LONDON — LONDON (AP) — Russell Brand behaved like a “ruthless” sexual predator when he assaulted six women over the course of a decade, a prosecutor said Wednesday, as she opened the rape and sexual assault case against the actor-comedian.
Brand, 51, has pleaded not guilty to three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one count of indecent assault. The charges relate to six women and alleged offenses between 1999 and 2009.
Prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones told jurors at Southwark Crown Court in London that the six women, who did not know each other, were attacked by Brand in “a hotel room, at their workplaces, in a toilet cubicle in a bar and at his home”.
She said Brand had a “blind and voracious” desire for sexual contact at the time and that “women were just a means to an end.”
The prosecutor said Brand could be funny and charming, “a flirt with a huge sexual appetite – childish in his expectation that all his desires would be satisfied”.
“He was ruthless, calculating, manipulative. And, according to the prosecution, he was a sexual predator,” Karmy-Jones said.
Brand listened intently from the dock as the prosecutor described each of the alleged incidents, including the first, in which Brand allegedly raped a woman in a hotel room at the Labor Party’s annual conference in 1999. Brand, then a rising comedian, was performing at a cabaret on the sidelines of the conference in the English coastal town of Bournemouth.
Two years later, according to another woman, Brand tried to drag her into the men’s restroom of the office building where she worked.
“There is no doubt as to Mr. Brand’s intention,” Karmy-Jones said.
A third woman claims Brand orally raped her in 2004 in the toilets of a London bar, telling her “Don’t be a spoilsport” when she asked him to stop.
The prosecutor said other complainants include a woman who claims Brand kissed and groped her at a London radio station in 2004 or 2005, leaving her feeling “dirty and disgusting”; and a then-21-year-old fan who says Brand anally raped her at his home after meeting him at one of his shows in 2009.
She said that the following year, she exchanged text messages with Brand, telling him, “You treated me like an animal.” He replied, “I’m sorry. »
The latest plaintiff claims Brand asked for a massage and pressed his face against her groin while recording a commercial in 2009.
Karmy-Jones told the jury that none of the alleged victims reported the alleged assaults at the time, due to guilt, shame and fear of being blamed. They individually went to police after a 2023 TV show aired anonymous allegations against Brand, she said.
The prosecutor said jurors would hear from the women later in the trial and “I am confident you will find their testimony compelling.”
The first witness to give evidence was Mark Pinheiro, a former friend of Brand’s who had accompanied him on the 1999 trip to Bournemouth. He said the day after the alleged rape, Brand abruptly took them out of town and seemed “incredibly alert and incredibly frightened.”
“Every time a police siren passed the car, Russell would cower behind the side window so he couldn’t be seen,” Pinheiro said.
Brand’s lawyer, Ian Winter, questioned Pinheiro’s recollection of events more than a quarter-century ago.
Brand denies all accusations. In interviews with police, he denied engaging in non-consensual sexual activity.
Brand is free on bail and arrived in court Wednesday before a crowd of photographers and video journalists. He said he felt “blessed.”
“I of course feel worried but I hope this process results in good outcomes for everyone involved,” Brand said. “It’s my prayer.”
Known for his risky stand-up routines and battles with drugs and alcohol, Brand rose to prominence in the early 2000s, hosting television programs and his own radio show on the BBC. He appeared in Hollywood films including “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” and “Get Him to the Greek” and was briefly married to pop star Katy Perry.
In recent years, he moved away from mainstream media, moved to Florida and built a large online following with videos mixing wellness, conspiracy theories and discussions of his religious devotion.
The Associated Press does not name victims of alleged sexual violence and British law protects their identities from the media for life.
Gn entert
