Crime & Arrests

Diddy's ex-girlfriend "Jane" is testifying in detail about how she says the freak-offs worked during their 4-year relationship ... zeroing in on a male escort with whom she says they routinely hooked up with and paid for his services.

Jane - the pseudonym for one of Diddy's exes on the witness stand -- was taking questions from the prosecution on Day 18 of the Diddy trial ... and she brought up a man known as "Sly."

She said she and Diddy were impressed by images of "Sly's size," prompting her to reach out to him via Instagram.

Diddy's ex says she took substances to push through the "freak-offs" she participated in ... using ecstasy to up her energy -- and to numb the whole experience.

"Jane" -- Diddy's ex-girlfriend who is testifying under a pseudonym -- broke down the role drugs played in her sexual encounters with entertainers she calls "hotel nights," the couple's name for freak-offs, which didn't always take place in hotels. She admitted there were a ton of different drugs at these experiences, though she mostly stuck with using ecstasy.

When asked how ecstasy made her feel, Jane replied it gave her sexual energy ... much-needed since she's already testified that sometimes she would have sex for multiple rounds and hours at a time.

Sean "Diddy" Combs' federal sex trafficking and racketeering 18th day of testimony resumed with "Jane" returning to the stand ... she told the jury about her reluctance to participate in alleged "hotel nights" -- their term for freak-offs.

You'll recall, "Jane" -- who is testifying under a pseudonym -- said she's a former girlfriend of Diddy's and was in a relationship with him from around 2021 until the music mogul was arrested in September. In the federal indictment, she's listed as "Victim-2."

On the stand Friday , she continued to field questions from prosecutors about her sexual relations with Diddy ... telling the jury they used the word "entertainers" to refer to male prostitutes who joined them during marathon drug-fueled multi-partner sex sessions, the so-called "freak-offs" mentioned throughout the trial. Jane testified Thursday the two of them called these sessions "hotel nights" ... though they were not always held at hotels.

The alleged victim in the bizarre crypto kidnap-torture case is starring in yet another short film  -- but this time it's no sex tape ... but rather a new video of his daring escape from the "House of Horrors" in NYC.

TMZ obtained exclusive footage of Italian entrepreneur Michael Valentino Teofrasto Carturan hightailing it down a sidewalk in Manhattan's posh Nolita neighborhood after he broke out of the townhouse his alleged captors, John Woeltz and William Duplessie, were renting. Cops say the three men were business partners in a Bitcoin venture.

The video -- dated May 23 -- starts off with a uniformed NYPD traffic enforcement agent strolling down the sidewalk, followed by Carturan -- clad in a black outfit with no shoes on -- frantically running up behind him.

Harvey Weinstein is speaking out as the jury in his rape retrial deliberates ... saying he has "regrets" about his immoral behavior -- but insisting he never committed a crime.

From Manhattan's Bellevue Hospital, Weinstein gave a phone interview Thursday to "Good Day New York" host Rosanna Scotto, offering the same old lines he's been delivering for years. As you may know, Weinstein has been receiving medical treatment at Bellevue for his multitude of illnesses while in custody.

In a snippet obtained by Fox 5 New York, he told Scotto, "I have regrets that I -- from my family -- through this, that I put my wife through this, that I acted immorally. I put so many friends through this and hurt people ... that were close to me, by the way, by actions that were stupid. But never illegal, never criminal, never anything."

Diddy's 17th day of trial might have been the most shocking yet ... taking the court on a roller coaster ride through Bryana Bongolan's second day of testimony -- and resulting in Diddy getting a warning from the judge.

The mogul was back in federal court Thursday, and the day started with Bongolan taking the stand again for her second day of testimony.

The defense hammered her on the date she alleged Diddy held her over the edge of the balcony ... arguing it can't be September 26, 2016 as she said because Diddy was in New York at the time.

Another Diddy accuser took the stand Thursday, diving into her sex life with the mogul ... and dishing on the pet names they had for one another.

"Jane" -- an alleged victim testifying under a pseudonym in the trial -- says she dated Diddy from 2021 up until his arrest last year. She told the jury intimate details of their relationship ... saying the two watched a lot of pornography while hooking up.

Jane said they had one conversation about fantasies while watching porn together in May 2021. Jane said she left the room to use the bathroom, but, when she came back, Diddy was on the phone and told her the two could have a freak-off that night.

Luigi Mangione’s alleged unhinged manifesto might actually work in his favor -- at least according to one top defense attorney sounding off on the case.

Defense attorney Katie Cherkasky told us on "TMZ Live" Thursday ... there's no question -- Luigi gunned down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in NYC back in December. But the real fight’s over the terrorism charge, and she says Luigi’s own words might be what gets it tossed.

