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BBC journalist Anoushka Mutanda-Dougherty weighed in on the testimony of Cassandra “Cassie” Ventura during the ongoing criminal trial of Sean "Diddy" Combs. Speaking on the June 24, 2025, episode of CNN’s Trial by Jury: Diddy podcast, Anoushka described Cassie’s court appearance as a powerful reclaiming of identity after allegedly being seen as “an extension” of the rapper
Like, you were just Diddy’s missus. I mean, they weren’t married… but you were his girl. That’s what I knew you as. And so I had reduced your identity…well, yeah, after a while, she just became almost an extension of him. So that was one of the most impactful moments—watching somebody tell their own story, but also just claw back their identity," she explained.
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During the episode, Mutanda-Dougherty also reflected on Cassie’s place in the 2000s R&B era. She noted that although she had known of Cassie before the trial, her lasting impression of the singer had been shaped primarily by her relationship with Combs.
"But unfortunately, much of my perception of her, in particular—and she’s the star witness, which is why I’m focusing on her—was as Diddy’s girlfriend. And that was her identity," she said.
She claimed, Cassie’s court appearance directly challenged that existing perception. Pregnant with her third child, Cassie did not just present herself as a witness. She was a full and complex individual, someone who had grown, made mistakes, and found her voice.
"And so when Cassie got up on the stand, 75 months pregnant, she got up the stand as a mother-to-be of three children, as a wife, as an artist, as a friend. As somebody who's made mistakes, she's said that she's done things that she is not proud of," she explained.
Mutanda-Dougherty emphasized how moving it was to watch someone "bravely reclaim their identity" and tell the story of "a rather naive 19-year-old girl". She further added that "whatever way the verdict goes, Cassie's testimony was 'an extremely brave thing to do".
"And aside from everything else that she was talking about, and unfortunately, the tricky thing with this trial is it has salacious stuff baked in. Aside from all of that, watching somebody kind of bravely reclaim their identity and tell their story and the story of a rather naive 19-year-old girl and what she alleges happened to her was really impactful," she added.
Key Takeaways from Cassandra "Cassie" Ventura’s testimony in Sean "Diddy" Combs’ criminal trial
According to a May 13, 2025, report by The Guardian, Cassandra "Cassie" Ventura, the former girlfriend of Sean "Diddy" Combs, emerged as the most pivotal witness in Combs’s high-profile federal trial. Her 2023 lawsuit, in which she accused Combs of physical and sexual abuse, formed the foundation for the sweeping criminal charges he now faces.
As the prosecution’s key witness, Ventura delivered several important revelations during her testimony, the most harrowing being her detailed account of Combs’s "freak-offs." It was a term she said referred to orchestrated sexual encounters involving escorts, drugs, and Combs’s direction.
Ventura explained that these "freak-offs" began early in their relationship and involved carefully arranged experiences. She was instructed to engage in sexual activity with escorts while Combs watched and directed.
"It was the hiring of an escort and setting up this experience so that I could perform for Sean… Eventually, it became a job for me, pretty much," she alleged.
She further testified that Diddy directed her to find escorts through platforms like Craigslist, Backpage, and later a service called Cowboys 4 Angels, and these escorts were typically paid in cash. She also alleged that drugs such as ecstasy, cocaine, marijuana, ketamine, and mushrooms were a regular part of these encounters, which sometimes stretched across 2 to 4 days.
According to her testimony, her first “freak-off” took place in 2008 at Combs’s Los Angeles home when she was 22 years old. From that point forward, she claimed they occurred nearly every week for almost a decade. The locations varied from Los Angeles and Miami to Ibiza, Turks and Caicos
Though Ventura described the early years of their relationship as marked by infatuation and a desire to please Combs, her testimony painted a picture of deepening distress and helplessness. Still, she added that she was “in love” with Combs and “wanted to make him happy.”
Ventura also claimed that Combs frequently filmed these sexual encounters without her full consent and later used the footage as leverage.
"I felt pretty horrible about myself. I felt disgusting. I felt humiliated… I didn’t have the words to show how horrible I felt. I couldn’t talk to anyone about it," she told the court.
In addition to the alleged sex trafficking, Ventura testified extensively about a pattern of domestic violence. She described living in fear of Diddy's volatile moods and the physical abuse she said he regularly inflicted.
"Make the wrong face and the next thing I knew I would get hit in the face… He would say: 'Watch your mouth,'" she alleged.
She also claimed that Diddy kicked, stomped, and dragged her on multiple occasions. When asked how many times she had been thrown to the ground—as seen in a 2016 hotel surveillance video—Ventura replied that it had happened “too many to count.”
Ventura also testified about the controlling grip Diddy allegedly maintained over both her personal and professional life. She explained that “control was everything” for Combs and described him as a “polarizing person” whose moods shifted daily, often leaving her anxious and unsure of how to act.
In one particular account, Ventura also described an incident allegedly involving firearms. She claimed Combs kept guns in safes at various residences and, on multiple occasions, forced her to carry one. One such instance occurred when Combs decided to confront his longtime rival, Suge Knight.
"We were having a freak-off in one of his homes in LA, and he said Suge was at Mel’s Diner, and we packed up and drove down there… I was screaming and crying: ‘Please don’t do anything stupid.’ I didn’t know what they were going to do," she alleged.
Cassie is currently spending time away from the spotlight. She is now focused on her family and recently welcomed her third child, a son, with her husband Alex Fine.
Meanwhile, Diddy is undergoing trial for charges of racketeering, sex trafficking, and transportation to engage in prostitution. He faces up to life in prison if convicted of his charges.
