May 16, 2025 - Day 5 of testimony in the Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs trial | CNN

May 16, 2025 - Day 5 of testimony in the Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs trial

Lauren del Valle Kara Scannell
By Nicki Brown, Lauren del Valle and Kara Scannell, CNN
Updated 7:00 PM EDT, Fri May 16, 2025
Sean "Diddy" Combs takes notes during the morning arguments in his sex trafficking trial in New York City, New York, U.S., May 15, 2025, in this courtroom sketch.
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Defense attorneys grill Cassie Ventura about 'freak offs'
03:45 • Source: CNN

What we covered here

• Star witness: Cassie Ventura, Sean “Diddy” Combs’ ex-girlfriend and one of his accusers, testified for nearly 20 hours over four days in his federal criminal trial. She described the physical abuse she said she endured during their relationship and detailed how Combs orchestrated drug-fueled sex performances he called “Freak Offs.” She became emotional as she said she would give back her $20 million civil settlement to have never endured a “Freak Off.”

• Other testimony today: Dawn Richard, a former member of Danity Kane, a musical group formed by Combs, testified that she saw Combs attack Ventura in 2009. The special agent who handled the logistics for Combs’ arrest also testified.

• Federal charges: Combs has pleaded not guilty to charges that include racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. If convicted on all counts, he could face up to life in prison.

• Editor’s Note: If you or someone you know is struggling with intimate partner violence, there are resources available, including the National Domestic Violence Hotline.

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Our live coverage of the Sean “Diddy” Combs trial has ended for the day. Follow the latest updates or read through the posts below.

Witnesses testify about Combs’ hotel room and instances of violence. Here’s a recap

From CNN’s Nicki Brown, Lauren del Valle, Kara Scannell and Elise Hammond
Special agent Yasin Binda, shows evidence photos from hotel where Sean "Diddy" Combs was arrested, including baby oil, on Friday, in this courtroom sketch.
Special agent Yasin Binda, shows evidence photos from hotel where Sean "Diddy" Combs was arrested, including baby oil, on Friday, in this courtroom sketch.
Jane Rosenberg/Reuters

Prosecutors called two more witnesses before the end of today’s testimonies after Cassie Ventura, Sean “Diddy”Combs’ ex-girlfriend, finished her time on the stand this afternoon.

Here’s a recap of each testimony:

Yasin Binda

  • Background: Binda is a Homeland Security Investigations special agent who works in the human trafficking division at the department. She handled the logistics for Combs’ arrest on September 16, 2024, and searched the room at the Park Hyatt where Combs was staying.
  • Baby oil and lubricant: The jury saw photos of two ziploc bags, each filled with Johnson’s baby oil and Astroglide, recovered from bags in an entryway closet. More bottles of baby oil and lubricant were found in the bathroom, on the nightstand and elsewhere in the room, according to the photos and Binda’s testimony.
  • Medication: A bottle of medication was found in a Louis Vuitton bag on a nightstand in the bedroom, Binda said. The name on the bottle was “Frank Black” and the label identified the medication as clonazepam, Binda said. Two bags of pink powder, which tested positive for ketamine and MDMA were also recovered, she said.
  • Cross-examination: Binda testified it appeared that a woman had been staying with him at the hotel.

Dawn Richard

  • Background: Richard is a former member of Danity Kane, a musical group formed by Combs as part of the MTV reality series “Making the Band.”
  • Accounts of violence: Richard testified she saw Combs attack Ventura in 2009. She said Combs came into the kitchen where they both were and tried to hit Ventura with a skillet. After the altercation, Combs dragged Ventura by her hair upstairs, Richard said. She said she heard “glass braking and yelling.”
  • Fear of Combs: Richard said she didn’t report the abuse because she was afraid and was “scared to do anything in fear of what that might mean for me, too.” The next day, Richard said Combs asked her and another woman to come to his house where he told them what they witnessed was “passion” and what lovers do and told them it was in their “best interest if we didn’t say anything.”

Judge will not require full witness lineup to be disclosed after prosecution raised concerns about tampering

Judge Arun Subramanian has heeded concerns from the prosecution about disclosing the order of their witnesses too far in advance, saying he will not compel the attorneys to release their full lineup for next week.

