Authorities search for multiple inmates who escaped from jail in New Orleans

Authorities search for multiple inmates who escaped from jail in New Orleans

Multiple inmates have escaped from the the Orleans Parish Jail in New Orleans, Louisiana, police said May 16. Officials at the city jail discovered that inmates were missing during a "routine headcount" conducted Friday morning, the Orleans Parish Sheriff's Office's said in a statement. Louisiana State Police said one of the missing detainees had been located and apprehended in the French Quarter, a busy tourist area in New Orleans. "Troopers continue to work closely with our local, state, and federal partners as the search remains active for the remaining escapees. Our priority remains the safety of the community and the swift apprehension of those still at large," state police said in a statement. The Sheriff's Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. This is a developing story. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Authorities search for inmates who escaped jail in New Orleans

byKonstantin Pynzar

in

May 16, 2025

Authorities search for multiple inmates who escaped from jail in New Orleans

Authorities search for multiple inmates who escaped from jail in New Orleans Multiple inmates have escaped from the the Orleans Parish Jail ...

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Kremlin says a Putin-Trump meeting on Ukraine is essential but needs advance preparation and must yield results

Kremlin says a Putin-Trump meeting on Ukraine is essential but needs advance preparation and must yield results

MOSCOW (Reuters) -The Kremlin said on Friday that a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump was essential to make progress on Ukraine and other issues, but needed preparation and had to yield results when it happened. Russian and Ukrainian negotiators were meeting in Istanbul on Friday in their first direct peace talks in more than three years, under pressure from Trump to end Europe's deadliest conflict since World War Two. Wrapping up his Gulf tour earlier on Friday, Trump said he would meet Putin "as soon as we can set it up", a day after saying that "nothing's going to happen until Putin and I get together". U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also said on Thursday that the only way a breakthrough in the efforts to end Russia's war in Ukraine would happen would be through direct talks between Trump and Putin. Asked about Rubio's comments, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday: "There is no doubt that contacts between President Putin and Trump are important in the context of the Ukrainian negotiations. We, of course, agree with this thesis. The importance of this cannot be overstated." Putin and Trump have spoken by phone, but not met since Trump returned to the White House in January, despite both leaders expressing their desire for face-to-face talks. Peskov said Moscow wanted a Putin-Trump summit, but that such a meeting needed considerable advance preparation to ensure it was a success. "A summit must be set up. And it must be results-oriented because a summit is always preceded by expert negotiations, consultations, and long and intense preparations, especially if we are talking about a summit between the presidents of the Russian Federation and the United States of America," he said. "...Such a meeting is certainly necessary. It is necessary both primarily from the point of view of bilateral Russian-U.S. relations and from the point of view of having a serious conversation at the highest level about international affairs and on regional problems, including, of course, about the crisis around Ukraine," Peskov added. Commenting on the Istanbul talks, Peskov said that the Russian negotiating team was in constant communication with Moscow and that Putin, who was holding a meeting of his Security Council on Friday, was receiving real-time updates. Asked about a Bloomberg report that Washington was proposing to revive the NATO-Russia Council, a forum for military and political dialogue whose work was suspended after Putin sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in 2022, Peskov said there had been no substantive proposals on the subject. "It is difficult to talk about the resumption of any kind of partnership or any kind of dialogue at a time when NATO, when the North Atlantic Alliance, is practically at war with the Russian Federation," said Peskov. "Although all issues related to security and stability on the European continent must of course be discussed. And we need to start doing this as soon as possible." (Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Andrew Osborn, Maxim Rodionov and Anastasia Teterevleva; Editing by Alex Richardson)

byKonstantin Pynzar

in

May 16, 2025

Kremlin says a Putin-Trump meeting on Ukraine is essential but needs advance preparation and must yield results

Kremlin says a Putin-Trump meeting on Ukraine is essential but needs advance preparation and must yield results MOSCOW (Reuters) -The Kremli...

