UK prosecution labels Russell Brand a ruthless sexual predator at opening of his sex assault trial

Russell Brand behaved as 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 involve 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 don’t know each other, were assaulted by Brand in “a hotel room, workplaces, a toilet cubicle in a bar and at his home address.”

She said that at the time that Brand had an “indiscriminate and voracious” desire for sexual contact, and “women were simply a means to an end.”

The prosecutor said that Brand could be funny and charming, “a flirt with a huge sexual appetite — childlike in his expectation that his every desire should be met.”

“He was ruthless, he was calculating, he was manipulative. And, the prosecution say, 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 earliest, in which Brand allegedly raped a woman in a hotel room during the Labour Party’s annual conference in 1999. Brand, then a rising stand-up comedian, was performing in a cabaret on the fringe of the conference in the English coastal town of Bournemouth.

Two years later, another woman alleges, Brand tried to drag her into the men’s bathroom at the office building where she worked.

“There can be little doubt as to what Mr. Brand’s intention was,” Karmy-Jones said.

A third woman alleges that Brand orally raped her in 2004 in the restroom of a London bar, telling her “Don’t be a spoilsport” when she asked him to stop.

The prosecutor said that the other charges relate to a woman who says Brand kissed and groped her at a London radio station in 2004 or 2005, leaving her feeling “dirty and disgusting”; a then-21-year-old fan who says Brand anally raped her at his home after she met him at one of his shows in 2009; and a woman who says Brand demanded a massage and pressed his face into her groin during the recording of an advertisement 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 concern that they would be blamed.

She said that jurors would hear from the women later in the trial, and “I have no doubt you will find their evidence compelling.”

Brand denies all the charges. In police interviews, he denied ever engaging in nonconsensual sexual activity.

Carl Court/Getty Images

Brand is on bail and arrived at court on Wednesday to a crowd of photographers and video journalists. He said he felt “blessed.”

“I feel, of course, concerned but hopeful that this process will lead to good outcomes for everybody involved,” Brand said. “That’s my prayer.”

Known for risque stand-up routines and battles with drugs and alcohol, Brand rose to prominence in the early 2000s, hosting television programs and his own BBC radio show. He appeared in Hollywood films including “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” and “Get Him to the Greek.”

In recent years he has moved away from mainstream media, relocated to Florida and built a large online following with videos mixing wellness, conspiracy theories and discussions of his religious devotion.

The Associated Press doesn’t name victims of alleged sexual violence, and British law protects their identities from the media for life.

周三，一名检察官表示，拉塞尔·布兰德在十年间性侵了六名女性，其行为如同“冷酷无情”的性侵犯者。当天，她对这位演员兼喜剧演员提起了强奸和性侵诉讼。

现年51岁的布兰德对三项强奸罪、三项性侵罪和一项猥亵罪的指控拒不不认罪。这些指控涉及六名女性，涉嫌犯罪行为发生在1999年至2009年间。

检察官里尔·卡米-琼斯在伦敦南华克刑事法庭告诉陪审团，这六名互不相识的女性在“酒店房间、工作场所、酒吧的厕所隔间和布兰德的住所”遭到布兰德的袭击。

她表示，当时布兰德对性接触有着“不加选择且贪婪的”欲望，“女性对他来说只是达到目的的手段”。

检察官说，布兰德可能风趣迷人，“是个爱调情、性欲旺盛的人——像个孩子一样，希望自己的每一个愿望都能得到满足。”

“他冷酷无情，精于算计，善于操纵人心。而且，检方称，他还是个性侵犯者，”卡米-琼斯说道。

在被告席上，布兰德全神贯注地听着检察官描述每一桩指控事件，包括最早的一起，据称布兰德在 1999 年工党年会期间在一家酒店房间里强奸了一名女子。当时，布兰德是一位冉冉升起的单口喜剧演员，正在英国沿海小镇伯恩茅斯举行的工党年会期间的一家歌舞表演厅演出。

两年后，另一名女子声称，布兰德试图将她拖进她工作的办公楼的男厕所。

“布兰德先生的意图几乎毋庸置疑，”卡米-琼斯说道。

第三名女性声称，2004 年，布兰德在伦敦一家酒吧的洗手间里对她进行了口交强奸，当她要求他停止时，他告诉她“别扫兴”。

检察官表示，其他指控涉及一名女子，她称布兰德在 2004 年或 2005 年于伦敦一家广播电台亲吻并猥亵了她，让她感到“肮脏和恶心”；一名当时 21 岁的女粉丝称，她在 2009 年观看布兰德的演出后，在他家中遭到布兰德的肛交强奸；以及一名女子称，布兰德在 2009 年录制广告期间要求她按摩，并将脸按在她的腹股沟上。

卡米-琼斯告诉陪审团，由于内疚、羞耻和担心被责怪，所有所谓的受害者当时都没有举报这些所谓的袭击事件。

她说，陪审员们将在审判后期听取这些女性的证词，“我毫不怀疑你们会觉得她们的证词很有说服力。”

布兰德否认所有指控。在警方讯问中，他否认曾进行过任何非自愿性行为。

卡尔·考特/盖蒂图片社

布兰德已获保释，周三抵达法庭时，周围聚集了大量摄影师和摄像记者。他说他感到“很幸运”。

“我当然感到担忧，但同时也希望这个过程能给所有相关人员带来好的结果，”布兰德说。“这是我的祈祷。”

布兰德以其大胆露骨的单口喜剧表演以及与毒品和酒精的斗争而闻名，在2000年代初声名鹊起，主持电视节目和自己的BBC广播节目。他还出演过好莱坞电影，包括《忘掉莎拉·马歇尔》和《前往希腊剧院》。

近年来，他逐渐淡出主流媒体，搬到佛罗里达州，并通过将健康、阴谋论和宗教信仰讨论相结合的视频，在网上积累了大量粉丝。

美联社不会公布性暴力受害者的姓名，英国法律也终身保护受害者的身份不被媒体知晓。