Katie says Luigi’s own words lay it out -- in his chilling blueprint, he wasn’t out to spark mass panic or hurt anyone else ... he had one target, and one target only.

Sex parties and X-rated pranks -- not exactly kidnapping and torture, but new bombshell videos and photos reveal that kind of wild, bacchanalian atmosphere during the bizarre crypto kidnapping case that's landed John Woeltz and William Duplessie in jail.

TMZ obtained this footage showing their alleged victim -- Italian businessman Michael Valentino Teofrasto Carturan -- hanging out, grinning and frequently shirtless, with other partygoers inside the Manhattan townhouse Duplessie and Woeltz were renting.

Sean "Diddy" Combs' better quit making faces at jurors in his federal trial, or he'll be booted from the courtroom ... that's the stern warning the judge hit him with Thursday morning.

The 17th day of the trial began with Diddy's defense team peppering Bryana Bongolan on cross-examination -- questioning her about the alleged incident where she says Diddy held her over the edge of a balcony 17 stories above the ground.

After her testimony, once jurors left for a break, Judge Arun Subramanian admonished Diddy defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo for his client's courtroom behavior ... pointing out Diddy was "nodding vigorously" while staring down jurors.

Greg Hardy's girlfriend claims the former NFL star pushed her onto a bed and held her down by her neck in an argument over cheating allegations prior to his arrest ... this according to documents obtained by TMZ Sports.

The woman called police around 2 PM on Wednesday to report a family violence in progress ... stating Hardy assaulted her and she had marks on her body. The woman also said Hardy fled their home in a white 2018 GMC Acadia after the physical altercation.

When cops arrived, the woman said the argument started when they were driving back from the park with their children -- Hardy asked his girlfriend what was wrong, and she replied they would address it when they were home ... as she didn't want to bicker in front of the kids.

San Antonio Police Chief William McManus offered a full-throated mea culpa to the LGBTQ+ community on Thursday ... saying his department made a mistake by so quickly dismissing the hate crime allegation in the shooting death of Jonathan Joss.

The "King of the Hill" voice actor was shot to death Sunday night on his own property in the city, allegedly by neighbor Sigfredo Ceja Alvarez during a heated exchange ... but Joss' husband, Tristan Kern de Gonzales, called the shooting a homophobic hate crime. The next day ... police said in a statement there was no evidence of a hate crime.

Chief McManus told reporters on Thursday that the announcement was "way too premature" ... and he took full responsibility. In the same breath ... the chief reassured the LGBTQ+ community their safety was of the utmost importance to police.

"Ghost Adventures" star Aaron Goodwin’s wife just got her fate sealed -- she’s been officially sentenced for plotting to have him murdered.

Victoria Goodwin’s been sentenced to a minimum of 3 years to 7.5 years in a Nevada prison, with 92 days of time already served knocked off the clock. This all comes after she copped a plea deal to dodge a full-blown murder-for-hire trial.

Thursday’s emotional courtroom showdown had Victoria apologizing directly to Aaron for the chaos, heartbreak, and danger she put him through ... swearing she’ll never forgive herself for the "stupid" choices that got her here.

Luigi Mangione laid out a chilling blueprint that reveals why he felt it necessary to allegedly gun down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December 2024 -- and his reasoning is scrawled out in a red spiral notebook, new court documents reveal.

According to his "manifesto" -- revealed in a new court filing from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and obtained by the New York Post -- 27-year-old Mangione's disgust with the insurance industry -- which he wrote "extracts human life force for money" -- was the driving force behind his desire to make a political point while harming as few people as possible.

He penned ... "So say you want to rebel against the deadly, greed fueled health insurance cartel. Do you bomb the HQ? No. Bombs=terrorism."

The Diddy trial's 16th day of testimony took place Wednesday ... but, it wasn't the sweet 16 he may have hoped for -- 'cause the woman who testified painted a pretty scary picture of him.

Bryana Bongolan -- Cassie's friend and a fashion designer -- took the stand Wednesday ... and, she testified about the time Diddy allegedly dangled her off a balcony while they were either smoking or about to smoke a blunt at Cassie's place.

Bongolan says Diddy held her off of the high-rise and yelled, "You know what the f*** you did" ... before she says he pulled her back up and slammed her into the furniture.

Diddy's defense team came to life during their cross-examination of Bryana Bongolan ... with one of his attorneys straight-up asking if she's even telling the truth on the stand.

The fashion designer started testifying Wednesday morning and continued into the late afternoon ... and, during cross, Westmoreland asked questions about the alleged incident where Bryana claims Diddy threw a knife at Cassie and she threw it back.

Westmoreland asked Bongolan what started this incident, and Bryana says she doesn't know.