Trigger warning: This article contains information and video footage of physical assault. Viewer discretion is advised.
Sean “Diddy” Combs, 54, broke his silence and apologized after an 8-year-old video resurfaced, which showed him brutally beating his ex-girlfriend, Cassie Ventura, 37.
The surveillance video from 2016 captured the music mogul grabbing, shoving, and kicking his then-girlfriend before dragging her through the hallway of a Los Angeles hotel.
Sean “Diddy” Combs released a video on Instagram addressing the "gut-wrenching" video of him assaulting singer Cassie Ventura
Image credits: Paras Griffin/Getty Images
"It’s so difficult to reflect on the darkest times in your life, but sometimes you got to do that. I was f---ed up — I mean, I hit rock bottom — but I make no excuses," said the Last Night singer in a video, posted Sunday, May 19. "My behavior on that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video. I'm disgusted. I was disgusted then when I did it. I’m disgusted now."
After the incident, “I went and I sought out professional help,” he said, noting that he went into therapy and rehab.
“I’m so sorry. But I’m committed to being a better man each and every day. I’m not asking for forgiveness. I’m truly sorry,” he concluded.
Cassie was only 19 when she met the rapper, and they dated on and off from 2007 to 2018
Image credits: cassie
The rap icon’s apology comes after the horrifying video, first aired by CNN last week, captured him and the Me & U singer during their stay at the since-closed InterContinental Hotel in Century City, Los Angeles.
Dated March 5, 2016, the hotel surveillance footage included clips from multiple camera angles and showcased the moment Cassie exited a hotel room only to have Sean run behind her with a towel around his waist.
The Me & U singer filed a lawsuit against Sean in November 2023, accusing him of subjecting her to years of violence and sexual abuse
Image credits: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
The singer and model was seen walking toward the elevator, but her then-boyfriend eventually caught up with her. He then grabbed her, threw her down to the floor, and kicked her with one hand holding his towel closed.
The rapper, who has also gone by the names P. Diddy and Puff Daddy over the years, grabbed her purse and suitcase from the floor while the Long Way 2 Go singer was on the floor. He went on to physically assault her and drag her for a few moments before letting go.
Surveillance footage from 2016 recently surfaced, showing Sean in a towel running after Cassie and brutally assaulting her in the hallway of an LA hotel
Image credits: CNN
Sean was also filmed sitting on a chair and throwing objects at her in the footage captured by the hotel cameras at the time.
“We are aware of the video that has been circulating online allegedly depicting Sean Combs assaulting a young woman in Los Angeles,” the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office said in a statement addressing the video.
After the video was widely shared, the rapper posted an apology and said, "My behavior on that video is inexcusable"
Image credits: diddy
Describing the footage as “extremely disturbing and difficult to watch,” the statement added, “If the conduct depicted occurred in 2016, unfortunately we would be unable to charge as the conduct would have occurred beyond the timeline where a crime of assault can be prosecuted. As of today, law enforcement has not presented a case related to the attack depicted in the video against Mr. Combs, but we encourage anyone who has been a victim or witness to a crime to report it to law enforcement or reach out to our office for support from our Bureau of Victims Services.”
Sean claimed in his apology video that he sought professional help and went to rehab after the harrowing 2016 incident involving Cassie
Cassie was only 19 when she met the rapper, who was 37 years old back then.
The Step Up 2: The Streets actress dated the alleged sexual predator on and off from 2007 to 2018. She began dating her now-husband, Alex Fine, a few months after the split.
Alex, who married the actress in 2019, posted a scathing letter online after the release of the 8-year-old hotel surveillance footage.
“Men who hit women aren’t men,” he penned. “Men who enable it and protect those people aren’t men. As men violence against women shouldn’t be inevitable, check your brothers, your friends and your family.”
Cassie's current husband, Alex Fine, posted a scathing letter online following the headline-spurring release of the hotel surveillance video
“To all the women and children, I’m sorry you live in a world where you’re not protected, and you don’t feel equal. I want to raise my daughters in a world where they are safe and loved,” wrote the father of Cassie’s two daughters, Frankie and Sunny.
Cassie filed a lawsuit against her ex-boyfriend in November 2023, accusing the artist of subjecting her to years of violence and sexual abuse while they were together.
The actress began dating Alex shortly after her split from Sean, and they are now parents to two daughters, Frankie and Sunny
Image credits: cassie
Both sides reached a settlement, which was “in no way an admission of wrongdoing,” Sean’s lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, said at the time.
The allegations against Sean go beyond the physical assault against Cassie. Since her filing of the lawsuit last November, other lawsuits have also been filed by others, accusing the rapper of sexual assault and sex trafficking, spurring a federal investigation that included having his homes in Los Angeles and Miami raided last month.
After Cassie filed her lawsuit in November 2023, other lawsuits came about and accused the rapper of sexual assault and sex trafficking
Image credits: alexfine44
Meredith Firetog, an attorney for Cassie, called the Grammy winner's Sunday apology video "disingenuous."
“Combs’ most recent statement 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,” Meredith was quoted saying in the Sunday statement. “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 gut-wrenching video has only further confirmed the disturbing and predatory behavior of Mr. Combs. Words cannot express the courage and fortitude that Ms. Ventura has shown in coming forward to bring this to light,” Douglas H. Wigdor, another one of Cassie’s attorneys, told People.
Stars reacted to the heartbreaking video and called the rapper a “monster.”
"Now I’m sure puffy didn’t do it, he is innocent this proves nothing ! This is what his lawyers are gonna say, God help us all,” said 50 Cent, while Emily Ratajkowski called him a “monster.”
Stars like 50 Cent and Emily Ratajkowski expressed their disbelief over the video showing Sean physically assaulting Cassie
“Throw Diddy in jail,” Barstool founder Dave Portnoy said. “Throw away the key. Throw away the key to whoever had this video and kept their mouth shut. I mean holy f---.”
50 Cent, whose real name is Curtis Jackson, also re-posted a previous statement that Sean had released in response to a string of sex crime accusations against him last year.
“Sickening allegations have been made against me by individuals looking for a quick payday,” said the Bad Boy Records founder. “Let me be absolutely clear: I did not do any of the awful things being alleged. I will fight for my name, my family and for the truth.”
50 Cent shared this statement on X, formerly known as Twitter, and wrote: “The lie detector test has determined this was a lie…. Maury vibes.”
If the footage from a hotel hallway was this bad, imagine "what happened behind closed doors," shocked social media users said online
