Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura testifies ‘freak offs’ became her job

NEW YORK - Sean “Diddy” Combs’ former girlfriend Casandra Ventura, the star prosecution witness at his sex-trafficking trial, testified on May 13 that the rapper and hip-hop mogul forced her into repeated drug-fuelled sex parties he organised.

Ventura, a rhythm and blues singer known as Cassie, said she took part in Combs’ parties known as “Freak Offs” for about a decade, at first to please him and later because he blackmailed her with videos of the encounters.

“The ‘freak offs’ became a job where there was no space to do anything else but to recover and just try to feel normal again,” Ventura, 38, told jurors in Manhattan federal court.

She said performances could last for 1½ to four days, with Combs giving her drugs to keep her awake and micromanaging her appearance.

“If I wasn’t doing my nails, I was getting a tan,” Ventura said. “After a while, that wears down on you, on your confidence and self worth.”

One casualty was her music career, with a 10-album contract signed in 2006 with Combs’ Bad Boy Records label yielding only one album, she testified.

Jurors were also shown a widely seen 2016 surveillance video from the hallway of a Los Angeles hotel where Combs, wearing only a towel, threw Ventura to the ground, kicked her and dragged her away.

Ventura said the incident occurred after Combs had given her a black eye during a “Freak Off”.

“All I could think about was getting out of there safely,” she said.

Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to five felony counts of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.

If convicted on all counts, he faces a minimum 15 years in prison and could face life behind bars.

Combs’ lawyers have said prosecutors wanted to improperly criminalise his “swingers” lifestyle, where he and his girlfriends invited men to join them for sex.

“This case is about voluntary choices made by capable adults in consensual relationships,” defense lawyer Teny Geragos told jurors on May 13.

The trial began on May 12, and could last two months. Combs is being housed in a Brooklyn jail when not in court.

‘Control was everything’

Wearing a brown dress and later adding a light-coloured coat, Ventura said she began dating Combs in her early 20s, in what she thought was her “first real adult relationship.”

She said she loved him at the time and wanted to make him happy.

But she said Combs changed as time passed, as he began frequently beating her, and leaving her with black eyes and bruises all over her body.

“He would bash my head, knock me over, drag me, kick me, stomp me in the head if I was down,” Ventura said.

Ventura said her “freak offs” began when she was 22. She said she did not want to do them, but was afraid of making Combs angry.

“He was a scary person. He could be very violent,” she said.

She said the only parts of the “freak offs” she enjoyed were when she and Combs were alone.

But they often were not, Ventura testified, with Combs paying male escorts, including one nicknamed “The Punisher,” US$1,500 to US$6,000 to take part.

Ventura also said Combs controlled much of her life and career.

“Control was everything, from the way that I looked to what I was working on that day, who I was speaking to,” she said.

She will resume testifying on May 14.

Prosecutors have said Combs used his music industry clout to bend victims to his will and keep them silent about his abuse.

On May 12, they introduced a widely-seen video broadcast on CNN in 2024, showing Combs beating Ventura in a Los Angeles hotel in 2016.

Combs, wearing only a towel, was shown throwing Ventura to the ground and kicking her in a hallway when she tried to leave. He apologised after the video first aired.

Marc Agnifilo, Combs’ lead lawyer, has said the video depicted the aftermath of a dispute over infidelity.

At a hearing on May 9, he said Ventura had a history of domestic violence, signalling he may use it during cross-examination to undermine her credibility.

Ventura filed a civil lawsuit in November 2023 accusing Combs of rape and serial sexual abuse. They settled after one day.

Jurors may hear testimony from two or three of Combs’ other female accusers, and former employees who prosecutors say helped arrange and cover up Combs’ criminal conduct.

Ventura married personal trainer Alex Fine in September 2019. They have two daughters, and Ventura is pregnant.  REUTERS