Latest news with #SeanDiddyCombs
CNN
6 hours ago
- Entertainment
- CNN
New Accusations As Defense Challenges Abuse Claims - Laura Coates Live - Podcast on CNN Audio
New Accusations As Defense Challenges Abuse Claims Laura Coates Live 48 mins 'Mia,' a former assistant to Sean 'Diddy' Combs and friend to Cassie Ventura who is testifying under a pseudonym, is expected to be back on the stand Monday for more cross-examination. She spoke today about the violence and abuse — verbal, physical and sexual — she experienced while employed by the music mogul.
Malay Mail
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Malay Mail
Sean ‘Diddy' Combs' legal team uses Instagram posts to question credibility of witness
NEW YORK, May 31 — The defence for Sean 'Diddy' Combs yesterday used upbeat social media posts to attack the credibility of one of the women accusing the music mogul of sexual assault during his federal trial in New York. 'Isn't it true that Mr Combs never had unwanted nonconsensual forcible contact with you?' lawyer Brian Steel said to a former Bad Boys Records assistant testifying under the pseudonym Mia, during questioning that included displays of her personal social media posts. The testimony came as US President Donald Trump pondered aloud if he would offer 55-year-old Combs a pardon during a press conference at the White House yesterday, saying 'I don't know, I would certainly look at the facts.' The facts are still unfolding in a trial that is expected to last into summer, in a case that revolves around Combs's relationship with his former girlfriend, singer Casandra 'Cassie' Ventura. Earlier in the trial Ventura detailed years of alleged abuse and coercive, drug-fueled sex marathons with male prostitutes known as 'freak-offs.' This week, Mia described how her job between 2009 and 2017 became a nightmare as she worked to protect Ventura from Combs's fits of rage, or care for her after the attacks, tending to 'busted lips,' 'bruises' and 'a black eye.' Combs would tell Mia to 'go take care of her,' adding that 'we were not allowed' to go out until her injuries healed enough to conceal, Mia testified Thursday. She also testified that she personally endured abuses, including rapes, while working for Combs, recounting the painful and traumatic episodes with her head bowed. Instagram vs reality During cross examination yesterday, Steel confronted Mia with her social media posts, where she presented a much more positive image of her relationship with her boss. On a courtroom screen displaying Mia's Instagram posts, she called Combs 'an extraordinary cultural phenomenon' and shared affectionate messages on his birthdays. Steel asked how she could publish such posts about a man she now accuses of sexual assault. 'Of course you post the great times,' Mia said. 'Instagram is a place to show how great your life was even if it's not true.' After Mia read her posts aloud, Steel questioned Mia's allegations, to which she replied twice 'everything I said in this courtroom is true.' 'Ask any abuse victim's advocate and they could explain it to you much better than I could.' On Thursday, Mia testified that Combs subjected her to 'sporadic' instances of sexual violence, including at the artist's 40th birthday party at the Plaza Hotel in New York and his private residence in Los Angeles. 'I just froze, I didn't react, terrified and confused,' Mia said about one of the assaults. 'He was the boss or the king, very powerful person,' she said. 'This is years and years before social media, Me Too, or any sort of example where someone had stood up successfully to someone in power such as him,' she added. At the conclusion of the court's proceedings, jurors will have to determine whether that Grammy-winning artist and producer has used his fame, wealth and influence in hip-hop to support a criminal enterprise and sexual trafficking. — AFP
BBC News
10 hours ago
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Diddy On Trial Diddy's ex-assistant tells court she ‘hasn't lied to anyone at all'
Sean 'Diddy' Combs' former employee, who has given evidence under the pseudonym 'Mia', has been questioned by Diddy's defence lawyer. In court on Thursday, 'Mia' told the court she had been raped and sexually assaulted by Diddy. Today, defence lawyer Brian Steel suggested 'Mia' had made up sexual assault allegations. He questioned her about a scrapbook she had made for Sean 'Diddy' Combs birthday, as well as videos and multiple Instagram posts she had made, which all painted Diddy in a glowing light. Anoushka Mutanda-Dougherty speaks to BBC New York correspondent Nada Tawfik about the day in court, as week three of the trial ends. Sean 'Diddy' Combs is on trial in New York, facing federal charges of sex trafficking, racketeering with conspiracy and transportation for prostitution. He denies all the charges. The Diddy on Trial podcast is here to investigate the rumours, confront the theories, and give you the answers that you need. We also want YOU to be part of the conversation. Have you any questions about the case? Heard a theory that doesn't sit right with you? Get in touch now via WhatsApp: 0330 123 555 1. Details of organisations in the UK offering information and support with some of the issues raised are available at Presenter: Anoushka Mutanda-Dougherty Series Producer: Laura Jones Sound Design: Mark Burrows Senior Digital Producer: Matthew Pintus Executive Producer: Richard Fenton-Smith Production Coordinator: Hattie Valentine Editor: Clare Fordham Commissioning Editor: Rhian Roberts Assistant Commissioner: Will Drysdale Commissioning Producer: Adam Eland Commissioning Assistant Producer: Rechmial Miller
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Diddy's bodyguard Gene Deal clashes with fans outside court over his alleged involvement in Freak Offs
