Cassie Ventura Breaks Silence Following Release Of Violent Sean Combs Assault Video
Cassie Ventura and Sean "Diddy" Combs in 2018 John Shearer/Getty Images
Cassie Ventura is speaking out for the first time following the release of a graphic video showing her then-boyfriend rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs physically assaulting her in 2016 in a Los Angeles hotel.
“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 in a statement posted to Instagram on Thursday. “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.”
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She continued, “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.”
“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. It takes a lot of heart to tell the truth out of a situation that you were powerless in.”
Ventura concluded with a message to those who are in similar situations, saying: “I offer my hand to those that are still living in fear. 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.”
You can see her message in full below.
Combs apologized days after the hotel surveillance video obtained by CNN in which Combs appeared to grab, shove, drag and kick Ventura.
“My behavior on that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video,” he said on Instagram.
“I was disgusted then when I did it. I’m disgusted now,” he added. “I went and I sought out professional help. I got into going to therapy, going to rehab. I had to ask God for his mercy and grace. I’m so sorry. But I’m committed to be a better man each and every day. I’m not asking for forgiveness. I’m truly sorry.”
A lawyer for Ventura followed Diddy’s apology a a statement that the apology “is more about himself than the many people he has hurt. When Cassie and multiple other women came forward, he denied everything and suggested that his victims were looking for a payday. That he 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.”
The Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office said they had viewed the footage, and while they found it “extremely disturbing” they could not prosecute because the statute of limitations had passed.