By MICHAEL R. SISAK, LARRY NEUMEISTER and DAVE COLLINS Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — Sean “Diddy” Combs ‘ recent ex-girlfriend returned to the witness stand Friday in his sex trafficking trial, after testifying that he pressured her into drug-fueled sex marathons similar to those described by another former girlfriend, R&B singer Casandra “Cassie” Ventura.
The woman using the pseudonym “Jane” is among several witnesses at the trial — now at the end of its fourth week — who accuse Combs of violence, including Cassie. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to running his business empire as a racketeering enterprise that enabled and concealed the abuse of women over two decades. If convicted, he faces 15 years to life.
Prosecutors questioned Jane about sexual subjects right from the start Friday, beginning with a 2023 trip to Las Vegas where Jane said she and Combs had a “hotel night” with an “entertainer.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Maurene Comey asked if Combs ever used the word “freak.” Jane said he would say “he wants his freak.” She said she understood that to mean “he wanted me to be wild and sexual.”
Her description of “hotel nights” has closely paralleled Cassie’s earlier testimony about numerous “ freak-offs ” she had with male sex workers under Combs’ direction.
Jane said during her first day of testimony Thursday that she repeatedly told Combs, in person and in writing, that she didn’t want to have sex with other men. But Combs, who paid her rent and controlled other parts of her life, kept pressuring her and she felt “obligated” to take part in the “hotel nights,” she said.
Jane said Thursday that she got to know Combs during a “girls trip” to Miami in 2020 and dated him from 2021 to 2024. She said it began as a loving and passionate relationship, but he soon began sharing his fantasies involving her with other men and role playing. She said she came to regret it.
After May 2021, she said 90% of the times she had sex during her relationship with Combs, it was with other men while he watched. Asked if she wanted to have sex with other men, Jane softly said, “No… just Sean.”
Both Jane and Cassie have described trying to rush through the encounters just to get them over with. Jane said the encounters sometimes lasted over 24 hours.
The judge has taken steps to protect Jane’s anonymity, including warning observers not to describe or sketch her in a way that would reveal her identity. The Associated Press does not identify people who say they’re victims of sexual abuse unless they choose to make their names public, as Cassie has done.
On Thursday, Judge Arun Subramanian threatened to eject Combs from the courtroom if he continued “nodding vigorously” at jurors, telling lawyers that there should be no attempts by him to have an interaction with the jury.
___
Collins reported from Hartford, Connecticut.