Kid Cudi has taken the stand in Diddy‘s sex trafficking and racketeering trial.
Thursday, the ninth day of Diddy’s trial, began with George Kaplan returning to the stand. Kaplan, as previously reported, is alleged to have worked for Diddy as an assistant for a period of about two years. One day prior, Kaplan testified that part of his duties included cleaning up the locations where alleged “freak-offs” took place, per the Associated Press.
After Kaplan was cross-examined, Cudi was called to the stand. As reported by Matthew Russell Lee (a.k.a. Inner City Press on X), Cudi, as is standard, was first asked to specify his occupation.
From there, Cudi answered questions about the nature of his and Cassie’s “brief” relationship, testifying that the two started dating in 2011 after first meeting three years earlier.
In December 2011, per Cudi’s testimony, police were called to his home in connection with an alleged break-in attempt. That morning, Cudi said, he received a call from Cassie, at which point he picked her up. Cudi said he later called Diddy directly, who allegedly told him something to the effect of, per the realtime Inner City Press transcript, “I’m over here waiting for you.”
Upon arrival at his home, Cudi said he noticed that Chanel packages were open and his dog was “locked up” in a restroom. The impact of this alleged incident on Cudi’s dog was also discussed, with Cudi saying it led to the pet feeling “jittery.” Shortly after this discovery, Cudi said he again called Diddy, whom he wanted to “fight.”
Cudi elaborated on that instinct, saying on the stand on Thursday that he and Diddy spoke again on the phone, with Cudi saying that he expressed no desire to speak with him further due to him having broken into his house and harmed his dog. He and Cassie, meanwhile, ultimately broke up.
News of Cudi being called to testify was first reported by Complex’s Shawn Setaro, with two witnesses said to have been ahead of him as of May 20. Cudi’s name has come up several times throughout the trial, including during the testimony of Cassie Ventura’s mother, Regina Ventura.
Earlier into the trial, Regina alleged that she and her husband took out a home equity loan in 2011 in response to Diddy’s demand for $20,000 following his discovery of Cassie and Cudi’s relationship. That money, however, was further alleged to have been returned to the family within days.
Jurors were also shown an alleged email from Cassie to her mother. In it, she said that Diddy had threatened to release two sex tapes of her, as well as threatened to harm both her and Cudi. Elsewhere, the explosion of Cudi’s car, also mentioned in Cassie’s settled civil suit against Diddy, was alluded to during Cassie’s own time on the stand. In 2023, a spokesperson for Cudi was reported to have told the New York Times “this is all true” in response to mention of the 2012 car explosion.
While on the stand on Thursday, Cudi, as expected, was asked about this incident. According to Cudi, a Porsche of his was damaged by the use of a Molotov cocktail. Photos were shown in court, including one showing what was alleged to be a hole that had been cut into the top of the vehicle to insert the Molotov cocktail. Cudi said his dog-sitter was who first alerted him to the car being on fire, a blaze he later said he believed to be “intentional.”
During a later meeting, Cudi said he mentioned the Porsche fire to Diddy, who responded by claiming he knew nothing about it. Brian Steel then cross-examined Cudi, who affirmed to the frequently-in-headlines attorney that he had been “played” during his and Cassie’s brief relationship.
