Russell Brand has been sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison after being convicted last week of rape and sexual assault in a London, U.K., court.
Judge Joel Bennathan told Brand he showed a “casual and arrogant disregard” for any woman saying no to him in his sentencing remarks, the Associated Press reported.
“About 20 years ago, Russell Brand, you were becoming famous,” Bennathan said. “You were clever — and in many people’s eyes, funny and charismatic. You had also become a sexual predator.”
Brand, 51 —who shot to fame in the early 2000s for his outrageous stand-up comedy routines and outlandish behaviour as a television and radio host — was found guilty last week at Southwark Crown Court on one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault by a jury of eight men and four women.
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He was cleared of two counts of rape and one count of attempted indecent assault.
Brand pleaded not guilty on all counts and asserted all of his sexual encounters had been consensual.
Prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones told the court last week that the actor and comedian “abused the influence and power that came with his fame… to facilitate access to women without which the offending could not have taken place. It also fed his own view that he could commit such offences with impunity.”
Defence lawyer Ian Winter urged the judge to consider Brand’s good character, saying he only had a marijuana possession conviction from 1995 and had performed charitable work and helped others overcome drug and alcohol abuse.
Brand was supported in court by his wife, Laura Gallacher, 39, who testified as a character witness during the trial, but no one with relevant evidence was willing to give evidence on his behalf, Brand said.
She described him as a “caring, kind and a wonderful father.” The couple have three children.
Brand was free during his trial but was jailed last week after being found guilty.
His accusers came forward in 2023 following an investigation by the British newspaper The Times and Channel 4, which aired accounts of women who claimed they had been sexually abused by Brand.
One of the women he was convicted of abusing spoke in court about the impact of the crime, and the others provided statements read by the prosecutor.
A woman Brand was convicted of sexually assaulting during a birthday party at a London bar in 2004 said that the assault left her in shock and turmoil and made her feel like “damaged goods.”
“For many years as his star was rising it was impossible to escape seeing him all over the media, being celebrated for his disgusting behaviour against women like it was all a joke,” she said.
“There were many times I felt visibly sick at the sight of him parading around, thinking he can get away with anything,” she added.
A woman he was convicted of kissing and groping at a London radio station in 2004 or 2005 said it had a lasting impact on her life.
“Since the sexual assault … Russell Brand has managed to move on and even forget,” she said. “Over the years, hearing his voice on television, on social media or seeing his image made me jump.”
— with files from the Associated Press.
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