The sex trafficking trial of music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs took a dramatic turn on May 12, 2025, as Daniel Phillip, a former stripper and male escort, delivered detailed and disturbing testimony as the prosecution’s second witness. Phillip testified about being paid to engage in sexual encounters with Combs’ then-girlfriend, Cassie Ventura, while Combs directed and observed the acts. His testimony also included accounts of witnessing alleged physical abuse by Combs against Ventura, painting a troubling picture of control and manipulation.
The trial, which commenced on May 12, 2025, at the Daniel Patrick Moynihan U.S. Courthouse in New York City, is anticipated to span eight to ten weeks. Diddy, 55, faces charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking, and transportation to engage in prostitution—charges to which he has pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors allege that since at least 2004, Diddy orchestrated a network that coerced women into commercial sex acts during drug-laced events dubbed “freak offs.”
Phillip, who is 41, testified second for the prosecution, providing testimony that also shook the courtroom to its core and visibly dismayed the family of Diddy. He testified about the first time he met with Ventura in 2012, wherein he was sent to the Gramercy Park Hotel with the expectation that he was going to a bachelorette party. But Ventura welcomed him instead, saying that Diddy had ordered a massage—the experience that quickly took a turn for the worse.
Phillip’s testimony is a critical component of the prosecution’s effort to establish this pattern, following the testimony of Israel Florez, a former security officer who presented surveillance footage of Combs assaulting Ventura in a hotel hallway in 2016.
Expecting to perform at a bachelorette party, he instead arrived at a New York hotel room where Ventura handed him $4,000 to have sex with her while Combs watched. This payment detail bolsters the prosecution’s claim that Combs facilitated these encounters, a key element of the sex trafficking charges.
According to Phillip, he was paid between $700 and $6,000 for each of several sexual encounters with Ventura, with Diddy present, watching, and occasionally masturbating.
“He’d tell me to step off and back off,”
When Assistant U.S. Attorney Maurene Comey asked, Phillip testified about Diddy’s instructions, indicating Diddy’s active role in controlling the interactions. Phillip further alleged that he witnessed Diddy physically abusing Ventura on multiple occasions and was once given MDMA during an encounter, painting a picture of a coercive, drug-fueled environment.
A particularly contentious moment arose when Comey asked,
“How many times, if any, were you told to urinate on Ms. Ventura?”
Phillip provided explicit accounts of Combs’ active role, including an instance where Combs instructed him to “apply more baby oil” during the sexual activity. This testimony underscores the prosecution’s portrayal of Combs as a bystander and an orchestrator of the “freak offs.”
Beyond the sexual encounters, Phillip described witnessing Combs throw a bottle at Ventura and drag her by her hair, incidents that left him frightened. Concerned for her safety, he urged Ventura to leave the relationship, warning her that she was “in real danger” if she stayed with Combs. These allegations align with claims from Ventura’s 2023 civil lawsuit against Combs, settled shortly after filing.
Combs’ defense attorney, Xavier Donaldson, challenged Phillip’s credibility during cross-examination. Donaldson questioned whether Phillip’s male strip revue “prohibited prostitution,” to which Phillip affirmed it did, potentially highlighting inconsistencies in his professional conduct.
The defense also elicited an admission from Phillip that he believed Ventura “was enjoying herself” during the encounters, a statement that may complicate the prosecution’s narrative of abuse. Additionally, Phillip recounted wearing a New York City Police Department t-shirt during one payment, a detail the defense might use to question the timeline or context.
Clarification is warranted on the payment arrangement: contrary to any potential misinterpretation, Phillip emphasized that Diddy, not Ventura, compensated him for these acts. This aligns with accounts from sources like The Washington Post and Variety, reinforcing the prosecution’s narrative of Diddy’s dominance over the alleged activities.
Phillip’s testimony builds on the 2016 surveillance footage, which left the courtroom “silent, as if disturbed,” showing Combs attacking Ventura. The prosecution frames these incidents as part of a “20-year pattern of abuse, violence, and sexual misconduct.”
Cassie Ventura, scheduled to appear for questioning on May 13, 2025, is thought to be the linchpin of the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily Johnson said Ventura would also discuss so-called abuses that include the defendant “stomping repeatedly on her face” in 2009, which may support Phillip’s version of the events.
Proceedings resume, with the court resuming at 9:15 a.m. on May 13, 2025. Phillip’s cross-examination picked up where they had stopped on the first day, while prosecutors are preparing to show videos and evidence found on Diddy’s phones. Ventura and some other victim witnesses are set to give their testimonies, perhaps bolstering Phillip’s allegations.
As the trial proceeds, outstanding questions—like Phillip’s answer to the question about urinating—will perhaps clarify the charges. Meanwhile, the defense of Diddy attempts to discredit the prosecution case and the witnesses’ credibility. The result is unclear in this dramatic legal showdown.