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Israeli and Syrian official hold rare direct talks, Israeli source says

Israeli and Syrian official hold rare direct talks, Israeli source says

Israel and the new Syrian regime have recently held direct talks, according to an Israeli source familiar with the matter – an indication of shifting dynamics between the former enemies as Israel expands its military presence in the country. The talks were held in Azerbaijan and were attended by the chief of the Israeli military's Operations Directorate, Maj. Gen. Oded Basyuk, the source said, adding that Basyuk met with Syrian government representatives in the presence of Turkish officials. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) would not confirm or deny that the talks in Azerbaijan took place, but did say that there have not been any direct talks between IDF officials and representatives of the Syrian government. CNN has reached out to the Turkish government for comment. Interim Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa said last week that his government was holding indirect talks with Israel to bring an end to its attacks on his country "so matters don't reach a point where both sides lose control." There's been no word from Damascus on any direct talks with Israel. The source did not disclose the topics of the meeting, nor who was mediating. Channel 12 in Israel was the first to report the meeting. This week, US President Donald Trump met Sharaa – a former jihadist who was designated a terrorist by the US in 2013 – in Saudi Arabia. Trump pledged to remove crippling sanctions imposed against the regime of Bashar al Assad. Assad was overthrown in an uprising led by Sharaa and fled Syria in December. The White House said that Trump urged Sharaa take a series of measures, including normalization with Israel, expelling foreign and Palestinian "terrorists," and helping the US to prevent the resurgence of ISIS. Since the Assad regime fell, Israelhas taken more territoryin Syria and staged multiple attacks that it says are aimed at preventing the reconstitution of military capabilities and rooting out militancy that could threaten its security. Israel's move into Syrian territory was initially described as temporary but officials have since said that the military will remain indefinitely. Israel has also declared a buffer zone in the south of Syria with the stated aim of protecting Syria's Druze minority. It also occupies the Golan Heights, which it captured from Syria in the 1967 war and later annexed. The US Treasury said Thursday it was working to Trump's direction on Syria sanctions and aims to implement "the necessary authorizations that would be critical to bringing new investment into Syria." It added in a post on X that the "Treasury's actions can help rebuild Syria's economy, financial sector, and infrastructure and could put the country on a path to a bright, prosperous, and stable future." US Secretary of State Marco Rubio clarified that the US will issue waivers to Syria sanctions and is not fully repealing them for the time being. "As we make progress, hopefully we'll be in a position soon, or one day, to go to Congress and ask them to permanently remove the sanctions," Rubio said in Antalya, Turkey, adding that the Trump administration hoped to eventually repeal the waivers because the prospect of sanctions returning every six months is a deterrent to investment. An Israeli official told CNN earlier that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hadasked Trump not to remove sanctionson Syria, saying he feared it would lead to a repeat of the events of October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants attacked Israel. CNN's Mostafa Salem, Jennifer Hansler and Kylie Atwood contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account atCNN.com

byKonstantin Pynzar

in

May 16, 2025

Israeli and Syrian official hold rare direct talks, Israeli source says

Israeli and Syrian official hold rare direct talks, Israeli source says Israel and the new Syrian regime have recently held direct talks, ac...

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“Survivor 48” finalists reveal how they want to handle the jury (exclusive)

"Survivor 48" finalists reveal how they want to handle the jury (exclusive)

