapping her across the head and pulling her to the ground using her hood.
He then kicked her several times as she lay motionless on the ground, before picking up her bag and dragging her back into the hallway.
Israel Florez, an assistant to the hotel's security director, then entered the fray, attempting to diffuse the situation.
He testified in court on Tuesday, and claimed Combs offered him a $100 bribe.
Ms Ventura is the star prosecution witness at Combs' trial in the Manhattan federal court.
Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to five felony counts of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.
If convicted on all counts, he would face a minimum of 15 years in prison, and could face life behind bars.
The trial could last two months, and Combs is being held in a Brooklyn jail when not in court. He also faces dozens of civil lawsuits by women and men who accuse him of sexual abuse. He has denied wrongdoing, and said his relationships were consensual.
Ms Ventura testified that she once viewed her relationship with Combs, which began in her early 20s, as her first real adult relationship.
But she said Combs became more controlling as the 'Freak Offs,' which she said lasted as long as four days, took over their relationship and derailed her music career.
Combs has apologised for the video, and his lawyers have said prosecutors have tried to improperly punish him for his 'swingers' lifestyle.
The trial continues.
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