NOTE: The following article accommodates disturbing particulars and video footage. Please learn at your personal discretion.
Singer Cassie Ventura has commented on the discharge of a safety digicam video that confirmed her being attacked by ex-boyfriend Sean “Diddy” Combs in a lodge in 2016.
The video, obtained by CNN and launched Friday, noticed Combs launch a brutal bodily assault on Ventura wherein he grabbed her by the again of the neck and threw her to the ground, earlier than kicking her twice whereas she lay on the bottom.
“Domestic violence is THE issue,” Ventura, 37, wrote in a press release posted to Instagram on Thursday. “It broke me down to someone I never thought I would become.”
The recorded incident from March 5, 2016, was included in a since-settled rape and intercourse trafficking lawsuit filed by Ventura towards Combs, 54. At the time of the settlement, Combs’ legal professionals had been adamant the undisclosed settlement was not an request for forgiveness.
After the video was launched publicly, Combs uploaded an apology to social media saying he was “truly sorry,” and that his actions had been “inexcusable.”
In her assertion, Ventura thanked her household, pals and members of most people for his or her help and effectively needs.
“The outpouring of love has created a place for my younger self to settle and feel safe now, but this is only the beginning,” she wrote.
“With a lot of hard work, I am better today, but I will always be recovering from my past,” she continued. “Thank you to everyone that has taken the time to take this matter seriously. My only ask is that EVERYONE open your heart to believing victims the first time.”
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“It takes a lot of heart to tell the truth out of a situation that you were powerless in,” she wrote. “I offer my hand to those that are still living in fear.”
Ventura inspired others to “reach out to people” and assist carry the burden of home abuse.
When Ventura filed her lawsuit towards Combs in November 2023, she alleged she’d confronted extreme abuse for over a decade.
“After years in silence and darkness, I am finally ready to tell my story, and to speak up on behalf of myself and for the benefit of other women who face violence and abuse in their relationships,” she stated in a press release. “With the expiration of New York’s Adult Survivors Act fast approaching, it became clear that this was an opportunity to speak up about the trauma I have experienced and that I will be recovering from for the rest of my life.”
Before his apology, Combs denied all allegations of misconduct and unlawful behaviour, and had vowed to clear his identify.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office stated they can’t cost Combs over the lodge video as a result of the 2016 incident is “beyond the timeline where a crime of assault can be prosecuted.”
Combs has been in authorized hassle for months now and has been named in seven totally different civil lawsuits alleging sexual assault and different mistreatments. The newest lawsuit got here Tuesday and noticed a mannequin accuse Combs of drugging and sexually assaulting her at his New York City recording studio in 2003. (One of the seven fits named Combs as a defendant however introduced allegations of sexual assault towards his son, Christian “King” Combs.)
In March, Combs’ Los Angeles dwelling was raided by Homeland Security brokers as a part of a federal investigation for intercourse trafficking. He has not been formally charged with any crimes.
— With recordsdata from Global News’ Michelle Butterfield
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If you or somebody you understand is experiencing abuse or is concerned in an abusive scenario, please go to the Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime for assist. They are additionally reachable toll-free at 1-877-232-2610.
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