Cassie Ventura has spoken out for the first time since a 2016 video surfaced showing her then-boyfriend, Sean “Diddy” Combs, assaulting her in a hotel.
“Thank you for all the love and support from my family, friends, and even strangers,” Ventura wrote on Instagram on Thursday. “The outpouring of love has helped my younger self feel safe, but this is just the start.”
“Domestic violence is a huge issue. It broke me down to someone I never thought I’d be. With a lot of hard work, I’m better today, but I’ll always be recovering,” Ventura continued. “Thank you to everyone who has taken this seriously. I ask that everyone believe victims the first time. It takes a lot of courage to tell the truth about something so painful.”
Diddy apologized after the video was released by CNN on May 17, showing him chasing Ventura down a hallway, grabbing her neck, shoving her to the ground, and kicking her.
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“I hit rock bottom — but I make no excuses,” he said. “My behavior in that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility.”
Ventura’s lawyer responded, saying, “Combs’ statement is more about himself than the people he has hurt.”
In November 2023, Ventura settled a lawsuit against Combs, accusing him of sex trafficking and sexual assault. Court documents showed Ventura claimed Combs “often punched, beat, kicked, and stomped” on her during their relationship.
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Combs is also facing several civil lawsuits accusing him of rape, sex trafficking, and more. The latest lawsuit was filed this week by former model Crystal McKinney, who alleges she was “drugged and sexually assaulted” by Combs after meeting him at a 2003 Fashion Week event in New York City.
ABC News reached out to Combs about McKinney’s lawsuit but has not received a response.
Combs is also under a federal investigation for human and sex trafficking, which led to raids on his Los Angeles and Miami homes by federal agents in March. He has denied any wrongdoing in this investigation.
