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Cassie is expected to take the stand during Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex trafficking trial next month.
According to a report TMZ published on Sunday, April 6, Combs' ex-girlfriend Cassandra Ventura is "prepared to testify under her own name" during the trial after it begins on May 12. Ventura is listed as "Victim 1" in the indictment that alleges charges of sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution. Three other victims are also listed in the indictment, however, a judge agreed to allow them to remain anonymous throughout the trial. Ventura will be the only victim who will use her real name during her testimony.
The "Me & U" singer was the first prominent name to file a lawsuit against Combs in 2023. Cassie alleged her longtime boyfriend raped and physically abused her during their decade-long relationship. She claimed the abuse began after they met in 2005 and continued after they officially got together in 2007. She claimed he beat her, forced her to take drugs and made her have sex with male prostitutes on camera.
“After years in silence and darkness, I am finally ready to tell my story,” Cassie said in a statement, “and to speak up on behalf of myself and for the benefit of other women who face violence and abuse in their relationships.”
Combs' attorneys vehemently denied the allegations and claimed she was only looking for a payday. Cassie and the Bad Boy Records founder settled the lawsuit the following day, however, Combs' legal team emphasized that the settlement was not an admission of guilt. Combs eventually assumed some responsibility after CNN dropped the infamous video of him assaulting Cassie at a hotel in 2016. The music mogul apologized in a video he posted to Instagram.
Last March, Combs' legal team motioned to exclude the video from the trial after they claimed CNN "purchased the only known copy of the Hotel’s surveillance footage, uploaded that footage into a free editing software, altered the video and then destroyed the original footage." CNN denied the allegation and reiterated that they released the video before Combs was arrested last September.
Combs' attorneys have denied all the charges listed in the indictment.