Robert Voets/CBS Getting to the end ofSurvivoris a massive accomplishment. But all the work can go down the drain faster than you can say Club Condo if you can't seal the deal with the jury at the final Tribal Council. It's where games are won and lost, and where legends are forged and cautionary tales are etched into the annals ofSurvivorlore. With that in mind, how do the final 5 ofKamilla Karthigesu, Kyle Fraser,Joe Hunter,Eva Erickson, and Mitch Guerra plan to approach the jury that will determine which one of them walks away with a million dollars on the May 21 season finale ofSurvivor 48?See what the final five toldEntertainment Weeklyout in Fiji right before filming began in terms of how they wanted to handle the jury. And also learn what the rest of the cast who never made it that far would have said if they had the chance. Robert Voets/CBS I want to be very thankful and appreciative of the opportunity. To me, relationships are the most important thing. So just want to be very sincere and be like, "Hey, getting to play this game with each of you has been incredible and something I will always to be thankful for. I apologize as if at any point you felt I was being malicious or ruthless to any of you y'all. It truly was incredibly challenging having to put all of y'all on the jury. But this has been a dream of mine forever. And at the end of the day, I'm here to compete as hard as I could. So I hope regardless of the outcome tonight, I just want each of you to know that I'm super thankful for each of you." Robert Voets/CBS One big thing for addressing the jury is I think I want to establish with them that I think that they should select who they want to win based on who outwit, outlast and outplayed. I think that in a previous season, they selected based on personality and what someone was going to do with the money. And I think that I need to make sure that the jury understands that they should be picking based ongameplay. So I think I would kind of make an emphasis on that and really be playing up the moves that I hopefully made and things I did in the game as my résumé. And if they did ask me about what I do with the money, I would just straight up tell them that it shouldn't matter. Robert Voets/CBS So here's my plan with the jury. First off, I've done some game film on this. So really starting back at season 40 when the dynamic of the game changed, all I did was watch the juries and each Tribal Council individually, and then I watched them back-to-back. And when you do that without watching the season, you forget some of the things that happened. So you get almost a real reaction as if you were a juror. And what these contestants are saying, and here's what my plan is with that, is I want to throughout the season not take it personal when someone writes my name down — take the emotion out of it and really look at what makes each person tick that's out there. And then try to use that to my advantage at these Tribal Councils by connecting with each one of them while being authentic. And specifically, when we get to the end, I want to use my intellect in the game and take the emotion out of it by not attacking them, but get them to buy into the fact that, "Hey, you're a great player also and you're there and I had a part in putting you there, and you're so great. Nobody else could do that." So, in a weird way, give them these compliments, fill their cup up to think, "You know what? He's right, Iama badass and only he could beat me. Why not give him a vote?" So almost in a weird way, turn this instead of me against you into "Hey, you're Michael Jordan, you had a bad game, you had a bad moment. I just took advantage of it. So wouldn't you want to see me win as the best option you got right now?" Robert Voets/CBS I'm hoping that at this point I have a good understanding of what each jury member needs. Do these people need their ego stroked, or will they will respect good gameplay and respect me being harsh? I think at the end of the day, you always hear that people are just like, "If you did this, own it. Own it and we'll be okay with it." So I want to be able to own whatever I do. Some people I might need to own it and also pat their ego a bit, but I do want to own whatever I do. At the end of the day, if my strategy was something stupid that hurt a lot of people, I'm still going to own it and be like, "Yes, this was my strategy. I'm sorry it hurt you." But I think a problem with a lot of people who make it the final three is they just don't own the thing and they try to cover it up and make excuses, but that's not what the jury really is looking for. Robert Voets/CBS In a perfect world, I would get this stereotypical question of "Were you playing me? Were you who you said you were this entire time?" And I'll have to say, "No, I'm actually a lawyer." But even when I'm giving you this hypothetical question, it's more so like, "Are you this evil person who's been just tricking people this entire time?" And I want to tell people no. Usually that response to no backfires. Usually the jury's looking for the, "Yeah, I was a villain and I played hard and I tricked all of you." But I want to be able to tell the jury I connected with each one of you, not just personally, I'm not coming at you from a social perspective, but I met you where your game was at. I played the type of game that you wanted to play. And I think that's what's beautiful about this. People want to play the game the way that they want to play it. So if I play this game the wayIwant to, then I can look every jury member in the face and say that, "Hey, I playedwithyou. I played the fun game that you wanted to play. I met you where you're at because that's who I am. I love people and that's what got me