UK court convicts Russell Brand of rape, sexual assaults

British comedian and actor Russell Brand has been found guilty of rape and sexual assaults by a London court and told he faces a lengthy jail sentence, Reuters reports.

The 51-year-old was convicted at Southwark Crown Court on Thursday of one count of rape and three sexual assaults, but acquitted of two other rape charges and an attempted indecent assault.

Judge Joel Bennathan said he would be sentenced on Monday. Brand was taken to the cells ahead of a bail application.

Brand, the former husband of US singer Katy Perry, had denied the accusations, saying the incidents were consensual, reinvented or re-imagined.

Prosecutors described the star of “Get Him to the Greek” and “Arthur” as a ruthless sexual predator. The charges spanned 1999 to 2009, as he rose from stand-up comedy to Hollywood fame.

The six complainants, who are entitled to lifelong anonymity, did not know each other but came forward to police after a 2023 TV documentary and press reports.q