Amid a backdrop of sexual assault allegations and numerous lawsuits, including a high-profile settlement in November with former girlfriend Cassandra “Cassie” Ventura, Sean “Diddy” Combs finds his reputation as the renowned Bad Boy music icon tarnished, with his once-glamorous image overshadowed by accusations of violence and abuse. A new report from Rolling Stone delves into Combs’ life, tracing it back to his college days.
The magazine provided an intricate chronology of events, featuring accounts from over 50 individuals who either worked closely with Combs in the music industry or had a personal relationship with him, according to The Hollywood Reporter, who obtained a copy of the expose. The report highlighted recollections from several people who attended college with Combs at Howard University, where he was reportedly known to employ violence and intimidation tactics against women.
In one incident, three of Combs’ former college peers told Rolling Stone that one night, he allegedly stood outside Howard’s Harriet Tubman Quadrangle dorm and displayed hostile behavior as he screamed for his girlfriend to come outside and see him. Several women in the dormitory were alarmed about the incident as they found out he was attacking his girlfriend outside the building.
“Puff is out here acting crazy. He’s beating her,” the fellow students said, the first witness recalled to the outlet.
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A second Howard student allegedly witnessed Combs allegedly using a belt to hit the woman repeatedly, describing him as extremely angry and yelling loudly. The witness said Combs “whupped her butt — like really whupped her butt,” and the woman cried while trying to defend herself, with others screaming at him to stop.
According to HotNewHipHop, the student who witnessed the attack claimed to be friends with Combs and his then-girlfriend. The source said the woman would be afraid whenever he came around her.
“She would tense up [when Combs appeared],” the source recalled. “He just had a weird control thing. I felt like she was fearful.”
The report outlined numerous instances of Diddy allegedly displaying violent behavior toward both men and women, revealing a recurring pattern of preventing his former girlfriends from moving on after the relationship ended. Additionally, it highlighted the multiple ongoing investigations against him.
As Blavity reported, Cassie addressed the public for the first time since a 2016 video resurfaced that showed Combs physically assaulting her at a Los Angeles hotel. CNN had initially released the hotel surveillance footage on May 17, backing up her claims of abuse in the now-settled lawsuit.
“Thank you for all of the love and support from my family, friends, strangers and those I have yet to meet,” the 37-year-old wrote in an Instagram post. “The outpouring of love has created a place for my younger self to settle and feel safe now, but this is only the beginning,” her post began. “Domestic Violence is THE issue. 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. 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’re powerless in.”
