Online Reporter
l Hip hop mogul Sean Combs’ trial has entered its second week
l Prosecutors release photo of a large chef’s knife and pink drugs
l Witness claims Diddy also used a hammer to try break a door
NEW YORK. —A witness has claimed that hip hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs once assaulted his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura after a disagreement over eggs.
Newly released evidence photos made public by the Department of Justice in Diddy’s ongoing sex-trafficking and racketeering trial include a photo of a large chef’s knife in the handle of a door.
Cassie said she had locked herself in her apartment around the end of their relationship in 2018 and used the knife to feel safe from him.
“I was getting a lot of unannounced visits from Sean and I was trying to kill two birds with one stone. Lock it and I had a weapon,” she said in her testimony.
Among the photos taken by law enforcement after they raided Diddy’s room at the Park Hyatt Hotel in Manhattan were images of bottles of baby oil, personal lubricant and bags of pink drugs.
The items were found in the Bad Boy Records founder’s room on September 16, 2024, after he was arrested.
On Monday, the woman who was once the best friend of Cassie told the court she was “terrified” after the music star allegedly tried to use a hammer to smash down the front door of an apartment she was staying in.
Kerry Morgan testified that Diddy choked her so hard he left finger marks on her neck and that she hasn’t spoken to Cassie after that incident.
Morgan, 39, testified about the abuse she said she witnessed her ex-BFF endure at the hands of Diddy.
He described in graphic detail how Diddy “would punch (Cassie), choke her, drag her, slap her in the mouth”, and how he choked Morgan too and once beat her with a wooden hanger.
Singer Dawn Richard, who was in a band with Diddy between 2009 and 2011, said she “frequently” saw Cassie being beaten.
Richard alleged she was threatened by Diddy in a manner that made her think “we could die” if she crossed the star.
But in a combative cross-examination, Diddy’s lawyers accused Richard of embellishing her testimony and that she had “four recollections” of one alleged incident of violence.
Another famous celebrity has also been dragged into the trial with Usher’s name heard in the witness box. One of Diddy’s personal assistants said the star liked Cassie because she was young and “mouldable”.
But he said that despite her 11-year relationship with Diddy, Cassie wasn’t even Combs’ primary girlfriend.
Richard testified that while part of the band Dirty—Diddy Money, with Diddy, she recorded music at Diddy’s Los Angeles home.
On one occasion she said she saw Diddy assault Cassie because of a disagreement over eggs. She also said Diddy attempted to hit his partner with the frying pan the eggs had been cooking in.
The next day, she said, Diddy invited her back to his house, told her no one was harmed in the incident and that “people go missing” if they talk.
The defence asked what her “understanding” was of “people go missing”.
“We could die — that was our understanding,” said Richard.
She claimed Diddy told her ‘Stay the f*** out of my relationship. You’re here to work you mother f***ers’.
“I made the decision it would best for my safety (to not intervene) as (Cassie) wasn’t really ready to do anything.”
But Diddy’s lawyer Nicole Westmoreland cast doubt on Richard.
She said the singer had changed what she remembered about the 2009 kitchen incident several times.
This included the frying pan hitting Ventura, not hitting Ventura, hitting a wall or Combs throwing the eggs.
“It’s been hard for you to keep the story the same in the egg incident,” said Westmoreland.
“I told it to the best of my recollection,” said Richard.
“To the best of your recollection you have four different recollections,” the lawyer replied.
Westmoreland said that the crucial alleged threat from Diddy that “people go missing” was itself missing from Richard‘s earlier statements to prosecutors.
“That missing quote was missing three times,” the lawyer said.
Richard also mentioned an incident in a restaurant when she was in Diddy’s band where he allegedly punched Cassie in the stomach.
When questioned by the prosecution, Richard said various members of Diddy’s staff were also at the dinner.
But under cross-examination from Diddy’s lawyer, Richard said superstar singer Usher was also at the dinner.
The defence questioned why Richard would leave out such a prominent person from the list of guests at the dinner where she alleged an assault occurred.
But Richard said she was specifically asked what “staff” were at the dinner, not anyone else.Cassie’s one-time best friend also took the stand in the Manhattan courtroom.
She told the court she did not want to testify.
“I have moved on from these people and their problems,” said Kerry Morgan, 39.
She met Cassie, who was 15 at the time, when she was 16. The pair modelled together in New York.
They stayed friends until 2018, giving Morgan a front-row seat to Diddy’s and Ventura’s relationship.
“Cassie was fun, hard working and very confident,” Morgan said of her friend.
But her relationship with Diddy — including various alleged beatings she witnessed —changed Cassie.
“She lost her confidence and her sparkle. It wasn’t the same Cassie.”
Morgan claimed she witnessed two vicious beatings of Cassie — where the pair both hid over fears for their safety — and numerous incidents of “slapping” and “pushing”.
In Jamaica, Morgan said Diddy dragged Cassie by her hair from a bedroom into an outdoor area where she hit her head so badly she blacked out.
In 2016, Morgan said Cassie came back to her house with a black eye followed by Diddy 30 minutes later.
“He was hitting the door with a hammer to try and open it.
“I was terrified but Cassie seemed numb. I was freaking out and I don’t think she cared if he had come in and killed her.”
Morgan said on numerous occasions she told her friend to leave Diddy but Cassie said her job, her car and home were all paid for by Diddy.
“He controlled everything,” Morgan said.
Morgan also contacted a number of Diddy’s staff members to intervene but little was done.
In 2018, Morgan said she and Cassie were listening to music in her Hollywood Hills home when Diddy turned up unannounced and let himself in.
“(Cassie) locked herself in the bathroom,” she said.
“He wanted to know who Cassie was cheating on him with.
“He choked me and when I got away he boomeranged me with a wooden coat hanger.
“I had finger marks on my neck and the hanger hit me behind my right ear. I had a concussion, dizziness and vomited a few times.”
She testified she left the apartment and told one of Diddy’s staff members who had arrived with the star that “he’s going crazy, he’s lost it” to which the staff member just shrugged.
A few weeks later, said Morgan, Diddy offered her US$30,000 because of the alleged assault.
She then met Cassie for pizza where, Morgan said, she was told by her friend to sign a nondisclosure agreement to get the cash.
“She told me I was milking it and over exaggerating,” claimed Morgan.
“We haven’t spoken since.” —New Zealand Herald
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