In a video statement posted to social media, Russell Brand denied charges of rape, indecent assault, and sexual assault that were brought against him in the U.K. earlier today.
“I’ve always told you guys that when I was young and single before I had my wife and family … I was a fool, man,” he said. “I was a fool before I lived in the light of the Lord. I was a drug addict, a sex addict, and an imbecile. But what I never was, was a rapist. I’ve never engaged in nonconsensual activity. I pray that you can see that by looking in my eyes.”
Brand, dressed in relaxed clothes and a wicker sun hat, used the rest of the 90-second clip to inveigh against the U.K. government, which he described as weaponizing laws against him, and to promote an upcoming online show. He closed, though, by going back to the subject: “Of course, I’m now going to have the opportunity to defend these charges in court,” he said. “And I’m incredibly grateful for that.”
Today, the Metropolitan Police announced his charges against Brand related to alleged incidents that took place between 1999 and 2005. The authorities say they had been investigating the claims of four women against Brand since September 2023. “We carefully reviewed the evidence after a police investigation into allegations made following the broadcast of a Channel 4 documentary in September 2023,” Jaswant Narwal of the Crown Prosecution Service said in a statement. “We have concluded that Russell Brand should be charged with offenses including rape, sexual assault, and indecent assault.”
Brand is expected to appear before the Westminster Magistrates’ Court on May 2.
From Rolling Stone US
