Cassie testifies in Sean “Diddy” Combs trial, says “control was everything”

Ventura describes sure places the place the “freak offs” had been held, aliases used, and provides concerned, together with child oil. She describes a child pool full of oil, and says that it could have to be utilized each 5 minutes

Ventura says the resorts they used would cost for injury to the room, saying in a single occasion it was mandatory for one lodge to redecorate the room. 

She describes sure graphic intercourse acts involving Combs that happened in the course of the “freak offs.” 

Ventura explains she participated in “freak offs” because she didn’t want to disappoint Combs. Crying on the witness stand, she says that even though she felt horrible about it, she felt she didn’t have anything else going for her. 

Ventura says Combs was dismissive of her and when she expressed herself he didn’t really care. She says Combs called her predictable because she didn’t want to participate in “freak offs.” 

Testifying about weekly “freak offs” that lasted for days, Ventura says she didn’t get any sleep during them, and stayed awake by taking drugs like ecstasy and cocaine which she says Combs provided. 

Ventura says she didn’t want to engage in every “freak off,” that she felt “disgusted” and “humiliated” by them. 

Ventura says the “freak offs” happened almost weekly for years. 

When asked if she wanted to participate in every instance, her voice breaks as she begins to cry. She says she felt humiliated and didn’t have anyone to talk to.

When asked if there was any part she enjoyed, she answers the one-on-one time with Combs.

Ventura testifies about seeing handguns that were kept in safes at Combs’ residences, and that she was once asked to carry one to a club. 

She also describes an incident when she says she and Combs were having a “freak off” in Los Angeles and he learned his rival, Suge Knight, was somewhere nearby. 

She says Combs and an employee dressed in dark clothing, armed themselves with guns and left the hotel in an SUV. 

She recalls screaming and crying for them not to do anything stupid. 

Ventura continues her testimony detailing the ways she says Combs tried to control her appearance — from what she wore, to how she styled her hair and nails. 

She says she spent her time prepping for the “freak offs,” and that his comments took a toll on her self-esteem.

She also says in addition to paying her rent, Combs paid for cars, travel, clothing and other expenses, and that he would withhold those things if she didn’t obey.

Court resumes for the afternoon shortly after 1:15 p.m.

Ventura remains on the stand and is being questioned by the prosecution. 

Photos and videos from inside federal court are prohibited, so there is no live stream or broadcast of the trial. 

Courtroom sketches, however, are allowed. 

CBS News New York’s Alice Gainer is at court and is providing real-time updates throughout the day in this blog. 

Ventura, who performs under the name Cassie, rose to fame with the single “Me & U” on her self-titled debut album. The song landed the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop chart in 2006. She and Combs dated off and on from about 2007 to 2018.

The security video of Combs attacking Ventura at a Los Angeles hotel in 2016 is a key piece of evidence in the trial. The video, obtained and published by CNN last year, shows Combs throwing Ventura onto the floor before kicking and dragging her.

In 2023, before the video was published, Ventura filed a federal lawsuit against Combs, accusing him of rape and physical abuse. 

“After years in silence and darkness, I am finally ready to tell my story, and to speak up on behalf of myself and for the benefit of other women who face violence and abuse in their relationships,” Ventura said in a statement to CBS News at the time. “With the expiration of New York’s Adult Survivors Act fast approaching, it became clear that this was an opportunity to speak up about the trauma I have experienced and that I will be recovering from for the rest of my life.”  

A settlement was announced one day after the filing, but the details were not disclosed.

Combs later apologized for his behavior in the video, but denied the allegations in the lawsuit. 

The court adjourns for lunch shortly after 12:20 p.m. It will resume at 1 p.m.

Ventura says that she recorded hundreds of songs and nine albums that were never released. 

When asked what else she was doing, she replies the “freak offs” became her job, with no space for anything else. 

She says she would stay up for days on end, partying, drinking and having sex with strangers. 

Ventura says the “freak offs” took anywhere from 36 to 72 hours of her time each week, and the longest one lasted four days. 

She says she would then have to recover from staying up for so long, plus the drugs and dehydration. 

Ventura says they traveled to Miami, where they did ecstasy and had sex for the first time.

She says she fell in love and they spent time traveling together or in the studio. She says they kept their relationship private at first, out of respect for their careers and for his family. 

“I think I was just enamored by him. We were just having a good time. It was really fun at this point,” she says. 

Ventura says over time, she began to see a different side of Combs and he became controlling. She says if she didn’t answer his messages right away, he would have his staff track her down. 

“Control was everything — from the way that I looked, to what I was working on that day, who I was speaking to,” she says. “Control was an all around thing to a certain point.”

That’s when the psychological and physical abuse started, she says. 

She goes on to say they both saw other people over the years and she was jealous. 

She also says Combs rented her an apartment in Manhattan as a birthday gift. She adds it was located near his residence, and he would stop by unannounced. 

Ventura says she celebrated her 21st birthday in Las Vegas with Combs and some friends. She says that’s when he first kissed her in the bathroom of his suite. 

She says she cried, ran off and told her friend, adding she was naive — a new artist who didn’t know the lay of the land when it came to attention from executives. 

Ventura says after that, she continued to meet Combs in hotels to work on music, but that he called the shots. 

