On the 24th day of Sean “Diddy” Combs’ federal racketeering and s3x trafficking trial in New York City, a paralegal specialist from the U.S. Attorney’s Office took the stand to detail evidence supporting the prosecution’s claims about Diddy’s alleged orchestration of “freak-offs”, drug-fueled s3x parties involving escorts and assistants.
Ananya Sankar, who works as a paralegal for the Southern District of New York, testified Monday, June 16, about her role in reviewing and verifying hundreds of pages of evidence related to the case. The material includes text messages, audio recordings, and travel logs involving Diddy, his former assistants, and women who were allegedly trafficked under the guise of personal relationships.
Among the evidence presented was a December 2019 exchange between Ryan Lopez, a former assistant, and Kristina Khorram, Diddy’s former chief of staff. Lopez had texted Khorram about seeing a male escort, whom he referred to as “one of the cowboys”, in a hotel lobby. Khorram responded with four laughing emojis and asked, “how long is he going to stay awake?”
Jurors were also played a recorded audio conversation dated January 30, 2023, between Khorram and another former assistant, Dave Shirley. The two discussed preparations for a night at a Four Seasons hotel, with Khorram warning, “Heads up, he’s about to do wild king tonight.” Shirley responded about picking up money and “reupping on baby oil,” a recurring item in testimony related to the events in question. Khorram also texted to “ask them if they can bring up 15 bath towels.”
The court was shown additional text exchanges concerning travel arrangements and hotel stays for “Jane,” a former girlfriend of Combs who testified under a pseudonym to protect her identity. Messages between Diddy, Khorram, and Jane included discussions about frequent damage charges at hotels and the need to transport large sums of cash.
Prosecutors allege these preparations were routine for “freak-offs”, which they describe as extended s3x sessions involving Diddy, his girlfriends, and male s3x workers, often requiring assistants to furnish rooms with baby oil, candles, and other items. In May, a hotel manager testified about the unusual condition of Diddy’s rooms, which frequently required deep cleaning due to “spilled candle wax” and “excessive amounts of oil.”
A text message from December 2023, also shown to jurors, revealed Jane claiming that Diddy had threatened to release s3x tapes of her. “He said that he would expose me and send them to my child’s father,” the message read. Similar allegations were previously made by Regina Ventura, the mother of singer Cassie Ventura, who testified that Diddy had threatened to release explicit material of her daughter.
The trial also saw a procedural development Monday morning when Judge Arun Subramanian dismissed Juror Number 6 over inconsistencies in their reported residence. The juror was replaced by an alternate, a 57-year-old Westchester County resident, reportedly married with two children.
Diddy has denied all charges against him. The trial continues.
