Russell Brand sentenced to 10 and a half years for rape and sexual assault, Digi Mart USA News (London): Russell Brand has been jailed for 10 and a half years for raping a woman and sexually assaulting three others during his showbiz career.
Delivering his sentence, Mr Justice Bennathan told Brand he had become a “sexual predator” as he was starting to become famous. “About 20 years ago, you were becoming famous,” the judge said.
“You were clever – and in many people’s eyes, funny and charismatic. You had also become a sexual predator.”
Mr Justice Bennathan added that Brand had “a casual and arrogant disregard for a woman’s right to say no to [him]”.
In the wake of his convictions, the Metropolitan Police revealed that Brand is currently under investigation over two further rape allegations.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said that the bravery shown by women who came forward to report Brand will bring about wider changes to the legal system. Burnham said he would be “relentless in making whatever improvements we can” to provide more support for victims, including making sure there are rape and serious sexual offence teams in every police force.
The Prime Minister said: “I don’t think you ever can do enough to get the right support in place for victims to give them the confidence to come forward, because we know that still isn’t there in the way that it should be. But I have already taken a decision to make sure there are rape and serious sexual offence teams in every police force by the end of next year.”
Burnham added: “Obviously today, everybody will be thinking about the women who had the courage to come forward. Their bravery will, I believe, change the system more broadly, and we will be relentless in making whatever improvements we can.
But there’s no complacency here. There’s a lot more that needs to change.”
A Channel 4 worker who was sexually assaulted by Brand said the attack was “brushed under the carpet” by her bosses and she still worries about repercussions for speaking out. The woman was targeted by Brand during a recording session in 2009, when she was forced by the comedian’s entourage to give him a massage.
When she reluctantly agreed to keep the session going, Brand knelt down and thrust his head into her groin.
In a victim impact statement read to Southwark Crown Court on Monday, the woman said she was “powerless” during the incident, “really upset” in the aftermath, and she struggled to trust colleagues in the years that followed.
A radio worker who was sexually assaulted by Brand in 2005 told the court she almost withdrew her allegation over the emotional strain of being at the centre of a criminal case. She told the court: “Russell Brand is a sexual predator who has no remorse for how his behaviour has impacted my life.”
The woman who was raped by Brand in 2009, after meeting him at one of his comedy shows at the Hammersmith Apollo, told the court she struggled with alcoholism and mental health struggles in the intervening years. “Because of who he was and the influence he held, I did not feel confident speaking openly about what had happened,” she said.
A former MTV worker, who was groped in a Soho bar by Brand, told the judge: “I felt like my life was on hold for all of that time waiting my time to speak out about what happened to me.” She said she suffered a panic attack after seeing media reports of her evidence at trial, and added: “Even more terrifying was seeing my character be torn apart on social media by people believing all of us women were making it up.”
This is a breaking news story and is being updated.
