Latest news with #A31
Yahoo
a day ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Diddy's ex-assistant too traumatised to answer his call
Sean "Diddy" Combs' former personal assistant has testified at his sex trafficking trial that she threw her phone across the room in terror and ran outside when she saw the hip-hop mogul calling her days after his longtime ex-girlfriend sued him two years ago. "It was just so triggering to see that," said the assistant, who was identified in court only by the pseudonym "Mia". She was the second of three women expected to testify at the trial in Manhattan that they were sexually abused by Combs. Bail was repeatedly denied for Combs following his September arrest after prosecutors argued he and his co-conspirators reached out to potential victims or witnesses after the former decade-long girlfriend, R&B singer Casandra "Cassie" Ventura, sued him in November 2023. The suit, which alleged years of sexual abuse, was settled within a day for $US20 million ($A31 million). At a September bail hearing, Assistant US Attorney Emily Johnson said Combs had contacted at least one victim in November 2023 and was in constant contact with witnesses, including as late as July 2024. Mia said she at first was elated to hear from D-Roc, one of Combs' former bodyguards, when he reached out to her days after Cassie's lawsuit — until she realised he was at the Bad Boy Records founder's home and trying to reconnect her with her former boss. Then, she said, she felt "terrified, threatened, scared, nervous". Mia said she "wanted to play dumb" and needed a game plan to protect herself. "I didn't want my life to be in danger," Mia said on Friday. Still, when she soon saw Combs himself trying to call her: "I threw my phone as far as it would go behind the couch, and I ran outside". Combs' lawyer Brian Steel launched into his cross-examination by quizzing the woman about several dozen posts she made about Combs, Cassie and other people and events in their orbit. Among them: a still image she posted on Combs' birthday in November 2013 from a comedy video featuring Combs as a doctor helping Mia give birth to a baby. "Shout out to my mentor," she wrote, referring to Combs. "Thank you for always letting me give birth to my dreams." "Here, you have posted on your personal account your rapist delivering the baby," Steel said. On Thursday, Mia testified that she was awakened and then raped by Combs as she slept in a bunk bed in his Los Angeles home just months after he'd forcibly kissed her at his 40th birthday party in 2009. She said sexual assault continued sporadically, seemingly infrequently enough that each time she'd think it would never happen again. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy charges that could result in a prison term of from 15 years to life if he is convicted. Mia, who worked for Combs from 2009 to 2017, including a stretch as an executive at his film studio, said there were exciting times in the job and the: "highs were really high and the lows were really low". After she left Bad Boy Entertainment, Mia said, she received $US250,000 ($A388,000) of a $US400,000 ($A622,000) settlement to reimburse her for promised bonuses that were never paid and for unpaid overtime. But she said she never told her lawyers about the sexual abuse. She acknowledged during her testimony that she referenced her co-workers as "family" and used the word "love" in her correspondence with Combs even after he sexually attacked her. "That's how we all talked to each other," Mia said. While working for Combs, she said, she dated his sound engineer, although it wasn't a typical relationship because they rarely saw one another outside work. She said she hasn't been able to work since leaving the job because of post-traumatic stress disorder. Mia said she'd misinterpret emails asking "where are you?" as scolding. She said someone calling her name from across the room would cause her alarm, even if it was an innocent attempt to get her attention. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028
7NEWS
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- 7NEWS
Cassie Ventura gives birth to baby following testimony in Sean ‘Diddy' Combs trial
Cassie Ventura gave birth on Tuesday, roughly two weeks after she took the stand as a witness in Sean Combs' federal sex trafficking trial, a source familiar with the matter confirmed. The baby is her third with her husband Alex Fine. Ventura announced the pregnancy in an Instagram post featuring black-and-white photos of their family, including their two young daughters. The singer and model just spent nearly a week testifying in Combs' trial, recounting allegations of rape and abuse at his hands. Her civil lawsuit against Combs in 2023 set off a firestorm of abuse allegations and lawsuits from others who alleged that they'd had similar experiences, leading to a federal investigation and charges against Combs that included sex trafficking. Ventura and Combs settled her lawsuit the day after it was filed for $US20 million ($A31,160,000), she revealed in court. Combs denied any wrongdoing. Ventura was more than eight months pregnant when she took the stand on May 13. On her third day on the stand, lead prosecutor Maurene Comey called for a speedy cross-examination, predicting Ventura could have her baby over the weekend. US District Judge Arun Subramanian agreed with the prosecutor that Ventura's presence in court should not be needed past May 16, sternly reminding the defence team that it had agreed to only a day and a half of cross-examining Ventura. Marc Agnifilo, Combs' attorney, said he might want Ventura to come back the following week if needed. 'In what universe did you not understand this is what was going to happen?' Subramanian asked Agnifilo in court. 'You're not telling me this wasn't everyone's understanding that this witness was going to be done this week?'
