Sean 'Diddy' Combs - day 26 of sex-trafficking and racketeering trial

Sean 'Diddy' Combs

Testimony continued today in the trial involving Sean "Diddy" Combs, with special agent Deleassa Penland returning to the stand. Jurors, currently on their lunch break, were shown a video—likely explicit—while wearing headphones, a continuation of footage presented the previous day. Earlier in the session, Penland discussed receipts showing that businesses linked to Combs had paid for damages at various hotels. These included a $500 charge from the Beverly Hills Hotel for damage to drapes and carpets, $950 from the Hermitage Hotel for deep cleaning, and a substantial $46,786 bill from the Intercontinental Hotel for penthouse damage in October 2012.

Jurors also heard more details about a 2016 hotel incident in which Combs was captured on CCTV allegedly assaulting his former partner, Cassie Ventura. After the incident, Combs texted Cassie, claiming he was "about to be arrested," followed by five unanswered calls in less than half an hour. However, the court heard earlier that no one had contacted the police that night. During cross-examination, Combs's attorney, Teny Geragos, presented text messages between Combs and Cassie discussing "freak offs"—sexual encounters with male escorts. In one message, Cassie requested a Friday night session to have the weekend to recover, suggesting possible consent. Geragos emphasised these messages had not been shown by the prosecution, while Penland clarified her role was to review, not supplement, the presented evidence.

The court adjourned for the day following Penland's continued testimony. A former Combs employee granted immunity was expected to testify today, but delays pushed that appearance to tomorrow, with no court on Thursday due to Juneteenth. Prosecutor Maurene Comey noted the prosecution likely won't rest its case before Friday. During today's proceedings, the defence focused on portraying Cassie as a willing participant in Combs’s sexual arrangements, citing additional texts to support this argument. One such message from Cassie read “LOL, sure, when,” in response to a 2013 hotel meetup. This stands in contrast to her courtroom testimony, in which she stated she participated in the encounters primarily to keep Combs satisfied.