The trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs took another turn as a former personal assistant stepped into the witness box and peeled back the velvet curtain on what prosecutors allege was a multimillion-dollar empire powered by sex, drugs, and coercion.
Brendan Paul, who worked closely with Combs from late 2022 until early 2024, told a New York courtroom that his job went far beyond calendar reminders and coffee runs. His role, according to his sworn testimony, included securing marijuana, ketamine, and setting the stage for what Combs allegedly dubbed “wild king nights”—raucous hotel sex parties complete with baby oil, liquor, and designer drug kits in Gucci pouches.
Paul said he was granted immunity by prosecutors for his testimony and admitted to purchasing roughly $4,200 worth of marijuana and “hundreds” in ketamine during his employment. He told the jury he was once asked to buy Xanax without a prescription—Combs texting him directly: “You get me zans.”
In court, jurors were shown messages between Paul and Combs’ security team requesting reimbursements for the drugs. Despite these revelations, Paul insisted he was no “drug mule,” clarifying under cross-examination that he never distributed narcotics and believed the drugs were solely for Combs’ personal use.
Defense attorneys are pushing back, painting the encounters as consensual adult behavior. Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to all five criminal charges, including sex trafficking and racketeering. If convicted, the one-time music mogul and Bad Boy Records founder could face life behind bars.
Paul also described post-party cleanup duties—slipping on gloves to scrub down hotel rooms and conceal any damage before checkout. In one instance, he was arrested with cocaine in his luggage at a Florida airport, claiming he unknowingly packed it after finding it while tidying up Combs’ suite.
When asked by prosecutors why he didn’t reveal where the cocaine came from, Paul answered with a single word: “Loyalty.”
That loyalty may now be the prosecution’s most potent tool as the government wraps up its six-week case. Defense witnesses are expected to take the stand next.