Prosecutor Maurene Comey had told Subramanian the prosecution is concerned about potential witness tampering or obstruction.

The defense had argued they could better prepare exhibits for cross-examination if they knew the witness order ahead of time, but Subramanian ultimately sided with the prosecution’s concerns.

The judge is now off the bench and court has concluded for the week. The jury will return Monday at 9 a.m. ET.

Combs' trial will "be a litmus test" for the #MeToo movement, former prosecutor says

From CNN’s Tori B. Powell

Sean “Diddy” Combs’ federal criminal trial will show where society stands when it comes to attitudes toward accountability for sexual abuse, according to former prosecutor Loni Coombs.

Coombs went on to say that “we’re kind of swinging back as a society” when it comes to what it means to hold alleged sexual violence perpetrators accountable.

“The question here is: Can people look at this [case] and understand that in abusive relationships there are good and bad moments, right?”

Ventura's mom and former best friend will testify next week, prosecutor says

Prosecutor Maurene Comey said Kerry Morgan, Cassie Ventura’s former best friend, will be the next witness after Dawn Richard finishes giving testimony.

Ventura’s mom is also among the witnesses expected to to testify early next week, she said.

Prosecution and defense now discussing Dawn Richard's testimony about Combs' threats

Prosecutors and Sean “Diddy” Combs’ defense attorneys are now having a discussion about former Danity Kane singer Dawn Richard’s testimony.

Earlier, Judge Arun Subramanian indicated they would sidebar over a defense objection to Richard’s description of threats Combs made.

Just before the judge dismissed the jury for the day, Richard, who worked for Combs in the mid-2000s, testified that after she and another woman saw Combs attack Cassie Ventura, he encouraged them not to say anything about the assault.

The next day, Combs asked Richard and the other woman, Kalenna Harper, to come to his home. He brought them into a recording studio, locked the door, and told them that what they witnessed was “passion” and what lovers do, Richard testified.

Combs told them “it was in our best interest if we didn’t say anything” and that “where he comes from people go missing if they talk,” Richard testified. He then gave them flowers, she said.

Jury is dismissed for the day

Judge Arun Subramanian dismissed the jury for the day, telling them the parties would stay behind to work after calling a sidebar over a defense objection to former Danity Kane singer Dawn Richard’s description of Sean “Diddy” Combs’ threats.

Former Danity Kane singer says she didn't report abuse she witnessed because she was scared

Former Danity Kane member Dawn Richard testified that after she witnessed the altercation in the kitchen, Sean “Diddy” Combs dragged Cassie Ventura upstairs by her hair his arm around her neck.

She said she heard “glass breaking and yelling” from upstairs.

Richard said she didn’t say anything to intervene or call the police because she was afraid.

She said she was “scared to do anything in fear of what that might mean for me, too.”

Dawn Richard says she saw Combs attack Ventura in 2009

Dawn Richard said she worked for Sean “Diddy” Combs from 2004 to 2011.

Richard, the former Danity Kane singer, said she knew Combs by the nickname “Puff” and pointed to him to identify him in the courtroom when asked.

Richard said she saw Cassie Ventura “being attacked by Sean Combs” in 2009.

Leading up to the alleged assault in 2009, Richard was in the kitchen with Ventura, who was cooking eggs, she said. Combs came downstairs and demanded to know where his eggs were, Richard testified.

“He proceeded to come over to her and took the skillet with the eggs in it and tried to hit her over the head with it, and she fell to the ground,” she said.

“It didn’t seem that it hit her fully,” Richard added, saying it seemed like Ventura dropped to the ground because she anticipated the hit.

“She went into the fetal position,” she said.

Editor’s Note: If you or someone you know is struggling with intimate partner violence, there are resources available, including the National Domestic Violence Hotline.

Dawn Richard takes the stand

Dawn Richard arrives at Federal court in Manhattan on Friday.
Dawn Richard arrives at Federal court in Manhattan on Friday.
David Dee Delgado/Reuters

Prosecutors call Dawn Richard, a former member of Danity Kane, a musical group formed by Sean “Diddy” Combs as part of the MTV reality series “Making the Band,” to the stand.

