The trial of disgraced music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs began with footage of him beating, kicking and dragging his then-girlfriend, R&B singer Casandra “Cassie” Ventura.

The courtroom fell eerily silent as the gravity of the video showing Diddy beating Cassie in a hotel in 2016, one which the world had already seen, set in.

The trial’s first witness, Israel Florez, a police officer who was the security guard at the time, told the court that Combs had a “devilish stare” when he arrived at the scene.

“She just kept saying she wanted to leave,” Florez said, adding that he offered to call the police but didn’t because Ventura, who he described as having a “purple” eye, insisted multiple times she simply wanted to go.

Cassie is expected to take the stand on Tuesday.

Key witnesses and the evidence against Diddy

Evidence

Security video of Diddy beating and kicking Cassie in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016.

Witnesses

Israel Florez, who was working hotel security at the time, testified about responding to a report of a woman in distress and witnessing Diddy tell Cassie: “You’re not going to leave.” Florez said he told Combs, “If she wants to leave, she’s going to leave.”

Jurors on Monday also heard from Daniel Phillip, who said he was a professional stripper who was paid to have sex with Cassie while Diddy watched and gave instructions. He testified that he once saw Combs drag her by her hair as she screamed.

Cassie, who is expected to testify herself on Tuesday, was Diddy’s on-again-off-again romantic partner for more than a decade. Her 2023 lawsuit against Combs alleging years of abuse, including rape, began the scrutiny that eventually led to his prosecution.

Charges against Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs

Diddy has pleaded not guilty to one count of racketeering conspiracy, two counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, and two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution.

Prosecutors allege Sean Combs used his “power and prestige” as a music star to induce female victims into drugged-up, elaborately produced sexual performances with male sex workers in events dubbed “freak offs.”

They say he coerced and abused women with help from a network of associates and employees while silencing victims through blackmail and violence, including kidnapping, arson and physical beatings.

Diddy’s lawyer Teny Geragos, however, told jurors that prosecutors are trying to turn sex between consenting adults into a sex trafficking case.

“Sean Combs is a complicated man. But this is not a complicated case. This case is about love, jealousy, infidelity and money,” she said.

Prosecutors revealed shortly before trial that Sean Combs rejected a plea agreement that might have meant a lighter sentence than a conviction could. They did not disclose the terms of the proposed deal.

What the trial doesn’t cover

Since 2023, dozens of women and men have been filing lawsuits against Sean Combs, claiming he sexually or physically abused them. Many of those people said they were slipped drugs at events hosted by the music mogul and were abused while they were incapacitated.

Combs has denied all of the allegations through his lawyers.

Some of those lawsuits have claimed that other celebrities were either present for or participated in the abuse.

The great majority of those allegations, however, aren’t part of the criminal case, as the prosecutors chose to focus on a relatively small number of accusers and allegations where there is physical evidence or corroboration by witnesses.