Rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs apologized on Sunday after surveillance video surfaced exhibiting him bodily assaulting his then-girlfriend Casandra Ventura in 2016.
Combs is the goal of a number of civil lawsuits that characterize him as a violent sexual predator who used alcohol and medicines to subdue his victims, and his properties had been raided this yr by federal brokers.
Disturbing footage revealed Friday reveals Combs attacking Ventura — a singer and mannequin additionally identified merely as Cassie — corroborating allegations she made in a now-settled lawsuit late final yr.
“My behavior on that video is inexcusable,” Combs mentioned in a video posted on Instagram, including he was “disgusted” and “sought out professional help” after the incident together with remedy and rehab.
“I’m so sorry,” he mentioned. “I’m committed to be a better man each and every day.”
The footage, which was revealed by CNN, reveals the rap mogul hitting, dragging and kicking Ventura, who in her current lawsuit mentioned Combs subjected her to greater than a decade of coercion by bodily power and medicines, plus a 2018 rape.
In the video, Ventura leaves a lodge room after which Combs, showing to put on solely a towel, chases her earlier than throwing her to the bottom and assaulting her.
“The gut-wrenching video has only further confirmed the disturbing and predatory behavior of Mr. Combs,” learn a press release from her lawyer Douglas Wigdor.
Ventura sued Combs in federal courtroom final fall in a bombshell go well with that was settled out of courtroom however succeeded by a string of equally lurid sexual assault claims in opposition to the hip-hop star.
Ventura met Combs when she was 19 and he was 37, after which he signed her to his label and so they started a romantic relationship.
Combs has beforehand vehemently denied all accusations in opposition to him.
“Enough is enough,” he mentioned in a December 2023 assertion, additionally on his Instagram web page. “For the last couple of weeks, I have sat silently and watched people try to assassinate my character, destroy my reputation and my legacy.”
In March armed brokers entered Combs’ sprawling luxurious properties in Miami and Los Angeles, a closely publicized bicoastal operation that steered an investigation into the rapper is underway.
© 2024 AFP