Russell Brand accuser says she reported alleged 2009 incident to Channel 4 manager

A woman told Russell Brand’s trial at Southwark Crown Court that she reported an alleged 2009 incident involving him to her manager while working for Channel 4. She said she was assured the complaint had been escalated, bringing an account of a report made at the time into the continuing trial.

The woman, whom Deadline calls Complainant 6, alleged that Brand put his head in her lap and demanded a massage. Deadline reported that she gave evidence from behind a screen. She has a lifelong right to anonymity.

What the Channel 4 employee told the court

Deadline reported that the woman described feeling repulsed by the encounter. Her testimony concerns both the alleged incident and what she says she did afterward. The jury has heard allegations from other women, but the court has made no finding on this account.

What Russell Brand has said

Brand, 51, has pleaded not guilty to three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one of indecent assault. The charges arise from allegations by six women spanning 1999 to 2009. He denies all seven charges and has said any sexual contact, if it happened, was consensual.

When police interviewed him, Brand declined to answer questions and relied on a prepared statement, Deadline reported. In that statement, he said he did not recall meeting the women or remember their names.

How this testimony fits into the trial

The jury has also heard from a different complainant about an alleged encounter at the Choice FM radio studios in central London in the mid-2000s, the BBC reported. That testimony concerns a separate allegation from the Channel 4 employee’s account. The trial continues.