The Advertiser
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Advertiser
Rapper Kid Cudi testifies Diddy broke into his house
Rapper Scott "Kid Cudi" Mescudi has testified at Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex trafficking trial that the hip-hop mogul broke into his home in 2011 after discovering Mescudi was dating his on-and-off girlfriend Casandra Ventura. The incident is one of a number of violent and threatening acts that prosecutors say Combs undertook during a 20-year scheme to coerce women, including Ventura, to take part in drug-fuelled sex parties known as "Freak Offs" and prevent them from leaving his orbit. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. Combs' lawyers have acknowledged he has a history of drug abuse and domestic violence but argue that the women who took part in Freak Offs did so consensually. Testifying as a prosecution witness, Mescudi told the panel of 12 jurors and six alternates in Manhattan federal court that Ventura called him early one morning in December 2011 and told him Combs had found out about their relationship and asked Mescudi to pick her up. Mescudi, wearing a leather jacket over a white shirt and blue jeans in court, said Ventura sounded nervous and scared, and warned him that she had given Combs his Hollywood Hills address. Mescudi, known for hit songs Day 'N' Nite and Memories, said one of Ventura's associates then told him that Combs was in his home. After dropping off Ventura in a Los Angeles hotel, Mescudi said he drove toward his home and called Combs. On the way Mescudi testified he called Combs. "I said, motherf***er, you in my house?" Mescudi testified he told Combs. Mescudi said Combs sounded calm and told him he wanted to talk. When he arrived at his house, Mescudi said no one else was there. He said gifts that he bought for his family were opened and his dog was locked in a bathroom. He said he reported a break-in to the police. Ventura, known professionally as Cassie, testified on May 14 that Combs in 2011 kicked her in the back after discovering she was seeing Mescudi - one of many violent instances she said took place during her 11-year on-and-off relationship with Combs. She said he also threatened to release sex tapes of her and have someone hurt both her and Mescudi. Jurors earlier saw photographs of bruises on Ventura's body that her mother took shortly after the incident. Mescudi testified that he and Ventura ended their relationship shortly after the break-in. He told jurors that he learned in January 2012 from his dog's babysitter that his car had caught fire in his driveway. In a civil sex trafficking lawsuit that Me & U singer Ventura filed against Combs in November 2023, she alleged that Combs blew up Mescudi's car. Combs denied wrongdoing, and he paid her $US20 million ($A31 million) to settle the lawsuit shortly after it was filed. Also known throughout his career as Puff Daddy and P Diddy, Combs founded Bad Boy Records and turned artists like Notorious B.I.G. and Usher into stars. He elevated hip-hop in US culture in the 1990s and early 2000s, becoming a billionaire in the process. Combs has been held in federal lockup in Brooklyn since his September 2024 arrest. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028 Rapper Scott "Kid Cudi" Mescudi has testified at Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex trafficking trial that the hip-hop mogul broke into his home in 2011 after discovering Mescudi was dating his on-and-off girlfriend Casandra Ventura. The incident is one of a number of violent and threatening acts that prosecutors say Combs undertook during a 20-year scheme to coerce women, including Ventura, to take part in drug-fuelled sex parties known as "Freak Offs" and prevent them from leaving his orbit. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. Combs' lawyers have acknowledged he has a history of drug abuse and domestic violence but argue that the women who took part in Freak Offs did so consensually. Testifying as a prosecution witness, Mescudi told the panel of 12 jurors and six alternates in Manhattan federal court that Ventura called him early one morning in December 2011 and told him Combs had found out about their relationship and asked Mescudi to pick her up. Mescudi, wearing a leather jacket over a white shirt and blue jeans in court, said Ventura sounded nervous and scared, and warned him that she had given Combs his Hollywood Hills address. Mescudi, known for hit songs Day 'N' Nite and Memories, said one of Ventura's associates then told him that Combs was in his home. After dropping off Ventura in a Los Angeles hotel, Mescudi said he drove toward his home and called Combs. On the way Mescudi testified he called Combs. "I said, motherf***er, you in my house?" Mescudi testified he told