here. You can think it's slimy, you can think whatever you want, but you authentically got me." And I think that's going to come across. I'm not saying I'm not going to lie or anything like that, I'm going to play as hard as hell. But I think that for me is going to look like really, really, really getting in with people so when they get voted out, it's going to hurt and I'm going to need to account for that. Robert Voets/CBS You have to be authentic. You have to own the exact thing that you did and why you did it. Because the people that really win, especially if it's a contentious Tribal, are the people that really own their game. They are authentically themselves and they really drive at what motivated them, what was going on, why they made the moves they made, even when they made moves that were stupid, admitting they made mistakes. I think that is where I really take the cake is I have no problem learning from my mistakes, admitting that I made them, and moving right through them. I attack them. You have to attack people's perceptions of you and explain to them what the hell's going on. Robert Voets/CBS The way that I want to talk to the final jury is just with brutal honesty. I'm not going to try to spice things up or dull things down because there's no point in trying to deceive people who just want an honest answer. I feel like more than anything, it's not even what I say — whether or not what I'm saying is something that they believe because it's true. Robert Voets/CBS If I'm in the final three, I already won because guys like me, we don't get to the final three. So if I did get to the final three, I'm already going to have a résumé that speaks for itself, let's be honest. And so all I have to do is just rely on that résumé and point out to the fact that guys like me do not make it to the final three. Why then am I standing here? It's pretty much going to be a pretty simple pitch regarding that. Robert Voets/CBS I don't think I'm trying to overanalyze what I'm going to say at the jury. If anything, I want the genuineness and the authenticity of who I am to come across. I want every single person on that jury to feel like they got to know me, they like me, and they trust me, and that's why they want to give me a million dollars. Robert Voets/CBS Well, so here's the thing. I feel like my gift and my curse is that I have this weird thing where people feel closer to me than I feel to them. So I feel like jury management might be an issue for me because I feel like I could look like someone who's just backstabbed everybody that was close to me. So if we get to final Tribal, I'm going to have to be really cognizant of that. And also, you can't belittle a jury. So I need to acknowledge everything that I did and own it and hope that they can just see past it and know that I was playing a game and that none of it was personal. Robert Voets/CBS My whole thing and my whole everything is just being me, being my authentic self. If I'm going to talk mess or talk s--- about you, just know after I talk s---, I'm going to come back and tell you, "Hey, I just said this about you." So nothing is thrown off. And I feel like when people are sitting on the jury, they're still a little upset. They have so much built up in them, they want to get everything out, but they can't. And so my thing, I want to be sure that whatever I say to the jury doesn't ruffle any feathers, but it is still my authentic self. So if somebody in the jury wasn't working their ass off, I'll still tell them they weren't working their ass off. And maybe me telling them that might cost me the million dollars, but I got to keep it real. I don't want to kiss nobody ass while I'm sitting here. I'm not going to beg for the million dollars. I'm not going to ask nobody to just hand it to me. I'm going to say what I need to say. And if they still feel at the end of the day after I said what I said, I still deserve that million dollars, then I'll take it with my hands open wide. But my whole thing is not to sugarcoat. I don't want to kiss nobody ass for the money. I just want to get it the natural me way. Robert Voets/CBS I think it was Maya Angelou who said something along the lines of: People don't remember what you did, but they remember how you made them feel. And I think that's exactly how I want to playSurvivor. For me, the way that I approach this game is all about relationships. It's all about connection. These people are going to be the ones who are going to dictate if you're going to win a million dollars or not. So for me, I have to make them feel like they were also a part of my journey and if they vote for me, then that's also a representation of our journey together. So I'm trying to do that already before the game starts — just smiling, being a very good social person. I never want to piss anyone off by being annoying, by being rude, condescending. I want to be a really happy-go-lucky person that makes people feel good. I think if I can make them feel good, they're going to feel good voting for me. Robert Voets/CBS I've thought about this a lot because I've been manifesting that I am in those final three seats. I want to just be genuinely me. I want to talk about what I assume will be my social game, which is what got me to the end, also my strategic brain, but really just own everything that I did. I can't stand when people go up there and don't own the way that they acted. So if I piss someone off, if I lie to someone, I will address that on the jury. I'm not going to hide it or pretend I didn't do it, and I'll just say, "It was gameplay. That's me. That's how I operated." So I guess the philosophy would be just utter transparency and complete ownership of the way that I played the game. And I have to say, I