Sean Combs accused of rape by recording artist Cassie
Combs, who was in a long-term relationship with Cassie for more than a decade, has been accused of rape and a long pattern of physical abuse
Sean Combs has been accused of rape and abuse. Per The New York Times, the musician and mogul has just become the target of a new lawsuit brought forward by recording artist Cassie, a long-time romantic partner of Combs’, who has accused him of both rape and multiple counts of physical abuse. The suit was brought against Combs in Manhattan, under the protection of the Adult Survivors Act, which extends the statute of limitations on cases related to sexual assault.
The suit details a long pattern of abuse from Combs to Cassie, whose real name is Casandra Ventura, and who says that she was “swept into Mr. Combs’s jet-set lifestyle” shortly after his label Bad Boy released her first album in 2006, when she was just 19. All told, it’s a pretty shocking rundown of violent and bizarre actions, including at least one insinuation that Combs blew up the car of another man (rapper Kid Cudi, apparently) who was pursuing Ventura, as well as asking her to carry his gun, and dangling a friend of hers over a 17th floor hotel balcony. The suit also includes multiple allegations that Combs physically assaulted Ventura “multiple times a year,” as well as coercing her to take drugs and have sex with sex workers hired by Combs while he videotaped the encounters. (These encounters apparently dubbed “freak offs” by Combs.) It also alleges one incident of outright rape, which Ventura’s suit says happened in 2018, and signaled the end of the pair’s relationship.
The Combs camp denies everything, alleging that Ventura is trying to extort Combs. (Meanwhile, her team says that she was offered an eight-figure sum to stay quiet, which she declined.) The suit also names several other defendants, mostly related to Combs businesses, who Ventura accuses of abetting Combs’ behaviors, including by threatening to block publication of her music or concealing his alleged abuses.
Ventura issued a statement today, writing that “With the expiration of New York’s Adult Survivors Act fast approaching, it became clear that this was an opportunity to speak up about the trauma I have experienced and that I will be recovering from for the rest of my life.”