Sean Combs: "You joined the #MeToo money grab."

Summary

Dateline: True Crime Weekly – Episode Summary: Sean Combs: "You Joined the #MeToo Money Grab"

Introduction

In the June 3, 2025 episode of Dateline: True Crime Weekly, hosted by Andrea Canning of NBC News, listeners are taken deep into the high-stakes courtroom drama surrounding the racketeering trial of Sean Combs, popularly known as Diddy. This episode, part of the special series "On Trial," provides an in-depth analysis of the ongoing legal battle, featuring live updates from journalist Chloe Melas, who is present in the courtroom.

Overview of the Trial

Sean Combs stands accused of multiple charges related to racketeering, all of which he has pleaded not guilty to. The trial has garnered significant attention, not only due to Combs' celebrity status but also because of the serious nature of the allegations, which include sexual assault and workplace abuse.

Cross-Examination of Mia

A central figure in the trial is Mia, referred to as victim number four, who has bravely testified against Combs. Andrea Canning introduces the episode by highlighting the intense cross-examination Mia is undergoing, led by defense attorney Brian Steele. Chloe Melas reports directly from the courtroom, detailing how Steele’s strategy is aimed at undermining Mia’s credibility.

"He’s saying, 'you continued to reach out to this man years after you no longer worked for him and you said that you loved him. So how could you say that? If this was your rapist, why would you choose to stay in contact with him? And why didn't you tell anyone?'" (Chloe Melas, [02:16])

Steele's approach focuses on Mia's alleged continued relationship with Combs after their professional association ended, questioning her motives and the authenticity of her claims. He does not directly call her a liar but implies deceitfulness in her statements.

Defense Strategies

The defense team also employs social media evidence to challenge Mia's testimony. Steele presented Mia's Instagram posts depicting affection towards Combs, aiming to portray her actions as contradictory to someone who had been sexually assaulted by him.

"As recently as July 2022, she reaches out about the bad boy documentary that she had taken part in. And she says, you know, wow, this is top 10 on Netflix right now. And he writes back, love, love, love. And she writes back, and I love, love, love you." (Chloe Melas, [03:41])

Furthermore, the defense introduced private text messages between Mia and Combs, attempting to demonstrate ongoing contact that could cast doubt on her allegations.

Prosecution's Points and Public Perception

The prosecution, on the other hand, emphasizes the emotional and psychological toll of the abuse Mia endured. They highlight her statements about feeling unsafe and the fears that kept her silent. Mia testified about her reluctance to come forward, stating,

"I was terrified and brainwashed. It’s been a long process. I’m still untangling these things. I’m in therapy." ([Chloe Melas, 05:49)

Additionally, prosecutors brought forward widely accepted understandings of victim behavior, such as the fear of not being believed or facing professional repercussions, to contextualize Mia’s silence and continued contact with Combs.

Comparison to Weinstein and #MeToo

A significant portion of the episode draws parallels between the current trial and the Harvey Weinstein trial, which was instrumental in igniting the #MeToo movement. Chloe Melas comments on the noticeable difference in public support:

*"You don’t see any protesters or people standing in solidarity with these women coming forward like you did in the throes of the MeToo movement when Harvey’s trial was starting. And I was there covering that trial in 2020. The silence has really been deafening."_ ([Chloe Melas, 10:35])

The defense attempted to leverage the #MeToo movement to suggest that Mia’s allegations are part of a broader "money grab," a claim that was promptly objected to by the prosecution.

Juror Reactions

The episode also touches on the jury's demeanor during the trial. While most jurors maintained composed and neutral expressions, a few showed signs of skepticism, particularly in response to the aggressive cross-examination by Steele.

"There is one juror and she, like I said, no poker face. She’s furrowing her brow. She’s looking at Mia in what seems to be in a skeptical way." ([Chloe Melas, 08:12])

Anticipated Developments

Looking ahead, Chloe Melas anticipates further revelations in the trial, including testimonies from additional witnesses and possibly more accusers stepping forward. She mentions the potential appearance of a hotel custodian who may provide critical insights into the allegations, as well as another Jane Doe who claims to have suffered physical and sexual abuse.

