Cassie Ventura is set to testify against her ex-partner Sean “Diddy” Combs at his upcoming trial and will not take the stand as “Victim 1” but will use her name when she tells the court of her relationship with the rap mogul as he defends himself against federal sex trafficking and racketeering charges.
Ventura and three other alleged victims are set to testify in court at Combs’s trial. In a Friday motion submitted by the prosecution, federal attorneys told the court that the witness listed as “Victim-1” will no longer be testifying anonymously during the New York trial, which is set to begin May 5. Combs faces five counts on three charges of racketeering, sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion and transportation to engage in prostitution. He has pleaded not guilty and denies any wrongdoing whatsoever.
“[Ventura] is prepared to testify under her own name. Victim-2, Victim-3, and Victim-4 have asked that their identities not be revealed to the press or the public,” wrote the prosecution, along with a request that pseudonyms be used in court for all the other accusers.
“This case has already received an exceptional amount of media coverage, which will presumably only increase as trial proceeds,” they added. “Permitting these measures will prevent unnecessary public disclosure of the victims’ identities, and the harassment from the media and others, undue embarrassment, and other adverse consequences that would almost certainly follow if these women were forced to reveal their true names publicly at trial.”
Ventura’s November 2023 civil lawsuit against Combs, with whom she was in an on-and-off relationship with from 2007 to 2018, was settled out of court the day after it was filed. But it also opened the door to a flood of civil lawsuits against the rap and fashion power player, accusing him of various forms of sexual misconduct and crimes, including rape of women and men. As these civil lawsuits were being filed, three of Combs’ properties were raided by the FBI, and he was arrested on September 16. He has been denied bail multiple times and is now housed at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.
In May, Ventura was back in the headlines when CNN leaked footage from a security camera at the InterContinental Hotel in Los Angeles showing her fleeing a room, only to be attacked by Combs as she waited for an elevator to arrive. In the footage, Combs, wearing a robe, is seen kicking Ventura, grabbing her by the hair and throwing her to the ground before grabbing her suitcase and handbag. Combs apologized for his role in the incident following its release, but his attorneys accused CNN of altering the footage in a March 13 filing, telling a judge the network removed the time stamp, changed the video sequence and sped up the footage; this does not “fairly and accurately depict the events,” his team argued.
On Thursday, federal prosecutors filed a revised indictment against Combs, bringing additional charges of sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution related to a second victim. With this, he faces the same three federal offenses he was originally charged with, related to allegations of directing a vast criminal enterprise wherein he assaulted and trafficked women, then forced them to perform sex acts at “freak off” parties. In arranging these performances, prosecutors allege, Combs and his associates transported sex workers across state lines and internationally.
The new count alleges Combs’ “recruited, enticed, harbored, transported, provided, obtained, advertised, maintained, patronized and solicited [Victim-2], and attempted, aided and abetted, and willfully caused [Victim-2], to engage in commercial sex acts, knowing and in reckless disregard of the fact that Victim-2 was engaging in commercial sex acts as a result of force, fraud, and coercion.”
In a statement sent to The Hollywood Reporter, Combs’ legal team said that the relationships and aspects of Combs’ sex life with the women in question were thoroughly consensual.
“These are not new allegations or new accusers,” they wrote. “These are the same individuals, former long-term girlfriends, who were involved in consensual relationships. This was their private sex life, defined by consent, not coercion.”
A grand jury also returned another count in Combs’ case related to a lesser sex trafficking charge known as the Mann Act, which states that it’s illegal to transport a person with the aim that the individual engage in prostitution, which relates to two of the alleged victims. The previous superseding indictment charged the conduct as a single violation.
Prosecutors additionally revised the racketeering charge to include a second special sentencing factor related to a new sex trafficking offense. It clarifies that Combs kidnapped and threatened one of the victims, who was allegedly dangled over an apartment balcony, among other allegations. If found guilty, this sentencing factor could increase Combs’ total time in prison.
People magazine was the first to report the news.
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