Conviction of Russell Brand: follow live

Helene Wilkinson
Report from Southwark Crown Court

Hundreds of people were questioned as part of the investigation and police said several witnesses came forward, some of whom had previously had a sexual relationship with Brand.

Speaking to the BBC, officers working on the Metropolitan Police’s three-year investigation described how bringing Brand to justice was not without its challenges.

Reports of casualties were made to law enforcement agencies across the country and the Met set up a dedicated team of officers to lead the investigation, which it called Operation Actinolite.

Agents said they have since collected more than 340 witness statements, including those from Brand’s former employers, ex-colleagues and associates.

An officer was assigned to read Brand’s books, watch his stand-up routines and DVDs and listen to his podcasts to help build the case.

Another complexity for the team was that the allegations were all “non-recent.” The oldest was 27 years ago. This meant there was no CCTV or forensic evidence to work with.

Superintendent Andy Furphy of the Met Police said they had to look at other ways to build their case.

A former friend of Brand’s was summoned to court to testify for the prosecution, while a statement from the parents of one of the women were heard.

The artist’s former personal assistant, who worked closely with Brand, told the jury about his “insane sexual appetite”.