On Thursday, May 22, Kid Cudi took the witness stand in the federal sex trafficking trial against Sean “Diddy” Combs. Cudi, whose real name is Scott Mescudi, was briefly in a relationship with Casandra Elizabeth “Cassie” Ventura, Diddy’s former partner, in 2011 that angered Diddy to the point of allegedly retaliating by blowing up Cudi’s car the following year. The racketeering conspiracy charge against Diddy accuses him of running a criminal enterprise for two decades, and this moment—Diddy’s associates setting fire to Cudi’s Porsche by cutting open the convertible top and dropping a Molotov cocktail inside—plays a key role in the case against the hip-hop musician and mogul.
After Cassie filed her initial lawsuit, in 2023, that began Diddy’s legal spiral, Kid Cudi, via a lawyer, confirmed that her recounting of his car’s explosion in February 2012 was “true.” Today’s appearance on the stand marked Cudi’s first public discussion of the incident and his role in the case. Diddy has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges against him. His lawyers argue that he was “simply not involved” in the arson allegations, in particular.
While on the stand today, Kid Cudi clarified the timeline during which he and Cassie began seeing each other in 2011. “We were friends and dated briefly,” said Cudi. “She and Sean Combs had some problems and they weren’t dating.” In December 2011, Cassie called Cudi early one morning to inform him that Diddy learned about their relationship and that he was “abusive” and “she didn’t know what [he] would do,” said Cudi. He drove over to pick her up and bring her to the Sunset Marquis, a boutique hotel in Los Angeles.
Cudi claimed that Capricorn Clark, one of Diddy’s staff members, called him while she was “on the verge of tears” to inform him that Diddy was at his Hollywood Hills home. Cudi immediately drove home and called Diddy, asking, “Motherfucker, are you in my house?” to which Diddy allegedly replied, “I just want to talk to you.” When Cudi arrived, his house was reportedly in disarray as if there was a break-in, the security cameras had been moved and didn’t work, Chanel gifts he purchased for his family were opened, and his dog was locked in the bathroom and “very jittery.” Cudi alleged that he called Diddy immediately because “I wanted to confront him, I wanted to fight him,” but ultimately decided to call the police and filed a report over the apparent break-in.
While spending the holidays when Cassie’s family in Connecticut, Cudi allegedly received a text message from Diddy asking to speak with him. “You broke into my house, you messed with my dog, I don’t want to talk with you,” Cudi allegedly replied. He said the relationship with Cassie ended shortly afterward.
