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A London magistrate ordered the remand in custody of British actor and comedian Russell Brand this Thursday after he was found guilty of one count of rape and three other charges of sexual assault throughout his career, at the close of a high-profile trial that lasted four weeks.
A jury of eight men and four women found Brand guilty today of raping a 21-year-old fan after one of his shows at the Hammersmith Apollo in the British capital in 2009, as well as assaulting or sexually groping three other women between 2004 and 2009.
However, he was acquitted of other sexual offenses he had been charged with.
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Following the verdict, Judge Joel Bennathan, of the Southwark Crown Court (south London), explained that the consequence of the jury's verdict would inevitably translate into "a significant prison sentence" before ordering the 51-year-old actor's remand in custody.
The sentence will be announced next Monday.
In addition to the rape charge, Brand was also found guilty of groping—but not orally raping—an MTV station worker during a party at a bar in Soho in 2004; of sexually assaulting a Capital Radio employee in 2005, and of another sexual assault against a Channel 4 worker during a "forced massage" in 2009.
Conversely, he was found not guilty of the rape of a woman he met during a Labour Party conference in 1999, as well as the charge of attempting to "drag" another MTV employee into a bathroom to sexually assault her in 2001.
He listened to the verdict without showing emotion
Brand remained standing in the dock while the verdicts were read and showed no emotion, except when he was found guilty of rape, at which point the actor closed his eyes.
Also, when the judge ordered his remand in prison until sentencing, he signaled to his defense team and spoke the words: "I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm fine," before being led out of the dock.
Brand's lawyer, Ian Winter, requested that the actor be granted bail until Monday as an "act of humanity" and so that he could put his affairs in order and "say goodbye to his three young children," before insisting that Brand was not a flight risk.
Shortly before hearing the jury's verdict, Brand looked at his wife, Laura Gallacher, who has always defended the actor's innocence, and told her: "Laura, I love you," before kissing the pendant he wore around his neck. His wife left the court after the ruling was announced without making any statements.
Possible opening of new cases against Brand
In parallel to the trial, London's Metropolitan Police (Met Police) confirmed this Thursday that Brand is being investigated for additional rape allegations from two women and that the inquiries are "ongoing."
In preliminary hearings, it was revealed that one of these complaints comes from a woman who dated Brand when the actor was 30 and she was a 16-year-old student.
The history of sexual allegations against Brand dates back to September 2023, when several media outlets published a joint investigation into his behavior.
In April 2025, he was charged with the crimes committed against the first four complainants, to which he pleaded not guilty, and in December of that year, he was accused of further new crimes.
He defended his innocence of the remaining charges in a hearing last February, and the current trial, which has lasted four weeks, began on October 12.
During his entertainment career, which began in the 90s, Brand was one of the United Kingdom's most popular comedians and hosted spin-off programs for 'Big Brother,' as well as awards galas such as the Brit Awards or the MTV Video Music Awards.
In his personal life, he gained greater notoriety after marrying singer Katy Perry in 2010, only to divorce a year later.
[Publicidad]