LOS ANGELES (AP) — Sean “Diddy” Combs admitted that hit his ex-girlfriend Cassie in a hotel hallway in 2016 after CNN released video of the attack, saying in a video apology that he was “truly sorry” and that his actions were “inexcusable.”
“I take full responsibility for my actions in that video. I was disgusted when I did this. I’m disgusted right now,” the music mogul said. said in a video statement posted on Sunday on Instagram and Facebook.
The video shown Friday shows Combs, wearing only a white towel, punching and kicking Cassie, an R&B singer who was his protege and longtime girlfriend at the time. The footage also shows Combs pushing and dragging Cassie and throwing a vase toward her.
Cassie, whose legal name is Cassandra Ventura, sued Combs in November for what she said were years of sexual, physical and emotional abuse. The case was resolved the following day, but spurred intense scrutiny of Combswith several other lawsuits filed in the following months, along with a federal criminal sex trafficking investigation that led authorities to raid Combs’ mansions in Los Angeles and Miami.
He has denied the allegations in the lawsuits, but neither he nor his representatives responded to the newly emerged video as of Sunday.
“It’s so hard to reflect on the darkest moments in your life, but sometimes you have to,” Diddy says in the video. He adds: “I went and sought professional help. I started going to therapy, going to rehab. I had to ask God for his mercy and grace. I’m very sorry. But I’m committed to being a better man every day. I’m not asking for forgiveness. I am deeply sorry.”
Combs is somber and wearing a T-shirt in the selfie-style apology video, and appears to be on a patio. It’s the hip-hop mogul’s most direct response yet after six months of accusations that threatened his reputation and career. Previous statements were released through his lawyers.
The security camera video, dated March 5, 2016, closely resembles the description of an incident at an InterContinental Hotel in the Century City area of Los Angeles described in Ventura’s lawsuit.
The suit alleges that Combs paid the hotel $50,000 for security video immediately after the incident. Neither he nor his representatives have addressed that specific allegation. CNN did not say how it obtained the images.
Combs is not at risk of criminal charges for the beating. The statute of limitations on the assault and battery charges he was likely to face expired years ago.
