Russell Brand jailed for 10 and a half years for rape and sexual assault

Former BBC Radio 2 presenter Russell Brand has been sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison for raping one woman and sexually assaulting three others between 2004 and 2009. He committed the offences as his fame grew across British radio, television, and film.

Mr Justice Joel Bennathan handed down the sentence at Southwark Crown Court in London on Monday (UK time). The sentencing came four days after a jury found the 51-year-old guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault.

Brand must serve two-thirds of the term in custody before he is eligible for release on licence. He will remain on the sex offenders’ register for life.

According to reports, the sentence is made up of nine years for the rape and a further 18 months for the three sexual assaults. Brand had spent the four nights since the verdict in HMP Wandsworth.

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What the judge said

Bennathan told Brand he had “become a sexual predator” as his fame grew two decades ago, and that he showed a “casual and arrogant disregard” for any woman who said no to him.

The judge said Brand believed “fame meant you could act how you liked, when you liked, unhindered by the rules by which decent people live.”

Defence barrister Ian Winter KC asked the court to consider Brand’s good character. He said Brand’s only previous conviction was for cannabis possession in 1995, and pointed to his charity work helping people with drug and alcohol addiction.

Victims’ statements

Brand raped one woman at his London home in 2009. In a statement read to the court, she said the trauma “often feels never-ending.”

“His fame, wealth and influence created a power imbalance which made me feel powerless,” she said.

Brand sexually assaulted another woman in 2004. She said she had carried the shame “for over 20 years.”

All four women are entitled to lifelong anonymity.

Who is Russell Brand?

Brand moved from Channel 4’s Big Brother spin-offs to BBC Radio 2, hosted the Brit Awards, and built a Hollywood film career. He later moved into podcasting from Florida. The jury convicted him of offences committed as his career expanded from stand-up into television and film. One of the offences was against a Channel 4 employee, whom he sexually assaulted during a recording in 2009 after two of his production team told her to give him a massage.

According to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), the women came forward independently after Channel 4’s Dispatches aired a joint investigation with The Times and The Sunday Times in September 2023. An internal BBC report found that the BBC had ignored numerous complaints about Brand’s conduct. Former BBC radio DJ Liz Kershaw has since accused the broadcaster of having “enabled Brand’s behaviour.”

Further investigations

“Russell Brand was predatory and used his celebrity status to commit sexual crimes,” said David Roberts, Senior Crown Prosecutor at the CPS.

Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy of the Metropolitan Police praised the women for their “immense bravery, dignity and resilience.”

The jury acquitted Brand of two further counts of rape and one count of attempted indecent assault. He had pleaded not guilty to all seven charges. The Metropolitan Police say Brand remains under investigation over two further alleged rapes, which he denies. No appeal has been reported.