Casandra “Cassie” Ventura testified against Sean “Diddy” Combs Tuesday morning, wiping away tears with a tissue as she described the “physical abuse” and daily “psychological abuse” she suffered at the hands of Combs throughout their 11-year relationship.
Ventura, wearing a burgundy long-sleeve top, was soft-spoken and visibly pregnant, at times pressing down on her stomach and taking deep breaths. At least once, she paused to compose herself during questioning and said, “I’m sorry.”
Ventura’s presence in the Manhattan courtroom marks the first time she and Combs have been in the same room since 2018, when they attended the funeral of Combs’ longtime ex-partner Kim Porter.
Ventura began her testimony, which is expected to last several days, by describing the origins of her relationship with Combs. They met when she was a 19-year-old model and singer in New York, and a then-38-year-old Combs gave her a 10-album deal on his label, Bad Boy Records. (Ventura only released one album.) Ventura described herself as naïve at the time, saying she was drawn to Combs because he was “entertaining,” “fun” and “larger than life.” Also, “he happened to have my career in his hands.”
In 2007, Ventura celebrated her 21st birthday with Combs and some friends in Las Vegas, where Combs kissed her in a bathroom. It left her “confused,” but she still enjoyed spending time with Combs. Soon, their relationship turned sexual, and Combs “introduced” Ventura to oral sex. “I was just so young, I didn’t even have the vocabulary for some of the things we talked about,” she said. “I was sexually inexperienced.”
Not long after, on a trip to Miami, Combs and Ventura began having sexual intercourse. When she was 22, he introduced her to what he called “freak-offs,” which could be days-long, drug-fueled sexual experiences at hotels, where Combs watched and masturbated as Ventura had sex with male escorts. When Combs first proposed the idea to Ventura, saying he liked the “voyeurism” of it, she felt “nervous” and “confused.” She didn’t “understand why it was a turn-on,” but she “loved” Combs and “wanted to make him happy.”
Eventually, Combs instructed Ventura to organize the “freak-offs,” which involved hiring a male escort and setting up a hotel room for the three of them. They would occur as often as weekly and last days at a time, with Ventura saying the longest one she remembers was four days. She was given drugs so she could “perform” for Combs for hours on end, and afterward she would rest for days due to the sleep deprivation and dehydration. “The ‘freak-offs’ became a job, where there was no space to do anything else but to recover and feel normal again,” Ventura said.
Ventura said she didn’t want to have “sex with strangers” for Combs’ enjoyment, but “I didn’t feel like I had much of a choice. I didn’t know what ‘no’ could be, or what ‘no’ could turn into.” As Combs often videotaped these sexual encounters, Ventura feared that he could “blackmail” her by releasing the footage online.
At some point in their relationship, Ventura said she began to experience “a different side” of Combs, “which was his abusive side.” Arguments would turn “violent,” Ventura said, and Combs would “knock me over, drag me, kick me, stomp me in the head if I was down.” When asked by the prosecution how frequently Combs would get “physical” with her, Ventura sighed and said, “Too frequently.” These violent fights resulted in injuries, like bruises, black eyes and knots in Ventura’s forehead. Yet, “there was still love there,” Ventura said.
She also described suffering a daily “psychological abuse” when dating Combs, saying he wanted “control” over every aspect of her life and career. She said he made her turn down professional opportunities while holding her music career hostage, and he often dictated her appearance and behavior, saying things like “fix your face” and “watch your mouth.” Combs would “incessantly” call and text Ventura, and he had his security guards constantly “keep an eye” on her. When she lived in New York and later Los Angeles, he paid for her rent and would show up at her residences unannounced, via his own set of keys. She insisted upon paying for her own house in Studio City because she wanted “freedom.” “I wasn’t getting it in a lot of other ways,” she said.
Ventura’s testimony will continue throughout the week, and she will be cross-examined by Combs’ attorneys. On Monday, two other witnesses testified against Combs. One was a security guard who witnessed Combs allegedly assaulting Ventura at a hotel in 2016, the other a male escort who was paid on several occasions over two years to have sex with Ventura while Combs watched. The escort, Daniel Phillip, said Combs violently abused Ventura and took a photo of his driver’s license “for insurance.” “I took it to be he was threatening me,” Phillip told the jury in an extremely graphic testimony. In cross-examination, Combs’ lawyers attempted to portray Phillip’s encounters with Combs and Ventura as consensual on behalf of all parties.
Combs, once a titan of hip-hop and fashion, is now on trial for sex trafficking and racketeering charges. If convicted, he could spend the rest of his life in prison.
From Variety US