Sean “Diddy” Combs’ ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura on Thursday released an emotional statement thanking people who reached out to offer their love and support following the recent release of a video showing the rapper assaulting her in a hotel in 2016.
“The outpouring of love has created a place for my younger self to settle and feel safe now, but this is only the beginning,” the singer wrote in a post on Instagram. “Domestic Violence is THE issue. It broke me down to someone I never thought I would become. With a lot of hard work, I am better today, but I will always be recovering from my past.”
Ventura’s comment came after CNN published a video showing him throwing her to the ground and kicking her multiple times. Diddy subsequently released an apology saying his actions in the footage were “inexcusable” and that he was “disgusted” with what he had done. The violence appeared to corroborate claims of violence that Ventura had made—and which Diddy previously denied—in a lawsuit which was settled last year.
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In her post Thursday, Ventura thanked everyone who “taken the time to take this matter seriously.” “My only ask is that EVERYONE open your heart to believing victims the first time. It takes a lot of heart to tell the truth out of a situation that you were powerless in.”
She also extended words of encouragement to others. “I offer my hand to those that are still living in fear,” Ventura wrote. “Reach out to your people, don’t cut them off. No one should carry this weight alone. This healing journey is never ending, but this support means everything to me. Thank you. Love Always, Cassie.”
After her relationship with Diddy ended in 2018, Ventura began a relationship with personal trainer Alex Fine, whom she married in 2019. “Love you so much,” Fine wrote in a comment responding to her statement, adding that she is a “perfect example for our daughters.”
Following Ventura’s lawsuit, others came forward with more allegations of sexual assault, harassment, and other wrongdoing against Diddy. Three other women filed lawsuits accusing him of sexual abuse late last year, while producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones filed another lawsuit in February claiming that Diddy groped and harassed him over the course of a year.
On Tuesday, model Crystal McKinney brought another suit against Diddy claiming that he drugged and sexually assaulted her in 2003. He is also the subject of a federal investigation that is reportedly partly focused on human trafficking.
Since Diddy released his apology video over the hotel attack footage, Ventura’s legal team has questioned his attempt at atonement. “Combs’ most recent statement is more about himself than the many people he has hurt,” Ventura’s attorney Meredith Firetog said in a statement. She added that Diddy was “only compelled to ‘apologize’ once his repeated denials were proven false shows his pathetic desperation, and no one will be swayed by his disingenuous words.”