Special agent says it appeared a woman was staying with Combs in hotel at time of his arrest

Yasin Binda, the special agent testifying in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ trial, testified that it appeared a woman was staying with Combs in his Manhattan hotel room before he was arrested in 2024.

Binda confirmed that detail when asked by defense attorney Teny Geragos during cross-examination.

Binda is now off the stand.

The defense is now cross-examining the special agent involved in Combs' arrest

Prosecutor Madison Smyser has finished up her direct questioning of special agent Yasin Binda.

Defense attorney Teny Geragos is up to cross-examine Binda, who just testified about the search of Sean “Diddy” Combs’ hotel room following his 2024 arrest.

Jury sees cash found in Combs' hotel room and inspects evidence bag of drugs

Special agent Yasin Binda testified that $9,000 in cash was found in a black fanny pack hanging off the bed in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ hotel room.

The jury saw a photo of the fanny pack.

At prosecutor Madison Smyser’s request, Binda took the cash out of the fanny pack that was in an evidence bag, fanning it out for the jury to see.

The jury also passed around an evidence bag holding the two bags of ketamine and MDMA pink powder that were found in the hotel room.

Jury sees photos from law enforcement search of Combs' hotel room

The jury is seeing images from the search of Sean “Diddy” Combs’ New York hotel room after his 2024 arrest.

The images were taken by Yasin Binda, the special agent currently testifying in Combs’ federal criminal trial.

The jury saw photos of the expansive Park Hyatt hotel room and ziploc bags filled with Johnson’s baby oil and lubricant, which were recovered from bags in an entryway closet. More bottles of baby oil and lubricant were found in the bathroom and elsewhere in the room, Binda said. The jury saw a photo of the collected oils.

The jury also saw a photo of a lighting device that was found in the living room. Binda said she would describe it as “potentially mood lighting.”

A bottle of medication with the name “Frank Black” was found in a Louis Vutton bag on a nightstand in the bedroom, Binda testified. The label on the bottle said the medication was clonazepam.

Two little bags with pink powder were found inside another bottle of medication in a nightstand in the bedroom, Binda said. The pink powder in one of bags tested positive for ketamine, and the other tested positive for MDMA and ketamine, according to a stipulation read in court.

The next witness is a special agent who handled logistics for Combs' 2024 arrest

Prosecutor Madison Smyser is questioning Yasin Binda, a Homeland Security Investigations special agent who works in the human trafficking division at the department.

Binda confirmed that she handled the logistics for Sean “Diddy” Combs’ arrest on September 16, 2024. She said she searched the room at the Park Hyatt where Combs was staying.

The jury is back in the courtroom

The jury is back in the courtroom.

Special Agent Yasin Binda has been called to the stand.

Ventura’s testimony was only “one part of the case,” former prosecutor says

From CNN's Tori B. Powell

Cassie Ventura, key witness and Sean “Diddy” Combs’ ex-girlfriend, wrapped up testimony today after four days on the stand. But her account is only one piece of the puzzle for prosecutors to prove that Combs is guilty in his federal criminal trial, according to Paul Martin, a criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor.

Prosecutors over the next few weeks will still need to prove Combs engaged in racketeering, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution — all charges the rap mogul has pleaded not guilty to.

“This is a case about a RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act) and whether there’s a pattern or behavior of activities that was that violence to force sex out of this young lady,” Martin said.

Cassie Ventura is off the stand. Catch up on her testimony today

From CNN’s Nicki Brown, Lauren del Valle, Kara Scannell and Elise Hammond
Cassie Ventura cries on the stand during on Friday, as seen in this courtroom sketch.
Cassie Ventura cries on the stand during on Friday, as seen in this courtroom sketch.
Jane Rosenberg/Reuters

Cassie Ventura finished her time on the stand today, answering questions from both sides in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ federal criminal trial. Her testimony wrapped up after nearly 20 hours over four days on the witness stand.

