British comedian Russell Brand has been sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison after being convicted of rape and sexual assault in a case involving four women.
The sentence was announced by Judge Justice Bennathan at Southwark Crown Court in London on Monday. Brand, 51, was found guilty last week of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault, covering incidents between 2004 and 2009.
The court heard testimonies from six women over a four-week trial that attracted widespread media attention. The jury convicted Brand of raping a woman he met at one of his comedy shows in 2009, along with sexually assaulting three other women at a bar, radio station and television studio.
Before sentencing, four women who brought the case against him submitted victim impact statements. Three were read by the prosecution, while another woman delivered her statement in court from behind a curtain.
One complainant, who was raped at Brand’s home in 2009, described the lasting impact of the incident, saying, “It’s something I carry with me every day and it often feels never-ending.”
Brand has denied all charges and maintained that he never engaged in non-consensual sexual activity.
