Sean “Diddy” Combs allegedly overdosed on opioids while partying at the Playboy Mansion in 2012, shortly after the death of music legend Whitney Houston, according to his former girlfriend Cassie Ventura on Thursday.
Ventura returned to the stand Thursday, where she was cross-examined by Diddy’s lawyers. She has spent days testifying in the rap mogul’s federal trial.
He is accused of sex trafficking and racketeering in what prosecutors say was an elaborate scheme to fulfill his sexual desires.
Diddy would achieve these goals by coercing or assaulting women or forcing them to participate in “freak-offs” – sexual encounters he would occasionally film, according to prosecutors.
His ex-girlfriend has spent days on the stand explaining how she participated in the freak-offs to keep him happy and close to the star. She read text messages about them Thursday while also discussing the February 2012 overdose.
“That evening, we had a freak-out. We visited a sex club in San Bernardino. And then he had a party at the Playboy Mansion that night, so I went home,” Ventura explained. “Based on what he told me, he took a very strong opioid that night. But we had no idea what happened, so we took him to the hospital.”
The new information about the overdose was just one of the topics Ventura discussed on the witness stand in a New York courtroom on Thursday. She also discussed:
- Explicit messages exchanged between her and Combs
- Defense attorneys argued that Ventura expressed excitement about engaging in freak-offs
- Ventura testified that Combs brought Britney Spears to her 21st birthday, where he first kissed her
- Combs and Ventura’s relationship was filled with volatility, often related to jealousy about their other romantic relationships
- Ventura said she began dating actor Michael B. Jordan around 2015 after finding out Combs had been spending time with another one of his girlfriends.
Despite being cross-examined by defense attorneys, Ventura appeared more at ease on the witness stand Thursday. Wearing a button-down shirt under a black blazer with shiny lapels, she repeatedly disputed Diddy’s attorneys’ accounts of the events in question. She never lost her temper or appeared annoyed, but at one point she asked, “Can I speak?”
The jurors noticed some of her charm. At one point, defense attorney Anna Estevao told her she was “very beautiful and charming,” to which Ventura responded, “Thank you.” The room erupted with laughter.
She later smiled and thanked Estevao after the attorney clarified that she no longer needed to read aloud the explicit messages she had previously sent her ex. She also giggled when she saw old messages indicating their age, such as one about her and Diddy going to see The Book of Mormon.
Diddy, for his part, spent most of the day leaning back in his chair. During his lunch break, he spoke with his attorneys and occasionally leaned forward to read exhibits.
Ventura, a key witness in the trial, told defense attorneys that she and Combs were opioid-dependent throughout their 11-year relationship. Diddy’s attorney inquired whether they were addicted to painkillers.
“Very much so,” Ventura responded.
Throughout their relationship, Ventura would draw Combs’ attention by expressing an interest in freak-outs. Ventura claimed she didn’t mean it when she expressed excitement.
“I would say that loving [freak-offs] were just words at that point,” Ventura stated.
She also described how she would go shopping for supplies for the freak-outs and was questioned about texts she exchanged with Diddy near the end of their relationship in 2017. Ventura testified that she went to an adult store and Diddy told her to “have fun, impress me” while selecting supplies.
During a freak-out, the two texted each other about her attempts to avoid becoming pregnant. In another message, she informed Combs that she had forgotten the iPad, which she had previously stated was used to record the encounters.
But it wasn’t just text messages about freak outs that they exchanged. The texts also revealed Combs’ jealousy toward her, including her relationships with rapper Kid Cudi and actor Michael B. Jordan.
Ventura was also envious of Combs’ previous romantic relationships. In a 2013 text message, she told Combs, “You’re making me look like a side piece, and that is not what I thought I was.”
The defense attorney then asked Ventura if she was upset that she did not appear to be Diddy’s primary love interest.
“Yes,” she answered. “It didn’t pertain to every situation, but I was definitely jealous of certain situations he was in.”
Estevao then inquired whether Diddy lost his cool and became jealous when she was in a relationship with Kid Cudi.
“A number of times,” Ventura informed the court.