She also says they started to develop a more comfortable relationship, and Combs taught her about certain sexual acts. 

She describes feeling nervous and curious during these meetings, adding she was sexually inexperienced and still seeing someone else. 

Asked why she wanted to be around Combs, she replied, “For the same reasons as everyone else at the time.” 

“Just this exciting, entertaining, fun guy,” she says, adding he had her career in his hands and it felt special to spend time with him. 

Ventura recalls being a fan of Combs’ music, saying he was larger than life, but that she didn’t know much about him personally. 

She says she signed a contract with Bad Boy Records in 2006, when she was 19 years old. 

Ventura says, at that point, it was a platonic relationship, and Combs looked out for her.   

She released her first and only album later that year, and her single “Me & U” landed the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop chart.

Ventura says in the first year of their relationship, Combs suggested a sexual encounter he called voyeurism. 

She says it involved hiring an escort or dancer so he could watch her engage with another man while he directed them. 

She says she was 22 years old, confused and nervous, “but I also loved him very much and wanted to make him happy.”

She also says, over time, she realized it wasn’t something that she wanted to be doing so regularly, but she didn’t feel like she had a choice to say no. 

She says she worried about making him angry because he controlled much of her life, including her career and how she dressed. She also worried he could blackmail her by releasing images from the “freak offs.”

Ventura appears on the stand in a brown, long sleeve dress. She describes herself as a musician and an entertainer. 

She testifies she and Combs dated for a little over 10 years, with breaks in their relationship. 

She describes allegations of physical abuse, including being knocked over, dragged, kicked and stomped in the head. When asked how often the abuse occurred she replies, “frequently.”

She also describes getting black eyes and bruises on her body. 

Ventura, one of four accusers expected to testify against Combs, is called to take the stand at 11 a.m.

She and Combs dated off and on for more than a decade, and she came forward with a federal lawsuit against him in 2023. 

A key piece of evidence in the case is video of Combs attacking Ventura in the hallway of a Los Angeles hotel in 2016. She is also expected to testify about a rape allegation from 2018. 

Ventura, who performs under the name Cassie, is now married to another man and pregnant with her third child. Combs’ defense team said in their opening statements they haven’t seen each other since 2018. 

Ventura’s husband and brother are both in the courtroom for support.

The second witness, Daniel Phillip, is back on the stand to continue his cross examination Tuesday. 

Combs’ defense team asked him about the nature of his relationship with Ventura, whether they ever had sex without Combs being present, and if she was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. 

The defense also asked about an incident that Phillip testified about Monday, when he said Combs became angry and threw a bottle against a wall, then dragged Ventura by her hair into a bedroom. 

The defense asked Phillip if Combs told him to leave so he could “deal with this,” citing Phillip’s earlier statements to investigators. Phillip responded that he did not remember saying that. 

He reiterated his testimony from Monday, saying Combs did not instruct him to leave, but rather tried to get him and Ventura to have sex again after the violent outburst. 

Asked if he ever tried to get Ventura alone, Phillip said he wanted to make sure she was OK and, “If she ever gave me a chance to date her, I absolutely would have.”

The first witness called Monday was Israel Florez, who worked as a security officer at the Los Angeles hotel where Combs was seen on video attacking his then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura in 2016.

Florez was a U.S. Army reservist for more than 15 years and he now serves on the Los Angeles Police Department. 

He testified that he responded to a call about a woman in distress at the hotel and found Combs and Ventura in the sixth floor hallway. He said Combs had on a towel and socks, and Ventura was covered up in a hoodie.

Florez said Ventura appeared scared and wanted her bag and phone, and that Combs told her “you’re not gonna leave.”

Combs and Ventura continued arguing before she, ultimately, left the hotel, Florez said. He said he asked Ventura if she wanted to call the police, but she kept saying that she just wanted to leave.

Florez said Combs threw a stack of money at him and said, “don’t tell anyone,” but he did not take it. 

He also said he saw a third man in the room with them, and that Combs grabbed a security guard’s phone when he thought he was being recorded.

On cross-examination, Florez said Combs was cordial and he didn’t see Combs making aggressive movements toward Ventura when he arrived. He also said Combs did not appear drunk or high. 

Combs’ mother, Janice, and his six children are back at the courthouse for the second day of testimony. 

On Monday, they were seated in the second row behind the defense. 

Combs gave them a thumbs up, made a heart shape with his hands and blew a kiss. The kids smiled and pumped their fists.

The morning started off with jury selection being finalized. The 12 jurors range in age from 30-74 and include eight men and four women. One is a social worker, another is a scientist and some are retirees. 

The all-female prosecution team began its opening statement by telling the jury “to the public, he was Puff Daddy or Diddy, a cultural icon, a businessman, larger than life… but there was another side to him.” 

Combs’ defense team, however, said the case is about voluntary adult choices in consensual relationships.

“You are not here to judge him and his sexual preferences,” the defense said.

The first witness to be called was Israel Florez, a security officer at the California hotel where Combs was seen on video attacking his then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura in 2016. 

The second witness called was Daniel Phillip, who testified he was paid to have sex with Ventura with Combs present. 

Check all the details from Day 1 here.