(CNN) — Cassie Ventura has shared a statement expressing her gratitude for the support she has received since CNN’s publication of a 2016 surveillance video that showed her being physically assaulted by her then-boyfriend, Sean “Diddy” Combs.
“Thank you for all of the love and support from my family, friends, strangers and those I have yet to meet,” Ventura wrote in a post shared on Instagram. “The outpouring of love has created a place for my younger self to settle and feel safe now, but this is only the beginning.”
Ventura continued, “Domestic Violence is THE issue. It broke me down to someone never thought would become. With a lot of hard work, I am better today, but I will always be recovering from my past.”
She then turned her focus to seek support for others.
“My only ask is that EVERYONE open your heart to believing victims the first time. It takes a lot of heart to tell the truth out of a situation that you were powerless in,” Ventura wrote. “I offer my hand to those that are still living in fear. Reach out to your people, don’t cut them off. No one should carry this weight alone.”
“This healing journey is never ending, but this support means everything to me,” she concluded her message.
Combs and Ventura dated off and on from 2007 to 2018. In her complaint that was settled with in a day of its filing in November 2023, Ventura alleged Combs raped her in 2018 and subjected her to years of repeated physical and other abuses over the course of their relationship.
Combs has denied her allegations.
“A decision to settle a lawsuit, especially in 2023, is in no way an admission of wrongdoing,” Ben Brafman, an attorney for Combs, told CNN in a statement in November. “Mr. Combs‘ decision to settle the lawsuit does not in any way undermine his flat-out denial of the claims. He is happy they got to a mutual settlement and wishes Ms. Ventura the best.”
Combs apologized on Sunday for his actions in the surveillance video.
Ventura’s attorney Meredith Firetog criticized his response.
“When Cassie and multiple other women came forward, he denied everything and suggested that his victims were looking for a payday,” she in a statement to CNN.
Ventura and Combs did not name each other in their respective statements. Their November settlement states that neither of them can speak about each other in any way, according to multiple sources familiar with the agreement.
Growing legal issues for Combs
Including Ventura’s lawsuit, Combs has been named in seven civil lawsuits in recent months. Six of those lawsuits, including one filed Tuesday, contain allegations of sexual assault. One of the six suits names Combs as a defendant but was was brought against Combs’ son, Christian Combs. Only Ventura’s has been settled.
Authorities searched Diddy’s homes on March 25, 2024, because he is a target of a federal investigation carried out by a Department of Homeland Security team that handles human trafficking and other crimes, according to a senior federal law enforcement official briefed on the investigation.
The investigation stems from many of the same sexual assault allegations put forth in the civil lawsuits, according to a second law enforcement source familiar with the searches.
Combs and his attorneys have denied the allegations. Six lawsuits remain active.