"We could actually hear from another Jane Doe testifying under a pseudonym who claims that she was subjected to physical and sexual abuse." ([Chloe Melas, 13:58])

Conclusion

In this gripping episode, Dateline: True Crime Weekly meticulously unpacks the complexities of Sean Combs' trial, offering listeners a comprehensive understanding of the legal maneuvers, the emotional weight carried by the accusers, and the shifting dynamics of public support in the post-#MeToo era. Chloe Melas' frontline reporting provides a nuanced perspective on the courtroom tensions and the evolving narrative surrounding one of the most high-profile cases of the year.

Notable Quotes:

• Mia on her fear: "I was terrified and brainwashed. It’s been a long process. I’m still untangling these things. I’m in therapy." ([Chloe Melas, 05:49])
• Defense's challenge to Mia's credibility: "You continued to reach out to this man years after you no longer worked for him and you said that you loved him. So how could you say that?" ([Chloe Melas, 02:16])
• Comparison to Weinstein: *"The silence has really been deafening."_ ([Chloe Melas, 10:35])

Stay Informed

For real-time updates and in-depth analysis from the courtroom, visit the NBC newsletter or explore the “Diddy on Trial” series at nbcnews.com/diddy.

Transcript

[Chloe Melas]

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[Chloe Melas]

Courage I learned it from my adoptive mom. Hold my hand.

[Adopt Us Kids Representative]

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[Andrea Canning]

This is On Trial, a special series from Dateline True Crime Weekly bringing you daily coverage from the Sean Combs racketeering trial. He has pleaded not guilty to all the charges against him. I'm Andrea Canning and it's Monday, June 2nd. Just a heads up, in this episode, we're going to be talking about some graphic details and harrowing subject matter. The fourth week of testimony began with the continued cross examination of the prosecution's witness called victim number four. In filings, she is going by Mia on the stand, which is not her real name. Brian Steele is handling cross for the defense. He recently helped rap superstar young thug avoid jail time in a state RICO case in Georgia. NBC News correspondent Chloe Meloss was in the courtroom today as the prosecution repeatedly objected to Steele's questioning and the judge called Steele's tone on the line. Chloe is outside now to tell us how the jury reacted today. Hey Chloe.

[Chloe Melas]

Hey Andrea.

[Andrea Canning]

So Mia alleges that she was raped by Sean Combs and abused in the workplace. What is the thrust of defense attorney Brian Steele's cross of her?

[Chloe Melas]

The crux is he's saying you continued to reach out to this man years after you no longer worked for him and you said that you loved him. So how could you say that? If this was your rapist, why would you choose to stay in contact with him? And why didn't you tell anyone?

[Andrea Canning]

Did he outright call her a liar? Since Sean Combs is denying this rape allegation.

[Chloe Melas]

He didn't say you're a liar, but he did say, you're lying about being sexually assaulted, aren't you?

[Andrea Canning]

Brian Steele wanted to know who Mia told about this sexual assault, if anyone. Right. Which is what defense attorneys are always looking for when they're cross examining who knew about this.

[Chloe Melas]

I'm just looking at my notes right now. He says, how is it that at all these events, these weddings, these birthday parties, these trips that she went on with family and friends, that there are no emails from you to them about what you claim happened while you worked for Diddy? And she just says that she was never really outside of his grip and that she never would have repeated these things because she had this confidentiality agreement with him.

[Andrea Canning]

On Friday, the defense used Mia's Instagram account to try to discredit her. You know, saying, look at the praise that she was heaping on Combs. And we touched on this. And also that was the material that was in those binders on the chairs today. They entered some private text between Combs and Mia.

[Chloe Melas]

As recently as July 2022, she reaches out about the bad boy documentary that she had taken part in. And she says, you know, wow, this is top 10 on Netflix right now. And he writes back, love, love, love. And she writes back, and I love, love, love you. She actually said that you'll have to ask a psychologist or a therapist to figure all this out, because these text messages show her proactively reaching out to Diddy over the years. It's not the other way around.

[Andrea Canning]

And the defense said she waited months to tell federal prosecutors about the sexual assault.

