Federal prosecutors continued to call witnesses to the stand Tuesday morning in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ criminal trial. His ex-girlfriend, the R&B singer Cassie Ventura, began her testimony inside the New York City courthouse as the trial entered its second day.
Ventura is a critical witness in the prosecution’s case against Combs, who has been accused of sexually assaulting, trafficking and exploiting women for decades until his arrest on multiple charges last September. The music mogul could receive a lifetime prison sentence if convicted on all of them.
Ventura’s testimony will likely last the rest of the week. Here are some key takeaways from it so far.
Violence occurred “frequently”
In her initial statements before the court, Ventura, now pregnant with her third child and married to personal trainer Alex Fine, recalled her and Combs’ early interactions and how she started to see a different side of him over time. She said she met Combs when she was a newly signed singer at 19, and their burgeoning friendship became romantic two years later.
Jane Rosenberg / REUTERS
She also described his alleged violence throughout their 10-year on-off relationship, recounting instances where he knocked her over, kicked and dragged her, and stomped on her head, causing black eyes and bruises on her body. When asked, Ventura said the abuse she endured happened “frequently.”
Combs is seen attacking Ventura in video footage CNN obtained and published last year, which shows him throwing her to the floor, kicking and dragging her in the hallway of a Los Angeles hotel.
“Control was everything”
Ventura characterized Combs as physically and psychologically abusive throughout the first hours of her testimony.
“Control was everything — from the way that I looked, to what I was working on that day, who I was speaking to,” she said. “Control was an all-around thing to a certain point.”
Combs allegedly introduced Ventura to “freak offs,” drug-fueled events where he is accused of forcing women to perform sex acts with hired sex workers, which were a focus of the indictment outlining his alleged crimes.
Ventura said Combs broached the idea of sexual encounters involving voyeurism during the first year of their relationship, and he would hire an escort or dancer with whom he would watch her engage while he directed them. The singer testified she felt confused and nervous, “but I also loved him very much and wanted to make him happy.”
She testified she worried about making Combs angry because of how much control he had over her life and career, and the possibility that he could blackmail her by releasing images of the “freak offs.” Prosecutors alleged in court documents that Combs often recorded these performances with or without participants’ consent.
A shift in the relationship
Ventura recalled Combs looking out for her when she first met him. They fell in love, she said, while spending time together in the studio or traveling elsewhere.
“I think I was just enamored by him. We were just having a good time. It was really fun at this point,” she told the court. But as her appearance, transportation, rent and overall lifestyle came under Combs’ control, Ventura said her music career — and record deal — eventually took a backseat to the alleged “freak offs,” which left her feeling humiliated.
She testified that despite recording hundreds of songs and nine albums while she was with Combs, the work was never released because “freak offs” became her job. They took up too much time and energy to leave room for other pursuits, Ventura said, adding that she would stay up for several days at a time to party, drink and have sex with strangers.
The “freak offs” could last from 36 to 72 hours at a time, she said, with the longest continuing for four days. She recalled them happening almost weekly for years.
Ventura felt “disgusted” and “humiliated” by “freak offs”
Ventura began to cry during her testimony when asked whether she wanted to participate in every “freak off.” She said she didn’t and that she felt “disgusted” and “humiliated” by them, but she also didn’t want to disappoint Combs.
Ventura told the court Combs dismissed her when she expressed how she felt about them, calling her predictable for not wanting to engage.
Testifying at length about the “freak offs,” Ventura said Combs provided ecstasy and cocaine, which she took in order to stay awake during them.
contributed to this report.
