The singer Casandra “Cassie” Ventura, a former girlfriend of Sean “Diddy” Combs and a key witness in the federal sexual traffic and racketeering trial of the music magnate, returns to the position Friday for a more in -depth examination by the Combs legal team.
Ventura, which is eight and a half months pregnant, has been on the stand since Tuesday afternoon and has detailed years of sexual and physical violence that it alleged that it has endured during their decade.
Thursday, she faced six hours of counter -examination, during which the defense lawyers sought to undermine her credibility and to represent her as a voluntary participant – and sometimes enthusiastic – in the sexual sessions fueled by drugs with male escorts known under the name of “Freak -Offs” in which she had said that Combres had forced her.
The defense presented dozens of texts and emails between Combres and Ventura during their relationship, including some explicit.
A message has shown that Ventura said in Combs “I’m always ready to panic” and in another message, she said: “I love our (Freak offs) when we want both”.
Ventura told court that they were “only words at that time”.
During an exchange before the court on Thursday, the lawyer of Combs asked: “To make him happy, you told him that you wanted to make” freak-offs “, right?”
Ventura replied: “No, there is much more to that.”
Defense has also spent time talking about the old couple’s drug consumption.
Ventura testified that he and Combs were, at points of their relationship, were addicted to opiates and had frequently used drugs, in particular ecstasy, cocaine, ketamine and GHB, and that they would both suffer from the side effects.
At one point, the defense lawyers seemed to try to establish that at the time of the 2016 video attacking Ventura in a corridor of the Los Angeles hotel, Combs had undergone withdrawal of opiates.
Defense also used the counter-bout to ask questions about jealousy in their relationship, presenting messages in which Ventura expressed her frustration with regard to their relationship and expressed her concern that she was the “side piece”.
Ventura testified to the infidelity of Combs and said that she had felt jealous of the longtime partner of Combs, Kim Porter.
She also described the anger of Combs in the face of her brief relationship with rapper Kid Cudi in 2011 – who, according to her, occurred during a break in the relationship of Sound and Combs – and said that Combs was often wary of her business.
On Thursday in court, Combs, wearing a beige sweater, frequently looked at Ventura while she answered questions, whispered to her lawyers, had transmitted notes to them and seemed agitated.
His sons, mother and publicist were present, as was Ventura’s husband.
Combs faces accusations, including racketeering, sex trafficking and transport to engage in prostitution. He pleaded not guilty and denies all allegations.
Combs, who has been detained in prison since his arrest last year, could spend the rest of his life in prison if he was found guilty.
Before the court noted on Thursday, prosecutors said that Dawn Richard, a former member of the Girls Danity Kane, would be one of their next witnesses and could testify on Friday.
