Hip-hop artist Sean "Diddy" Combs' ex-girlfriend, American singer Cassandra Ventura, has filed a lawsuit against the rapper for sexual assault.
Ventura claimed that the entertainment mogul had sexually assaulted and physically mistreated her during their relationship in the lawsuit, which was submitted to a federal court in New York on Thursday, according to NBC News.
In addition, the 37-year-old singer stated that Combs, 54, lured her into a relationship and made it tough for her to turn it down because she was afraid for her future as an upcoming artist attached to his label.
Ventura claimed that Combs was frequently motivated by anger and jealousy to hurt other men who had shown romantic interest in her after they started dating in 2007. She once said that Diddy had blown up a man's car when he found out the man liked her. The singer said that in addition to abusing her frequently, Combs also subjected "her to a drug-fueled lifestyle that kept her complacent and compliant.”.
“She found herself becoming numb to the abuse she was experiencing and became entirely beholden to Mr. Combs’s demands. She began to blindly follow his instructions out of fear of again being on the receiving end of a vicious beating,” the complaint read.
In the lawsuit, she further claimed that Diddy had made her have sex with multiple male prostitutes while he recorded and watched them.
Ben Brafman, Diddy's attorney, called the accusations "offensive and outrageous" in his response. In addition, he stated that Ventura had attempted to blackmail the rapper before bringing the lawsuit by threatening to publish a book that would harm Diddy's reputation if he did not give her the $30 million.
Brafman’s statement read in part, “Mr. Combs vehemently denies these offensive and outrageous allegations. 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’ reputation and seeking a pay day.”
