-
Hurricane Polo strengthens to top category 5 off Mexico
-
Prada's skirts take centre stage as Milan Fashion Week begins
-
11 hurt as teen opens fire outside school in western Turkey
-
Quoin Pharmaceuticals Announces FDA Fast Track Designation for QRX003 for the Treatment of Peeling Skin Syndrome
-
UN chief says 'Big Oil' treats atmosphere as open sewer
-
Brazil's Flavio Bolsonaro turns scandal into poll gains
-
Tunisia says 2026 summer hottest on record
-
Republican senator seeks probe of Trump Jr Russian-funded wedding
-
England's Rashid out of Sri Lanka ODIs with hand injury
-
Memoir by Diana's brother goes on sale after rocking UK monarchy
-
Houthis accuse Saudi Arabia of deadly strikes as thousands flee
-
Newcomers South Korea face holders Italy in Davis Cup finals
-
Stocks climb as oil slides, AI buzz returns
-
Japan's Kojima sounds Marchand warning with Asian Games gold
-
India cricketers win in style as Afghan savours 'special' Games silver
-
England rugby star Pollock signs new Northampton deal
-
La Liga president hits out at Real Madrid refereeing 'conspiracy' claims
-
STARTRADER Expands Its Chinese Equity CFD Range with CXMT and Unitree Robotics
-
MEXC Launches “Real Stocks, Real Friends” with Rewards for Bringing Friends to Wall Street
-
MEXC Expands Opportunity Compass with Stock Trading Handbook to Help Crypto Users Build Investment Knowledge
-
Mbappe continues media push for Ballon d'Or recognition
-
England paceman Wood retires from international cricket
-
Stocks rise on AI buzz, oil prices cool
-
Magnificent Mandhana's 79 helps India to Asian Games cricket gold
-
India narrowly survive huge scare against minnows Japan
-
Marchand 'stressed' about racing Japanese rivals at LA Olympics
-
Missing F-35 fighter parts 'not sensitive', says Australia minister
-
Mobile boat clinics bring healthcare to India's remote islands
-
Cambodia showcases scams crackdown with global conference
-
Former India paceman Zaheer Khan named Chennai coach in IPL
-
Afghan cyclist who disguised herself as man wins Asian Games silver
-
Six-year-old Chinese girl sets world record with Rubik's Cube
-
Typhoon Dujuan leaves four dead in Japan, 45,000 houses without power
-
Swimming prodigy Yu, 13, says 'interviews way harder than racing'
-
G7 leaders condemn Houthi strikes on Saudi Arabia
-
Star coaches make their bows as Nations League returns
-
Google data centre sparks protests in Austria
-
Rams bounce back as Giants reel from Dart injury
-
Shin Ohashi: Junk food-loving teen and Japan's next big swimming hope
-
In Bangladesh, Pakistan's Jinnah photo stirs anger
-
Stocks rise on AI buzz, drop in oil prices
-
Two New Zealand naval ships transit Taiwan Strait
-
China's robot dancers limber up for America's Got Talent final
-
Zidane gets down to work as France start new era
-
Despite military might, Saudi struggles to crush the Houthis
-
Inside the Venezuelan prison meant to 'drive you insane'
-
Trump to tout deals, defend Iran war in UN speech
-
UK king braces as memoir by Diana's brother goes on sale
-
Sri Lanka to issue verdict in landmark Easter attack trial
-
MicroVision Introduces Advanced Photonics Technology for Next-Generation AI Data Center Scale-Up Architecture
Combs's ex to face scrutiny on the stand from music mogul's defense
Sean Combs's defense lawyers on Tuesday will question a woman who dated the music mogul up until his arrest, and who has testified in agonizing detail that he pressured her into drug-fueled sex with escorts.
After three days on the stand the woman speaking under the pseudonym Jane will face intense scrutiny from defense lawyers who have insisted that what prosecutors deem sex trafficking was in fact consensual.
Jane told jurors how the final year of her relationship with the artist known as "Diddy" exploded into violence in June 2024.
At the time Combs was already under investigation by federal authorities; his homes had been raided, and the now-infamous security footage of him assaulting his ex-girlfriend Casandra Ventura in a hotel was public.
Throughout her testimony Jane, who began seeing Combs in early 2021, detailed how she had longed for a more traditional romantic relationship with him.
But she said 90 percent of their time together resulted in sometimes days-long sex parties that saw Combs direct her to have sex with male escorts while he watched, even as she told him the encounters made her feel "sleazy" and "disgusted."
The June 2024 date at home was meant to be a chill night in, she said, but she and Combs got into a fight over his relationship with another woman.
The argument escalated when Jane said she pushed Combs's head onto a marble countertop and began hurling candles.
"I was angry with him," Jane said. "It was a built-up mix of everything... I just kept saying that I hated him."
Combs was livid: Jane told jurors he kicked down doors and ultimately put her in a chokehold.
She managed to run out of the house barefoot but upon returning hours later he was still there. He kicked and punched her until she had a black eye and "golf-ball" sized welts, she said.
Combs instructed her to ice the injuries and "put an outfit on."
Jane told jurors that she put on the requisite heels and lingerie for a so-called "hotel night" with Combs and a man he had invited.
Through tears Jane said Combs gave her ecstasy and demanded she have sex with the man, and when she protested he said "you're not going to ruin my fucking night."
When she said again she didn't want to participate, he stood closely to her face as he asked in a "forceful" tone: "Then is this coercion?"
Jane ultimately complied, and gave the escort oral sex: "I just felt like I wasn't even in my own body," she said.
Jane told jurors Combs paid for her rent at the time and still does. He also continues to fund her legal costs.
- 'Sexual trauma' -
When Ventura -- who last month testified of physical and psychological abuse in similarily excruciating detail -- filed her 2023 civil lawsuit that opened the door for a federal investigation, Jane said she "almost fainted."
"There was a whole other woman feeling the same thing," Jane said.
"I feel like I'm reading my own sexual trauma. It makes me sick how three solid pages, word for word, is exactly my experiences and my anguish," she messaged Combs, in text records read in court.
After weeks of back-and-forth, Jane said Combs called her a "con artist," and threatened to show sexually explicit videos to the father of her child.
She had previously testified at length that she felt "obligated" to participate in hotel nights for "fear of losing the roof over my head" that Combs was bankrolling.
Jane said that following their physical fight in the summer of 2024, they saw each other twice more before his arrest last September.
The 55-year-old faces life in prison if convicted of racketeering and sex trafficking.
Jane's story was not in the original indictment against Combs, but she was added after receiving a subpoena requiring she testify in November 2024 before a grand jury.
She began speaking to prosecutors in January of this year.
Jane testified that she told Combs's defense team about the brawl last summer before she told prosecutors.
She said she felt "obligated" to meet the defense team "due to my relationship."
Jane has not filed any civil suit against Combs, and said in court Monday she has no plans to.
"I just pray for his continued healing," she told jurors, "and I pray for peace for him."
The Manhattan federal trial is expected to last several more weeks.
F.Moura--PC