A singer has told the US sex-trafficking trial of Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs that he threatened to kill her if she ever told anyone she had seen him beat his girlfriend
Sean “Diddy” Combs has been accused of threatening to kill a singer if she told anyone she saw him assaulting his girlfriend, as heard in his sex-trafficking trial yesterday.
Dawn Richard testified that the music mogul warned her after she saw him attempt to hit Cassie Ventura with a frying pan and then assault her in his home studio back in 2009.
Richard claimed that Combs told her and another woman they “could go missing” should they disclose what they had witnessed, the jury heard. When quizzed by assistant US Attorney Mitzi Steiner about the meaning behind “we could go missing”, Richard chillingly responded: “That we could die.”
The 55 year old Combs is facing a New York court on charges of sex trafficking and racketeering, accused of using his clout to mistreat women, including Cassie, through intimidation and violence.
Combs has denied all allegations, pleading not guilty, while his defence insists the accusations point to domestic abuse rather than federal offences.
Cassie, who was romantically involved with Combs from 2007 to 2018, previously testified that instead of a caring relationship, she endured weekly drug-induced “freak-offs” with male escorts, which left her too worn out and emotionally scarred to continue her music career.
Richard gave a harrowing account to the court of witnessing Combs repeatedly attack Cassie, stating: “He would punch her, choke her, drag her, slap her in the mouth. I saw him kick her, punch her in the stomach.”
She recounted hearing Combs tell Cassie that he “owned her” and that any success she achieved would be on his terms.
Later, Kerry Morgan, Cassie’s former flatmate, testified that she had witnessed Combs physically abusing her old friend and had herself been assaulted by him in 2018. However, she noted that Cassie was hesitant to leave him.
Morgan stated: “He controlled everything. She would’ve lost all of her livelihood.”
Sean “Diddy” Combs once overdosed on opioids following one of his ‘Freak Off’ sex parties, his former girlfriend told a court.
Cassie Ventura detailed to jurors how the hip-hop mogul abused drugs around the time Whitney Houston died, leaving him needing hospital attention.
Under cross-examination by Combs’ defence attorney, Ventura recounted a night in February 2012 when he required emergency medical treatment after taking what she described as “a really strong opioid.”
“That evening, we had a ‘freak-off,’” Ventura said, referring to group sex parties she claims Combs frequently orchestrated. “We went to a sex club in San Bernardino. And then he had a party at the Playboy Mansion that night, and I went home.”
She said they rushed Combs to the hospital that night. “We didn’t know what happened,” Ventura said. “From what he told me, he took a really strong opioid.”
If convicted, the I’ll Be Missing You hitmaker faces life in prison.
The trial is set to continue.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
