A former girlfriend of Sean Combs testified on Monday at the music mogul’s federal trial that she had felt obligated to “perform” in sex marathons with male prostitutes because she feared that if she stopped, Mr. Combs would stop paying her rent.
The former girlfriend, who is testifying under the pseudonym Jane, spent more than seven hours last week on the stand talking about her tumultuous relationship with Mr. Combs, which started in 2021 and continued until his arrest in 2024.
Mr. Combs has pleaded not guilty to the charges of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy, and his lawyers have denied that the sex at the center of the case was ever coercive.
When Jane took the stand again on Monday morning, the prosecution began walking her through a pivotal dispute with Mr. Combs in September 2023 in which she voiced her aversion to the drug-fueled sexual encounters, which could last for days and typically involved Mr. Combs watching and masturbating.
“It’s dark, sleazy, and makes me feel disgusted with myself,” Jane texted Mr. Combs. “I feel it’s the only reason you have me around and why you pay for the house. I don’t want to feel obligated to perform these nights with you in fear of losing the roof over my head. I don’t want to keep feeling like that anymore.”
Jane has testified that in an effort to fulfill her boyfriend’s fantasies, she began to participate in sexual encounters with a succession of hired men that the couple called “debauchery” or “hotel nights.” Her account of the sex marathons aligned with the “freak-offs” described by Casandra Ventura, another former girlfriend who testified at the start of the case.
The pattern of “hotel nights” left Jane feeling used, exhausted and at times sick, she testified. But Mr. Combs was dismissive when she voiced her reluctance, she said, and she continued out of a desire to please him. At times, she arranged to hire certain “entertainers” herself so she could choose the men involved, she testified.
The dynamic shifted in early 2023, when Mr. Combs began paying her $10,000-a-month rent. (On Friday, Jane said on the stand that Mr. Combs is still paying the rent for her home.)
After Jane complained to Mr. Combs in September about the hotel nights, he calmed her down on a FaceTime call, and she flew from Los Angeles to see him in New York with the understanding that they would be spending quality time together, not engaging in their typical “debauchery.”
But when she was on the plane, Mr. Combs texted her that he had a “surprise” for her, making clear that he intended to have a hotel night, Jane testified. In New York, she said, she again voiced discomfort and Mr. Combs grew defensive, insisting that they did not have to go through with the plan.
But then, Jane testified, “We started riding back to the hotel and then he gives me a pill,” which turned out to be Ecstasy — a drug typically used during the sex marathons.
At the Trump International Hotel in Manhattan, the hotel night with the “surprise” male escort did not go well, Jane said, and she ended up flying in another man whom she was more accustomed to.
“I felt that I needed to make up for it,” Jane testified.
The prosecution then showed the jury text messages from the following month, when Jane continued to object to the pattern of what she called “loveless, cold sex.”
“I’m not an animal,” Jane texted Mr. Combs. “I’m not a porn star.”
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.
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