Jemima Goldsmith accuses Russell Brand of violence and abuse

Russell Brand's former girlfriend Jemima Goldsmith has alleged that Brand "beat, forced and abused her" while they were together.

Goldsmith dated Brand for about a year around 2014. She alleged that she had to call police to get Brand out of her house during a violent incident in 2014. However, they did not file any case against him.

Goldsmith, 52, released a lengthy statement on social media. She said she was inspired by the courageous women who came forward during the lawsuit against the brand. He also said he was "pleased and relieved" that the brand was finally punished.

Brand, 51, was sentenced to 10 years and six months in jail on Monday after pleading guilty to rape and sexual assault.

Brand was found guilty of raping a woman at his home in 2009 and three counts of sexually assaulting three other women.

During sentencing, the judge told Brand that he had "not the slightest regard for women's right to refuse him."

The judge said Brand felt because of his fame he could "do whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted."

TV producer Jemima Goldsmith is the ex-wife of former Pakistan Prime Minister and cricketer Imran Khan. She is also the daughter of late billionaire businessman Sir James Goldsmith and sister of Zac Goldsmith, a former minister in the Conservative government.

Goldsmith, a mother of two, said she had decided not to take legal action over the alleged violent incident in 2014. They feared that discussion of the case in the media would affect their then-teenage children.

"However, the suffering I endured in this case is nothing compared to the women who have testified in court and who have gone through so much. It was a difficult period of my life that had a long-lasting impact on me," she wrote on X on Monday evening.

Goldsmith said he has neither met nor spoken to Brand since 2014. However, he claimed that he had helped the journalists who brought forward the allegations against the brand. She also said that if Brand were to sue those journalists, she would be willing to testify about their misconduct.

In his statement he also referred to a court order of October 2015.

Under this order, a woman named Sylvia Burkey was prevented from harassing him. It also prevented the woman from alleging that Brand had sexually assaulted her at Goldsmith's home a year earlier.

Goldsmith said Monday that Burkey came to her home on June 7, 2014. She remained there for about 30 minutes. She came to give Brand a massage, but according to Goldsmith, the massage did not take place after she arrived.

Goldsmith said Berkey later told police that Brand had pushed her in the back as she was walking away. He also said that Goldsmith's dog had attacked him.

However, Brand's former girlfriend said that she did not see anything wrong during that meeting.

He further said that after recording Burki's statement and viewing the CCTV footage, the police concluded that there was no need to take any action against the brand in this matter.

Goldsmith alleged that Burke then sent her several offensive and threatening messages. These also included anti-Semitic messages. He also made many false and baseless allegations about Goldsmith on social media.

Goldsmith said he then agreed to seek a court order at the suggestion of the brand's attorney. The purpose of this was to stop Barki from harassing them.

He said on Monday that after the news of this court order appeared in the media recently, he is facing online trolling and abuses.

Rosamund Urwin, chief correspondent for The Sunday Times, told the BBC that Goldsmith had helped her a lot during the media investigation into the brand in 2023.

"I've seen the kind of abuse she's been receiving online. I've also tried to let people know that part of this story is more complicated than they realize," Urwin said.

She added: "I want people to remember that it takes a lot of courage for women to come forward and speak out. Goldsmith has done the same tonight. She has very courageously spoken out about how Russell Brand treated her."

Before Brand was sentenced, statements from the women who had alleged sexual assault were read in court. In these statements, the women told what impact this incident had on them.

One of the women said that she remained troubled and traumatized for many years after this incident. She said, "I had no respect for myself. I felt broken from within. I was afraid that any of my behavior might be taken as a wrong signal."

The woman in whom Brand was found guilty of rape said that she has to bear the trauma of this incident every day.

A van was seen arriving at London's Wandsworth Prison following his sentencing on Monday. It is believed that Brand was traveling in this van.

According to the rules, prisoners sentenced to four years or more for certain serious violent and sexual crimes can be released after serving two-thirds of their sentence. In case of brands this period will be seven years.

After release, he may have to spend the remaining period of his sentence out of jail with certain conditions. These conditions may also include wearing an electronic tag.

Brand was found guilty of charges involving four women between 2004 and 2009. The verdict came after a four-week trial at Southwark Crown Court.

However, he was acquitted in two cases of rape and one of attempted sexual assault.