Hip hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs’s ex-girlfriend is accusing him of physically abusing her for years and raping her when she tried to leave him, according to a federal lawsuit filed against the music superstar.
The suit, filed by singer and model Cassie in Manhattan Federal Court Thursday, alleges a decade’s worth of horrific accusations.
In the suit she accused Combs of repeatedly beating her, forcing her to have sex with male sex workers while he watched and pleasured himself, and blowing up rapper Kid Cudi’s car in 2011 because she was romantically interested in her.
“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,” Cassie, real name Casandra Ventura, said in a statement.
Ventura said she met Combs in 2005, when she was 19 and he was 37, after hearing her first single playing in a club, then signed her to a 10-album deal with his record label.
After that, she said, he controlled her life and pulled her into a “coercive romantic and sexual relationship,” dragging her into a “drug-fueled lifestyle that kept her complacent and compliant.”
She also accused him of repeatedly beating her, then secreting her into hotels for days so her bruises would heal. Once, in January 2009, he stomped her face in front of his security staff because she spoke to another music manager at a party, she alleges.
Combs also made her perform sexual acts with male prostitutes while he watched, in encounters he called “Freak Offs.”
The rape took place in September 2018, after a dinner at an Italian restaurant where she had hoped to tell him they were splitting up for good. Instead, he forced herself into her apartment and forced himself on her, she alleges.
“No human should have to endure what Ms. Ventura has endured,” her lawyer, Douglas Wigdor countered, “Her ability and willingness to speak up against the abuse she suffered, and seeking to hold accountable her abuser and those who enabled the abuse, is a testament to her strength and resilience. We are honored to represent this brave victim in her pursuit of justice.”
Combs’ lawyer, Ben Brafman, said he “vehemently denies these offensive and outrageous allegations. For the past six months, Mr. Combs, has been subjected to Ms. Ventura’s persistent demand of $30 million, under the threat of writing a damaging book about their relationship, which was unequivocally rejected as blatant blackmail,” he said in a statement.
Wigdor countered, “Mr. Combs offered Ms. Ventura eight figures to silence her and prevent the filing of this lawsuit. She rejected his efforts and decided to give a voice to all woman who suffer in silence. Ms. Ventura should be applauded for her bravery.”