Kathy Ventura on Thursday addressed the disturbing video of her ex-boyfriend Sean “Diddy” Combs assaulting her in a hotel room for the first time in 2016, saying, “He’s the kind of person I never thought I would be. I was depressed,” he said.
“Thank you for the love and support from family, friends, strangers, and those I have yet to meet,” Ventura, 37, said in a statement. to instagram.
“The outpouring of love has given my younger self a place to feel at ease and safe, but this is just the beginning. Domestic violence is the problem. It has broken me down into the person I never thought I would become. Thanks to a lot of hard work, I am better today, but I am always recovering from the past.”
The “ME&U” hitmaker continued, “Thank you everyone for taking the time to take this issue seriously. My only request is that for the first time, everyone is open to believing the victim. “It takes a lot of heart to tell the truth from a situation where you were powerless,” she continued.
“I reach out to those who still live in fear. Reach out to those around you. Don’t cut yourself off from them. No one should bear this burden alone. This journey of healing will never be over, but this support means everything to me. Thank you. Love always, Cathy,” she concluded.
Video released by CNN over the weekend shows Combs, 54, throwing his then-girlfriend Ventura to the hotel floor, kicking him, dragging him down a hallway and throwing objects at him.
Combs later released an apology video in which he said he “takes full responsibility” for his actions and spoke passionately about being at “rock bottom” at the time the video was made.
Combs, who has since gone to therapy to become a better person, said she was and still is “disgusted” with herself at the time of the beating.
The music industry mogul did not mention Ventura’s name in his apology video, reportedly for legal reasons.
Ventura dated Combs from 2007 to 2018.
She then began dating personal trainer Alex Fine, whom she married in September 2019. The couple have two daughters, Frankie, 4, and Sunny, 3.
If you or someone you know is experiencing any of the issues discussed in this article, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1.800.799.SAFE (7233) or text START to 88788. please.