On Friday, she testified more about physical abuse at the hands of Combs and the drug-fueled “Freak Offs” that happened over the course of their more than a decade long relationship.

When Combs’ defense attorney finished her main cross-examination of Ventura, Combs stood and hugged his lawyer when she returned to the defense table.

Physical abuse:

  • Defense: Ventura said she believes Combs was intoxicated but said she couldn’t objectively define whether he was in a “black out” when he dragged and kicked her in a March 2016 assault captured by hotel surveillance cameras. Ventura also accused Combs of other controlling behavior, testifying that he would take her phone or passport when he was angry with her.
  • Prosecution redirect: Ventura said there were times Combs didn’t remember physically abusing her, but there “were times where he was pretty aware what he was doing.” She also added, “It’s just who he was” and that she had seen him “be violent with other people.”

Rape allegation:

  • Defense: Other texts presented to the jury showed the pair going back and forth about dating and seeing other people in 2018. The defense asked questions about where those texts fell on the timeline of events that year, after Ventura alleged that Combs raped her following an August 2018 dinner.
  • Prosecution redirect: When asked if she had any doubt that Combs raped her in 2018, Ventura answered, “No.”

“Freak Offs”:

  • Defense: The jury saw a text exchange in which Ventura said she was going to tell Combs she didn’t want to participate in his drug-fueled sex performances anymore, but ultimately didn’t say so because of how he reacted. They also heard a recording of Ventura threatening a man in March 2014 after he said he’d seen a sexually explicit video of her. Ventura feared it had been secretly recorded during a “Freak Off.”
  • Prosecution redirect: Ventura testified that she felt like she had a “whole other job” and was “basically a sex worker” when asked about how the “Freak Offs” interfered with her music career. The judge granted a defense motion to strike that response from the record.

Text messages:

  • Defense: In messages from March and May 2019 after they broke up, Combs texted Ventura in part “sending you love” and told her she was going to “make a beautiful mother.” Ventura testified she was pregnant. In later messages, Combs told her that things had “definitely been rough without your friendship” and he has “nothing but love for you always.”
  • Prosecution redirect: In response to a question about the messages, the jury saw where she and Combs expressed love for each other throughout the defense’s questioning, Ventura testified there were times when Combs was kind and loving, but they didn’t last.

Civil suit settlement:

  • Defense: Ventura said she, her husband, and their kids moved into her parents’ Connecticut home in October 2023 and that they were transitioning to live on the East Coast. The defense asked if she canceled her tour around that time because she found out she was going to get the $20 million civil suit settlement. “That wasn’t the reason why,” Ventura said.
  • Prosecution redirect: Ventura testified that she would give the settlement money back if it meant she never had to endure “Freak Offs.” Bursting into tears, Ventura continued, “If I never had to have ‘Freak Offs,’ I would have had agency and autonomy.”

"This week has been extremely challenging, but also remarkably empowering," Cassie Ventura says in statement

From CNN's Alli Rosenbloom

Shortly following the conclusion of Cassie Ventura’s time testifying during Sean “Diddy” Combs’ federal criminal trial, her lawyer, Doug Wigdor, read aloud a statement from Ventura outside of the New York courthouse.

“I want to thank my family and my advocates for their unwavering support, and am grateful for all the kindness and encouragement that I have received. I am glad to put this chapter of my life to rest as I turn to focus on the conclusion of my pregnancy, I ask for privacy for me and for my growing family,” Wigdor added.

Cassie Ventura's husband: "The world has gotten to witness the strength and bravery of my wife"

From CNN's Aditi Sangal
Alex Fine, Cassie Ventura's husband, leaves the Federal court during the Sean "Diddy" Combs sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy trial at U.S. court in Manhattan, in New York City, on Tuesday.
Alex Fine, Cassie Ventura's husband, leaves the Federal court during the Sean "Diddy" Combs sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy trial at U.S. court in Manhattan, in New York City, on Tuesday.
Eduardo Munoz/Reuters

Doug Wigdor, Cassie Ventura’s attorney, read a statement on behalf of her husband Alex Fine after Ventura finished testifying in the trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs.

Here’s what Fine said in his statement: