Sean Combs sex trafficking trial updates: Cassie's testimony ends after days of describing abuse

The hip-hop mogul is charged with sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy.

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Last updated: Friday, May 16, 2025 11:26PM GMT
DIDDY ON TRIAL: First week of witness testimony recap
Eyewitness News breaks down the first full week of witness testimony in the Sean Combs trial including star witness Cassie Ventura.

NEW YORK -- After four days on the witness stand, Cassie Ventura concluded her testimony Friday at the trial of her ex-boyfriend, Sean "Diddy" Combs.

It came shortly after the defense concluded nearly two days of cross-examination.

Prosecutors allege Combs, 55, used his fame and fortune to orchestrate an empire of exploitation, coercing women into abusive sex parties.

If Combs is convicted on all charges, which include racketeering, kidnapping, arson, bribery and sex trafficking, he would face a mandatory 15 years in prison and could remain behind bars for life.

This story may contain accounts and descriptions of actual or alleged events that some readers may find disturbing.

"Bad Rap: The Case Against Diddy," a new podcast from "20/20" and ABC Audio, traces how the whispers of abuse came to light and led to the downfall of Sean "Diddy" Combs, who was once among the most influential entertainers and entrepreneurs in hip hop. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and more.

Kemberly Richardson reports from Lower Manhattan.

(ABC News and The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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May 14, 2025, 1:54 PM GMT

Second day of Cassie's testimony now underway

Cassie Ventura returned to the witness stand for a second day Wednesday in the racketeering and sex trafficking trial of Sean Combs and her testimony is expected to come with explicit videos of the "freak offs" she said she arranged so often for Sean Combs that it "became a job, where there was no space to do anything else."

As Ventura described, the "freak offs" became private pornography shoots with Combs setting up video equipment.

"It was very, like, like porn," Ventura said. "I was an object being heavily objectified by men in that scenario."

Cassie Ventura takes an oath before testifying in Manhattan federal court, Tuesday, May 13, 2025, in New York.
Cassie Ventura takes an oath before testifying in Manhattan federal court, Tuesday, May 13, 2025, in New York.

She told the jury the idea these "humiliating, disgusting" sessions with male prostitutes were recorded left her "feeling insane."

"I never wanted anyone to ever see me like that," Ventura testified. "It just was not OK for me."

Combs is seated at the defense table in grey pants, white collared shirt and cream-colored sweater.

There appear to be fewer members of the Combs family in court.

Ventura is seated in the witness box in a grey form-fitting long dress that makes her pregnancy evident, covered by a long dark colored jacket.

May 14, 2025, 11:11 AM GMT

Cassie Ventura to resume testimony in day 3 of Combs' sex trafficking trial

The R&B singer Cassie returns to the witness stand Wednesday after a day spent recounting grotesque and humiliating details of life with her ex-boyfriend, Sean "Diddy" Combs.

During her first day of testimony Tuesday at Combs' sex trafficking trial, Cassie described being pressured into degrading sexual encounters with paid sex workers. She also recounted being beaten numerous times by Combs when she did things that displeased him, like smiling at him the wrong way.

"You make the wrong face, and the next thing I knew, I was getting hit in the face," she said

Cassie Ventura wipes tears from her eye while testifying in Manhattan federal court
Cassie Ventura wipes tears from her eye while testifying in Manhattan federal court
May 14, 2025, 12:00 AM GMT

Testimony will resume on Wednesday

Cassie, the R&B singer and former girlfriend of Sean "Diddy" Combs, is set to return to the witness stand on Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. for more questioning from prosecutors.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily Johnson said she expects to finish her questioning, known as direct, on Wednesday.

After that, Combs' lawyers will have a chance to question the witness.

Eyewitness News recaps Cassie Ventura's intense first day of testimony against her ex-boyfriend Sean "Diddy" Combs.
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May 13, 2025, 8:59 PM GMT

'Tried to drag me back': Cassie describes trying to leave a 'freak off'

Cassie Ventura concluded her first day of dramatic, graphic and emotional testimony by recalling the time she tried to leave a "freak off" before it was over and it returned jurors to a visceral piece of evidence.

"There's an instance in Los Angeles where it got violent, and I chose to leave," she said, the time in March 2016 at the InterContinental Hotel in Century City depicted on widely seen video.

"There was a lot of drinking, a lot of partying. I'm not sure what happened but in the middle of it I got hit by Sean and got a black eye," Ventura said.

"When I chose to leave, I grabbed what I could and got out and Sean followed me into the hallway by the elevators, grabbed me, tried to drag me back to the room."

Jurors have already seen the video during the testimony of a prior witness, but it was played again. "That's me," Ventura said.

Ventura said she made it to the elevators when "the next thing I knew I was just thrown to the ground." She said Combs grabbed her by the back of the hoodie and threw her down. She told the jury Combs had previously thrown her to the ground on multiple occasions, "too many to count."

Ventura earlier described how degrading the "freak offs" became.

"The idea of objectifying me was tossed around like it was nothing, putting me in these compromising positions with strangers," she said.

She said Combs insisted on recording the sessions, which she said "made me feel insane" because it was "humiliating, disgusting. Never wanted anyone to see me like that."