Sean “Diddy” Combs’ ex-girlfriend, Casandra Ventura, has told the hip-hop mogul’s sex-trafficking trial that he controlled her life and coerced her into “humiliating” sex acts.
The prosecution’s star witness testified about the alleged physical and emotional abuse she endured at the hands of the rapper during so-called “freak-offs”, or sexual encounters the couple had with male escorts.
Family and friends have come to court in large numbers to support Mr Combs, whose legal team has not yet questioned Ms Ventura.
Mr Combs has pleaded not guilty to charges including racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking, and transportation to engage in prostitution.
Ms Ventura fell ‘in love’ with Mr Combs
Prosecutors began by questioning Ms Ventura – one of their two central witnesses in the case – about her 11-year, on-and-off relationship with Mr Combs.
Now 38 and pregnant with her third child, she met Mr Combs when she was a 19-year-old aspiring singer and he was 37.
His record label would later sign Ms Ventura as an artist, and shortly afterwards their romantic relationship began.
At the time, she testified, she felt like they were in a monogamous relationship, though she knows now that he had other girlfriends.
She said she “fell in love” with the “larger-than-life entrepreneur and musician”. But it was not long before she noticed another side to him, she said.
Mr Combs wanted to ‘control’ every part of her life, Ms Ventura says
Mr Combs wanted to “control” her life, Ms Ventura said. She said he paid for her home, her cars, her phone and other technology that he would sometimes take away to “punish” her.
“Control was everything, from the way that I looked… to what I was working on,” Ms Ventura said.
Eventually, she claimed, the control turned violent. Mr Combs would “bash on my head, knock me over, drag me and kick me” frequently, Ms Ventura testified, sometimes through tears.
She alleged that she was left with swollen lips, black eyes and knots on her forehead.
Ms Ventura felt ‘humiliated’ by ‘freak-offs’
Prosecutors spent hours on Tuesday asking Ms Ventura about so-called “freak-offs”.
Ms Ventura told the court how Mr Combs introduced her to the sexual events during the first year of their relationship. They would hire a male escort or stripper to have sex with Ms Ventura while Mr Combs watched.
Ms Ventura told the court that she first tried the encounters to make Mr Combs “happy”. But she said they humiliated her, and sometimes lasted three to four days.
“I felt pretty horrible about myself,” she told the court, wiping away tears. “It made me feel worthless.”
Ms Ventura told the court she never wanted to have sex with anyone but Mr Combs, and claimed she would take myriad drugs – marijuana, ecstasy and ketamine – to help her perform to Mr Combs’ satisfaction, but also to “disassociate”.
The drugs were “a way to not feel it for what it really was”, she said, “having sex with a stranger I didn’t really want to be having sex with”.
Mr Combs flew male escorts in for freak-offs, court hears
As prosecutors pressed Ms Ventura about the “freak-offs”, she told the court of how Mr Combs would direct her to find male escorts, strippers or dancers to have sex with while he watched.
She alleged that Mr Combs would pay the men anywhere from $1,500 to $6,000 in cash, depending on their performance.
They found the men through stripper companies and sites like Craigslist. Some of their photos were displayed to the jurors, including Daniel Phillip, who finished his testimony earlier on Tuesday.
Ms Ventura and Mr Combs had the enounters in cities around the world, including Los Angeles, New York, Las Vegas and Ibiza, Spain, Ms Ventura testified.
Sometimes, men would be flown in during vacations, she alleged, and Mr Combs would direct her to ask staff to pay for and arrange their travel, calling them new employees.
Among other charges, prosecutors are trying to prove that Mr Combs engaged in sex trafficking – human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation – and transportation to engage in prostitution.
Mr Combs ‘directed’, Ms Ventura says
As prosecutors pressed Ms Ventura for graphic details, one key element emerged: Ms Ventura claimed that Mr Combs controlled every part of the encounters.
He chose the outfits she wore – down to the extremely high heels she kept on for hours – as well as the sexual acts that transpired and the lighting, Ms Ventura told jurors.
“If Sean wanted something to happen, that was what was going to happen,” she said. “I couldn’t say no.”
Sometimes, Ms Ventura said, she would take the lead on which male escorts to hire because Mr Combs was “very busy”, but she only did so at his direction, she said.
She said freak-offs had a very specific “pattern” of sexual acts each time.
“He was controlling the whole situation,” she alleged. “He was directing it.”
At times, Ms Ventura said, she tried to tell Mr Combs that she felt “horrible”. But when he dismissed her concerns, she said, she relented, worried he would get angry or question their relationship.
Ms Ventura is expected to continue her testimony on Wednesday, when she could also face cross-examination.
