A second woman who prosecutors say was sex trafficked by Sean Combs is set to take the stand on Thursday at his federal trial in what is expected to be several days of testimony about drug-fueled sex marathons with male prostitutes known as “freak-offs.”
A judge has allowed the woman to testify anonymously, and she is being referred to in court by the pseudonym “Jane.” She is the most significant witness since Casandra Ventura, Mr. Combs’s on-and-off girlfriend of 11 years, whose allegations of physical and sexual abuse gave rise to the criminal case.
Prosecutors have said that Jane’s relationship with Mr. Combs mirrored the one he had with Ms. Ventura in many ways. Like Ms. Ventura, they have said, Jane was coerced into freak-offs through violence, financial control and threats related to videos of the sexual encounters, which they said Mr. Combs directed step by step.
Unlike Ms. Ventura, who is a singer known as Cassie and a public celebrity, Jane’s identity has not been revealed.
The government has described Jane as a single mother who started spending time with Mr. Combs in 2020 and quickly fell in love with the music mogul, agreeing to participate in an initial freak-off to please him.
“Jane thought the first freak-off was a one-time, wild night,” Emily Johnson, one of the prosecutors, said at the start of the case. “Jane was wrong.”
Mr. Combs has pleaded not guilty to sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and transportation to engage in prostitution. His lawyers have argued at trial that Ms. Ventura and Jane were willing participants in the freak-offs. They have admitted that Mr. Combs was responsible for domestic violence but said that violence was linked to jealousy or drug use, not sexual coercion.
At the start of the trial, Teny Geragos, a lawyer for Mr. Combs, described Jane’s relationship with Mr. Combs as “toxic and dysfunctional” but said “the evidence is going to show you that she is a capable, strong woman who willingly engaged in their sex life so they could spend time together.”
“That is simply not sex trafficking,” she added.
The government did not secure Jane’s cooperation in the case until after Mr. Combs was arrested in September. Prosecutors noted in court papers that Mr. Combs had been depositing payments into her bank account as recently as that month. She began meeting with prosecutors in January.
Her relationship with Mr. Combs overlaps with the criminal investigation into his conduct: One of the key violent outbursts preceding a freak-off that prosecutors have cited occurred less than a year from the start of the trial.
Before Jane takes the stand, the defense is expected to finish its cross-examination of Bryana Bongolan, a friend of Ms. Ventura who testified on Wednesday that Mr. Combs held her above the railing of a 17th-floor apartment balcony before throwing her onto the balcony furniture, an act of violence and intimidation that she said caused bruising and persistent nightmares and paranoia. Her allegation is part of what prosecutors have described as a pattern of violence perpetrated by Mr. Combs over years.
While on the stand, Ms. Bongolan acknowledged that she sold Ms. Ventura drugs, and took them with her. One of Mr. Combs’s lawyers, Nicole Westmoreland, inquired at length about discrepancies between Ms. Bongolan’s testimony at the trial and previous accounts she gave in government interviews, legal letters and a civil suit that she filed against Mr. Combs.
“Isn’t it true that just two days ago you told the prosecution you just don’t recall the details of the balcony allegation?” Ms. Westmoreland asked on Wednesday.
Ms. Bongolan paused before saying, “I don’t remember.”
Anusha Bayya contributed reporting.
Julia Jacobs is an arts and culture reporter who often covers legal issues for The Times.
Ben Sisario, a reporter covering music and the music industry, has been writing for The Times for more than 20 years.
The post At Combs Trial, ‘Jane,’ an Ex-Girlfriend, to Testify About Sex Abuse appeared first on New York Times.