felt likeKenzieknocked it out of the park at final Tribal. I was equally devastated thatCharlielost and equally ecstatic that Kenzie won. I loved them both so much and I felt like she just went in there and held the bull by its horns and just owned it and was herself in every answer. And I feel like that got her the win. So I'm going to try to do that too. Iwilldo that too. Robert Voets/CBS I think the way I want to approach the game and the jury is I want to be someone who people feel comfortable coming to. And I'm used to that in my daily life as the manager of Luigi's. If there's an argument between the kitchen staff and the drivers, they'll come to me and we'll figure out a solution together, the three of us. Or if someone upfront is fighting with the customer because the order was wrong and they don't want to do a refund, the three of us will do the same thing. We'll come together, we'll find a solution. So I think that's the approach I want to take, and I want people to feel comfortable coming to me and hopefully giving me information — that's the most valuable asset to me, in my opinion in this game. I want to just harp on that to the jury. Obviously, thank them all for the experience. I think this is a really, really, really good cast. Just from looking at people and hanging around with them, not talking with them yet, obviously, but I do think that that's the best way for me to approach it. Robert Voets/CBS Well, I figured by the time you get to that point, they know you and you know them. They know your personal life. They know your friends and family. I am thinking there's a lot of time to get to know each other. And I have a lot of friends. I'm in my fifties, my mom's older. I'd like to take care of her. She's on food stamps and struggling to buy food. I would love to be able to help her. I have friends that just got diagnosed with cancer at home so I'd love to help my sick friends at home. So there's more than me winning money. It's me helping the people in my tribe. Robert Voets/CBS I've been thinking about it, because they always come out with these new difficult questions. Everybody's trying to one up one another. I think I'm going to take the approach of humanizing them. I feel like a lot of the times when the final three are there, they forget that at the root, these people are not just players. — they're players who have regular lives. So if I can humanize myself outside of the game, even though I had to show upinthis game, this is who I am outside of this game. And being apologetic along the way, maybe acknowledging some of the things that I did that were vicious and just being like, "I know I did that and I know this is how I showed up," and owning that. That's a biggie. I feel like a lot of people when they go through this game and they make really what some would call terrible human decisions, they don't go to the jury and acknowledge that they did that to someone and take ownership. I'd much rather take ownership for every single thing than I did, and you have respect for me, rather than walking away and never acknowledging that I actually hurt somebody who also has very valid reasons for wanting to win this show. Robert Voets/CBS I'm going to approach them with respect and with the context of this game because I'm going to approach them with very key moments that individually I've shared each one of them. I would've had a conversation, I would've known something about their life or their family or their wishes. And I'm going to use that as a bridge to say, "A part of me sitting here is because of you and you sharing your story with me." And that's going to show that we built that social connection and that we built not even just friendship in the game, but even outside of this game that's supersedes all of this. That's going to be the foundation of my conversation with them. And I'll be very explicit to say, "Yeah, thank you for sharing with me about that trip you took to Asia with your family," or "Thank you for sharing about that tragedy," and maybe not giving all details to kind of preserve some of that privacy for them. But I do want them to know that I'm listening, that I am engaged, and this is more than a game. This is really a relationship. This is a family that now I'm being blessed to have the opportunity to enter, and I want to show them that I'm listening and that's the reason why I'm sitting here convincing them to vote for me. Robert Voets/CBS Survivor, when you peel back every layer, is actually a really simple game. It is getting to the end. So not getting voted out, sitting next to two people you can beat. That's the magic of it. So you've got to really think about who are you playing against and who are you talking against at final Tribal. I also, I anticipate that my game will be an adaptable one. I am just as comfortable teaching children in New Orleans as I am advising VPs at the very large company that I work for. I expect that I will be able to talk to who is in front of me on the jury, and it will depend on who they are. And if you get a jury with a bunch of people who are emotional and pissed and proud, you got to talk to that. And you've got to find ways to acknowledge the feelings that they have that are so real. You've got to find a way to make the people who are getting voted out feel like they want to root for you. And there's going to be some compelling people here. I am so confident that the people who I'm playing against are going to be so compelling in their personal lives, so you've got to find a way to make yourself compelling too. Sign up forEntertainment Weekly's free daily newsletterto get breaking news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more. Read the original article onEntertainment Weekly

