R&B singer Cassie filed a lawsuit against her ex, music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs, in November, accusing him of rape, sex trafficking and repeated physical abuse. It was settled out of court, remarkably quickly, for an undisclosed sum — and since then, at least five other accusers have come forward with their own allegations against Diddy. Last week, CNN obtained surveillance video footage of him violently attacking her in the hallway of a Los Angeles hotel in 2016, prompting Diddy to apologize for claims he had previously denied.
Now, the day after the sixth high-profile sexual assault lawsuit was filed against her abuser, Cassie has also responded to the leaked video of the attack. In a statement posted to Instagram, she thanked everyone for their support. "Domestic violence IS the issue," she wrote. "It broke me down to someone I never thought I would become. With a lot of hard work, I am better today, but I will always be recovering from my past."
Cassie continued, "Thank you to everyone that has taken the time to take this matter seriously. 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."
The singer's lawsuit alleged that Diddy's controlling and abusive patterns throughout their relationship (including beating her in fits of "uncontrollable rage") began not long after she was signed to his label, Bad Boy Records, in 2005. She was 19 at the time, while he was 37.
See Cassie's full statement below.