This story may contain accounts and descriptions of actual or alleged events that some readers may find disturbing.
Cassie Ventura took the witness stand for defense cross-examination Thursday following two days of her testimony against Sean “Diddy” Combs. Federal prosecutors told the judge that Ventura must finish her testimony by the end of the day Friday because she “is very, very pregnant” and could go into labor soon.
Ventura testified that she loved Combs and believed he loved her, and that the two exchanged “loving” messages.
The jury was shown one such message from early in their relationship. “It makes me so happy that you would fly to ATL just to see me. I’m a very lucky man,” an email from Combs read.
“I’m a very lucky woman. I miss you so much. I’d fly wherever you needed me, whenever,” Ventura sent in reply.
“What about him made you fall in love with him?” defense attorney Anna Estevao asked Ventura.
“I haven’t thought about it in a while,” Ventura responded. “The beginning of the relationship, I spoke about it already, it was really fast, fast-paced, scary. But the more time I spent with him and got to know him, his real personality, or at least what I thought was his real personality, came out.”
The jury was shown an August 2009 message from Combs to Ventura, telling her to look at his latest tweet. Ventura responded, “OMG!!! Pop pop … Can I respond or write something about my man,” using a nickname for Combs that she testified on Tuesday Combs had requested. Ventura testified that at the time she was looking forward to going public about their relationship.
The defense has argued that Ventura was not sex trafficked, as the prosecution claims, but rather was a willing partner in what the defense has described as Combs’ “swingers lifestyle.” She pushed back against a defense attorney’s suggestion that she willingly partook in so-called “freak off” sex sessions.
Tune in to Bad Rap: The Case Against Diddy twice weekly for real-time updates on the trial.
If you are affected by abuse and needing support, or know someone who is, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673). You can also chat online at thehotline.org or online.rainn.org, respectively.
Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
