Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs acquitted of 3 charges in sex trafficking trial
Of five total charges, Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs was only found guilty of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution in a sex trafficking trial.
This story contains graphic descriptions that some readers may find disturbing.
Sean “Diddy” Combs’ trial had no shortage of disturbing testimony and illuminating evidence.
Even for those following every step of the way in the eight-week trial, from jury selection to witness testimony, closing arguments and jury deliberations, there were a lot of claims and evidence to parse through. One juror described taking 350 pages of handwritten notes during testimony, and it was clear the 12-person jury had much to sort through before handing down the verdict that acquitted Combs of his top criminal charges.
Before telling the judge they had reached a unanimous vote on four of five criminal counts on July 1, the jury asked to review testimony transcripts and refresh their memories regarding what Cassie Ventura Fine said about Combs’ physical assault at the InterContinental Hotel in 2016 as well as his abusive actions at the Cannes Film Festival. They also requested testimony from Daniel Phillip, who was hired to have sex with Ventura Fine.
Here are the key moments and pieces of evidence that led to the split verdict.
Cassie Ventura Fine’s testimony in Diddy trial included ‘freak offs,’ other graphic abuse
The “Me & U” singer testified May 13-16 and laid bare the raw details of their complicated relationship, including her participation in alleged drug-fueled sexual performances labeled “freak offs,” the physical and emotional abuse she said she faced just a few years into their relationship and the violence she allegedly witnessed while with Combs.
Explaining why she decided to testify, Ventura Fine told the court, “I can’t carry this anymore. I can’t carry the shame, the guilt.”
Toward the end of her second day of testimony, Ventura Fine delved into the years following her 2018 breakup from Combs.
She said she’d put a $30 million price tag on the rights to a book she’d written about her alleged experiences, a project she’d characterized as an effort to help him understand what he’d put her through. But after he allegedly failed to respond, she sued him in November 2023, alleging he had raped, trafficked, sexually assaulted and physically abused her.
The two came to an agreement by the following day and announced Ventura Fine would dismiss the lawsuit following an unspecified settlement. It was finally revealed on May 14 that the settlement amounted to $20 million, paid for by Combs and his companies.
Diddy’s former personal assistant describes alleged rape
“Mia,” a woman using a pseudonym who worked for Combs from 2009 to 2017, testified on May 29 that Combs sexually assaulted her on “more than one” occasion. While living with Combs at his Beverly Hills mansion from 2010 to 2014, she claimed she lived in a room that couldn’t lock. This was where, at one point, Combs raped her as she was asleep in a bottom bunk, Mia told the courtroom through sobs.
She said she felt like she couldn’t tell him “no” about anything. “I couldn’t tell him ‘no’ about a sandwich,” she said. She worried that he would “fire me and ruin my future. I knew his power and his control over me. I didn’t want to lose everything I had worked so hard for.”
Diddy’s ex-girlfriend extensively detailed ‘hotel nights’ with escorts that could last 3 days
“Jane,” a woman using a pseudonym who dated Combs on-and-off from 2021 to 2024, tearfully testified about feeling pressured to take drugs, have nonstop sex with escorts and deprioritize her work, for fear of Combs’ disapproval and cease financial contributions.
She said that “freak offs” would happen every week or every other week for much of their relationship and could last as long as three and a half days. In 2023, Jane said she texted Combs that she was feeling “disgusted with myself” after one night of fun had turned into their entire relationship. She wrote that she didn’t “want to lose the roof over my head” or “feel obligated to perform these nights with you.” At the time, Jane said Combs was paying her $10,000 rent.
Jane sobbed as she described one “hotel night” that happened as they celebrated her birthday in Miami in 2023. What was supposed to be a night for “just me and him” turned into Jane agreeing to have sex with three men consecutively to please Combs, she said.
“I just feel like at this point I’ve done so many of these,” she testified. “I just know how to tune it out.”
Diddy still pays for ex-girlfriend’s home
Jane testified that Combs paid her $10,000 a month in rent as part of a “love contract” that he proposed between them, and he also got her veneers. “Sean said, let’s do a love contract,” she said. “He asked me how much allowance I want going forward.”
There were gasps in the overflow room when Jane was asked who was paying her rent now and she responded, “Sean (Combs).” Combs is also still paying for Jane’s lawyer.
Cassie’s mom said she wired Diddy $20K
Regina Ventura, Cassie Ventura Fine’s mother, testified that she wired Combs $20,000 when the rapper was threatening to release sex tapes of her daughter. Ventura said the money came back to her four or five days after Combs pushed her to wire it to his company.
