A woman testified on Wednesday in Sean “Diddy” Combs’s federal racketeering conspiracy and sex-trafficking trial that thehip-hop mogul dangled her from the balcony of a 17th-floor apartment in 2016.
Bryana Bongolan, a longtime friend of Combs’s former girlfriend, singer Casandra “Cassie” Ventura, told jurors in Manhattan federal court that in September 2016 Combs showed up unannounced one morning at Ventura’s Los Angeles apartment, where she was staying at the time, and began banging on the door.
Bongolan testified that at the time, Ventura was asleep in her bedroom. She told the court that in an effort to “act casual” she went to the apartment’s balcony.
Combs then entered the apartment, she said, telling the court that he then came up to her from behind, lifted her up, and placed her on top of the balcony’s rail.
Bongolan testified that Combs then told her several times, “you know what the fuck you did” but said that she was not aware what he was referring to.
“For a split second I was thinking about if I was going to fall, but for the most part he was yelling at me, so I was trying to answer him,” Bongolan, 33, told the jury.
She alleged that Combs held her on top of the balcony’s rail for about 10 to 15 seconds, before pulling her down and throwing her on to the balcony furniture.
At the time, Bongolan said that she was about 5ft 1in (155cm) tall and weighed between 100 and 115lb (45 to 52kg). Combs, Bongolan said, was “bigger”.
In court on Wednesday, jurors were shown photos Bongolan took that day which depicted bruises she said she suffered as a result of the incident, as well as her wearing a neck brace.
Bongolan testified that the incident left her with nightmares and paranoia. “I used to scream a lot in my sleep,” she said.
During cross-examination, Combs’s lawyer challenged Bongolan’s credibility, and questioned discrepancies in her accounts of the alleged incident.
Combs, 55, faces federal charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and transportation to engage in prostitution. Arrested in September 2024, Combs has pleaded not guilty to all five counts.
Federal prosecutors in Manhattan say Combs over two decades coerced women, including Ventura, to take part in drug-fueled sexual performances with male sex workers known as “freak-offs”.
The trial is in its fourth week.
Ventura, an R&B singer known as Cassie, told jurors last month that she was coerced and blackmailed into participating in the freak-offs she said were orchestrated and directed by Combs, and detailed the physical and emotional abuse she says she endured from Combs during their relationship.
During cross-examination of Ventura, Combs’s lawyers sought to portray her as a consenting participant in the freak-offs and argued that the sexual encounters were part of a “swingers lifestyle”.
Prosecutors with the Manhattan US attorney’s office say Combs and his associates used force and the threat of force to coerce women to take part in the freak-offs and to make sure witnesses to his abuse remained quiet.
Combs’s lawyers have acknowledged Combs’s history of domestic violence, but argue that women who took part in freak-offs did so consensually. His lawyers have argued that he is not guilty of sex trafficking or racketeering, and denied any criminal enterprise.
On Wednesday, Bongolan also told the jury that Combs and Ventura often had a volatile relationship. Bongolan said she saw Ventura with a black eye or bruises on multiple occasions. Once, Bongolan said she saw Combs throw a knife in Ventura’s direction at Ventura’s apartment.
Another time, on the beach in Malibu, California, Combs approached Bongolan and said: “I’m the devil and I could kill you,” Bongolan testified. She said she did not know why Combs told her that.
Testimony is due to resume on Thursday morning, and Bongolan is expected to return to the stand for more cross-examination.
If convicted on all counts, Combs could face up to life in prison.
Prosecutors have said they may finish presenting their case next week, allowing the defense to put on its case.
Reuters and the Associated Press contributed reporting.
In the US, the domestic violence hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). In the UK, call the national domestic abuse helpline on 0808 2000 247, or visit Women’s Aid. In Australia, the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. Other international helplines may be found via www.befrienders.org.