byKonstantin Pynzar

in

May 16, 2025

“Survivor 48” finalists reveal how they want to handle the jury (exclusive)

"Survivor 48" finalists reveal how they want to handle the jury (exclusive) Robert Voets/CBS Getting to the end ofSurvivoris a mas...

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Diddy trial updates: Cassie threats, Diddy's jealousy over Chris Brown, more revelations

Diddy trial updates: Cassie threats, Diddy's jealousy over Chris Brown, more revelations

Attorneys forSean "Diddy" Combsare honing in on his turbulent relationship withCassie Venturaafterharrowing testimonyon the hip-hop mogul's alleged abuse. Cross-examination in Combs'sweeping federal sex-crimes trialresumed in Manhattan court on May 16. Combs' legal team grilledCasandra "Cassie" Ventura Fineon what lawyers have called her own history of domestic violence, as well as claims that she was motivated by money to get back at him. Combs dated Ventura Fine in the mid-2000s, and their relationship spanned a decade. The two became involved professionally and sexually when Ventura Fine was 19 and Combs was 36. Despite Ventura Fine's allegations that Combs coerced her into participating in drug-fueled "freak-off" parties — dayslong sexual performances that federal prosecutors have accused Combs of orchestrating — Combs' attorneys on May 15 attempted to paint a picture that Cassie was in control of her situation. The defense showed emails and text messages from early in Combs and Ventura Fine's relationship, where they professed love for each other and she sought more attention from him. Combs, 55, wasarrested in September 2024on charges of sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges. Diddy on trial newsletter:Step inside the courtroom as music mogul faces sex-crimes charges. Ventura Fine revealed that in 2024 she had gone to Willow House – an Arizona addiction treatment center – for rehab, where she had no phone as part of the facility's rules for her 45-day program.She also revealed she has been taking buprenorphine for opiate addiction since 2022. Ventura Fine said she wrote her book after treatment, and that while she began writing while at Willow House, "It wasn't really an idea."Ventura Fine confirmed that the center treats sex addiction, sexual compulsion and love addiction, but she was not treated for any of those during her stay. She said she received neurofeedback therapy, which involves putting an electrical device on her head. She said she "probably" did this five or six times, about once a week, while she was there, explaining she believed the therapy was meant "to help me with my trauma."She also didEMDR therapyduring her stay and said it was part of the trauma treatment to help her recount memories and process them. Some of the treatment involved reimagining a traumatic experience, which she likened to imagining walking out of a room if previously you were being beaten up in that room and couldn't leave. In November 2018, when Diddy's exKim Porter, who is the mother offour of Combs' seven children, died unexpectedly from pneumonia, Ventura Fine flew to Georgia and attended her memorial service. While there, Combs texted her asking why Ventura Fine left the service without saying goodbye. Ventura Fine responded, insisting that she did. "I know how crazy and painful all this is," Ventura Fine texted, but "you posted that Kim was your soulmate. What was the 11 years all about?" The defense asked whether Ventura Fine found that "extremely hurtful" and she said "yes." Ventura Fine never saw Combs again after that. He tried to get in touch through mutual friends, but she rebuffed his advances. As questioning continued, the defense tried to poke holes in the timeline of the Diddy's alleged rape of Cassie, as she noted in herNovember 2023 lawsuit. On Aug. 21, 2018, Combs texted Cassie, "I know I look bad to you. I didn't turn you on yesterday. I fell off.""You saw Mr. Combs the day before this message?" Estevao asked Ventura. A few days after, she texted back, "I'm so heartbroken." Combs responded, "Me too. Have a good night."The implication was that they had a breakup conversation within those few days. However defense attorneys said that in a November 2023 conversation with prosecutors, Ventura Fine said this incident occurred after Combs got home from Burning Man in September 2018.In the interview, she described going to dinner with Combs before the alleged rape; saying that he was "acting strangely" and that he "seemed anxious.""You told the prosecutors you didn't think Mr. Combs was in his right mind" because he wouldn't stop when she told him to, Estevao said. According to the defense, Ventura Fine told prosecutors in April 2025 that the rape occurred in August 2018, seemingly differing from what she told them a year and a half prior. Asked about what she said in her civil suit about the rape, Ventura Fine testified that they had dinner at an Italian restaurant before the alleged rape. She said she didn't remember if she said he "forced" himself into her home in the lawsuit. She was then asked if she wondered whether Combs was in a bipolar episode during the rape, and she confirmed that she did. Combs' lawyer asked about her feelings for Combs in September 2018, with her saying, "There were still feelings there." As for her feelings for Combs now, she said, "I don't hate him," and "I have love for the past and what it was." In 2018, Ventura Fine broke up with Combs, the same year she started dating now-husbandAlex Fine. During her cross-examination, she didn't confirm a specific date. She did confirm, though, that she told Combs previously that "it was over" despite