Combs. Mescudi said Combs sounded calm and told him he wanted to talk. When he arrived at his house, Mescudi said no one else was there. He said gifts that he bought for his family were opened and his dog was locked in a bathroom. He said he reported a break-in to the police. Ventura, known professionally as Cassie, testified on May 14 that Combs in 2011 kicked her in the back after discovering she was seeing Mescudi - one of many violent instances she said took place during her 11-year on-and-off relationship with Combs. She said he also threatened to release sex tapes of her and have someone hurt both her and Mescudi. Jurors earlier saw photographs of bruises on Ventura's body that her mother took shortly after the incident. Mescudi testified that he and Ventura ended their relationship shortly after the break-in. He told jurors that he learned in January 2012 from his dog's babysitter that his car had caught fire in his driveway. In a civil sex trafficking lawsuit that Me & U singer Ventura filed against Combs in November 2023, she alleged that Combs blew up Mescudi's car. Combs denied wrongdoing, and he paid her $US20 million ($A31 million) to settle the lawsuit shortly after it was filed. Also known throughout his career as Puff Daddy and P Diddy, Combs founded Bad Boy Records and turned artists like Notorious B.I.G. and Usher into stars. He elevated hip-hop in US culture in the 1990s and early 2000s, becoming a billionaire in the process. Combs has been held in federal lockup in Brooklyn since his September 2024 arrest. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028 Rapper Scott "Kid Cudi" Mescudi has testified at Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex trafficking trial that the hip-hop mogul broke into his home in 2011 after discovering Mescudi was dating his on-and-off girlfriend Casandra Ventura. The incident is one of a number of violent and threatening acts that prosecutors say Combs undertook during a 20-year scheme to coerce women, including Ventura, to take part in drug-fuelled sex parties known as "Freak Offs" and prevent them from leaving his orbit. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. Combs' lawyers have acknowledged he has a history of drug abuse and domestic violence but argue that the women who took part in Freak Offs did so consensually. Testifying as a prosecution witness, Mescudi told the panel of 12 jurors and six alternates in Manhattan federal court that Ventura called him early one morning in December 2011 and told him Combs had found out about their relationship and asked Mescudi to pick her up. Mescudi, wearing a leather jacket over a white shirt and blue jeans in court, said Ventura sounded nervous and scared, and warned him that she had given Combs his Hollywood Hills address. Mescudi, known for hit songs Day 'N' Nite and Memories, said one of Ventura's associates then told him that Combs was in his home. After dropping off Ventura in a Los Angeles hotel, Mescudi said he drove toward his home and called Combs. On the way Mescudi testified he called Combs. "I said, motherf***er, you in my house?" Mescudi testified he told Combs. Mescudi said Combs sounded calm and told him he wanted to talk. When he arrived at his house, Mescudi said no one else was there. He said gifts that he bought for his family were opened and his dog was locked in a bathroom. He said he reported a break-in to the police. Ventura, known professionally as Cassie, testified on May 14 that Combs in 2011 kicked her in the back after discovering she was seeing Mescudi - one of many violent instances she said took place during her 11-year on-and-off relationship with Combs. She said he also threatened to release sex tapes of her and have someone hurt both her and Mescudi. Jurors earlier saw photographs of bruises on Ventura's body that her mother took shortly after the incident. Mescudi testified that he and Ventura ended their relationship shortly after the break-in. He told jurors that he learned in January 2012 from his dog's babysitter that his car had caught fire in his driveway. In a civil sex trafficking lawsuit that Me & U singer Ventura filed against Combs in November 2023, she alleged that Combs blew up Mescudi's car. Combs denied wrongdoing, and he paid her $US20 million ($A31 million) to settle the lawsuit shortly after it was filed. Also known throughout his career as Puff Daddy and P Diddy, Combs founded Bad Boy Records and turned artists like Notorious B.I.G. and Usher into stars. He elevated hip-hop in US culture in the 1990s and early 2000s, becoming a billionaire in the process. Combs has been held in federal lockup in Brooklyn since his September 2024 arrest. