Jemima Goldsmith, an English TV producer, revealed that she has faced Russell Brand’s “violence, coercive control and abuse” while she was in a relationship with him.
In an X post, she said she was revealing “personal and painful” things in relation to Brand, as she sought to clarify “misleading reports” around the facts of a harassment injunction against Szilvia Berki, a woman who alleged mistreatment by Brand at Jemima’s house.
British comedian and TV star Brand was Monday jailed for more than 10 years for a string of sex offences including rape, as the judge told him he had been a “sexual predator” whose fame had protected him. Brand, 51, showed no emotion as judge Joel Bennathan said he had acted with “staggering arrogance” and shown “contempt” for his victims, who had suffered significant and lasting harm.
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The judge said Brand’s status protected him until he was exposed in 2023 by journalists from the Sunday Times, The Times and the Channel 4 Dispatches programme, leading to women coming forward to make complaints to police.
Jemima, who is also the ex-wife of former Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan, said Brand had to be removed from her house by police in 2014 after a “violent incident”.
She reiterated that while she has been “strongly and unequivocally on the side of all of Brand’s victims,” she “did not see anything untoward” in Brand’s behaviour towards Berki, despite the fact that he was later found guilty of sexually assaulting other women and he later physically assaulted Jemima.
Berki came to Jemima’s house in June 2014 to give a massage to Brand, who later decided he didn’t want a massage and asked her to leave, Jemima said, adding that Berki “was clearly offended.”
Berki later reported to the police that Brand had pushed her in the back whilst she was leaving the house and that she also said she was “attacked” by a dog, which she “described in her police statement as the dog licking her face,” Jemima alleged.
Jemima said that after investigation of these claims, police concluded that there was no criminal offence; however, untrue stories appeared in tabloid papers “at Berki’s instigation which contained her account of the alleged incident”.
I am glad and relieved that Russell Brand has finally faced justice
Jemimah Goldsmith
Berki also allegedly sent “vicious antisemitic and threatening abuse online and in emails” to Jemima, her family, her workplace, to journalists, and even to Unicef UK where Jemima had been a goodwill Ambassador for decades, she said.
Jemima said while she was not in contact with Brand at this point, she agreed to his lawyer’s suggestion of a harassment order, as the “number, tone and content of these messages was extremely frightening, and distressing” for her teenage children and family.
The harassment injunction was upheld by the High Court and Court of Appeal on several occasions, Jemima said, adding that she engaged a lawyer and asked him to agree to Berki’s request of varying the terms of the injuction.
“Her barrister has not responded to my lawyer since May of this year despite trying to engage him. I was informed by her lawyer that any change to the injunction must also be agreed by Brand. I have no ability to compel Brand in this matter, as I have not seen or spoken to him in over a decade,” Jemimah said.
Source: Khaleej Times