A now-settled federal complaint brought by Cassie Ventura in November included charges that Sean “Diddy” Combs grabbed, shoved, dragged, and kicked her during an argument. Ventura got the surveillance footage exclusively for CNN in 2016.
The video purports to show the rapper, producer, and business entrepreneur during an altercation that, according to Ventura’s lawsuit, happened at the now-closed InterContinental Hotel in Century City, Los Angeles. It was assembled from various camera perspectives on March 5, 2016. Based on publicly accessible images of the inside of the defunct hotel, CNN confirmed the location.
Ventura emerges from a hotel room and makes his way to a bank of elevators in the video. Combs follows Ventura down a hallway while carrying a towel around his waist. She is thrown to the ground by him as he catches her by the nape of her neck. The footage then shows him turning to kick her while still keeping his towel closed with one hand.
Combs gets a pocketbook and a luggage from the floor near the elevators as Ventura is on the ground. Ventura falls on the floor, lifeless, while he turns around and kicks her once more. The footage shows that there are around four seconds between the two kicks. Then, before turning to go, he momentarily tugs Ventura by her sweater into a room.
Then, Ventura is seen getting to his feet slowly. She picks things up from the floor and walks to a phone on the wall in the hallway by the elevators. Combs reappears wearing socks and a towel. The security camera’s mirror just across from it captures Combs seemingly pushing Ventura.
A few moments later, he takes a seat in a chair, picks something up off a table, and throws it firmly in Ventura’s direction. Combs is seen turning back toward Ventura after leaving the scene, only to have the elevator door open and someone appear to step out.
Ventura, who and Combs came to an undisclosed deal, would not comment on the footage that was retrieved.
“The gut-wrenching video has only further confirmed the disturbing and predatory behavior of Mr. Combs,” stated Ventura’s attorney, Douglas H. Wigdor. Words cannot describe the bravery and tenacity Ms. Ventura has had in speaking out and bringing this to light.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office issued a statement Friday on the 2016 surveillance video.
“We are aware of the video that has been circulating online allegedly depicting Sean Combs assaulting a young woman in Los Angeles. We find the images extremely disturbing and difficult to watch,” the statement posted on Instagram reads.
Sadly, we would be unable to file charges if the behavior shown happened in 2016 since it would have happened after the statute of limitations for assault crimes. The district attorney’s office stated, “As of right now, law enforcement has not filed a case regarding the attack shown in the video against Mr. Combs. However, we urge anyone who has been a victim or witness to a crime to report it to law enforcement or get in touch with us for assistance from our Bureau of Victims Services.”
Regarding any further investigation or potential charges in relation to this event, reporters has contacted the Los Angeles Police Department, but has not received a response.
InterContinental Hotels said in a statement to CNN on Friday that it was no longer managed by IHG and that it did not have access to any previous incident reports or video.
Ventura’s legal action
Between 2007 and 2018, Combs and Ventura, a singer and model well known for songs like “Me & U,” had an intermittent relationship. On March 7, 2016, the two were pictured together at the “A Perfect Match” film’s Los Angeles premiere.
Ventura’s lawsuit stated that Combs became “extremely intoxicated and punched Ms. Ventura in the face, giving her a black eye.” The confrontation took place “around March 2016.”
Ventura tried to leave the hotel room after Combs fell asleep, but he woke up and “followed her into the hallway of the hotel while yelling at her,” according to the lawsuit.
As she fled to the elevator, the lawsuit claimed, “He grabbed at her and then took glass vases in the hallway and threw them at her, causing glass to crash around them.”
According to Ventura’s complaint, she took a cab to her apartment after using the elevator.
“After realizing that her escape would only make Mr. Combs even more irate with her and keep her trapped in his abusive cycle, Ms. Ventura went back to the hotel intending to apologize for fleeing her abuser,” the lawsuit states. “Upon her return, the hotel security personnel advised her to board a cab again and head to her apartment, citing the security footage that showed Mr. Combs assaulting Ms. Ventura and hurling glass at her in the hotel hallway.”
The complaint makes other allegations, including that Combs paid the InterContinental Century City $50,000 for the security footage of the corridor. Ventura filed the case in November, claiming Combs had sexually assaulted her in 2018 and had mistreated her physically and in other ways for years.
Throughout their professional and emotional connection, Ventura—who was officially signed to Combs’ label—said in her lawsuit that he “exerted his power and influence” over her. She was 19 and Combs was 37 when they first met, according to the complaint, and their business partnership continued until 2019. It included specific allegations that Combs had physically abused Ventura and coerced her into having sex acts with other men at that time.
On the day it was filed, Combs’ lawyer, Ben Brafman, said in a statement to CNN, “Mr. Combs vehemently denies these offensive and outrageous allegations.”
The next day, the lawsuit was settled.
In a statement at the time, Brafman told CNN, “A decision to settle a lawsuit, especially in 2023, is in no way an admission of wrongdoing.” “Mr. Combs’ choice to resolve the litigation does not contradict his categorically asserted denial of the allegations in any way. He’s glad they were able to come to an amicable agreement and hopes the best for Ms. Ventura.
The settlement’s specifics were kept a secret.
ongoing legal problems
Combs has been the target of five additional civil complaints since November, all of which accuse him of various crimes including sexual misconduct. The cases are still pending despite his denial of the accusations.
According to a senior federal law enforcement official briefed on the investigation, Combs’ houses in Florida and California were searched by authorities in March as part of a federal investigation led by a Department of Homeland Security unit that deals with human trafficking charges. According to a second law enforcement source aware with the searches, the probe is based on many of the same claims of sexual assault made in the civil complaints.
In a statement at the time, Combs’ lawyer Aaron Dyer described the searches as a “gross overuse of military-level force.”
“This unprecedented ambush is nothing more than a witch hunt based on baseless accusations made in civil lawsuits, coupled with an advanced, coordinated media presence that leads to an early rush to judgment of Mr. Combs,” the speaker declared. None of these claims have resulted in a finding of criminal or civil responsibility. Mr. Combs is innocent, and he will keep fighting to clear his name every day.
