Russell Brand, ex-husband of Katy Perry, on conditional release accused of rape and other sexual abuses

Russell Brand has protested his innocence on social media against serious accusations of sexual violence that were charged against him last month. However, the British presenter and comedian avoided making a legal statement during his first court appearance. The now influencer, aged 49, appeared this Friday at Westminster Magistrates' Court for the initial hearing of the notorious case, which will continue at the National Criminal Court, the historic Old Bailey in London, later this month.

Until then, Brand will be on conditional release and will be allowed to travel from his home in the English countryside to his residence in Florida, where he has been living recently.

A throng of photographers and television cameras gathered outside the courthouse, awaiting the arrival and departure of the accused, who hid his gaze with sunglasses and wore his shirt half unbuttoned. Brand has embraced an ultra-religious version of Christianity, which he promotes in his audiovisual communications.

This time, he listened to the charges of rape and sexual abuse from the glass cubicle of the Westminster court. The prosecution accuses him of five offences against four women, which allegedly took place between 1999 and 2005.

Brand, who denies all charges, was working for British media at the time, including the BBC and Channel 4 television channel.

The Metropolitan Police in London opened a case against the famous comedian following a series of complaints and allegations of sexual assault collected in a joint investigation by Channel 4 and The Times group, broadcast in September 2023. Almost two years later, police investigations have resulted in Brand being prosecuted for two counts of rape, one of indecent assault, and two of sexual assault.

Ex-husband of singer Katy Perry, married and father of three, he claims to have been promiscuous in his youth, but never engaged in non-consensual sex. "I was a jerk, a drug and sex addict. But I was never a rapist," he states in a video released after the serious charges he faces in England became known.