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Week three hearings of Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex trafficking trial have concluded, and 20 witnesses have given their testimonies so far. Combs' former assistant, who testified under a pseudonym, "Mia," is set to continue her testimony on Monday.
In her two-day testimony, Mia made physical and sexual abuse allegations against the Combs, who is currently facing federal racketeering and sexual trafficking charges.
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On May 30, the former employee made several allegations about threatening messages that Diddy had sent her. On Day 13 of the trial, defense attorney Brian Steel cross-examined Mia on the witness stand. Steel asked her why she continued working with Combs for years and made efforts like making a scrapbook for Diddy's birthday, despite facing physical and sexual abuse for years.
According to CNN's live coverage of the trial, Mia replied:
“I was young and manipulated and eager to survive. I’m unraveling a lot of this now in therapy. Nobody was there to say these things that were happening were wrong. There was nobody around us that ever even flinched at his behavior. I was always in trouble and I was always just trying to find a way not to be in trouble.”
While reviewing the scrapbook, Mia recalled that since it was difficult to get an apt present for someone affluent like Combs, she thought a scrapbook would make her employer happy.
Mia gifted this scrapbook to Combs in 2014 on his 45th birthday. She wrote a page-long note in it, mentioning Comb's accomplishments, and also attached magazine articles praising him.
A quick look at Mia's cross-examination by the defense in Diddy's trial
According to CNN, on day 13 of the trial, Mia made additional allegations in her testimony, including that Diddy once kicked her off his yacht. She also claimed that he threatened to tell Ventura about the alleged sexual assault he committed against her in a way that would make her appear guilty.
"I was just overwhelmed with fear that I would be in huge trouble, I would definitely be fired, and I didn’t have a way out of it. He would have destroyed my reputation. Yeah, I was scared of him," she further testified.
As per NBC, later in the day, defense attorney Brian Steel began cross-examination and questioned the ex-assistant about the social media posts that she shared about Diddy, despite the alleged abuse. She alleged that people working for Diddy were expected to share such posts. She further claimed that at that time, social media was often used to portray only the brighter side of life.
As per CNN, Brian Steel further questioned Mia about a video she created on Combs' birthday, in which Mia contacted individuals Diddy wanted at his parties to request a birthday shoutout.
The jury was shown messages exchanged between her and Combs’ chief of staff, Kristina Khorram. In the messages, Mia sounded disappointed after finding out Combs' media company, Revolt Films, was shutting down. She had worked there as the Director of Development and Acquisition. When Steel asked why she was upset about the shutdown, as it would have kept her away from her "abuser," Mia stated:
“No, because at the time, I didn’t realize that. In hindsight, (it was) fantastic, but at the time, the worst thing in the world.”
According to NBC, Mia testified that she stopped working for Combs in 2017, after the rapper shut down Revolt Films.
According to CNN's live updates on the trial, Mia is expected to appear before the jury again on Monday. Apart from Mia, 19 more witnesses have given their testimonies in Diddy's trial.
