Russell Brand has been found guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault involving four women, following a trial at Southwark Crown Court over allegations dating back more than 20 years.
The 51-year-old actor and comedian was taken into custody after a judge refused bail, citing the possibility that he might flee. He is due to be sentenced on Monday and was warned he faces a “significant” prison term.
Brand closed his eyes as the rape conviction was read out but otherwise showed little emotion. After bail was denied, he told his lawyers repeatedly: “I’m good, I’m good, I’m good,” before being taken away.
The jury, comprising eight men and four women, deliberated for more than eight hours over two days. Brand was acquitted of two further counts of rape and one count of attempted indecent assault.
He was convicted of sexually assaulting a woman at a birthday party in a London bar in 2004, although he was cleared of orally raping her in a restroom. He was also found guilty of kissing and groping another woman at a London radio station in 2004 or 2005.
The rape conviction concerned a fan Brand met backstage at one of his comedy shows in 2009. The fourth conviction related to a woman who said he demanded a massage while an advertisement was being recorded and pressed his face into her groin.
Brand denied all the charges and told the court that, although he had been obsessed with sex and led a promiscuous life when he was younger, he had never forced anyone to do something against their will.
His lawyers argued that the complainants had gone to police many years after the alleged incidents and only after anonymous accusations against Brand were broadcast in a 2023 investigation by The Times and Channel 4.
Brand was cleared of raping another woman in a hotel room during the Labour Party’s annual conference in Bournemouth in 1999. He was also acquitted of attempting to indecently assault a woman by dragging her towards the men’s bathroom at the London offices of music channel MTV.
Police investigate further allegations
After the verdicts, the Metropolitan Police confirmed that prosecutors had been given an investigation into two further rape allegations against Brand.
Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy said the conviction was “a testament to the extraordinary courage, resilience and determination of the women who came forward and reported what happened to them”.
“Brand used his influence, status and fame to exploit and sexually offend against women,” he said. “As his profile grew, so too did his sense of entitlement.”
Prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones described Brand during the trial as a ruthless, calculating and manipulative “sexual predator”. She told jurors that women were a “disposable commodity” to him and referred to a passage from his 2007 memoir, My Booky Wook.
Brand’s former personal assistant, Helen Berger, gave evidence that he had an “insane sexual appetite” and treated women poorly. She said his behaviour had been normalised by people around him before she eventually became “sick of him” and resigned.
Brand rejected evidence from a former roommate who said he wanted to have sex with 5,000 women. He did acknowledge that he had used his fame to have sex, which he said was wrong.
His wife, Laura Brand, accompanied him to court and gave evidence as a character witness for the defence. Brand told jurors the case had devastated his life and family, saying: “My entire life has been consumed by these events, these allegations, these accusations.”
Brand rose to prominence in the early 2000s through stand-up comedy, television and radio, later appearing in Hollywood films including Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Get Him to the Greek. He was briefly married to pop star Katy Perry.
In recent years, he moved away from mainstream media, relocated to Florida and developed a large online following through videos about wellness, conspiracy theories and his religious devotion.
The identities of the women who made the allegations are protected by British law for life.
