Diddy's Former Assistant Says 'Not One Cell in My Body' Was 'Surprised' by New Video

A former assistant of Sean "Diddy" Combs says that despite having "never" seen him act abusive toward Casandra "Cassie" Ventura in public during the time she worked for him, "there was not one cell in my body that was surprised" by Ventura's November lawsuit against Combs or the recently surfaced 2016 footage of him assaulting her in a hotel.

Suzi Siegel, who worked as Diddy's assistant from 2008 to 2009, told CNN that she "never saw him speak harshly to her or be abusive toward her or anything like that," while adding that she felt "sick and violently angry" by recent developments.

As previously reported, surveillance footage released by CNN on Friday, May 17 depicts Combs grabbing, shoving and kicking his ex-girlfriend in 2016. The footage matched allegations Ventura made in a now-settled lawsuit filed last November.

"I rode in limos with them, I went to parties with them. I guess what I would say is, even though I never saw anything that could corroborate what's in that lawsuit and what we just saw, there was not one cell in my body that was surprised," Siegel said.

"I would say that I was around him a lot and I got a feeling for who he was," she added. "I didn't see anything that could get him in trouble. But I think that [there's a] power dynamic in a situation like that — especially her, at the beginning of her career, so young and beautiful and talented."

Siegel, who said she worked for Combs around the beginning of his relationship with Ventura (the pair began dating in 2007), added that she was not personally mistreated by him. "I didn't see that proof," she said.

"Obviously, I saw it with the rest of America today. But when I saw it, I knew that it was something that he could be capable of," the rapper's former assistant continued.

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Ventura's attorney Douglas H. Wigdor shared in a statement obtained by PEOPLE on Friday that the "gut-wrenching video" depicting Combs kicking and dragging his client "has only further confirmed the disturbing and predatory behavior of Mr. Combs."

"Words cannot express the courage and fortitude that Ms. Ventura has shown in coming forward to bring this to light," he added.

A rep for Diddy did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment on Friday.

In a statement shared to social media, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office wrote that it was "unable" to charge Combs with crimes in relation to the footage, as it was filmed "beyond the timeline where a crime of assault can be prosecuted," calling the footage "extremely disturbing and difficult to watch."

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"If the conduct depicted occurred in 2016, unfortunately we would be unable to charge as the conduct would have occurred beyond the timeline where a crime of assault can be prosecuted," the statement, released on Friday, read.

"As of today, law enforcement has not presented a case related to the attack depicted in the video against Mr. Combs," the statement continued. "But we encourage anyone who has been a victim or witness to a crime to report it to law enforcement or reach out to our office for support from our Bureau of Victims Services."

Combs and Ventura reached a settlement one day after she accused him of rape, sex trafficking and domestic violence in her November suit. Ben Brafman, Combs' lawyer, later told PEOPLE that the settlement was "in no way an admission of wrongdoing."

Since the lawsuit, multiple people have come forward accusing Combs of crimes including sex trafficking and rape — all of which he has denied.

If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.