eventually getting back together. Ventura Fine confirmed she and Combs still communicated somewhat after they broke up in 2018. "Can I not get a chance to get things right?" Combs texted. "It seems like you're blaming everything on me." Ventura Fine said she needed to talk to her family because she needed their support and that he took care of her financially, but not in other ways. "I just don't trust anymore," Ventura Fine texted, "You wanted me to be a machine and forgive you every time." In the break-up timeline discussion, Cassie said in a text referring to Combs' ex-girlfriend Gina Huynh, "That was the last shot, put the nail in the coffin" and that "she never went away" after seeing a photo of Huynh and Combs together, noting that Combs continued to get back with Huynh and cheat on Ventura Fine in past years. Dawn Richard, a former member of girl group Danity Kane, is expected to take the stand, according toNBC News. Richard worked with Combs beginning in the early 2000s, first on his MTV reality show "Making the Band," then with Danity Kane and later after the group disbanded with the musical trio Diddy – Dirty Money. In 2024,Richard sued Combsfor sexual assault and battery, sex trafficking, gender discrimination and copyright infringement. In the lawsuit, the former Combs-run Bad Boy Records artist accused him of inhumane working conditions, including deprivation of food and rest, false imprisonment and groping. In the same lawsuit, Richard claimed she once witnessed Combs assault Ventura Fine. Aubrey O'Daycould testify in Sean 'Diddy' Combs federal sex-crimes trial Richard's fellow Danity Kane alumAubrey O'Day, once a rising star in Combs' orbit, has been subpoenaed to testify in his trial, according to a person familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly to USA TODAY. Combs formed Danity Kane with Aundrea Fimbres, D. Woods, Shannon Bex, Richard and O'Day. The pop group disbanded and reunited several times since their formation, most notably with O'Day being removed from the group in 2008, although she later returned. Later, O'Day became a fierce critic of her former boss and has publicly praised his ex-girlfriend Ventura Fine amid her testimony during the trial. In court May 16, jurors heard audio recorded by Ventura Fine at an unspecified date in which she threatens to have someone killed over videos they may have of a "freak off." Talking on the phone to someone she said had a video of her, she said: "The video of me touching myself is important to my life… You have it? Why won't you show me." "Where is it? You have it, or you don't have it?" she continued, asking the person who she was having sex with in the video and threatening to kill the person possessing the video. The argument continued to escalate with Ventura Fine saying she will cut him up and put him in the dirt, and claiming: "You don't understand. I will kill you because you're playing games with me. And it's not going to be blood on my hands. Someone else is going to do it." Asked whether Combs supported her in making sure that "freak off" videos wouldn't get released, she replied: "I would say for the most part, yeah." In another instance, Ventura Fine suspected that an escort named Jonathan Oddi was recording a "freak off." Ventura Fine said she told Combs about her suspicions, and Combs said, "I'll take care of it." "Had a sex video of you been released, that would have been embarrassing, right?" Combs' lawyer, Anna Estevao, asked. "For sure," Ventura Fine replied. In court, there were two instances discussed where Combs suspected Ventura Fine was cheating on him. "He found out you were dancing with another person in the entertainment industry? Do you remember the incident where he suspected you of dancing withChris Brown?" Estevao asked of a 2013 instance. Ventura Fine said she did not remember the incident, but she "was not dancing" with the singer. Estevao showed an exhibit to help jog Ventura Fine's memory, where Combs allegedly took the "Me & U" singer's phone after he suspected her of dancing with Brown. After looking at the evidence, Ventura Fine said, "It says that in the message, but I don't really remember it." Ventura Fine is close friends with Karrueche Tran, the actress and model who won a five-year restraining order against ex-boyfriend Brown in 2017. Michael B. Jordan, Dawn Richard,Lauren London and Mike Myers named in Diddy trial. Here's why There was another instance in August 2016 where Combs took Ventura Fine's phone when he suspected that she was dating someone else. Ventura Fine said, "At this point, we were not in a great place. I was dating someone else." But one day, while she was in a car with Combs, he asked her to unlock her phone to call her mom. When she unlocked her phone, he grabbed it and fled the vehicle. "There wasn't a fight. He was just gone," Ventura Fine said. "He was trying to get in it and read what was in my phone." A couple hours later, Ventura's mom called police because her daughter returned home with no phone. Then, the phone was eventually returned later that day. Estevao asked whether Combs went through Ventura Fine's phone and called someone. "I believe so. I wasn't there," Ventura Fine replied. "And that was a professional NFL player, right?" Estevao asked. "He was at the time. I don't know if he is now," Ventura Fine responded. Ventura Fine explained that she didn't consider it cheating and that Combs got very jealous and possessive when she started dating other people. "I don't know that I would call it cheating. When you're not with someone, it's not cheating. But that's a technicality in a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship," Ventura