Identity of ‘iconic’ rapper at alleged sex party remains a mystery at Combs trial
NEW YORK – The identity of an iconic rapper described as having ties to a male escort allegedly hired by Sean “Diddy” Combs for sordid sex parties remained a mystery during trial testimony Thursday.
The day’s proceedings began with a closed-door conference between Manhattan Federal Judge Arun Subramanian, prosecutors, and the mogul’s lawyers, who have argued in support of identifying famous people who may arise in the questioning of Combs’ accuser “Jane,” which is an alias.
Earlier this week, under questioning from the government, Jane described going to Las Vegas in January 2024 with a famous rapper, whose cousin she was friends with, and the rapper’s girlfriend. On the trip, she said she bumped into one of the many escorts Combs had forced her to sleep with, Antoine.
She said she walked in on him having sex with another woman while the rapper, his girlfriend, and others watched.
On Thursday, Combs’ attorney, Teny Geragos, shed more light on the rapper’s identity, referring to them as “iconic” and “very close to Mr. Combs.” She asked Jane if the public figure and his partner had discussed other male escorts with her.
“They were asking me if I knew anybody else in the lifestyle,” the witness said. “They were looking for someone.”
Jane previously testified that she didn’t participate in the Vegas sex party, but that Combs later accused her of cheating when he learned about it – reacting in a sadistic manner by forcing her to perform oral sex on Antoine. Her testimony followed almost three days of cross-examination and six days total on the stand.
The feds on Wednesday indicated they are near the end of their case against, Combs, 55, who has pleaded not guilty to sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, transporting individuals for prostitution, and related counts. The charges carry a potential decadeslong prison sentence.
Jurors have heard that the once larger-than-life figure in hip-hop, whose infamous annual “White Party” at his Hamptons estate hosted some of the most famous faces in the world, was for decades preying upon and sexually humiliating vulnerable young women in highly orchestrated hotel room performances he called “freak-offs.”
The drug-fueled sessions typically involved Combs masturbating in a corner while directing women to engage in dehumanizing acts with male escorts, witnesses have described.
The alleged victims subjected to “freak-offs” included in the government’s case – Jane and Casandra “Cassie” Ventura– each described an initial period of being showered with affection and promises of a serious relationship with Combs before he took off the mask of his public persona. They said they wanted desperately to have a normal, loving relationship, but he ultimately relegated them to playing one role in his life, in “freak-offs.”
Ventura, who was signed to Combs’ record label at 19 years old a year before she became involved with him, in 2007, said he got off on disgusting rituals like making escorts urinate in her mouth and requesting she privately massage their semen onto his chest. She described him as pressuring her into “freak-offs” when she was healing from his regular beatings and chronic medical issues resulting from the days-long “freak-offs,” like urinary tract infections, mouth sores and gastrointestinal problems.
Jane, a single mom when she met Combs, has described being in a toxic on-and-off-again relationship with him from 2021 through the lead-up to his 2024 arrest. Jurors have heard graphic testimony about him allegedly beating her in June 2024 when she confronted him about dating a much younger woman and then forcing her to perform oral sex on Antoine with a swollen head and developing black eye.
Combs has also faced allegations at the trial from a former assistant, testifying under the pseudonym “Mia,” who alleged he raped, sexually assaulted and imprisoned her against her will.
Combs’ legal team maintains that while he has beat women, he’s not charged with such and never pressured anyone into nonconsensual sex. They’ve sought to portray his accusers as driven by financial greed and victims of buyer’s remorse, not abuse.
In seeking to counter the defense’s narrative, prosecutors have elicited testimony from Ventura and friends of hers about Combs threatening to to release footage of her at “freak-offs” to keep her compliant. She and Jane said he threatened to render them homeless when they sought to exercise agency and in reams of correspondence shown in court told him they didn’t want to sleep with other men, testifying they felt obligated to fulfill Combs’ demands.
The Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office alleges Combs routinely brutalized women with help from high-ranking staff, members of a criminal enterprise who committed sex trafficking, kidnapping, arson, drug distribution, and other crimes.
Jurors have heard testimony from several witnesses about how Combs’ staff procured him drugs, supplies like baby oil for “freak-offs,” and set up and cleaned the hotel rooms before and after the events.