[Chloe Melas]

So she met with prosecutors over 25, five times. And Brian Steele pointed out that during the months of March and April and May, she never told prosecutors until June about these assaults. And she says, well, I was waiting until I had hired a lawyer to represent me during this criminal trial. But then Steele said, but you did have an attorney by the time you had your second meeting with prosecutors. And she really just kept saying over and over, Andrea, that she just. I also want to point out she made no eye contact. She had her head completely down. I mean, it must hurt her neck. I mean, she literally just stares at the floor the entire time. Her hair is covering her eyes. It's very sad to watch. But at the same time, though, there are a lot of questions today through this cross examination.

[Andrea Canning]

That's a lot of pressure to be up there in such a high profile trial and to be going against a powerful defense team. How did she Handle it.

[Chloe Melas]

I mean, she seems nervous, but she does seem strong at the same time. She's not crying. She has a strong tone at times. She almost kind of, like, laughed out of sarcasm when she was reading some of these text messages.

[Andrea Canning]

Last week, Mia testified that she felt like she had a moral obligation to come forward. This week, the defense asked Mia why she didn't feel that same responsibility to warn Cassie Ventura about Combs. This is a woman that Mia considered to be her close friend. Why would she let her friend stay with him?

[Chloe Melas]

So when asked why, she just did not speak out. Whether it was to Cassie, who she called a sister, or to her own family and friends, she said, because I was terrified and brainwashed. She also said, it's been a long process. I'm still untangling these things. I'm in therapy. There's a lot of support I'm given that I didn't have or knew what to do with before, so. So again, Steele went after her, hammering her over and over. You didn't tell anybody. You didn't warn Cassie. You were posting all of these loving things on social media. You're emailing him, you're talking to him years after you left this monster, and you were able to now live a free life, and you're messaging him as recently as 2023, like, weeks before Cassie filed her civil lawsuit. So it's sort of like, what's changed? Is this revisionist history, or is this a trauma victim to who's just figuring out what really happened to her?

[Andrea Canning]

What did it feel like to be there in court, Chloe, to feel this tension going on? It's such serious subject matter.

[Chloe Melas]

It's in moments like that that I'm thinking, I need to write this down for the podcast. Right? And then Maureen Comey, who's one of the lead New York prosecutors, she's the daughter of James Comey at one point, when the jury wasn't in the room and she said Steele was yelling at Mia, that he was harassing her. And she was worried because all eyes all over the world are watching this case right now, that this will keep other victims from coming forward to tell their truth. She's worried that Steele's being too aggressive. And then you have Brian Steele, who's coming off the heels of this major win with Young Thug out of Atlanta, and you can see he's frustrated.

[Andrea Canning]

How did the judge handle that then? Did the judge tell Brian Steele to tone it down?

[Chloe Melas]

I mean, he was actually quite deferential to Steele. He told Maureen Comey, I don't see what you're saying. I don't see him yelling. I mean, I can agree that the tone is on the line and steel, you need to be mindful of that. But there was no like sanctioning him or anything like that. But you know, Comey wanted to put this on the record cause she feels strongly in her position. It was a very fiery moment Friday.

[Andrea Canning]

Some of the jurors you said were seen smirking during Brian Steele's cross examination of Mia. How were they reacting today?

[Chloe Melas]

Well, let me tell you, there is one juror and she, like I said, no poker face. She's furrowing her brow. She's looking at Mia in what seems to be in a skeptical way. All the reporters are talking about it and pretty much everybody else is just taking notes and has a really straight face. It's really just this one juror when we come back.

[Andrea Canning]

We heard the phrase me too multiple times today, but not in the way you might think.

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[Chloe Melas]

Hold my hand.

[Adopt Us Kids Representative]

You hold my hand. Learn about adopting a teen from foster [e-mail] you can't imagine the reward brought to you by Adopt Us Kids, the U.S. department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council.

[Andrea Canning]

Coincidentally, less than a block away from the federal courthouse where Combs is on trial, former Movement movie producer Harvey Weinstein is standing trial for a second time on sex crimes charges, which he has pleaded not guilty to. It was allegations against him that kickstarted the MeToo movement. You're covering that trial as well, Chloe.

[Chloe Melas]

I'll be in the courtroom tomorrow in the morning and we could see a Verdict in Weinstein as early as tomorrow afternoon, I would expect. This week, for sure.

