NEW YORK (AP) — Cassie, the R&B singer and former girlfriend of Sean “Diddy” Combs, testified on Tuesday that the music mogul abused and sexually exploited her for years, as she took the witness stand for the primary time throughout his intercourse trafficking trial.
Sighing closely and pausing to compose herself at occasions, Cassie informed the jury in New York that she felt compelled by Combs to take part in elaborate sexual marathons known as “freak offs” involving male intercourse staff. She additionally mentioned Combs assaulted her quite a few occasions throughout their turbulent relationship.
“He would mash me in the head, knock me over, drag me, kick me. Stomp me in the head if I was down,” she mentioned, leaving her bruised and bloodied. She mentioned it was tough to refuse Combs’ calls for as a result of she feared he would harm her or leak movies of the “freak offs” to the web.
Cassie, whose authorized identify is Casandra Ventura, sued Combs in 2023 alleging years of abuse. The swimsuit was settled inside hours however dozens of comparable authorized claims adopted, sparking the felony investigation.
She is the star witness for prosecutors who accuse Combs of utilizing his standing as a robust govt to orchestrate a deviant empire of exploitation, coercing girls into abusive intercourse events and turning into violent in the event that they refused.
Attorneys for three-time Grammy winner argue that though he may very well be violent, Combs by no means veered into intercourse trafficking and racketeering, telling jurors that the sexual acts had been consensual. Protection lawyer Teny Geragos mentioned in opening statements on Monday that jurors may suppose Combs is a “jerk” and may not condone his “kinky sex,” however that “he’s not charged with being a jerk.”
Combs, 55, has pleaded not responsible. He has been jailed since his arrest in September. If convicted, may get a minimum of 15 years and as much as life in jail.
Cassie testifies about violence and abuse
She and Combs met in 2005 when she was 19 and he was 37. He signed her to his Dangerous Boy Information label and, inside a number of years, they began courting.
“Sean controlled a lot of my life, whether it was career, the way I dressed, everything, everything,” Cassie testified.
Underneath questioning by a prosecutor, Cassie mentioned her relationship with Combs ran the gamut from good occasions to arguments and bodily altercations.
“If they were violent arguments, it would usually result in some sort of physical abuse and dragging, just different things,” Cassie mentioned. Requested how ceaselessly Combs turned violent along with her, Cassie softly responded: “Too frequently.”
Cassie sniffled and dabbed her eyes with a tissue whereas on the stand. She is pregnant and would sometimes relaxation her arms on her stomach.
Cassie felt she couldn’t refuse Combs’ calls for
Now 38, Cassie mentioned she was barely 22 when Combs first requested her to do a “freak off.” The encounters would go on for 36 or 48 hours, and she or he mentioned the longest lasted 4 days. She mentioned they stemmed from Combs’ curiosity in voyeurism.
Cassie mentioned the “freak offs” concerned hiring a intercourse employee and “setting up this experience so that I could perform for Sean” whereas Combs watched. This happened in personal, typically in darkish resort rooms, not like Combs’ very public White Events within the Hamptons that attracted A-list celebrities and gossip columnists.
She mentioned her first “freak off” occurred in Combs’ Los Angeles residence with a male stripper from Las Vegas and she or he felt soiled and confused afterward, however reduction that Combs was blissful.
Cassie mentioned she felt obligated to associate with future “freak offs.”
“I just didn’t want to make him upset,” she mentioned. “I just didn’t want to make him angry and regret telling me about this experience that was so personal.”
She additionally fearful about potential violence and the specter of the intercourse movies being posted on the web if she refused, she testified.
Cassie started crying as she was requested if there was any facet of “freak offs” that she favored. She mentioned that “time spent with him” was what she loved.
‘Freak offs’ turned a ‘job’
Quickly, she mentioned, she was doing “freak offs” weekly. They went on for a decade, with the ultimate one occurring in 2017 or 2018, she mentioned.
“‘Freak offs’ became a job where there was no space to do anything else but to recover and just try to feel normal again,” she mentioned. Every time, she mentioned, she needed to recuperate from lack of sleep, alcohol, medicine “and other substances,” and “having sex with a stranger for days.”
Proven nonetheless pictures from the now-infamous 2016 safety digicam footage of Combs beating her at a Los Angeles resort, Cassie mentioned that previous to the altercation: “We were having an encounter called a ‘freak off’ and I was leaving there.”
Cassie mentioned the “freak offs” concerned a lot of child oil. On one event, she mentioned, a blow-up pool of child oil and lubricants was positioned in a resort room and she or he was informed to get inside. She additionally described being humiliated by among the issues Combs made her do.
“It was such a mess,” she mentioned. “It was like, ‘What are we doing?’”
The Related Press doesn’t usually establish individuals who say they’re victims of sexual abuse except they arrive ahead publicly, as Cassie has performed.
Lodge video is a key piece of proof
On Monday, jurors had been proven the resort safety video, which CNN aired final 12 months, main Combs to apologize. The video exhibits Combs carrying solely a white towel, punching, kicking and dragging Cassie in a resort hallway.
Israel Florez, a former safety officer on the resort, testified Monday that he refused when Combs provided him a stack of cash and mentioned “Don’t tell nobody.”
California prosecutors mentioned they couldn’t prosecute the assault as a result of it occurred years earlier than the video was made public and the statute of limitations had expired.
Combs was among the many most influential hip-hop producers and executives of the previous three many years. The rapper, entrepreneur and founding father of Dangerous Boy Information has labored with a slew of top-tier artists together with Infamous B.I.G., Mary J. Blige and Usher. He additionally created the style clothes line Sean John and produced the truth present “Making the Band” for MTV.
