Diddy is being sued by his ex-girlfriend, Cassie, after what she alleges was years of rape and abuse at the hands of the Bad Boy Records producer.
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The producer–full name Sean Combs–was sued in federal court by Cassie on Thursday, according to reports from The New York Times. In her lawsuit, she accuses her ex-boyfriend of rape and repeated physical abuse over approximately a decade.
In the suit, Cassie–full name Casandra Ventura–says that Diddy began a pattern of control and abuse not long after she met him in 2005 when she was just 19 years old. Her accusations included Combs plying her with drugs, beating her, and forcing her to have sex with a succession of male prostitutes while he filmed their encounters. More than a decade later, in 2018, the suit says Combs forced his way into her home and raped her near the end of their relationship.
“After years in silence and darkness,” Cassie said in a statement, according to the publication. “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.”
A lawyer for Combs, Ben Brafman, says the music mogul denies all of the allegations being leveraged against him.
“Mr. Combs vehemently denies these offensive and outrageous allegations,” he began. “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. Despite withdrawing her initial threat, Ms. Ventura has now resorted to filing a lawsuit riddled with baseless and outrageous lies, aiming to tarnish Mr. Combs’s reputation and seeking a payday.”
On the contrary, Ventura’s lawyer says her ex was the one to offer money to stop the lawsuit.
“Mr. Combs offered Ms. Ventura eight figures to silence her and prevent the filing of this lawsuit,” laywer Douglas Wigdor said. “She rejected his efforts.”
While naming additional defendants in the suit, the court papers assert that others who worked for Diddy helped him control his then-girlfriend, threatening her with things like suppressing her music if she did not obey his orders.
In an interesting part of the suit, Cassie also alleges that Diddy retaliated against Kid Cudi after learning that they were dating in 2012 and the rapper confirmed the validity of the allegation to The New York Times.
“In one incident described in the court papers, Ms. Ventura says that in early 2012, Mr. Combs grew so angry about her dating the rapper Kid Cudi that he said he would blow up the rapper’s car.
“Around that time,” the suit says, “Kid Cudi’s car exploded in his driveway.”
Through a spokeswoman, Kid Cudi confirmed Ms. Ventura’s account.
“This is all true,” he said.
The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages.