“He was angry that he spent money on her and that she had been with another person,” she said on the stand, going on to add that she sent the money because she “was scared for my daughter’s safety.”
Evidence in Diddy’s trial showed drugs in his hotel room, hundreds of baby oil bottles
Throughout the trial, prosecutors released evidence shown to jurors to the public. Pictures taken by federal agents showed the items in Combs’ possession up until his September 2024 arrest, which included hundreds of baby oil and lubricant bottles in his Los Angeles and Miami homes – uncovered during Homeland Security raids in March 2024 – as well as drugs found in his hotel room after he was taken into custody.
The government also presented photos of damage to a Porsche belonging to Kid Cudi, who testified about his belief that Combs was responsible for a Molotov cocktail that exploded in the car.
However, some evidence in the criminal case, including footage of Combs’ “freak offs,” was off-limits to the public and only shown to jurors due to the graphic nature of the content, which was deemed a privacy violation by the witnesses –Ventura Fine and Jane – who were shown in the videos.
Read on to see what prosecutors claimed was evidence of Combs’ criminal enterprise.
Raid of Diddy’s LA home revealed 900 bottles of Astroglide, bags of ketamine
On June 13, Andre Lamon from Homeland Security Investigations testified in Combs’ criminal trial that he and other agents found 900 bottles of Astroglide, 200 bottles of baby oil and multiple bags of ketamine while raiding Combs’ Los Angeles mansion. The jury was shown photos from the March 25, 2024, search through the sprawling estate.Below is what agents discovered at Combs’ multimillion-dollar Holmby Hills home.
On her third day of testimony, Ventura Fine also revealed the extent of her and Combs’ drug use in their decade together. Combs was once hospitalized due to “a very strong” opiate, she told defense lawyers, revealing the incident occurred around the time Whitney Houston died in February 2012.
Raid of Diddy’s Miami home found cocaine, guns, sexual enhancement product
In the third week of Combs’ trial on sex crimes and racketeering, Homeland Security Investigations special agent Gerard Gannon discussed his team’s March 2024 raid of Combs’ Miami estate.
He and fellow agents allegedly found drugs including ketamine, cocaine, MDMA, hallucinogenic mushrooms and heroin, as well as firearms, gun accessories, Johnson’s baby oil and Astroglide lubricant. A photo also showed a product promoted and sold for sexual enhancement.
Diddy’s arrest: Baby oil, drugs found in NYC hotel room
On May 19, 2025, prosecutors released images of the belongings found in Combs’ hotel room after the embattled music mogul was arrested at a New York hotel on Sept. 16.The items included baby oil, lubricant, $9,000 in cash, prescription medication and drugs that tested positive for ketamine and MDMA.
Diddy’s baby oil use was known at his favorite hotels
Multiple witnesses’ testimony touched on Combs’ reported use of baby oil in “freak-offs.”
On May 22, for example, Frederic Zemmour, the general manager of the L’Ermitage Beverly Hills luxury hotel, walked jurors through logs of Combs’ stays at the celebrity-favorite institution. For one of Combs’ stays in 2015, the hotel’s documents said that the rapper “ALWAYS spills candle wax on everything and uses excessive amounts of oil,” and that his room should be placed “out of order upon departure for deep cleaning.”
The notes also said to “please authorize an extra $1000 when guest stays with us to cover any room damages.” A housekeeping note said to “monitor outside his room/down the hall to spray air freshener.”
Alleged Molotov cocktail tore up the inside of Kid Cudi’s Porsche
Kid Cudi took the stand on May 22 to reveal Combs allegedly broke into his home in December 2011 after finding out Cudi was romantically involved with Ventura Fine. When the “Pursuit of Happiness” musician arrived at his house, he noticed no one was inside but some of his belongings were in disarray.
Cudi said he received a call in January 2012 that his car was on fire, and jurors were shown photos of the destroyed vehicle. He later confronted Combs in a meeting, asking, “What about my vehicle?” to which Combs allegedly responded, “What vehicle?”
Combs’ team has repeatedly denied his involvement in the incident.
While cross-examining Los Angeles law enforcement officials on May 28, the defense cast doubt on Combs’ role by emphasizing police found a potential hit for female DNA on the bottle used in the car explosion.
Contributing: Gina Barton, Aysha Bagchi, Josh Meyer, Taijuan Moorman, USA TODAY staff
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence, RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline offers free, confidential, 24/7 support in English and Spanish via chat and at 800-656-4673.
If you or someone you know is a victim of domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233 or text “START” to 88788.