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028 Rapper Scott "Kid Cudi" Mescudi has testified at Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex trafficking trial that the hip-hop mogul broke into his home in 2011 after discovering Mescudi was dating his on-and-off girlfriend Casandra Ventura. The incident is one of a number of violent and threatening acts that prosecutors say Combs undertook during a 20-year scheme to coerce women, including Ventura, to take part in drug-fuelled sex parties known as "Freak Offs" and prevent them from leaving his orbit. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. Combs' lawyers have acknowledged he has a history of drug abuse and domestic violence but argue that the women who took part in Freak Offs did so consensually. Testifying as a prosecution witness, Mescudi told the panel of 12 jurors and six alternates in Manhattan federal court that Ventura called him early one morning in December 2011 and told him Combs had found out about their relationship and asked Mescudi to pick her up. Mescudi, wearing a leather jacket over a white shirt and blue jeans in court, said Ventura sounded nervous and scared, and warned him that she had given Combs his Hollywood Hills address. Mescudi, known for hit songs Day 'N' Nite and Memories, said one of Ventura's associates then told him that Combs was in his home. After dropping off Ventura in a Los Angeles hotel, Mescudi said he drove toward his home and called Combs. On the way Mescudi testified he called Combs. "I said, motherf***er, you in my house?" Mescudi testified he told Combs. Mescudi said Combs sounded calm and told him he wanted to talk. When he arrived at his house, Mescudi said no one else was there. He said gifts that he bought for his family were opened and his dog was locked in a bathroom. He said he reported a break-in to the police. Ventura, known professionally as Cassie, testified on May 14 that Combs in 2011 kicked her in the back after discovering she was seeing Mescudi - one of many violent instances she said took place during her 11-year on-and-off relationship with Combs. She said he also threatened to release sex tapes of her and have someone hurt both her and Mescudi. Jurors earlier saw photographs of bruises on Ventura's body that her mother took shortly after the incident. Mescudi testified that he and Ventura ended their relationship shortly after the break-in. He told jurors that he learned in January 2012 from his dog's babysitter that his car had caught fire in his driveway. In a civil sex trafficking lawsuit that Me & U singer Ventura filed against Combs in November 2023, she alleged that Combs blew up Mescudi's car. Combs denied wrongdoing, and he paid her $US20 million ($A31 million) to settle the lawsuit shortly after it was filed. Also known throughout his career as Puff Daddy and P Diddy, Combs founded Bad Boy Records and turned artists like Notorious B.I.G. and Usher into stars. He elevated hip-hop in US culture in the 1990s and early 2000s, becoming a billionaire in the process. Combs has been held in federal lockup in Brooklyn since his September 2024 arrest. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028
West Australian
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- West Australian
Rapper Kid Cudi testifies Diddy broke into his house
Rapper Scott "Kid Cudi" Mescudi has testified at Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex trafficking trial that the hip-hop mogul broke into his home in 2011 after discovering Mescudi was dating his on-and-off girlfriend Casandra Ventura. The incident is one of a number of violent and threatening acts that prosecutors say Combs undertook during a 20-year scheme to coerce women, including Ventura, to take part in drug-fuelled sex parties known as "Freak Offs" and prevent them from leaving his orbit. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. Combs' lawyers have acknowledged he has a history of drug abuse and domestic violence but argue that the women who took part in Freak Offs did so consensually. Testifying as a prosecution witness, Mescudi told the panel of 12 jurors and six alternates in Manhattan federal court that Ventura called him early one morning in December 2011 and told him Combs had found out about their relationship and asked Mescudi to pick her up. Mescudi, wearing a leather jacket over a white shirt and blue jeans in court, said Ventura sounded nervous and scared, and warned him that she had given Combs his Hollywood Hills address. Mescudi, known for hit songs Day 'N' Nite and Memories, said one of Ventura's associates then told him that Combs was in his home. After dropping off Ventura in a Los Angeles hotel, Mescudi said he drove toward his home and called Combs. On the way Mescudi testified he called Combs. "I said, motherf***er, you in my house?" Mescudi testified he told Combs. Mescudi said Combs sounded calm and told him