Disgraced comedian and actor Russell Brand has been charged with rape, sexual assault and indecent assault in the UK by the London Metropolitan Police.
UPDATE (4/4, 12:32 p.m. ET): Brand has now responded to the charges against him, again claiming that he has "never engaged in non-consensual activity."
"We're very fortunate, I suppose, that this is happening at a time where we know that the law has become a kind of weapon to be used against people," he continued in a video clip posted to the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. See the full thing below.
Brand is facing charges of one count of rape, two counts of sexual assault, one count of indecent assault and one count of oral rape for alleged incidents that occurred between 1999 and 2005, related to four separate women.
The charges come from an investigation that began 18 months ago following the allegations reported by Channel 4 and The Sunday Times in September 2023.
According to a statement [via Deadline], the police have "issued a charge and requisition" to the entertainer, who has turned to spewing right-wing conspiracy theories on various social media platforms since the allegations — which he has denied — came to light. Brand is now due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on May 2.