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Russell Brand has been found guilty of rape and sexual assault following a lengthy criminal trial in the UK.

The comedian and actor was convicted of four sexual offenses involving multiple women, marking a stunning development in a case that has followed him for several years.

Brand was found guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault at Southwark Crown Court in London on Tuesday.

The verdicts came after jurors spent more than six hours deliberating over allegations involving six women.

The charges stemmed from alleged incidents between 1999 and 2009, a period during which Brand’s entertainment career was rapidly gaining momentum. He faced three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault, and one count of attempted indecent assault (via Deadline).

Brand pleaded not guilty to all seven charges and maintained that his sexual encounters with the women were consensual.

The trial lasted approximately three weeks, with prosecutors presenting accounts from six women who described alleged sexual misconduct at various locations, including a hotel, a bar, workplaces, and Brand’s home.

Prosecutors characterized Brand as a calculated sexual predator, arguing that the women’s accounts demonstrated a troubling pattern of behavior.

They also maintained that the women had no reason to fabricate their allegations.

Brand’s defense team took a very different approach, arguing that the accusations had been influenced by media coverage, particularly a 2023 documentary that featured allegations of sexual misconduct against the entertainer.

His attorney, Ian Winter, argued that the documentary had effectively “poisoned the well” of justice by encouraging women to reconsider encounters that had occurred years earlier.

Brand also took the witness stand during the trial, acknowledging that he had been promiscuous and had sometimes used his celebrity status to facilitate sexual encounters. However, he insisted that he had never engaged in non-consensual sexual activity.

The entertainer’s wife, Laura Brand, also testified in his defense. She described him as a caring husband while acknowledging that his previous promiscuity had caused her emotional pain.

The case represents a dramatic fall for someone who once enjoyed considerable success in both British television and Hollywood.

Brand became widely known through comedy and television appearances before landing roles in movies including Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Get Him to the Greek. He was also briefly married to pop superstar Katy Perry.

In more recent years, Brand moved away from mainstream entertainment and developed a substantial online following through videos discussing Christianity, wellness, and conspiracy theories.

Now, his criminal convictions add another significant chapter to an already deeply controversial public life. And while Brand spent the trial insisting that the allegations were false, a jury has now found him guilty of multiple serious offenses, which will likely lead to a lengthy prison sentence.

We will have further updates on this developing story as new information becomes available.