[Andrea Canning]

Do you see any differences in the way the women accusing Combs of assault have been treated by the public? The media versus the women who accused Weinstein of assault back in 2017 during the heart of the MeToo movement?

[Chloe Melas]

Absolutely. You don't see any protesters or people standing in solidarity with these women coming forward like you did in the throes of the MeToo movement when Harvey's trial was starting. And I was there covering that trial in 2020. I mean, the silence has really been deafening, and I'm not quite sure why.

[Andrea Canning]

And also, on the other side of that, no one seems to be supporting Sean Combs either. Both sides, you're not seeing a whole lot of noise.

[Chloe Melas]

Right. And perhaps there are people that want to, but they're reserving that until a verdict.

[Andrea Canning]

So, interestingly, Brian Steele did reference the MeToo movement today. He was. Seemed to be using it as a way to undermine Mia's testimony.

[Chloe Melas]

Yeah, I mean, he was saying, you say that the MeToo movement had a major bearing on you realizing that you were a victim of abuse, but that was 2017, and you didn't come out with these allegations of sexual assault until June of 2024, long after Cassie filed her civil suit in November 2023, even more than two months after you were already meeting with prosecutors. How does that all add up, Chloe?

[Andrea Canning]

At one point, the defense accused Mia of joining what they call the MeToo money grab.

[Chloe Melas]

Yeah. So Steele asked Mia if she was planning to sue Diddy in the wake of this trial. So she said no, on the record, and nothing's gonna prevent her from suing him later. Neither means that she's not trustworthy. Right. Or that her story isn't true. But they are saying that a lot of this is motivated by money.

[Andrea Canning]

That got an objection from the prosecution, that MeToo money grab line.

[Chloe Melas]

Oh, it did. And it was one of many things that they objected on.

[Andrea Canning]

Today on Redirect, the prosecution brought up some points that are almost accepted wisdom around the behavior of abuse and assault victims. Tell us about that.

[Chloe Melas]

One of the prosecutors said, what did you worry about if you told that he sexually assaulted you? And she said that I wouldn't be believed. I would be fired. I would be labeled a crazy person that was making everything up. Then she was asked, why did you try to keep the person that abused you happy? And she said, because when he was happy, I was safe. But that does not answer the question that Steele brought up multiple times as to why did you continue to reach out to him as recently as 2023?

[Andrea Canning]

Do you think that this could possibly backfire with some of the jurors, this going after Mia and trying to discredit her when she is, you know, vulnerable? She says she's a victim of sexual assault.

[Chloe Melas]

Absolutely. There's a generational divide with these jurors. So several of them are over the age of 60 and there are several that look to be, you know, under 35. So how are they going to view social media? How are they going to view this correspondence? You know, what are they going to think of the way Brian Steele is handling his cross examination? I think it's still a little too soon to tell. I think we're really going to see this either all come together or completely fall apart for Diddy's team when they put on their defense.

[Andrea Canning]

What can we expect tomorrow?

[Chloe Melas]

Potentially a hotel custodian who might be talking about cleaning up or seeing the aftermath of those freak offs. And later this week, we could actually hear from another Jane Doe testifying under a pseudonym who claims that she was subjected to physical and sexual abuse.

[Andrea Canning]

All right, thank you, Chloe. I know you're pulling double duty again tomorrow with Harvey Weinstein and Sean Combs, two high profile trials. So we thank you so much for your time and look forward to another update tomorrow.

[Chloe Melas]

See you tomorrow.

[Andrea Canning]

And thanks to everyone for listening. If you want to read the latest developments and analysis from inside the courtroom, check out the NBC newsletter. Diddy on trial go to nbcnews.com diddy to find that On Trial is produced by Franny Kelly with help from the DATELINE True Crime Weekly team. Our senior producers are Alison Orr and Liz Brown Karloff. Original Music by Jesse McGinty. Paul Ryan is executive producer and Liz Cole is senior executive producer of DATELINE.

[Chloe Melas]

Courage.

[Lowe's Representative]

I learned it from my adoptive mom, hold my hand.

[Adopt Us Kids Representative]

You hold my hand. Learn about adopting a teen from foster [e-mail] you can't imagine the reward brought to you by Adopt Us Kids, the U.S. department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council.