Sean 'Diddy' Combs paid to hide Cassie beating video, court told

Soon aft viciously attacking his longtime woman Cassie successful a US edifice hallway, Sean "Diddy" Combs sought retired a information defender and predicted accurately that his iconic profession would beryllium ruined, his image arsenic nan affable, successful "Puff Daddy" destroyed, if video of nan beating ever became public.

Eddy Garcia, 33, testified that nan hip-hop mogul made nan remark many times earlier giving a brownish insubstantial container stuffed pinch $US100,000 ($155,000) successful rate to nan then-guard, successful bid to bargain what he hoped was nan only transcript of surveillance footage of nan March 2016 assault.

Prosecutors astatine Combs' activity trafficking proceedings successful Manhattan person made nan footage of Combs kicking, beating and dragging Cassie astatine nan Intercontinental Hotel successful Los Angeles a centrepiece of their national lawsuit against him. They contend it supports nan claims of 3 women, including Cassie, who allege nan Bad Boy Records laminitis sexually and physically abused them complete 2 decades.

US prosecutors opportunity Combs' persistent efforts to hush up nan section fresh into allegations he utilized threats and his luck and fame to get what he wanted.

Combs, 55, has pleaded not blameworthy to activity trafficking and racketeering charges.

After nan attack, Garcia said, he said respective times to Combs' chief-of-staff, Kristina Khorram, telling her he couldn't show her nan signaling but "off nan record, it's bad."

He said during 1 telephone telephone she put a "very nervous"-sounding Combs connected nan phone, who "was conscionable saying he had a small excessively overmuch to drink" and that, arsenic Garcia surely knows, "with women, 1 point leads to different and if this sewage retired it would ruin him."

Garcia added: "He was talking really fast, a batch of stuttering."

In nan evening, Garcia said, he became tense and frightened erstwhile Khorram called him connected his mobile telephone — nan number for which he had not provided — and she put Combs on.

"He stated that I sounded for illustration a bully guy," Garcia testified, adding that Combs again said "something for illustration this could ruin him."

When he told Combs he didn't person entree to nan server to get nan video footage, Combs said he believed Garcia could make it hap and that "he would return attraction of me," which Garcia said he took "to mean financially."

Garcia said he checked pinch his leader and was told he'd waste it to Combs for $US50,000.

When he told Combs, he said nan euphony shaper "sounded excited."

"He referred to maine arsenic 'Eddy my angel,'" Garcia said, adding that Combs told him: "I knew you could help. I knew you could do it."

Within 2 days of nan onslaught connected Cassie, whose existent sanction is Casandra Ventura, Garcia gave Combs a retention instrumentality containing nan footage successful speech for $US100,000 successful rate — pinch Combs feeding bills done a money antagonistic and putting them successful a brownish insubstantial bag.

Garcia signed a confidentiality and non-disclosure agreement, shown successful court, that required he salary $US1 cardinal ($1.6 million) if he breached nan deal. At nan time, he said, he was making $US10.50 an hr moving edifice security.

Garcia said he signed a declaration swearing that location was nary different transcript of nan video.

He said he signed nan papers successful an agency building pinch Combs' bodyguard and Khorram present. Garcia said he didn't afloat publication nan documents, explaining that he was tense and "the extremity was to get retired of location arsenic soon arsenic possible."

After signing, he said, Combs asked him what he planned to do pinch nan money and advised him not to make large purchases. Garcia said he took that to mean he shouldn't do thing that would tie attention.

Garcia said he gave $US50,000 to his leader and $US20,000 to different information officer. He pocketed $US30,000 and utilized immoderate of it to bargain a utilized car, he said.

He utilized rate and, avoiding a further insubstantial trail, ne'er put nan money successful nan bank, he said.

A fewer weeks later, Garcia said, Combs called him and asked if anyone had inquired astir nan video. Garcia said no, recounting Combs' ebullient greeting: "Happy Easter. Eddy, my angel. God is good. God put you successful my measurement for a reason."

Garcia said he asked Combs if nan rapper mightiness person early activity for him, and Combs sounded receptive. But Combs ne'er responded to his later inquiries, nan witnesser said.

Last year, CNN aired footage of nan information video. Another edifice defender has testified he recorded nan footage connected his telephone truthful he could show it to his wife.

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