“My current assessment is that I must therefore remand you in custody pending sentencing,” the judge says.
The judge says the case has been “very well presented” and adds that the sentencing hearing will be held on Monday.
Brand had been free on bail pending sentencing, but will now be detained immediately, on the judge’s order. Brand’s attempt to appeal the decision directly in the courtroom was immediately rejected.
No reaction
According to witnesses in the courtroom, Russell Brand received the judge’s decision without any major reaction.
The trial concerns events that occurred between 1999 and 2009 involving six different women as complainants. Russell Brand has denied any wrongdoing.
The most serious charge Brand is facing relates to an incident in 2009, when the court ruled that he anally raped the complainant at his home in Hampstead, London, after having previously met her at one of his performances at the Hammersmith Apollo.
The indictment includes seven counts in total. He was acquitted of two counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, Sky News reports.
Investigating more rapes
Police have also said that Russell Brand is being investigated over further allegations of rape by two women, and that more may come forward.
“The suspect has previously been questioned under suspicion of a crime in connection with the allegations,” a police spokesperson told Sky News, adding that investigative material has been handed over to prosecutors regarding both complainants.
In 2023, the Sunday Times and Channel 4 published a joint investigation in which several women came forward and claimed that Brand had abused them in the UK and Los Angeles.
This sparked a police investigation. One of the women was 16 years old when the alleged abuse occurred.
Russell Brand started out as a stand-up comedian and made his mark on British television in the early 2000s. His success took him to Hollywood.
Russell Brand now lives in Florida, where he has built his own online platform with videos about health, conspiracy theories and religion.
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