P Diddy, who has won three Grammy Awards, faces a number of charges, including racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion and transportation to engage in prostitution
P Diddy’s comment to his lawyer was caught on a hot mic in court during his trial yesterday.
The 55-year-old rapper told Anna Estevao he was “proud” of her work, a remark he appeared to understand would go unnoticed in the courtroom in New York City. However, it became public in the hushed environment as it was caught on one of the room’s hot mics. It is thought the device was on when it seemed Diddy believed it to be off.
The moment happened after Ms Estevao had launched her cross-examination of former partner Cassie Ventura, confronting her with intimate messages from her 11-year relationship with Diddy, real name Sean Combs.
The questioning, it is understood, aimed to establish a mutual emotional bond between the pair, with Ms Estevao suggesting Ms Ventura “knew the real Sean — a version he won’t let the rest of the world see.”
At one point, Ms Estevao read from a 2017 message Ms Ventura sent to Combs: “Please don’t play victim. That’s all you wanted and that’s why I was upset. I love our FOs when we both want it.” The defence appeared focused on casting their sexual encounters as consensual.
One heated exchange in the courtroom on Thursday sawthe lawyer state: “You and Mr Combs were in love for 11 years, right?”
“Yeah,” the woman replied. She was asked: “You loved him,” to which she said: “I did.” When asked if she believed the musician loved her, Ms Ventura said: “Yes.”
It was after this exchange when Diddy, who has won three Grammy Awards, told his lawyer he was “proud” of her interrogation. He stands trial accused of a number of charges, including racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion and transportation to engage in prostitution.
During Thursday’s proceedings, Ms Ventura also told the court Combs noticed the negative effects her drug use was having on her and encouraged her to see a doctor. She said there were moments when he expressed concern for her mental health.
In a striking revelation, Ms Ventura confirmed Combs himself suffered an overdose on opiate painkillers while at the Playboy Mansion in 2012. At the time, the incident was widely reported, with TMZ citing an “extreme migraine” as the reason for his hospitalisation. Following this testimony, Judge Arun Subramanian called a brief recess in the New York City courtroom.
When it resumed, Ms Ventura said she and Diddy had taken MDMA or ecstasy together previously. When Ms Estevao asked whether she had ever experienced “bad” MDMA before, Ms Ventura acknowledged, “Yes, you get sick.” Ms Estevao then questioned whether the drugs taken that day may have been a “bad batch” of MDMA — a line of questioning that drew an objection from the prosecution.
The defendant, famed for being one of wealthiest musical artists in the world, strongly denies all allegations made against him.