Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Settles Lawsuit With Singer Cassie Alleging He Raped and Beat Her
NEW YORK (AP) — A lawsuit by singer Cassie containing allegations of beatings and abuse by music producer Sean “Diddy” Combs has been settled, the artists announced Friday, one day after the lawsuit was filed.
The settlement was announced in a statement sent by attorney Douglas Wigdor, who represents Cassie, whose full name is Casandra Ventura.
The statement said they had reached a deal “to their mutual satisfaction” Friday evening, but no terms of the agreement were disclosed and no further statements would be issued beyond those made by Ventura, Combs and Wigdor in the email distributed by the lawyer.
In her statement, Ventura said: “I have decided to resolve this matter amicably on terms that I have some level of control. I want to thank my family, fans and lawyers for their unwavering support.”
Combs said: “We have decided to resolve this matter amicably. I wish Cassie and her family all the best. Love.”
Ben Brafman, an attorney for Combs, did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment. On Thursday, he said in a statement that Combs “vehemently denies” the allegations.
The lawsuit alleged Combs brought the singer into his “ostentatious, fast-paced, and drug-fueled lifestyle” soon after she met him and signed to his label in 2005, when she was 19 and he was 37.
Ventura, now 37, said Combs, now 54, began a pattern of abuse as soon as their on-and-off relationship began in 2007.
The lawsuit alleged that, “prone to uncontrollable rage,” Combs subjected Ventura to “savage” beatings in which he punched, kicked and stomped her. It alleges he plied her with drugs and forced her to have sex with other men while he masturbated and filmed them.
According to the lawsuit, as Ventura was trying to end the relationship in 2018, Combs forced her into her Los Angeles home and raped her.
The Associated Press does not typically name people who say they have been sexually abused unless they come forward publicly as Ventura has.
Combs is among the most influential hip-hop producers and executives of the past three decades. The founder of Bad Boy Records and a three-time Grammy winner, he has worked with a slew of top-tier artists including Notorious B.I.G., Mary J. Blige, Usher, Lil Kim, Faith Evans and 112.
This year, he released his fifth studio album, “The Love Album: Off the Grid,” which earned two Grammy nominations this month. It was his first studio album in 17 years.
“The bad boy of entertainment is getting the key to the city from the bad boy of politics!” Mayor Eric Adams said in September as he presented a giant key to Combs in Times Square. Combs was born in New York City and raised in nearby Mount Vernon.
Ventura gained fame with the Ryan Leslie-produced hit single “Me & U,” which rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop songs chart in 2006. It was her only studio album. As an actor, she was in several projects including Fox’s “Empire,” “Step Up 2:The Streets” and “Spenser Confidential.”
Brafman’s statement on Thursday said Ventura had for the past six months persistently demanded $30 million while threatening to write a damaging book about her relationship with Combs. The lawyer said the demands were rejected as “blatant blackmail.”
Ventura withdrew the initial threat before filing a lawsuit “riddled with baseless and outrageous lies, aiming to tarnish Mr. Combs’s reputation and seeking a payday,” Brafman said.
Wigdor responded Thursday in a statement saying Combs had offered her “eight figures to silence her” and prevent the lawsuit from being filed.
“She rejected his efforts and decided to give a voice to all woman who suffer in silence,” Wigdor said.
Wigdor praised his client in a statement included in his email announcing the settlement on Friday.
“I am very proud of Ms. Ventura for having the strength to go public with her lawsuit. She ought to be commended for doing so,” he said.
Assaults on NYPD Officers Up 21% – So, Judge Releases Two Suspects Charged with Subway Attack on Officer Without Bail
Graphic Video in Story-Two men charged with attacking a Bronx police office at a subway station – and, apparently, caught on video – were set free, without bail, by a New York judge on Tuesday.
Prosecutors had requested bail be set at either $10,000 or $30,000 bond, but Judge Eugene Bowen wielded his power, granted by New York’s bail reform law, to deny the request and release the suspects without bail.
Officer John Hernandez was beaten on Monday after he asked three men at a subway to stop smoking. Two were arrested and the third fled.
Even though the two men were charged with assaulting a police officer, resisting arrest, violation of local law and trespassing, Judge Bowen chose to deny the request for bail.
“Unbelievable: Bronx judge frees men charged with beating up NYPD officer — despite DA’s request for $10K bail,” New York City’s Police Benevolent Association (PBA) posted on social media, embedding images of the attack.
“Our streets and subways won’t be safe if the cops protecting them aren’t safe,” PBA President Patrick Hendry added. The Police Benevolent Association of the City of New York represents more than fifty thousand active and retired New York City police officers.
“We need New Yorkers to start speaking up and demanding real consequences for those who assault cops. Our streets and subways won’t be safe if the cops protecting them aren’t safe,” Hendry warned in a separate comment criticizing the judge’s decision.
“The assaults on police officers is what’s driving the assault crimes in the subway system,” NYPD Deputy Commissioner Tarik Sheppard said in an interview discussing the attack with Fox 5 New York.
Attacks on New York City police officers have been skyrocketing, surging 21% so far this year, compared to the same period in 2022.
Compared to 2019, assaults on the city’s police officers are up 41%.
Warning: Graphic Video Presented Below.
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