Sean ‘Diddy‘ Combs trial is underway in New York for the second week after testimony from his ex-girlfriend and main accuser Cassie Ventura concluded.
The music mogul, 55, is accused of exploiting his status as an entertainment executive to force women, including Cassie, into drug-fueled ‘freak-offs’ with male sex workers and engaged in other abusive acts against people who relied on him for their careers.
Last week Justin Bieber finally broke his silence on his relationship with Diddy, with experts telling The U.S. Sun the struggling former child star wants to become ‘symbol of survival and allyship.’
On Friday, Cassie Ventura finished testifying against him after four emotional days on the witness stand during which she was questioned about the deepest, most disturbing secrets of her sex life and described being beaten and raped by a man she once loved.
Diddy’s lawyers have argued that he is guilty of domestic violence – which he is not charged with – but innocent of sex trafficking and racketeering.
All the explosive testimony from inside Diddy courtroom on Daily Mail’s podcast The Trial
To hear all the explosive testimony from singer Cassie Ventura and the other witnesses in Sean ‘Diddy‘ Combs’ trial, tune in to Daily Mail’s hit podcast The Trial.
From sworn testimony to video evidence and the rapper’s every subtle move, our team of journalists take you inside the courtroom of the world’s biggest celebrity case.
Daily Mail has been following Diddy’s downfall from the very beginning. Join us as we hear from experts involved in the case, and members of the rapper’s inside circle.
Justin Bieber statement on Diddy
Justin Bieber broke his silence on explosive rumors connecting him to Sean ‘Diddy‘ Combs just days after the disgraced music mogul’s sex trafficking trial began.
‘Although Justin is not among Sean Combs’ victims, there are individuals who were genuinely harmed by him. Shifting focus away from this reality detracts from the justice these victims rightfully deserve,’ his spokesperson said in a statement to TMZ.
PR expert Chad Teixeira told The U.S. Sun that Bieber chose to speak out as a publicity move.
‘The allegations against Diddy have reached critical mass. Bieber knows that if he doesn’t speak now, the narrative will be written without him and probably not in his favor,’ Teixera said.
‘This is a moment of calculated authenticity.’
Bieber wanted to make sure he is not seen as a bystander but rather a ‘symbol of survival and allyship,’ per the expert.
Cassie’s statement after end of her testimony against Diddy
Casie’s lawyer Doug Wiggdor shared a statement from her after her testimony concluded on Friday.
This week has been extremely challenging, but also remarkably empowering and healing for me. I hope that my testimony has given strength and a voice to other survivors, and can help others who have suffered to speak up and also heal from the abuse and fear.
For me, the more I heal, the more I can remember. And the more I can remember, the more I will never forget. I want to thank my family and my advocates for their unwavering support, and I’m grateful for all the kindness and encouragement that I have received.
I’m glad to put this chapter of my life to rest. As I turn to focus on the conclusion of my pregnancy, I ask for privacy for me and for my growing family.
Dawn Richard arrives in court to continue testimony against Diddy
Richard claims the disgraced Bad Boy mogul sexually assaulted her, deprived her of food and sleep and refused to pay her adequately. Her case is among dozens of claims filed against Combs in various states.
However her claims are not part of the federal against him, and she will only be testifying as a witness of Diddy’s alleged abuse againt Cassie.
Defense attorney Marc Agnifilo objected to the next witness in Diddy’s trial, former Danity Kane member Dawn Richard.
Prosecutors say her testimony is relevant because she witnessed Diddy being violent towards Cassie.
Diddy’s lawyers say he is a violent jerk and a swinger, but not a sex trafficker
Defense lawyer Teny Geragos took a novel approach to defending Combs in her opening statement.
She conceded the hip-hop impresario has a ‘bad temper’ and is prone to violent outbursts that are often fueled by alcohol, jealousy and drugs.
But she maintained that while his actions might have warranted domestic violence charges, they aren’t proof he engaged in sex trafficking and racketeering — the charges he faces.
Geragos argued that Combs’ sexual habits were part of a swinger lifestyle involving consenting adults and reminded jurors that “kinky” sexual predilections don’t equate to sex trafficking.
‘Sean Combs is a complicated man. But this is not a complicated case,’ she said. ‘This case is about love, jealousy, infidelity and money.’
‘Freak off’ videos will NOT be shown in court
Judge Arun Subramanian provisionally denied a joint application by news outlets for the videos to be played in open court and be described by the media.
He agreed with a prosecution argument that playing them would ‘revictimize’ Ventura and one of the unnamed female victims who will testify later iun the trial.
The judge also denied an alternative proposal to allow three pool reporters to stay in court when they were played, and share reports with other outlets.
“I’m not seeing any case that would suggest in any way, shape, or form that images or videos of these types of acts that are alleged to be sexual abuse would be required to be shown in open court when they pose the obvious risk of revictimization,’ he said.
Robert Balin, the lawyer who argued on behalf of the press, earlier said the First Amendment was ‘at its zenith’ in the case.
He argued it was important ‘people, though the press, be able to see justice is being done’.
Balin said the best evidence of whether the sex acts in the ‘freak offs’ were coerced – which underpinned the prosecution’s case – were the videos themselves.
The application was only ever to view the videos and describe them, not for the footage to ever become public.
Dawn Richard describes Diddy’s veiled threat after alleged Cassie assault
Former Danity Kane member Dawn Richards testified about what Diddy did after allegedly beating then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura.
‘He brought us into the recording studio and locked the door,’ she told the court.
‘He said that what we saw was passion and what lovers in relationships do. He said she was OK and it would be in our best interest if we didn’t say anything.
‘He said he’s trying to take us to the top. [He said] where he comes from people go missing if they talk, and then he gave us flowers.’
Richards said she understood Diddy’s comment about people going missing meant ‘that people could die’.
Sean Combs raises his hands as he is pointed out by Dawn Richard on Friday.
Cassie Ventura’s testimony ends with $10M settlement bombshell
Cassie said she expects to receive a $10 million settlement from the Intercontinental Hotel in Los Angeles, where she was assaulted by Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs in 2016.
Security camera footage aired last year on CNN shows the hip-hop mogul hitting and kicking Cassie, knocking her to the floor as she attempted to leave a ‘freak off’ sexual encounter at the hotel.
Cassie revealed the figure during questioning by Combs’ lawyer in a phase of her testimony known as re-cross. She said the figure was an estimate and that the settlement was reached recently. She didn’t disclose the nature of her claim against the hotel.
Aubrey O’day slams Diddy as ‘selfish’ for having his kids attend his trial
O’Day, a former member of the Diddy-created group Danity Kane, said on the Amy Robach & TJ Holmes podcast that the rapper was ‘selfish’ for allowing his kids to attend his trial.
Six of Combs’ seven children; Quincy, 33, Justin, 31, Christian, 27, Chance 19, and 18-year-old twins Jessie and D’Lila, have been stoically trying to listen to the graphic descriptions of their father’s alleged sexual fetishes.
His youngest child, Love, is two-and-a half.
‘The fact that the kids are marching up to that court,’ she said on the podcast.
‘I don’t know any father that would want their children to sit through [that kind of] testimony.’
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Diddy trial live: The real reason Justin Bieber addressed rapper abuse allegations
