Regina Ventura, mother of Cassie, has testified that Sean Combs demanded $20,000 from her after learning about Cassie’s relationship with Kid Cudi.
The revelation came during Combs’ ongoing sex-trafficking trial on May 21st, where Regina spent approximately 40 minutes giving testimony, according to Rolling Stone.
According to Regina, Combs was furious upon discovering Cassie’s relationship with Cudi (real name Scott Mescudi) in December 2011. Regina recalled a letter her daughter sent detailing how Combs threatened to release videos from their intimate encounters and warned that someone might “hurt” both Cassie and Mescudi. Combs allegedly claimed he would be out of the country when this occurred.
“I was physically sick. I did not understand it, the sex tape threw me. He was trying to hurt my daughter,” Regina testified about her reaction to the letter.
Around this time, Regina stated Combs contacted her demanding $20,000 to “recoup money” he had spent on Cassie’s career. Regina and her husband were forced to take out a home equity loan to meet this demand, saying, “That’s the only way we could get the money.” She testified that she completed the transaction because she was “scared about my daughter’s safety” and because Combs “demanded it.”
Regina wired the money to a Bad Boy account following instructions from Combs’ bookkeeper. Approximately five days later, the money was returned to her account with no further communication regarding the funds.
Notably, Combs’ defence team declined to cross-examine Regina—the first witness in the case not subjected to cross-examination. While Combs has been actively engaged during the trial, he avoided looking at Regina when she entered the courtroom, and continued to ignore her attempts to make eye contact as she departed.
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During her testimony, Regina also described taking photographs of her daughter in December 2011 after Combs had allegedly assaulted her. “She was bruised, and I wanted to make sure that we memorialised it,” Regina stated, adding this was the first time Cassie had informed her about Combs’ physical violence.
Regina further testified about a “bitter argument” with Combs in August 2016 whilst visiting her daughter in Los Angeles for Cassie’s 30th birthday. The confrontation erupted when Combs allegedly “stole” Cassie’s phone outside her apartment. Despite a bodyguard standing between them, Regina recalled, “I was yelling, screaming, and trying to hit him but I wasn’t successful.” Eventually, Combs returned the phone but left in Cassie’s car.
The trial also featured testimony from David James, Combs’ former assistant, who described an incident where Combs allegedly took three handguns to confront rival Suge Knight. “I was really shook by it,” James testified. “This was the first time as his assistant that I realised my life was in danger.”
Additionally, Sharay Hayes, a male escort known as “The Punisher” who was hired for intimate encounters with Combs and Ventura, provided testimony about the “highly choreographed sexual encounters” where Combs would give Ventura “subtle directions” regarding everything from lighting to body positioning.
