Sean 'Diddy' Combs' ex-aide says she was 'brainwashed'
Share this @internewscast.com
A former personal assistant to Sean “Diddy” Combs, who has accused him of rape, testified in court that she continued to send him affectionate text messages for years after her employment concluded in 2017. She explained that she did this because she felt “brainwashed.”

During her third day of testimony under the alias “Mia” at the music icon’s federal trial for sex trafficking, she used this term when defense attorney Brian Steel cast doubt on her story, even hinting that she might have made up her allegations.

Combs, 55, has entered a plea of not guilty to the charges of sex trafficking and racketeering. While his defense admits he could be aggressive, they assert that he never used threats or his high status in the music world for abusive purposes.

Sean Diddy Combs is accused of sex trafficking. (AP)

Attorney Steel asked Mia to read several affectionate text messages she had sent to Combs in front of the jury. Among them was a message from 2019, where she recounted a nightmare of being stuck in an elevator with singer R Kelly, and Combs came to her rescue.

“And the person who sexually assaulted you came to your rescue?” Steel asked incredulously.

He rephrased, asking if she really dreamed of being saved by a man “who terrorised you and caused you PTSD?” Prosecutors objected and the judge sustained it.

It was one of many objections during a combative cross-examination of Mia at the trial, now in its fourth week, during which several government witnesses have been treated more gently by defence lawyers and have even spoken positively of Combs.

Attorney Brian Steel. (AP)

In an August 29, 2020, message to Combs, Mia recalled happy highlights from her eight years working for him – such as drinking champagne at the Eiffel Tower at 4am and rejecting Mick Jagger’s offer to take her home – saying she remembered only “the good times.”

In the same message, Mia mentioned once feeling “bamboozled” by a woman. Steel asked why she didn’t say Combs had bamboozled her as well, given her accusations.

“Because I was still brainwashed,” Mia answered.

Asked to explain, Mia said that in an environment where “the highs were really high and the lows were really low,” she developed “huge confusion in trusting my instincts.”

Sean 'Diddy' Combs participates in "The Four" panel during the FOX Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour in Pasadena, Calif., Jan. 4, 2018.
Combs has denied the charges. (AP)

When Steel suggested her assault claims were made up, Mia responded: “I have never lied in this courtroom and I never will lie in this courtroom. Everything I said is true.”

She said she felt a moral obligation to speak out after others came forward with allegations against Combs.

“It’s been a long process. I’m untangling things. I’m in therapy,” Mia said.

Mia remained composed days after testifying Combs forcibly kissed her and molested her at his 40th birthday party soon after she started working for him in 2009, and months later raped her in a guest room at his Los Angeles home.

She testified last week that his subsequent sexual assaults were “random, sporadic, so oddly spaced out where I would think they would never happen again.”

Prosecutors criticised Steel’s two-day cross-examination, which has relied heavily on Mia’s social media history.

Assistant US Attorney Maureen Comey accused him of yelling at and humiliating the witness, and argued that picking apart years of her social media posts – including birthday greetings and praise for Combs’s business successes – was excessive and largely irrelevant.

“We are crossing the threshold into prejudice and harassing this witness,” Comey told the judge during a break, while jurors were out of the courtroom.

She warned that Steel’s approach during the high-profile trial could deter victims from testifying in other cases in the future.

Judge Arun Subramanian said: “I have not heard any yelling from Mr Steel and I have not heard anything that was sarcastic in the questions.” Still, he cautioned Steel about overusing questions about Mia’s social media posts praising Combs.

Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732).
Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like
A Punchbowl family is suing the Sydney Children's Hospitals Network after their daughter was left permanently disabled by a brain injury they claim she suffered in its care as a newborn in 2019.

Parents Allege Hospital’s Negligence Resulted in Daughter’s Permanent Disability

A couple from Punchbowl is taking legal action against the Sydney Children’s…

The $33 Issue That’s Driving Some Australians to Their Limits

A full‑time worker on the minimum wage has just $33 spare each…
Neighbours of luxury five-star hotel blindsided by social housing plan

Residents Near Luxury Five-Star Hotel Surprised by Social Housing Proposal

A five-star luxury hotel located in East Perth has been acquired by…
Australian $50, $20, $10 and $5 banknotes and dollar coins.

Important Tax Time Alert: 142,000 Australians Overlooked This ATO Warning Last Year

There is such a thing as being too organised when it comes…
Western Sydney University hacker

Former Student Accused of Series of Cyber Attacks on Sydney University

A former student has been charged over a series of cyber attacks…
Surfwear promoted by online retailer SurfStitch.

Australian Business Folds After Nike Sues for $237,000

Next week, the globe’s top sportswear brand will appear in court, pursuing…

‘He was everything to me: my future, my family, my home. When he was taken away from us, my spirit broke completely.’

Warning: this article includes distressing and violent details, as well as the…

Australians Head Home with Airports Reopening Amid Israel-Iran Ceasefire

Australian Or Kedem has packed his suitcase for what he hopes will…
Bowel cancer can cause blood in the stool, changes in bowel habits and unexplained weight loss

ZOE Diet Creator Prof Tim Spector Unveils Food Trend that Fights Bowel Cancer and Supports Weight Loss

One of the UK’s best-known diet experts has urged the public to…

Former Student Arrested for University Hacking: From Discount Parking to Data Sales

An attempt to save on parking allegedly put a university student on…
Robert F. Kennedy's new vaccine panel alarms pediatricians

Pediatricians Concerned Over Robert F. Kennedy’s New Vaccine Advisory Group

US Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr.’s newly appointed vaccine advisers have…
Police said Lucy Roberts, 39, frequently took jewellery home with her during the year she worked at a high-end shop

Glamorous Selfies Land British Woman in Jail for Diamond Theft

A former manager of a jewellery store in the UK has been…