Music mogul Sean 'Diddy' Combs allegedly choked Cassie Ventura's best friend, beat her with a hanger, and once tried to force his way into his former girlfriend's apartment using a hammer, all to control and track her, a court heard in shocking testimony on Monday.
Kerry Morgan, Ms Ventura's former best friend, detailed years of alleged abuse she either witnessed or experienced herself at the hands of the music mogul. Ms Morgan, 39, a model and personal assistant from Buffalo, New York, testified that Sean Combs attacked her from behind in Ventura's Hollywood Hills apartment in 2018, as per The NY Post.
"He choked me," she told the court, adding that he left "finger marks on my neck" before hitting her behind the ear with a wooden hanger.
"When I got up, he boomeranged a hanger at my head," she said. He was reportedly trying to find out "who Cassie was cheating on him with," Ms Morgan added, insisting, "I had no idea."
Ms Morgan said she went to an urgent care facility where she was diagnosed with a concussion. She recalled being dizzy and throwing up multiple times after the beating.
That incident, she said, ended her 17-year-long friendship with Cassie Ventura. Ms Morgan claimed that Ms Ventura accused her of "exaggerating" the incident when they met shortly after.
Though Ms Morgan initially planned to sue Sean Combs, she said she dropped the civil claim after he paid her $30,000 (over Rs 25 lakh). Ms Ventura allegedly asked her to sign a non-disclosure agreement during that meeting. "That was the last time we ever spoke," Ms Morgan told the jury. "I draw the line at physical abuse."
Ms Morgan also recounted a 2016 incident, following Sean Combs' now-infamous beating of Cassie Ventura at the InterContinental Hotel in Century City. She testified that she was at Ms Ventura's Los Angeles home the next day when he showed up with a hammer. "He was hitting the door with a hammer to try to open it," she said, describing the scene as "terrifying."
"I was freaking out. I don't think [Ms Ventura] cared if [Sean Combs] came in and killed her," Ms Morgan testified. She said Ms Ventura looked "numb" during the ordeal. Though police arrived about three hours later, no complaint was filed.
Ms Morgan also spoke about two earlier times she saw Sean Combs abuse Ms Ventura. The first happened in Los Angeles, where she saw him push her and maybe even hit her inside the main bedroom of his house. "We hid outside on a neighbour's front steps for 30 minutes," she said.
The second incident was in Jamaica in early 2013. Ms Morgan said Sean Combs got angry because Ms Ventura was taking too long in the bathroom. He allegedly dragged her about 10 feet across the floor. When Ms Morgan came back after picking up her purse, she saw Ms Ventura hit her head on a brick after he pushed her. "She didn't move," Ms Morgan said.
Ms Morgan also added that Sean Combs was extremely jealous, even when Ms Ventura was just talking to actor Michael B Jordan. "They weren't together anymore, and he was still jealous," she said. "I think she was trying to leave him."
Sean Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to all charges, including sex trafficking, racketeering, and transportation to engage in prostitution. If convicted, he could face life in prison.
The trial is set to continue on Tuesday.
