Russell Brand convicted of rape and sexual assault in London, held in custody ahead of sentencing

British actor and comedian Russell Brand was found guilty Thursday in a London court of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault involving four women, over events dating back more than two decades, according to the Anchorage Daily News and KPBS.

Judge Joel Bennathan said Brand, 51, would face a "significant" prison sentence when he returns to court for sentencing on Monday, the outlets reported. Brand had been free during the proceedings, but the judge turned down his bail request, citing a risk that he could flee, and he was taken into custody.

The jury at Southwark Crown Court, made up of eight men and four women, deliberated for more than eight hours across two days, ABC7 New York reported. Jurors acquitted Brand of two rape counts and one count of attempted indecent assault.

According to the Anchorage Daily News, the convictions relate to a sexual assault at a birthday party in a London bar in 2004, groping and kissing a woman at a London radio station around 2004 or 2005, raping a fan he met backstage at a comedy show in 2009, and sexually assaulting a woman during the recording of an advertisement that same year. He was cleared of an alleged rape at a hotel during the Labour Party conference in Bournemouth in 1999 and an alleged attempted assault at MTV's London office. British law shields the identities of the women for life.

Brand denied all charges. He testified that he had been obsessed with sex and promiscuous when younger but had never forced anyone into anything. "My entire life has been consumed by these events, these allegations, these accusations," he told the court, as reported by ABC7 New York.

His defense argued the women's accounts were weakened because they went to police years later, after a 2023 documentary aired anonymous allegations against him. His wife, Laura, testified as a character witness. During the trial, prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones described Brand as a manipulative "sexual predator," the outlets reported.

KPBS reported that Brand closed his eyes when the rape verdict was read and told his lawyers he was fine as he was led away.

Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy of the Metropolitan Police praised the women who came forward. "Brand used his influence, status and fame to exploit and sexually offend against women," he said, according to the Anchorage Daily News.

Brand became widely known in the early 2000s through television and a BBC radio show, appeared in films such as "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," and was briefly married to singer Katy Perry. He later moved to Florida and built a large online audience, the outlets reported.

Compiled by True News from reporting by Anchorage Daily News, KPBS, ABC7 New York and ABC13 Houston. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/802