British comedian Russell Brand has been sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison for rape and sexual assault. On Monday, November 9, the court heard how he used his fame to harm four women. The judge said, "fame meant you could act how you liked, when you liked."

Russell Brand, the British comedian and actor, has been sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison for rape and sexual assault involving four women.

British comedian and actor Russell Brand has been sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison after being convicted of rape and sexual assault in a case involving four women.

The 51-year-old received his sentence at London's Southwark Crown Court on Monday, November 9, following his conviction on one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault. The offences took place between 2004 and 2009.

Brand, who denied all allegations and pleaded not guilty, was also acquitted of two additional rape charges and one count of attempted indecent assault.

During sentencing, Judge Joel Bennathan described Brand as a sexual predator who believed his celebrity status entitled him to behave without regard for the law or the boundaries respected by others.

The judge told the comedian that he believed "fame meant you could act how you liked, when you liked, unhindered by the rules by which decent people live".

Brand will serve two-thirds of his sentence in custody before being released on licence, according to the court's ruling.

The four-week trial heard allegations relating to several incidents involving women who had encountered Brand through his professional and social activities.

Prosecutors alleged that one woman was raped in a hotel room following a performance in England in 1999. Another woman accused him of attempting to drag her into a men's bathroom cubicle at the MTV Europe offices in 2001.

Further allegations included an incident in which Brand was accused of orally raping a woman in a bar restroom, as well as groping another woman at a radio station in 2004 or 2005.

Other allegations concerned an alleged rape at Brand's home in 2009 and an incident in which he allegedly behaved inappropriately towards a woman while they were working together.

Brand rose to prominence as a comedian, actor and television personality, appearing in films including Get Him to the Greek and Forgetting Sarah Marshall. His conviction and prison sentence mark a major development in the criminal proceedings against him.