Cassie Ventura attends as Edward Enninful, David Beckham and British Vogue celebrate the 10th anniversary of Victoria Beckham at Mark's Club on September 16, 2018 in London, England.
Sean Combs’ former girlfriend is willing to take the stand.
As the federal trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs is set to begin next month, a high-profile accuser is reportedly "prepared to testify under her own name." Combs is facing charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.
According to TMZ, R&B singer — and Combs’ former girlfriend — Cassie Ventura is the person known as "Victim 1." The other three alleged victims have requested that their identities not be revealed during the trial. Pseudonyms will be used during the trial instead of real names — prosecutors believe this can help avert harassment for the alleged victims.Prosecutors previously gave the names of the three anonymous women to Diddy's legal team last month. Because the indictment references a hotel beating video, Cassie's identity as an accuser had already become public.
Combs was charged backin September 2024, following raids on his homes in Miami and Los Angeles. The mogul is currently being held in the federal prison MDC Brooklyn. He has pleaded not guilty, and denied all allegations.
Ventura filed a civil lawsuit back in November 2023 against Combs in federal court, accusing him of repeated physical abuse. According to People, CNN released a years-old video of a 2016 incident, capturing visual evidence of what appeared to be Diddy physically assaulting Cassie in a hotel lobby. Combs settled Ventura’s lawsuit in November 2023. Diddy says the video was substantially altered, but didn’t deny attacking the singer.
USA Today reports that Combs is now facing additional charges. In an indictment filed last week in the Southern District of New York, federal prosecutors charged Combs with two additional charges: one count of sex trafficking and one count of transportation to engage in prostitution of "Victim-2," one of three female victims included in the indictment. Investigators claim that Combs' behavior in these additional charges took place from 2021 to 2024.
