The Associated Press does not typically name people who say they have been sexually abused unless they come forward publicly as Ventura has.

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According to the lawsuit, Combs earlier in the evening became “extremely intoxicated” and punched Ventura, giving her a black eye. After he fell asleep she tried to leave, the suit says. This is apparently where the video begins. Ventura can be seen heading to a bank of elevators with a packed bag.

Then Combs awoke and began screaming at her, following her down the hall, the suit said. He violently grabs her and yanks her to the ground, kicks her and throws vases in her direction in the video.

The lawsuit says she managed to get away, but later returned out of fear that she would face greater abuse if she didn’t. As she returned, hotel staff urged her to go back to her apartment, the suit says. She would flee and hide out with a friend in Florida. The lawsuit alleges Combs paid the hotel $US50,000 for the security video.

It is unlikely Combs could be criminally charged in the attack. The statutes of limitations for assault or battery in California run from one to three years depending on whether they’re charged as misdemeanours or felonies.

The video’s release comes as Combs and his legal team had begun to push back against the allegations that had come in a steady stream since November. They recently filed motions to dismiss parts of a lawsuit alleging he sexually assaulted a woman in 1991, and to dismiss all of a lawsuit alleging he and two other men raped a 17-year-old girl in 2003. The court filings called both sets of allegations false.

On March 25, officers from the US Department of Homeland Security served search warrants on Combs’ homes in Los Angeles and Miami in a sex-trafficking investigation. His lawyer called it “a gross use of military-level force”. The investigation is continuing. Combs has not been charged.

Combs, a three-time Grammy winner and the founder of Bad Boy Records, is among the most influential hip-hop producers and executives of the past three decades. He turned his hip-hop success into a broader business empire that includes private-label spirits, fashion, and a TV network.

He has had to step aside from some of his business roles since the allegations began emerging. Combs and Ventura began dating in 2007 and had an on-and-off relationship for more than a decade.

She became known for the hit single Me & U, which secured the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop songs chart in 2006. The song was the lead single of her self-titled and only studio album.

As an actor, she has appeared in several television shows and films, including Fox’s Empire, Step Up 2: The Streets and Spenser Confidential.

AP

If you or anyone you know needs support, you can contact the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service on 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732).