he wanted to talk. When he arrived at his house, Mescudi said no one else was there. He said gifts that he bought for his family were opened and his dog was locked in a bathroom. He said he reported a break-in to the police. Ventura, known professionally as Cassie, testified on May 14 that Combs in 2011 kicked her in the back after discovering she was seeing Mescudi - one of many violent instances she said took place during her 11-year on-and-off relationship with Combs. She said he also threatened to release sex tapes of her and have someone hurt both her and Mescudi. Jurors earlier saw photographs of bruises on Ventura's body that her mother took shortly after the incident. Mescudi testified that he and Ventura ended their relationship shortly after the break-in. He told jurors that he learned in January 2012 from his dog's babysitter that his car had caught fire in his driveway. In a civil sex trafficking lawsuit that Me & U singer Ventura filed against Combs in November 2023, she alleged that Combs blew up Mescudi's car. Combs denied wrongdoing, and he paid her $US20 million ($A31 million) to settle the lawsuit shortly after it was filed. Also known throughout his career as Puff Daddy and P Diddy, Combs founded Bad Boy Records and turned artists like Notorious B.I.G. and Usher into stars. He elevated hip-hop in US culture in the 1990s and early 2000s, becoming a billionaire in the process. Combs has been held in federal lockup in Brooklyn since his September 2024 arrest. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028
Perth Now
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Rapper Kid Cudi testifies Diddy broke into his house
Rapper Scott "Kid Cudi" Mescudi has testified at Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex trafficking trial that the hip-hop mogul broke into his home in 2011 after discovering Mescudi was dating his on-and-off girlfriend Casandra Ventura. The incident is one of a number of violent and threatening acts that prosecutors say Combs undertook during a 20-year scheme to coerce women, including Ventura, to take part in drug-fuelled sex parties known as "Freak Offs" and prevent them from leaving his orbit. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. Combs' lawyers have acknowledged he has a history of drug abuse and domestic violence but argue that the women who took part in Freak Offs did so consensually. Testifying as a prosecution witness, Mescudi told the panel of 12 jurors and six alternates in Manhattan federal court that Ventura called him early one morning in December 2011 and told him Combs had found out about their relationship and asked Mescudi to pick her up. Mescudi, wearing a leather jacket over a white shirt and blue jeans in court, said Ventura sounded nervous and scared, and warned him that she had given Combs his Hollywood Hills address. Mescudi, known for hit songs Day 'N' Nite and Memories, said one of Ventura's associates then told him that Combs was in his home. After dropping off Ventura in a Los Angeles hotel, Mescudi said he drove toward his home and called Combs. On the way Mescudi testified he called Combs. "I said, motherf***er, you in my house?" Mescudi testified he told Combs. Mescudi said Combs sounded calm and told him he wanted to talk. When he arrived at his house, Mescudi said no one else was there. He said gifts that he bought for his family were opened and his dog was locked in a bathroom. He said he reported a break-in to the police. Ventura, known professionally as Cassie, testified on May 14 that Combs in 2011 kicked her in the back after discovering she was seeing Mescudi - one of many violent instances she said took place during her 11-year on-and-off relationship with Combs. She said he also threatened to release sex tapes of her and have someone hurt both her and Mescudi. Jurors earlier saw photographs of bruises on Ventura's body that her mother took shortly after the incident. Mescudi testified that he and Ventura ended their relationship shortly after the break-in. He told jurors that he learned in January 2012 from his dog's babysitter that his car had caught fire in his driveway. In a civil sex trafficking lawsuit that Me & U singer Ventura filed against Combs in November 2023, she alleged that Combs blew up Mescudi's car. Combs denied wrongdoing, and he paid her $US20 million ($A31 million) to settle the lawsuit shortly after it was filed. Also known throughout his career as Puff Daddy and P Diddy, Combs founded Bad Boy Records and turned artists like Notorious B.I.G. and Usher into stars. He elevated hip-hop in US culture in the 1990s and early 2000s, becoming a billionaire in the process. Combs has been held in federal lockup in Brooklyn since his September 2024 arrest. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028
