Russell Brand has been moved to a less restrictive prison just five days into his 10-and-a-half-year sentence for rape and sexual assault, due in part to safety concerns.
Brand was reportedly transported 90 miles from HMP Wandsworth in London to Category C HMP Littlehey in Cambridgeshire on Friday, according to The Sun. The move was prompted by concerns for Brand’s safety, given his high-profile status, and the nature of his convictions.
As highlighted by The Daily Wire, Brand’s first weekend behind bars involved fellow inmates shouting vulgar nicknames at the actor. “There’s a Brand new nonce on the wing!” the inmates reportedly yelled. “A Brand new nonce. Brand, you c*nt, you ain’t so f*cking lairy now.” A “nonce” is a slang term for “rapist” or “sex offender,” and “lairy” describes someone who is boisterous and loud — particularly if that behavior is fueled by alcohol.
The comedian had reportedly been held in solitary confinement in a basement segregation unit at Wandsworth, where prison officials considered him particularly vulnerable to attacks from other inmates.
Authorities reportedly considered transferring him to HMP Wakefield, a higher-security facility where a convicted sex offender named Ian Watkins was murdered last year. The option, though, was apparently deemed too dangerous.
Littlehey offers inmates access to soccer, yoga, gyms, choir sessions, and other classes. Brand is reportedly being housed in a single-person cell and has yet to interact with any of the prison’s roughly 1,200 inmates.
Brand was sentenced Monday to a total of 10 years and six months behind bars, following convictions for rape and sexual assault involving four women. When delivering Brand’s sentencing, Justice Joel Bennathan called Brand a “sexual predator” with “staggering arrogance” and said he has “contempt” for his sexual partners, as he handed down the sentence. He added that Brand will likely serve around two-thirds of his sentence.
Former London police detective Mick Neville suggested the move was less about giving Brand special treatment than preventing a potentially dangerous situation that could put both the inmate and prison guards at risk.
However, former prison warden Vanessa Frake criticized the move, arguing that Brand should be in a more restrictive prison. “I am absolutely flabbergasted that he is in a Category C prison,” she told The Sun. “He has no previous convictions, but he has got a substantial sentence — and there’s possibly more in the pipeline.”
Frake added that Brand’s public profile and vulnerability to attacks should have factored into his risk assessment, but said she would have expected him to be placed in a Category B facility instead.
The Metropolitan Police have said additional allegations against Brand remain under investigation and authorities, controversially, have encouraged other potential victims to come forward following the convictions.
Brand’s convictions and sentence have been criticized by some in the media. Notably, the case relied on allegations dating back nearly two decades, none of which were reported to police at the time, and prosecutors secured convictions despite the absence of forensic evidence or contemporaneous police reports. Also, Brand was never allowed to face his accusers, who have still not been named publicly.
Related: Three Details From The Russell Brand Rape Case Raise Serious Questions
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