NEW YORK — Cassie, the R&B singer and former girlfriend of Sean “Diddy” Combs, testified on Tuesday that the music mogul abused and sexually exploited her for years, as she took the witness stand for the first time during his sex trafficking trial.
Sighing heavily and pausing to compose herself at times, Cassie told the New York jury about Combs forcing her into elaborate sexual marathons with male sex workers, which he called “freak offs.” She said she didn’t feel like she could say “no” to Combs, who she said assaulted during their turbulent relationship, hitting her in the head, stomping on her and dragging her numerous times.
“Sean controlled a lot of my life, whether it was career, the way I dressed, everything, everything,” Cassie testified, later adding, “Sean is a really polarizing person, also very charming.”
Cassie, whose legal name is Casandra Ventura, sued Combs in 2023 alleging years of abuse. The suit was settled within hours but dozens of similar legal claims followed, sparking the criminal investigation.
She is the star witness for prosecutors who accuse Combs of using his status as a powerful executive to orchestrate a deviant empire of exploitation, coercing women into abusive sex parties and becoming violent if they refused. She is expected to return to the stand Wednesday to answer more questions from prosecutors before being cross-examined by Combs’ attorneys.
Lawyers for three-time Grammy winner argue that, although he could be violent, Combs never veered into sex trafficking and racketeering, telling jurors that the sexual acts were consensual. Defense attorney Teny Geragos said in opening statements on Monday that jurors might think Combs is a “jerk” and might not condone his “kinky sex,” but that “he’s not charged with being a jerk.”
Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty. He has been jailed since his arrest in September. If convicted, could get at least 15 years and up to life in prison.
Combs interacted with his lawyers during Cassie’s testimony but remained largely stoic. During an afternoon break, he made a heart shape with his hands toward one of his twin daughters and mouthed “Thank you.” He also blew a kiss toward his mother.
Cassie testifies about violence and abuse
She and Combs met in 2005 when she was 19 and he was 37. He signed her to his Bad Boy Records label and, within a few years, they started dating. Her 2006 single, “Me & U,” hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop chart, was certified platinum and was the lead single of her only studio album, released by Combs’ label.
Under questioning by a prosecutor, Cassie said their relationship ran the gamut from good times to arguments and physical altercations. Combs became increasingly controlling and sometimes violent, she said, leaving her bruised and battered. She said the abuse happened “too frequently” and sometimes came after the smallest perceived slights.
Cassie sniffled and dabbed her eyes with a tissue while on the stand. She is pregnant and would occasionally rest her hands on her belly. Her husband was in the courtroom.
Now 38 years old, Cassie said she was barely 22 when Combs first asked her to do a “freak off,” which she said stemmed from Combs’ interest in voyeurism. These involved her hiring sex workers at Combs’ behest for thousands of dollars and “setting up this experience so that I could perform for Sean.”
“He was controlling the whole situation. He was directing it,” she said.
The encounters would go on for 36 or 48 hours, and she said the longest lasted four days.
“I was an object being heavily objectified by men in that scenario,” she testified.
They took place in private, often in dark hotel rooms, unlike Combs’ very public White Parties in the Hamptons that attracted A-list celebrities and gossip columnists.
Cassie felt she couldn’t refuse Combs’ demands
Her first “freak off” occurred in Combs’ Los Angeles home with a male stripper from Las Vegas, she said. She felt dirty and confused afterward, but also relieved that Combs was happy.
Still, she said she felt obligated to go along with future “freak offs.”
“I just didn’t want to make him upset,” she said. “I just didn’t want to make him angry and regret telling me about this experience that was so personal.”
Cassie began crying when asked if she liked any aspect of the “freak offs.” She said she enjoyed “time spent with him.”
She said she used drugs at every “freak off” to numb herself during “emotionless sex with a stranger that I didn’t really want to have sex with.”
The Associated Press doesn’t generally identify people who say they are victims of sexual abuse unless they come forward publicly, as Cassie has done.
‘Freak offs’ became a ‘job’
Soon, she said, she was doing “freak offs” weekly. They went on for a decade, with the final one occurring in 2017 or 2018, she said.
Each time, she said, she had to recuperate from lack of sleep, alcohol, drugs and “having sex with a stranger for days.”
She described the situation as: “‘Freak offs’ became a job where there was no space to do anything else but to recover and just try to feel normal again.”
Shown still images from the now-infamous 2016 security camera footage of Combs beating her at a Los Angeles hotel, Cassie said it happened after a “freak off” as she was leaving. Video of the attack was shown to jurors on Monday and is a key part of the prosecution’s case. After the footage was leaked last year, Combs apologized.
Cassie said the “freak offs” involved lots of baby oil and she described being humiliated by some of the things Combs made her do.
During her opening statement, Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily Johnson told the jury that Cassie was far from the only woman Combs beat and sexually exploited. Johnson said Combs last year brutally beat another woman — identified only as Jane — when she confronted him about enduring years of “freak offs.”
Combs was among the most influential hip-hop producers and executives of the past three decades, working with a slew of top-tier artists including Notorious B.I.G., Mary J. Blige and Usher. He also created the fashion clothing line Sean John and produced the reality show “Making the Band” for MTV.
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Associated Press writer Dave Collins in Hartford, Connecticut, contributed to this report.
