A London jury has found Russell Brand guilty of rape and three counts of sexual assault. The 51-year-old has been taken into custody and will be sentenced on Monday.
Russell Brand has been found guilty of rape and sexual assault following a four-week trial in London. He was convicted of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault after two days of deliberations by a jury at Southwark Crown Court on November 5.
The 51-year-old comedian and actor was found not guilty of two other rape charges and one count of attempted indecent assault. Brand had denied all the charges. The judge, Mr Justice Bennathan, remanded him in custody, which means he will stay in jail until he is sentenced on Monday.
“You’ve been convicted of a number of offences, including one of rape. The consequence of that is inevitably a significant custodial term,” the judge told him, according to The Guardian. “My current view is that I have to therefore remand you in custody.”
Six women, seven charges
Brand stood trial on seven charges based on allegations made by six women, dating from 1999 to 2009, when he was making his name as a stand-up comedian and TV presenter. Prosecutors said the women did not know each other and went to the police separately, after a TV documentary about Brand aired in Britain in 2023.
The rape conviction relates to a woman who met Brand at one of his shows at the Hammersmith Apollo in 2009, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The jury cleared him of raping a woman in a hotel room in 1999, and of trying to drag a colleague into a men’s toilet at MTV’s London office in 2001. He was also acquitted of a second rape charge.
During the trial, prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones described Brand as having an “indiscriminate and voracious” desire for sexual contact, and said that “women were simply a means to an end.”
“He was calculating, he was manipulative. And, the prosecution say, he was a sexual predator,” she told the jury, NBC News reported.
Police praise the women’s courage
After the verdict, Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy of the Metropolitan Police praised the women who came forward for their “extraordinary courage, resilience, and determination.”
“Despite intense media and public scrutiny, they relived deeply personal and traumatic experiences and placed their trust in us. Without their bravery, this outcome would not have been possible,” he said.
“Brand used his influence, status, and fame to prey on and exploit women. As his profile grew, so too did his sense of entitlement. I hope this conviction sends a clear message that no one is above the law, no matter how famous or powerful they may be.”
He also urged anyone who may have been a victim of rape or serious sexual assault to contact the police. “You will be listened to, supported, and treated with dignity and respect,” he said.
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