British actor and comedian Russell Brand faces two additional criminal charges announced Tuesday by London’s Metropolitan Police. The new allegations include one count of rape and one count of sexual assault, both filed by separate women. Brand is scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 20 regarding these latest charges.
The new charges add to Brand’s existing legal troubles. He previously pleaded not guilty to five sexual assault charges involving four women, with alleged incidents occurring between 1999 and 2005. That trial is scheduled for June 16, and Brand remains on conditional bail. “The women who have made reports, including those connected to the two new charges, continue to receive support from specially trained officers,” said the Met’s detective chief inspector Tariq Farooqi.
The latest rape charge stems from incidents between Feb. 7 and March 1, 2009, while the sexual assault charge involves a different woman and dates from Aug. 21 to Dec. 9, 2009. Brand also faces a civil lawsuit from an anonymous plaintiff alleging sexual assault on a movie set in 2010. YouTube suspended monetization of Brand’s channels following initial allegations published in 2023.