Sean “Diddy” Combs chased, kicked, dragged and hurled a glass vase at his ex-girlfriend Cassie in 2016, new surveillance video from a Los Angeles hotel shows.
The footage, obtained and published by CNN on Friday, seemingly confirms at least some of the singer’s physical abuse allegations detailed in a lawsuit filed in November against the mogul — allegations Combs has denied.
The lawsuit was settled a day after it was filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York; in it, Cassie, whose real name is Casandra Ventura, alleged that Combs “became extremely intoxicated and punched” her in the face, “giving her a black eye” during an incident in March 2016.
“The gut-wrenching video has only further confirmed the disturbing and predatory behavior of Mr. Combs,” a representative for Ventura told The Times in a statement Friday. “Words cannot express the courage and fortitude that Ms. Ventura has shown in coming forward to bring this to light.”
A representative for Combs did not immediately respond to The Times’ request for comment.
The video, dated March 5, 2016, shows Ventura in a hoodie and carrying a duffel bag walking in a hotel hallway toward an elevator. Combs can be seen running down the same hallway, shirtless and holding a towel around his waist. Security footage captured from another angle shows him grabbing Ventura’s head and throwing her on the ground, where he continues to kick her multiple times. He can also be seen trying to drag her back to the first hallway.
Ventura’s November lawsuit detailed the alleged incident, which occurred at the InterContinental hotel in Century City. Combs “followed [Ventura] into the hallway of the hotel while yelling at her,” the suit said.
“He grabbed at her, and then took glass vases in the hallway and threw them at her,” the complaint added, “causing glass to crash around them as she ran to the elevator to escape.”
Combs can also be seen shoving Ventura into a corner by the elevators and throwing a vase in her direction.
In her lawsuit, Ventura also accused Combs of rape, sexual assault and sex trafficking, though he has denied those allegations.
The security footage surfaced two months after Homeland Security agents conducted searches of Holmby Hills and Miami mansions owned by Combs as part of a federal inquiry into sex trafficking allegations involving the hip-hop and liquor mogul.