Sean 'Diddy' Combs's former bodyguard had an intense confrontation with fans outside the New York City courthouse about his alleged involvement in Freak Offs. Gene Deal, who protected the disgraced rapper throughout the 1990s, was seen being bombarded by several people on Tuesday - day 10 of the blockbuster trial. As explosive testimonies played out inside the federal courtroom, events outside also got heated after Deal was asked about the drug and sex-fueled Freak Offs Diddy is accused of orchestrating for several years. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO While he appeared to enter the courthouse, Gene stopped in his tracks as a man off-camera shouted at him: 'Hey G, I talked to Randy Pittman last night, a white guy, who said in 2004, you was at a party with P. Diddy, and you held him down with two minor kids. 'I did an interview with him on my YouTube last night. What do you have to say about that Gene?,' he added in the video posted on TikTok. Gene seemingly looked toward the man as he shouted accusations at him while a woman got close to him and shoved a phone in his face, and a man snapped pictures of him with a camera. 'He said you was at a Puffy party! You gave him E pills and you held two minors down as well as him Gene, I interviewed him on my YouTube,' the man continued. 'He filed a lawsuit!' he added as another man kept repeating the word 'allegedly.' Gene then appeared to look towards the yelling man and said: 'I'll speak to you when you get inside. 'You coming back in right? Alright I'll see you when you get inside,' Gene said as he entered the building. This was reportedly not the first dramatic interaction Deal had outside the courthouse, as he allegedly got physical with a person 'harassing him' at the trial, according to the outlet The Art Of Dialogue. Gene was 'told not to return to the Diddy trial for a few days' following the outburst, according to the outlet. A video, posted by the outlet, appeared to show Gene going back and forth in a heated exchange with a man. 'You're not gonna tell me what to do,' the man told Gene as the bodyguard turned toward him. 'You can't come up on me! If you come up on me, I'm gonna knock you the f*** out,' Gene yelled back. Gene then continued walking ahead as a woman started screaming at the other man. Diddy's former bodyguard is one of many big names who have been vocal about the allegations against the music mogul. The 55-year-old's staggering downfall began when his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura filed a bombshell lawsuit in 2023 detailing horrific claims of sexual abuse and violence at the hands of her ex-partner. The lawsuit was settled for $20 million just a day after it was filed, but it was too late for Diddy's reputation as the rapper was then hit with dozens of lawsuits detailing similar claims. Diddy denies all allegations against him. His lawyers admit he's a woman beater - although he does not face domestic abuse charges - but that he is not guilty of sex trafficking or racketeering. In a recent interview with The Art Of Dialogue, Deal said he believes the pressure from hearing hours of testimony about his 'dirty deeds with Cassie' will 'break' Diddy. 'He can't take sitting right there and hearing all of his dirty deeds with Cassie,' he claimed. 'He's hearing all of his deeds in front of him and he ain't high. He ain't drunk... He gone break bruh. I'm telling you. 'He'll end up asking his defense team to see if y'all can still get me that deal,' he continued.
CNN
a day ago
- Entertainment
- CNN
Suge Knight urges longtime rival Sean ‘Diddy' Combs to take the stand to ‘humanize' himself
People in entertainment Sean 'Diddy' Combs MusicFacebookTweetLink Follow Imprisoned former rap mogul Marion 'Suge' Knight, who for decades shared an acrimonious relationship with Sean 'Diddy' Combs, urged his longtime archrival to take the stand in his ongoing trial. Speaking to CNN's Laura Coates in a brief phone interview from prison, where he's serving a 28-year-sentence for a deadly hit-and-run in 2015, Knight said he believed Combs should 'humanize' himself. 'I feel if he do tell his truth, he really would walk,' Knight said. 'If Puffy goes up there and says, 'Hey … I did all the drugs, I wasn't in control of my life at the time, or myself' – he can humanize his old self and the jury might give him a shot.' 'But if they keep him sitting down, it's like he's scared to face the music,' Knight added. 'He should just have his faith in God, put up his pants and go up there and tell his truth.' Combs has pleaded not guilty to charges that include racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. If convicted on all counts, he could face up to life in prison. It's not clear whether Combs will testify at his trial. Taking the stand can be seen as a risky move for defendants because it can open them up to a bruising cross-examination, experts say. Benjamin Chew, the co-lead counsel for actor Johnny Depp in his defamation trial, told CNN earlier this week that the standard wisdom is for defendants not to testify – but added it may benefit Combs to defend himself and express remorse over the allegations that have been brought up during the prosecution's case. Knight, the co-founder of Death Row Records, was best known in the 1990s for helping promote West Coast rap in a field that had long been dominated by East Coast artists. It was during this time that his rivalry with Combs ratcheted up – with their respective labels fighting for dominance, and the two groups trading public insults and diss tracks. The feud reached its peak when Tupac Shakur and Christopher Wallace, known by his rap alias the Notorious B.I.G., were shot and killed within months of each other. Knight was driving the car in which Shakur was killed in Las Vegas in 1996. Knight has resurfaced in headlines in recent weeks during Combs' trial, as several former staffers employed by Combs mentioned the men's rivalry. One of Combs' former personal assistants, Capricorn Clark, said Combs once brought her to Central Park at night and brought up her former employment with Death Row Records. 'He told me that he didn't know that I had anything to do with Suge Knight, and if anything happened, he would have to kill me,' Clark said. David James, another former assistant, recalled an instance when he and Combs' security guard ran into Knight at a diner. When Combs heard about it, he ordered James to drive them back to the diner, bringing three handguns with him – but Knight had left by the time they arrived, James testified. Knight was sentenced to prison in 2018 after pleading no contest to manslaughter in the death of a man he was accused of hitting with his truck on the set of the movie 'Straight Outta Compton.'