Fine said. As the defense team returned to the2016 hotel assault, they appeared intent on portraying Combs as heavily under the influence of drugs and alcohol. "You believe that Combs was blackout, right?" Comb's lawyer asked, reviewing text messages days after the incident in which the rapper wrote to Ventura Fine: "I'm so horny for you!!!" to which she responded, "You are? Why? What made you feel that way?" and "Not a good vibe." See the full Sean 'Diddy' Combsand Cassie hotel video On the stand, Ventura Fine said she found it "a little strange" that he would suggest having sex so shortly after the assault, adding sarcastically that her text about the vibe "makes sense." "We need a different vibe from Friday," she wrote in a text, to which Combs responded: "I don't even wanna do that again." She replied, "Lol, true." The court also saw photos Ventura Fine took of her face and enlarged lip after the incident. Estevao asked why Cassie took the photos, and Cassie responded that she didn't remember taking them. Sean 'Diddy' Combs overdosedin 2012 and was hospitalized, Cassie Ventura testifies In texts from December 2009,Ventura Fine told Combsthat for her to "be more open with the things I do in bed," she needed to feel like "this is my husband and the only one who will see this side of me." She went on to write that thealleged "freak offs" were starting to make her "feel a little dirty," adding that she was going "back and forth in my mind" about whether she wanted to do them. Ventura Fine explained on the stand that the "freak offs" became "a very integral part" of their relationship early on, but she wanted to develop the relationship more. Combs' attorneys argued this showed that she put deep thought into the "freak offs" and felt comfortable expressing her concerns to her then-partner. "At that time," she clarified. Diddy's lawyers read texts between the former couple in the early years of their relationship, includingextremely explicit messages, in court. In messages from August 2009, the couple discussed plans for a "freak off." Combs wrote, "When do you want tofreak off?" with Ventura Fine responding, "I'm always ready to freak off. Lolol." He wrote, "You tell me the day, you choose." In more texts from 2009, the court saw sexually explicit messages between them. In one message, Ventura Fine expressed eagerness to have sex, with Combs responding, "I can't wait to watch you. I want you to get real hot."On another occasion, she texted Combs how she anticipated being positioned during sex. The defense repeatedly sought topaint Ventura Fine as a jealous ex-partner. "This is about nature of relationships," attorney Marc Agnifilo said before she took the stand. "This is about jealousies." The defense said Combs needed someone to take care of him, and Ventura Fine was one of the only people who saw the "real" him. "You knew how special you were to him," the defense said, to which Ventura Fine responded, "Sometimes." Combs' lawyers noted that he lied to and cheated on Ventura Fine and let her down, but she "kept coming back to himfor 11 years." She paused before responding, "I wouldn't use 'coming back.'" Ventura Fine said she was in love with Combs, a "charismatic, big personality that everybody really loved," and described him as "sweet" and "caring" at times. Cassie's harrowing testimony,the myth of 'mutual abuse' and what domestic violence really looks like Combs' attorneys asked Ventura Fine aboutKim Porter, Combs' on-and-off partner from the 1990s into the 2000s. "Were you jealous of Ms. Porter?" Combs' lawyer Anna Estevao asked. Cassie replied on the stand, "I had some jealousy, yes." Porter is the late model who died in 2018 of pneumonia, as well as the mother offour of Combs' seven children. Jurors saw a series of texts from Cassie from 2013 in which she said she was concerned she was looking like a "side piece" and not Combs' partner. She was upset in the messages sent around the holidays, spurred by seeingPorter and Combswith their children and not being invited to family vacations and get-togethers. Ventura Fine touched on a connection to actorMichael B. Jordanas Combs' attorneys scrutinized Cassie's other relationships. Ventura Fine said Combs suspected that she was in a relationship with the Emmy-nominated actor after the pair broke up in 2015, perFox News. At the time of their split, the singer-actress was filming a movie in South Africa (Cassie starred in the musical drama "Honey 3: Dare to Dance," which was set in South Africa and reportedly concluded filming in December 2015.) Combs is facing federal sex-crimes and trafficking charges in a sprawling suit that has eroded his status as a power player and kingmaker in the entertainment industry. He wasarrested in September 2024and has been charged with racketeering, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. He haspleaded not guiltyto all five counts. Jurors were told in a questionnaire reviewed by USA TODAY, "The trial is expected to last about eight weeks." The trial will not be televised, as cameras are typically not allowed in federal criminal trial proceedings. USA TODAY will be reporting live from the courtroom. Contributing: USA TODAY staff This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Diddy trial updates: Attorneys grill Cassie on jealousy, threats

byKonstantin Pynzar

in

May 16, 2025

Diddy trial updates: Cassie threats, Diddy's jealousy over Chris Brown, more revelations

Diddy trial updates: Cassie threats, Diddy's jealousy over Chris Brown, more revelations Attorneys forSean "Diddy" Combsare ho...

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