The three women identified as victims in the federal case against Sean “Diddy” Combs took the stand to describe a charming, larger-than-life record label tycoon whose double-sided personality straddled the line between praiseworthy and predatory.
They portrayed Combs as influential, full of confidence and passionate, telling stories of him introducing them to a celebrity life filled with extravagant trips around the world and, in the case of Casandra “Cassie” Ventura, a shot at superstardom.
But they also testified to the dark side of Diddy. They said he could be a demanding boss, subjecting employees to extreme work hours and mental anguish, and an overbearing boyfriend capable of sexual abuse.
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“The highs were really high and the lows really low,” said “Mia,” one of Combs’ former personal assistants who testified in court under a pseudonym that Combs sexually assaulted her on multiple occasions.
The testimony framed Combs as an abusive employer and romantic partner, which could leave a lasting impression with the jury, who will have to untangle those intertwined and deeply personal relationships when considering the federal charges, several attorneys closely following the trial say.
Combs has pleaded not guilty to one count of racketeering conspiracy; two counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion; and two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. If found guilty of even one charge, he could face a lengthy prison sentence.
The accusers’ alleged experiences are part of the prosecution’s indictment that says Combs used his businesses as a criminal enterprise to fulfill his desires with the help of co-conspirators and accomplices.
“The fact that a victim has seemingly contradictory feelings toward a person who is allegedly sexually assaulting them is not uncommon when he’s established control,” said attorney Rachel Maimin, a former federal prosecutor for the Southern District of New York who is not involved in the case. She noted that the jury will “have to evaluate the credibility of these women.”
But some other lawyers not involved in the trial are trying to decipher how testimony from the three accusers so far has fit into the prosecution’s most serious charges of racketeering and sex trafficking. Particularly, they looked at the government’s latest witness, “Jane,” a former girlfriend who testified this week under a pseudonym.
“If I were a judge, I would want to know the relevance of this testimony,” veteran criminal defense attorney Tama Beth Kudman said.
On the racketeering conspiracy charge, prosecutors must prove Combs was involved in a criminal enterprise with a group of people engaging in criminal acts, multiple lawyers said. For the sex trafficking charges, prosecutors must demonstrate Combs forced women to travel across state lines and commit sex acts.
Jurors have heard testimony from three accusers across four weeks as the prosecution presented its case. Ventura testified to her more than 10-year personal and professional relationship with Combs, before they split in 2018. Mia worked for Combs from 2009 to 2017, and Jane, whose testimony hasn’t yet concluded, had a romantic relationship with Combs from 2021 to 2024.
All three acknowledge that Combs gave them opportunities they likely wouldn’t have had otherwise, but said it came at a steep personal and emotional price.
‘Mia’
Mia, who managed Combs’ schedule and served as the main liaison between him and Hollywood, testified that working for Combs was simultaneously toxic, chaotic and exciting.
However, their boss-employee relationship was blurred in 2009 or 2010 at Combs’ Los Angeles home when Mia said she was awakened by Combs on top of her.
Asked if she wanted to have sex with Combs, a tearful Mia said no and that “it was very quick.”
Her testimony also included allegations of forced labor and a claim that at one point Combs threatened to kill her.
Cassie
Combs signed Ventura to a 10-album deal in 2006 when she was 19. She was immediately struck by the record producer and executive’s magnetic persona and aura.
“He was charismatic — big personality, larger than life,” Ventura said in court, regarding Combs. “The more time I spent with him, his real personality came out — sweet, attentive.”
Ventura said Combs encouraged her and called her a queen.
“He’s got that inspiring energy inside him,” she said.
Before long, however, Ventura was no longer releasing music and instead found herself caught in a sexual web with Combs.
“I just felt pretty horrible about myself. I felt disgusting. I felt humiliated,” Ventura testified, referring to the alleged physical abuse and control that included dayslong, drug-fueled sexual encounters with male escorts under Combs’ direction that were referred to as “freak offs.”
“[I] just didn’t feel like I had much of a choice,” she said in court.
‘Jane’
Jane said she was drawn to Combs “pretty instantly” upon meeting him, adding that he seemed larger than life and was super charming and passionate when he spoke. Her friend had been dating Combs first, she testified.
“I remember it was like morning time and we just decided to go for a walk on the beach, saw the sunrise on the balcony, walked on the beach,” Jane said of the morning after her first date with Diddy in Miami in 2021. “I was head over heels.”
Their relationship progressed fast, with trips to Turks and Caicos and the Bahamas she says were fueled by love, lust, ecstasy, molly and cocaine.
Soon, Diddy introduced the idea of having another man in the bedroom.
“He started saying I can make this fantasy a reality,” Jane testified.
Jane said the first time she had sex with another man as Combs watched, in May 2021, opened up “Pandora’s box.”
“Just completely set the tone for our relationship going forward,” Jane said, adding she agreed to make Combs happy but eventually grew tired.
“I felt an obligation because I knew he was paying my rent,” she testified.
Maimin said threatening to not pay someone’s rent if they don’t comply with demands could point to coercion.
“You can love someone and be afraid of them. And if they take financial control over their lives, you can understand the mixed feelings,” she said.
Jane may be on the stand to help freshen up the prosecution’s evidence, allowing it to argue that Combs hasn’t learned from, or regretted, his past conduct, said Mark Chutkow, a defense lawyer who handled racketeering cases as a federal prosecutor in Detroit.
“If the prosecutors can’t show compelling evidence of coercion, questions about her consent could have a spillover effect on the earlier testimony regarding Cassie — particularly since this new testimony is toward the end of the government’s case,” he said.
The women described complex dynamics with Diddy
In the midst of the dysfunction in their relationships with Combs, the victims, according to their testimony, either hesitated to leave or stayed in Combs’ orbit despite the way he treated them.
Mia referred to herself in social media posts as Combs’ best friend, praising him as a mentor and inspiration.
“Legend, rapper, actor, entrepreneur, an extraterrestrial was born, happy bday thank you for showing me the path to Pluto and beyond,” she wrote about Combs during his birthday celebration in 2016. “You are the coolest alien rockstar unicorn pizza slice and we f—— lovvvve you!”
Her post came exactly six years after one of the alleged sexual assaults by Combs.
“I tried to protect that night and shut it down and not think about it again,” she testified.
Ventura testified that Combs raped her in 2018 after she said they were supposed to have a “closure conversation” after their relationship ended.
“I remember crying and saying no. It was fast, his eyes were black, he wasn’t himself, it was like somebody taking something from you,” Ventura said.
Sometime later, she admitted they had consensual sex even though she was in a relationship with her soon-to-be husband, Alex Fine.
Forensic psychologist Dawn Hughes testified in court that some domestic violence victims fall prey to psychological, sexual and emotional abuse, as well as financial dependence, making it harder for them to fight back or get away.
Before leaving the stand, Ventura said she does not hate Combs and that she has love for the past and what their relationship was.
“I don’t hate you, I never have,” she wrote to Combs in a 2019 email exchange.
Mia claimed Combs threw things at her and once threw her in a pool.
Despite it all, she was devastated after being let go from her job.
“I’m going to kill myself, my life is over,” Mia wrote to Combs’ then chief of staff, Kristina Khorram, in a 2017 text message. “I’m so heartbroken I can’t breathe.”
If you or someone you know is facing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence hotline for help at (800) 799-SAFE (7233), or go to www.thehotline.org for more. States often have domestic violence hotlines as well.
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