Witness testifies that Diddy made threats, held her over 17th-floor balcony

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Bryana Bongolan, a friend of Diddy’s former girlfriend Casandra Ventura, testified today to a terrifying moment involving the music mogul in September 2016. Bongolan said she was sleeping on the couch at Ventura’s 17th-floor Los Angeles apartment when Diddy banged on the door. She went out to the balcony to smoke marijuana, and Diddy, who had gotten inside, “came behind me and lifted me up and had me on top of the rail,” she testified. He held her for about 10 to 15 seconds, she said, and “for a second, I thought I was going to fall.” She said Diddy was yelling at her and she didn’t know why.

Here’s what else to know about today’s testimony:

• Bongolan testified that while upset, Diddy once threw a knife in Ventura’s direction, and she threw it back; both their throws missed. In another interaction, Bongolan said, Diddy allegedly told her something along the lines of, “I am the devil and I can kill you.” She testified that Diddy had taken cocaine at the time he made the comments.
• During cross-examination, defense lawyer Nicole Westmoreland tried to discredit Bongolan’s memory of the alleged dangling incident. Bongolan answered, “I don’t remember,” multiple times when challenged.
• The government also called Frank Piazza, a forensic video expert, who testified about the authenticity of the hotel security video of Diddy assaulting Ventura in March 2016 as well as related cellphone videos. The hotel video, which has been central to the prosecution’s case, was not altered, according to Piazza.

🔎 The view from inside

By Adam Reiss and Jing Feng

Diddy watched the jury closely when they first took their seats. He was also attentive when it came to the testimony. Much of today was spent looking at security footage and cellphone videos, and he peered at the monitor in front of him.

Piazza’s testimony going over the videos may have seemed technical, but the long stretch spent looking at Diddy assaulting Ventura could also have a cumulative effect on the jury.

In other news: Diddy’s lawyers complained to Judge Arun Subramanian that although Diddy has 300 minutes for phone calls, for some reason, he can’t get in touch with lawyers at night. Defense lawyer Xavier Donaldson called it “unacceptable.” Subramanian said he would reach out to the jail and see what could be done.

👨‍⚖️ Analysis: Is the video relevant?

By Danny Cevallos

The last two days have featured testimony about the 2016 hotel beating video. The government first called a hotel security officer who testified that Diddy paid $100,000 in cash in a brown paper bag in exchange for the video. Today, prosecutors called a forensic video expert, who narrated the events on screen, frame by frame. So why is the video relevant if Diddy was not charged with the assault that was recorded?

The defense tried mightily to exclude the video, arguing, in part, that any relevance was outweighed by the prejudicial effect. It lost.

How the video fits into the government’s theory of the case appears to be this: Prosecutors allege the drug-fueled sexual encounters known as “freak offs” constituted commercial sex acts (for purposes of sex trafficking).

The video shows Diddy using force or coercion — one of the necessary elements of sex trafficking — to prevent Ventura from escaping a “freak off,” as she said during her testimony.

The cash payment to hotel security is then an effort to conceal that conduct. Plus, racketeering charges are often about a boss corrupting his own company.

Finally, the government is very skilled at finding a way to introduce the most devastating evidence against a defendant — which it’s done here.

🗓️ What’s next

Tomorrow: The defense plans to continue cross-examining Bongolan as court resumes later than usual. Also, a Diddy accuser who will go by the pseudonym “Jane” is expected to begin multiple days of testimony. Jane, who was identified as “Victim-2” in the prosecution’s indictment, was allegedly engaged in commercial sex acts “as a result of force, fraud or coercion.”

PSA: Every night during Diddy’s trial, NBC’s “Dateline” will drop special episodes of the “True Crime Weekly” podcast to get you up to speed. “Dateline” correspondent Andrea Canning chats with NBC News’ Chloe Melas and special guests — right in front of the courthouse. Listen here. 🎧