Cassie’s ex-boyfriend Michael B. Jordan was mentioned in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ sex trafficking trial on Thursday, May 15.
Cassie, 38, spoke about her past romances with both Jordan, 38, and Kid Cudi during cross-examination on Thursday, agreeing with the defense lawyer’s claim that Diddy, 55, was “irate” over her brief romance with Cudi, now 41.
Defense attorney Anna Estevao then hinted that Diddy’s jealousy over Cassie’s other relationships wasn’t rare — and that she was also jealous of the rapper at times, which Cassie admitted was true.
Cassie (full name Casandra Ventura) then recalled sparking a relationship with Jordan in 2015. The romance began after Cassie discovered that Diddy was allegedly spending time with one of his on-off girlfriends while she was filming a movie in South Africa.
As a result, Cassie cut off communication with the music mogul for some time and moved on with the Black Panther actor. When asked how Diddy reacted to her relationship with Jordan, Cassie told the court she didn’t know because she wasn’t there to witness it.
Cassie, however, did reveal that she was “really hurt” when Diddy was seeing someone else while she was on location. She also told the jury that one of Diddy’s staff members informed her that the musician knew about her relationship with Jordan.
The defense attorney, meanwhile, didn’t expand on Cassie’s connection to Jordan and moved on with her line of questioning.
Cassie dated Diddy on and off from 2007 to 2018, during which time she claimed the rapper was violent toward her and controlling. Once out of the relationship, Cassie filed a lawsuit against Diddy in November 2023, alleging that the was abusive and had raped her in the past.
Cassie’s relationship with Jordan was referenced in the lawsuit as was her romance with Cudi. (She alleged in the lawsuit that Diddy threatened to blow up Cudi’s car, which his rep corroborated.)
Diddy denied all of Cassie’s allegations at the time, with his attorney telling Us in a statement, “Mr. Combs vehemently denies these offensive and outrageous allegations.” Diddy and Cassie settled the lawsuit out of court one day after it was filed. (She revealed during her testimony on Wednesday, May 14, that the settlement was for $20 million.)
Cassie’s relationship with Diddy made headlines again in May 2024 when CNN published a hotel surveillance video of Diddy kicking and grabbing Cassie in 2016. Diddy later issued a public apology for his actions.
Later that year, Diddy was arrested and charged with sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and transportation to engage in prostitution. He pleaded not guilty to all charges and has denied all the allegations against him.
“We are disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe is an unjust prosecution of Mr. Combs by the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” Diddy’s attorney Marc Agnifilo said in a statement in September 2024. “He is an imperfect person, but he is not a criminal. To his credit Mr. Combs has been nothing but cooperative with this investigation and he voluntarily relocated to New York last week in anticipation of these charges. Please reserve your judgment until you have all the facts. These are the acts of an innocent man with nothing to hide, and he looks forward to clearing his name in court.”
After being denied bail four times, Diddy’s federal trial began last week with jury selection and is expected to last through early July.
Cassie has been a star witness for the prosecution, initially taking the stand to testify against Diddy on Tuesday, May 13. She recounted the start of their relationship, which began with her signing a 10-album deal with Diddy’s label, Bad Boy Records, in 2005.
Two years later, when Cassie turned 21, she claimed Diddy kissed her at her birthday party. Shortly after that exchange, Cassie alleged that Diddy gave her a “blue dolphin” ecstasy pill on a boat in Miami, and the two had sex for the first time.
Cassie told the court that it wasn’t until she was 22 when she witnessed and began taking part in Diddy’s “freak offs,” which she described as “the hiring of an escort and setting up this experience so that I could perform for Sean.”
Cassie alleged during her testimony on Wednesday that the freak offs often included men urinating on her. She claimed that Diddy would even physically abuse her when other escorts were present. “He would grab me up,” she alleged. “Push me down. Hit me in the side of the head. Kick me. You name it.”
During cross-examination on Thursday, Cassie claimed she saw Diddy go through opioid withdrawal multiple times and alleged that he’d get angry at her when he “assumed I was cheating.”
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673). If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 for confidential support. If you or someone you know is a human trafficking victim, contact the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.
