Russell Brand Says He ‘Not Guilty’ in Message From Prison Read By Wife

Russell Brand has shared a message from prison, delivered by his wife, Laura Brand, on his YouTube channel Sunday.

“So Russell has asked me to read something to you today,” she said at the beginning of the video, before looking to a notebook to read her husband’s message. “Beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, God bless you for your support. As you know, I am not guilty for the offenses I have been jailed for, so something strange is happening.”

Brand was sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison after being found guilty of rape and sexual assault last Monday. The trial lasted four weeks at Southwark Crown Court, with the jury finding him guilty on one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault (he was found not guilty on two other rape charges and not guilty of attempted indecent assault).

Laura continued to deliver Russell’s message, reading, “The good news is that Christ is with us when we choose him, and I do. I am incarcerated in HMP Littlehey. Little as in small, and hey as in, ‘Hey, I’m in the biggest sex offenders prison in Europe.’ The good news is that I have already seen that the staff here are strong, they are kind, and they are dedicated. And as for my fellow prisoners, I now know that I am in no position to judge anyone.”

“I don’t know which other men here are not guilty, and the ones that are, they are people that Christ died to save, like you and me. Let us all love, pray for, and forgive one another as God forgave us. Please support my treasured wife and family. I feel your prayers. Your brother in Christ, Russell,” the remarks concluded.

In a pre-recorded portion of the YouTube video, Russell compared the coverage of his trial to that of a “football match.”

“So obviously, as I said last week, we’re in the middle of a trial,” he said. “I mean, we don’t really look at coverage, but someone showed me some of the coverage the other day from people that were actually broadly supportive. But I know that’s not generally how it’s being covered in the mainstream media, and you can draw your own conclusions from that. Although what I will say is, it’s amazing to watch other people’s coverage of it because they just talk about it like it’s a football match.”

In a new report from The Times and Netflix’s Russell Brand: Open Secret documentary, six more women accused of him of alleged sexual misconduct.

Read The Hollywood Reporter‘s deep dive into the years-long road to Russell’s sentencing here.