Months after Sean “Diddy” Combs‘ team first alluded to a “substantial eight-figure settlement” in Cassie Ventura Fine‘s 2023 lawsuit against him, her testimony has revealed the amount Combs agreed to pay as she dismissed the legal action a day later.
Toward the end of her second day of testimony in Combs’ sex-crimes trial on May 14, Ventura Fine shared the settlement amounted to a $20 million payout. The 38-year-old, who is pregnant with her third child, said the settlement was paid by Combs, 55, and his companies.
The revelation came as she delved into the years following her and Combs’ 2018 breakup, revealing she was involved in writing a book about her experiences while they were dating.
She wanted Combs to read it so he would understand what she went through in their decadelong relationship, she told the court. So she reached out to Combs through her lawyer and asked him to read the draft and offer her compensation.
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Ventura Fine said she’d put a $30 million price tag on him acquiring the rights to her book, as this was an amount she thought would affect him. But after he allegedly failed to respond, she sued him in November 2023, alleging he had trafficked, sexually assaulted and physically abused her.
The two came to agreement by the next day and announced Ventura Fine would dismiss the lawsuit following an unspecified settlement.
“I have decided to resolve this matter amicably on terms that I have some level of control. I want to thank my family, fans and lawyers for their unwavering support,” Ventura Fine said in a Nov. 17 statement shared by her lawyer, Douglas Wigdor.
“We have decided to resolve this matter amicably. I wish Cassie and her family all the best,” Combs said in his own statement that same day. “Love.”
What did Cassie say in her lawsuit?
On Nov. 16, 2023, Ventura Fine alleged in a bombshell lawsuit filed in New York federal court that Combs had trafficked, sexually assaulted and physically abused her.
Ventura Fine, better known by the stage name Cassie, is the hitmaker behind the song “Me & U,” which dominated the Billboard charts in the early aughts.
In May 2024, a 2016 hotel surveillance video exclusively shared by CNN showed Combs kicking, hitting and dragging Cassie – actions that were first described in her legal complaint. Days later, Combs issued a video apology, saying he took “full responsibility for my actions in that video.”
Combs’ team has claimed Ventura Fine’s legal action kicked off a federal investigation into the Bad Boy Records founder’s alleged behavior, which included a raid of his homes in Los Angeles and Miami in March 2024. Since Ventura Fine’s suit, Combs has faced a barrage of civil lawsuits – many of them from unnamed accusers – alleging sexual assault, abuse and trafficking dating back to the 1990s. Combs denies all misconduct claims.
His team has repeatedly stated that “no matter how many lawsuits are filed, it won’t change the fact that Mr. Combs has never sexually assaulted or sex trafficked anyone — man or woman, adult or minor.”
Following a months-long federal investigation, Combs was arrested on Sept. 16 on charges of racketeering, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Combs’ criminal trial in New York City is expected to last an estimated eight weeks.
Contributing: Aysha Bagchi, USA TODAY
