A woman has sued Sean “Diddy” Combs for allegedly threatening to kill her and dangling her over a 17th floor balcony, according to court documents obtained by Rolling Stone.
Fashion designer Bryana “Bana” Bongolan filed a 17-page lawsuit against Combs this week in Los Angeles for sexual battery, infliction of emotional distress, and false imprisonment, among other claims. Bongolan is seeking $10 million in damages for the lasting emotional distress that she claims she has suffered.
Bongolan alleges that she witnessed numerous instances of abuse between Combs and his girlfriend Casandra “Cassie” Ventura before the Bad Boy Entertainment founder allegedly intimidated and threatened Bongolan. It all culminated in a September 2016 night where Combs allegedly dangled Bongolan over the side of Ventura’s balcony while screaming at her.
“The only purpose of dangling someone over a balcony is to actually kill them or to intentionally terrorize them and rob them of any concept of dominion over their own bodily autonomy and safety,” the lawsuit, filed by attorney James R. Nikraftar of Miller Barondess, claims. “Ms. Bongolan refuses to allow this fear to control the rest of her life and brings this action to demand that Mr. Combs takes responsibility for the trauma he intentionally and maliciously” inflicted.
Combs — who is currently being held without bail after pleading not guilty to sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy charges — “firmly denies” Bongolan’s allegations. “Anyone has the right to file a lawsuit, regardless of the evidence they may or may not have,” a legal representative for Combs said in a statement provided to Rolling Stone. “Since last year, Ms. Bongolan has expressed an intention to sue Mr. Combs and has sought legal representation to pursue her claims. Mr. Combs firmly denies these serious allegations and remains confident they will ultimately be proven baseless.”
Bongolan describes herself as a young, aspiring fashion designer when she became close with Ventura while the two were both working with popular Los Angeles store Diamond Supply Co. around 2014. Through Ventura, Bongolan met Combs, whom she believed could offer “once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to collaborate” with him and his business. “Ultimately it only led to terror and abuse at his hands,” the lawsuit claims.
Editor’s picks
Up until 2018, Bongolan says she worked on several projects for Combs and his companies, including specialized Bad Boy Entertainment jackets, the 2016 Bad Boy reunion tour, album covers, music videos, and a clothing line with Ventura. But working with Combs did not lead to the career boost that Bongolan had hoped for, her lawsuit claims, but instead forced her to “experience violence and abuse firsthand in professional settings as well.”
Around this time, Bongolan claims that she also began to recognize “disturbing signs of an abusive relationship” between Ventura and Combs, who would allegedly blow up Ventura’s phone if she didn’t answer his calls, show up unannounced to Ventura’s apartment and “bang” on her door, and accuse people of trying to “fuck his woman.”
There were numerous alleged instances in which Bongolan claims that she saw Ventura covered in bruises or with a black eye, which Ventura allegedly said were from Combs. Bongolan claims she was physically present during one explosive fight where Combs “threw a large kitchen knife at Ms. Ventura, who, acting in self-defense, threw one back at him.”
Eventually, Bongolan says that Combs began “directing his rage” toward her. During a photoshoot for Ventura, Combs allegedly cornered Bongolan and, inches from her face, threatened her. “I’m the motherfucking devil,” Combs told Bongolan, according to the lawsuit. “You have no idea what I could do to you. I could kill you.”
Related Content
Bongolan says that she took the threat seriously, knowing “first-hand that Mr. Combs was a violent man,” referencing what she had seen of his relationship with Ventura and learning that Kid Cudi’s car exploded after the singer had a brief fling with Ventura. (Kid Cudi confirmed the allegation to the New York Times, saying, “This is all true.”) Bongolan claims she also heard rumors that the billionaire had once “skinned a rival’s dog.”
Combs’ alleged threats turned into reality on Sept. 26, 2016, Bongolan claims, when she and her girlfriend were sleeping over at Ventura’s Los Angeles apartment. Bongolan says she awoke in the early hours of the morning to Combs “violently” shouting and banging on Ventura’s front door.
Bongolan says she instructed her girlfriend to hide in a bathroom and lock the door, before Combs stormed into the apartment and advanced on Bongolan, who by then was on the apartment’s balcony. Combs allegedly grabbed Bongolan and groped her breasts as she tried to fight him off and yelled at him to leave her alone.
Combs then grabbed Bongolan by her armpits and “lifted her up on the banister of the 17th floor balcony, while repeatedly yelling, ‘Do you know what the fuck you did? Do you know what the fuck you did?’” the lawsuit claims.
A physical struggle ensued, with Bongolan trying to get back on the ground, Bongolan claims, but as she stands under five feet tall and weighs less than 100 lbs., Combs easily overpowered her. “He immediately lifted her up higher and higher over the 17th floor balcony of Ms. Ventura’s apartment with only Combs’ grip keeping her from falling to her death,” the lawsuit claims.
Ventura, who had been locked in her bedroom, ran out onto the balcony and “screamed” at Combs to stop, the lawsuit claims, telling him that Bongolan’s girlfriend was also in the apartment and could overhear what was happening.
“Recognizing the threat of so many witnesses to his assault, [Combs] pulled Ms. Bongolan back over the balcony,” the lawsuit claims. “But he did not release her. In a last fit of violence, he slammed Ms. Bongolan onto the balcony’s patio furniture, including a table.”
“The September 26 assault ultimately proved that Ms. Bongolan was correct to fear Mr. Combs and has resulted in deep and lasting harm,” the suit adds.
Ventura also references an alleged balcony incident in her since-settled sexual abuse and sex trafficking lawsuit against Combs. (He denied any wrongdoing.) Ventura alleged that after she was forced to participate in a freak-off with a male sex worker, a “severely intoxicated” Combs picked up a woman “like a child” and dangled her over a 17th floor balcony.
“Ms. Ventura and her friends were scared by Mr. Combs’s erratic behavior, but Ms. Ventura was heavily sedated because of the drugs she took to participate in the FO, and therefore was unable to respond to Mr. Combs’s terrifying behavior,” her lawsuit alleges.
Bongolan is now part of the group of 30 people who have filed civil lawsuits against Combs, all who claim Combs assaulted them in some form dating back to the 1990s and as recently as 2022. The claims come from former Danity Kane member Dawn Richard, producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones, working models, aspiring artists, businessmen, security guards, and people who say they were teens at the time of their alleged encounters. Combs has vehemently denied all claims of abuse through his reps.
The 55-year-old is currently being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Brooklyn since his arrest on Sept. 16. Southern District of New York prosecutors largely built the criminal case against Combs on the alleged experiences of Ventura, who claimed that Combs forced her to engage in sexual acts with male sex workers throughout their decade-long relationship.
Combs has denied her claims and pleaded not guilty to the three charges against him. If convicted, he faces 15 years to life in prison.
