America’s Best dropped Diddy’s Sean John eyewear brand after shocking footage emerged of him violently attacking his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura earlier this month.
The retailer confirmed that it “no longer sells Sean John” and removed the frames from all of its stores, replacing them with similarly priced glasses.
The prescription glasses, which are part of the Diddy’s brand, have also been removed from the America’s Best online store.
Although the retailer did not give a reason for the move, it comes amid fury over surveillance footage of the rapper attacking Ventura at a Los Angeles hotel in March 2016.
The video, obtained by cnnshows the rapper, whose real name is Sean Combs, shirtless and with a towel around his waist, chasing Cassie down the hallway of the InterContinental Hotel in Century City.
America’s Best dropped Diddy’s Sean John eyewear brand after shocking footage emerged of him violently attacking his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura earlier this month. (Pictured: Diddy and Cassie on the red carpet two days after the hotel incident in March 2016)
The retailer confirmed that it “no longer sells Sean John” and has removed the frames from all of its stores, replacing them with similarly priced glasses.
As she tried to get into an elevator, he grabbed her by the back of the neck and threw her to the ground.
The 54-year-old rapper then kicked her as she lay motionless on the ground.
Diddy stood over her, kicked her again, and then dragged her back to her room by her hoodie.
Two days later, the couple appeared on the red carpet holding hands for the premiere of The Perfect Match.
Cassie, 37, claimed in a since-settled lawsuit that Diddy had paid the same hotel $50,000 for the footage after the attack.
In a statement to DailyMail.com, Cassie’s lawyer Douglas Wigdor said: “The heartbreaking video has only confirmed Mr. Combs’ disturbing and predatory behavior.
“Words cannot express the courage and strength that Ms. Ventura has shown by coming forward to bring this to light.”
Diddy and others accused the singer of lying about the abuse, and she took to Instagram to urge people to “open their hearts to believe the victims the first time” after the video surfaced.
She urged people to “open their hearts to believe victims the first time” after Sean and others accused her of lying about abuse.
Jennifer Lopez, 54, who dated Diddy from 1999 to 2001, was also “disturbed” and “heartbroken” by the images, according to a source.
Diddy responded with an apology video posted to Instagram. “I hit rock bottom, but I don’t make excuses,” he said, adding that he was “screwed” at the time.
Cassie sued the rapper last year, alleging rape and a variety of other crimes. They settled out of court in November for an undisclosed amount.
In a statement at the time, Cassie said: “I have decided to resolve this matter amicably in terms of me having some level of control.”
“I want to thank my family, fans and lawyers for their unwavering support.”
In his own statement at the time, Diddy’s attorney said that settling the case was in no way an admission of guilt.
Cassie took to Instagram on Thursday to break her silence after a video was posted of her ex-boyfriend, rapper Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs hitting her.
‘Mister. “Combs vehemently denies these offensive and outrageous allegations,” said his attorney Ben Brafman.
‘For the past six months, Mr. Combs has been subjected to Ms. Ventura’s persistent demand for $30 million, under threat of writing a damaging book about their relationship, which was unequivocally rejected as blatant blackmail.
“Despite withdrawing her initial threat, Ms. Ventura has now resorted to filing a lawsuit riddled with baseless and outrageous lies, aimed at tarnishing Mr. Combs’ reputation and seeking a payday.”
The couple dated between 2007 and 2018, after meeting in 2006, when she was 19 and he was 37. She was recording her debut album at the time.
In her lawsuit, Cassie recalled an incident similar to the one captured on security footage at the Los Angeles hotel.
This is the former InterContinental hotel in Century City, Los Angeles, where Diddy allegedly attacked his then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura.
Cassie is seen trying to flee in an elevator. Diddy, after chasing her down the hallway, grabbed her by the back of her sweatshirt and threw her to the floor.
The lawsuit states: “Around March, Mr. Combs, during an FO at the InterContinental Hotel in Century City, Mr. Combs became extremely drunk and punched Ms. Ventura in the face, giving her a black eye.
“After he fell asleep, Ms. Ventura tried to leave the hotel room, but when she left, Ms. Combs woke up and started yelling at him. He followed her down the hallway while yelling at her.
“He grabbed her and then picked up glass vases in the hallway and threw them at her, causing glass to break around her as she ran towards the elevator to escape.”
Cassie said in the lawsuit that she eventually managed to escape from Diddy and go to her own apartment, but decided to return to the hotel out of fear of the rapper.
“Realizing that her escape would make Mr. Combs even more angry with her and completely trapped in his vicious cycle of abuse, Ms. Ventura returned to the hotel with the intention of apologizing for fleeing her abuser,” he said the complaint resolved.
“When she returned, hotel security urged her to get back in a taxi and go to her apartment, suggesting that they had seen security footage showing Mr. Combs punching Ms. Ventura and throwing glass at her in the hallway of the hotel. hotel”.
The legal claim says Diddy paid InterContinental Century City $50,000 for hallway security footage showing the alleged assault.
The couple then made a second appearance on March 7, with Cassie wearing a different dress.
Cassie has described a tortuous relationship that lasted years in which he controlled her movements and subjected her to abuse. She has always denied any wrongdoing.
Footage from the March 2016 incident comes just two months after the Department of Homeland Security raided Diddy’s homes in Miami and Los Angeles as part of a sex trafficking investigation.
He is also fighting lawsuits from other accusers alleging abuse and sexual misconduct.
Diddy’s sons, Justin and Christian ‘King’ Combs, were handcuffed during the raid on their father’s Los Angeles residence.
In February, a music producer filed a lawsuit alleging that Diddy forced him to hire prostitutes and pressured him to have sex with them.
Another of Diddy’s accusers was a woman who said the rap producer raped her two decades ago, when she was 17 years old.
Diddy and his lawyers have denied all allegations in the lawsuits.
The rapper is among the most influential hip-hop producers and executives of the last three decades.
Formerly known as Puff Daddy, he built one of the largest empires in hip-hop, breaking ground with several entities linked to his famous name.
He is the founder of Bad Boy Records and a three-time Grammy winner who has worked with a host of top artists, including Notorious BIG, Mary J. Blige, Usher, Lil Kim, Faith Evans and 112.