Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs has broken his silence after shocking video of him beating up his former girlfriend Cassie Ventura surfaced this week.
The 54-year-old rapper took to Instagram on Sunday afternoon to apologize, saying ‘I hit rock bottom, but I make no excuses.’
Looking into the camera, Diddy said: ‘So difficult to reflect on the darkest times in your life, sometimes you got to do that. I was f***ed up.
‘I mean I hit rock bottom, but I make no excuses, my behavior in that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video, I’m disgusted.
‘I was disgusted then when I did it, I am disgusted now. I went and I sought out professional help, I got into going to therapy, going to rehab.
‘Had to ask God for his mercy and grace. I’m so sorry. But I am committed to be a better man each and every day. I’m not asking for forgiveness, I’m truly sorry.’
Sources said Diddy went to rehab following the 2016 incident and continues to seek both therapy and spiritual work.
The 54-year-old rapper took to Instagram on Sunday afternoon to apologize, saying ‘I hit rock bottom, but I make no excuses.’
The shocking surveillance footage of Diddy violently attacking his ex-girlfriend Cassie in a Los Angeles hotel in 2016 emerged this week.
The video, obtained by CNN, shows the rapper shirtless with a towel wrapped around his waist, chasing Cassie down the hall at the InterContinental Hotel in Century City.
As she tried to get into an elevator, he grabbed her by the back of the head and slammed her to the ground.
He then kicked her as she lay on the floor motionless, before grabbing the two designer bags she’d tried to escape with.
Diddy stood over her, kicked her again, and then dragged her back to their room by the hoodie.
Cassie claimed in a since-settled lawsuit that Diddy had paid the same hotel $50,000 for the footage after the attack.
Diddy’s followers were not convinced by his apology, flooding the comments under his video with angry messages.
One said: ‘You swore you did nothing wrong. You gaslighted her and all of us, and ONLY now that the video came out, you’re sorry. Bro, go away.’
Another added: ‘If you were truly sorry then and now why were you lying all along? Your chance for redemption was a long time ago Diddler. It’s over now.’
It comes after the LA County District Attorney said they would not be able to prosecute Diddy for the assault as the statute of limitations had passed.
California‘s statute of limitations for simple assault is one year, though aggravated assault is three years. Based on the timeline, neither charge could be levied against Diddy.
Sean Combs and Cassie Ventura attend the premiere of ‘The Perfect Match’ in Hollywood, California. Two days earlier Combs assaulted Ventura in a hotel hallway
Cassie is seen trying to flee in an elevator. Diddy, after chasing her down the hall, grabbed her by the back of the hoodie and threw her to the ground
Two days after the attack, the pair appeared on the red carpet holding hands for the premiere of The Perfect Match.
In a statement to DailyMail.com this week, Cassie’s attorney Douglas Wigdor said: ‘The gut-wrenching video has only further confirmed the disturbing and predatory behavior of Mr. Combs.
‘Words cannot express the courage and fortitude that Ms. Ventura has shown in coming forward to bring this to light.’
Cassie sued Combs last year alleging rape and a range of other offenses.
They settled out of court in November for an undisclosed amount.
In a statement at the time, Cassie said: ‘I have decided to resolve this matter amicably on terms that I have some level of control,’ Cassie said in a statement.
‘I want to thank my family, fans and lawyers for their unwavering support.’
Diddy is seen dragging Cassie back to their hotel room after collecting her bags
This is the former InterContinental hotel in Century City, Los Angeles, where Diddy allegedly attacked then girlfriend Cassie Ventura
In his own statement at the time, Diddy’s lawyer said his settling the case was in no way an admission of guilt.
‘Mr. Combs vehemently denies these offensive and outrageous allegations,’ said his lawyer Ben Brafman.
‘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.’
The pair dated between 2007 and 2018, after meeting in 2006 when she was 19 and he was 37.
In her suit, Cassie recalled an incident similar to the one caught on security footage at the LA hotel.
The couple then made a second appearance on March 7, with Cassie wearing a different dress
The suit claims: ‘In on around March Mr Combs, during an FO at the InterContinental Hotel in Century City, Mr Combs became extremely intoxicated and punched Ms Ventura in the face, giving her a black eye.
‘After he fell asleep, Ms. Ventura tried to leave the hotel room, but as she exited, Ms Combs awoke and began screaming at Ms Ventura. He followed her into the hallway while yelling at her.
‘He grabbed her, and then took glass vases in the hallway and threw then at her, causing glass to shatter around them as she ran to the elevator to escape.’
Cassie said in the suit that she managed to eventually escape Diddy and go to her own apartment, but decided to return to the hotel for fear of the rapper.
‘Upon realizing that her running away would cause Mr. Combs to be even angrier with her, and completely stuck in his vicious cycle of abuse, Ms. Ventura returned to the hotel with the intention of apologizing for running away from her abuser,’ the settled complaint said.
‘When she returned, hotel security staff urged her to get back into a cab and go to her apartment, suggesting that they had seen the security footage showing Mr. Combs beating Ms. Ventura and throwing glass at her in the hotel hallway.’
The legal claim said Combs paid the the InterContinental Century City $50,000 for the hallway security footage showing the alleged assault.
Hylton suggested Diddy’s race played a role in the federal agent’s s actions during the raids
Exactly what precipitated the raids on Combs’ properties on March 25 has yet to be disclosed
Cassie has described a years-long, torturous relationship in which he controlled her movements and subjected her to abuse.
He has always denied wrongdoing.
They met while she was recording her debut album after her smash hit One Thing.
The footage of the March 2016 incident comes just two months after Combs’ homes in Miami and Los Angeles were raided by Homeland Security as part of a sex trafficking investigation.
He is also fighting lawsuits from other accusers who allege sexual misconduct and abuse.
Combs’ sons, Justin and Christian ‘King’ Combs, were handcuffed during the raid at their father’s residence in Los Angeles.
In February, a music producer filed a lawsuit alleging Combs coerced him to solicit prostitutes and pressured him to have sex with them.
Another of Combs’ accusers was a woman who said the rap producer raped her two decades ago when she was 17.
Combs and his attorneys have denied all of the lawsuits’ allegations.
The mother of two of Sean Diddy Combs’ sons, Misa Hylton, has shared footage of the aid in the rapper’s Los Angeles mansion, calling it an ‘overtly militarized force’
The rapper is among the most influential hip-hop producers and executives of the past three decades.
Formerly known as Puff Daddy, he built one of hip-hop’s biggest empires, blazing a trail with several entities attached to his famous name.
He is the founder of Bad Boy Records and a three-time Grammy winner who has worked with a slew of top-tier artists including Notorious B.I.G., Mary J. Blige, Usher, Lil Kim, Faith Evans and 112.