The Metropolitan Police in the U.K. have launched a probe into allegations of sexual offenses after a joint investigation by Channel 4 and The Times revealed allegations of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse by comedian and actor Russell Brand.
Without naming Brand or detailing the alleged offenses to protect its criminal investigation, the Met Police in a statement obtained by The Music news added: “We have also received a number of allegations of sexual offenses committed elsewhere in the country and will investigate these. The offenses are all non-recent.”
The U.K. media investigation found four women alleged they were sexually assaulted by Brand between 2006 and 2013, while he was a BBC presenter and acting in Hollywood films. The newly-launched U.K. police investigation is being carried out by detectives in the Met’s Central Specialist Crime Command, led by Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy.
“We continue to encourage anyone who believes they may have been a victim of a sexual offense, no matter how long ago it was, to contact us. We understand it can feel like a difficult step to take and I want to reassure that we have a team of specialist officers available to advise and support,” Furphy said in a statement.
The UK police have made no arrests and their investigation continues. The Met Police do not identify any person subject to an investigation before any charges are brought against that individual.
Brand preemptively denied the U.K. media allegations in a video posted to his social media platforms before the investigation became public. At the time, he denied any claims of non-consensual encounters, claiming that it was all part of coordinated media attacks.
On Friday, Brand returned to social media amid the wave of continuing sexual misconduct allegations he’s faced, which have had a swift and widespread impact on his career prospects.
Though he did not address the allegations in his return, he said it had been “an extraordinary and distressing week.”
