LONDON, November 6 (Aalimi Nation) – British comedian and actor Russell Brand, 51, was found guilty by a jury at Southwark Crown Court in London on Thursday of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault, in a case that began with allegations made by six women.
The jury cleared him of two other rape charges and one count of attempted indecent assault. Brand had pleaded not guilty to all seven charges and has consistently denied the allegations, saying the encounters were consensual or that the claims were untrue.
What the jury decided
The rape conviction relates to an incident in 2009, in which a woman said she was raped at his home after meeting him at one of his shows. The three sexual assault convictions relate to a 2004 incident in which a woman said he grabbed her breasts, an incident in 2004 or 2005 involving a woman at a London radio station, and a 2009 incident during a promotional recording, in which a woman said he pressed his face into her groin. The complainants have lifelong legal anonymity and are not named here.
The alleged offences covered 1999 to 2009, and the trial lasted about four weeks. Prosecutors told the court the women did not know one another and that each went to police after a television documentary about Brand was broadcast in 2023.
Judge Joel Bennathan told the court that a custodial sentence of some length would follow, according to reports from the courtroom. Brand was taken into custody after the verdicts and is due to be sentenced on Monday, November 9. Under guidance from the Sentencing Council, the maximum penalty for rape is life imprisonment, and for each count of sexual assault it is 10 years.
Prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones described Brand as a "ruthless" predator and told jurors that women were "simply a means to an end" for him. Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy of the Metropolitan Police said Brand "used his influence, status and fame to exploit and sexually offend against women". He also praised the courage of the women who came forward.
The Metropolitan Police said a separate investigation into rape allegations made by two other women is continuing. No charges in that inquiry have been announced, and it is not part of this trial.
Giving evidence, Brand said the claims had a "devastating" effect on his life. He accepted that he had been sex-obsessed and said he had been "very comfortable allowing that to facilitate sexual access, which I agree was wrong". He also told the court that "consent is fundamental, essential, necessary and indeed more important than sex itself". His wife, Laura Gallacher, testified that he was a "caring, kind and a wonderful father".
The court will decide the length of the sentence on Monday. Whether Brand intends to appeal was not stated in the accounts reviewed. He was previously married to the American singer Katy Perry.
