Russell Brand, a comedian and Hollywood star who was once one of Britain's most famous media presenters, was sentenced to 10 and a half years in prison on Monday, November 9, after being convicted of "raping" a woman and sexually harassing three other women some two decades ago.
Brand, the ex-husband of American pop singer Katy Perry, who has been out of the mainstream media in recent years, was found guilty Thursday of raping one woman and sexually assaulting three other women between 2004 and 2009. He denied all the charges.
The 51-year-old comedian stood in the dock at London's Southark Crown Court as Judge Joel Benathan handed down his sentence, describing Brand as a "predator" who believed that "fame means you can do what you want, when you want". Previously, one of Brand's victims, who was "raped" by him in 2009, said in a statement read by prosecutors that the emotional trauma of the rape "is something I carry with me every day and often seems never-ending."