Comedian and actor Russell Brand has been charged with rape and sexual assault, UK police said on Friday.
London’s Metropolitan Police said in a statement that Brand, 50, had been charged with one count of rape, one count of indecent assault, one count of oral rape and two counts of sexual assault.
The charges relate to alleged incidents involving four separate women between 1999 and 2005.
The force said detectives began investigating Brand in September 2023 after receiving a number of allegations against him following reporting by Channel 4’s Dispatches programme and The Sunday Times newspaper.
Brand, who announced last year that he had converted to Christianity, said in a video posted on social media site X on Friday: “When I was young and single, before I had my wife and family . . . 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 non-consensual activity. I pray that you can see that by looking in my eyes.”
He added: “I’m now going to have an opportunity to defend these charges in court, and I’m incredibly grateful for that.”
Brand is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on May 2. He was charged by requisition — a legal document notifying the defendant of the prosecution, the Met said.
Police said the allegations include the rape of a woman in 1999 in Bournemouth. The three other alleged incidents all took place in the Westminster area of London: an alleged indecent assault in 2001, an alleged oral rape and sexual assault in 2004, and an alleged sexual assault between 2004 and 2005.
Jaswant Narwal, the chief crown prosecutor for London North, said in a statement that prosecutors authorised police to charge Brand after they “carefully reviewed the evidence”.
Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy from the Metropolitan Police, who is leading the investigation, said in a statement: “The women who have made reports continue to receive support from specially trained officers.
“The Met’s investigation remains open and detectives ask anyone who has been affected by this case, or anyone who has any information, to come forward and speak with police.”
The British actor and comedian has been seen in the US a number of times in recent months, including attending events at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
