'Ruthless, sex predator': Details of Russell's rape allegations as Russell opens the case

The scandalous actor and comedian has vehemently denied three counts of sexual assault, three charges of sexual assault and one charge of sexual assault against six women.

Russell Brand's rape trial is officially underway at London's Southwark Crown Court, with the prosecution describing the scandal-ridden actor and comedian as a "ruthless" and "calculated" sex predator.

Brand, best known for his roles on Big Brother's Big Mouth and on Forgetting Sarah Marshall, has been charged with three counts of sexual assault, three counts of sexual assault and one count of sexual assault, with six women alleging crimes dating from 1999 to 2009. He rejects them all. Of course feel worried, but hopefully this process will lead to good results for everyone - that's my prayer. (Since the allegations came to light, Brand has converted to Christianity and been baptized.)

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According to BBC coverage, the media presence at Southwark Crown Court was such that officials had to put reporters in an "overflow room" and watch via video link. The BBC described Brand as remaining "very still" during Wednesday's session, rubbing what looked like pebbles.

Details of the allegations against the brand were revealed by a prosecution led by Rail lawyer Carmi Jones. He opened his case by telling the jury that Brand had made "brutal and calculated" allegations against the six women, who had "never met each other, and appeared independently of each other."

Carmi Jones continued in her opening statement: "His intense desire for some kind of sexual contact was indifferent and greedy." She called Brand a "sex hunter" and cited a former friend's testimony that Brand bragged to her that he was "a ladies' man, a ladies' man and an expert pickup artist." According to this former acquaintance, Brand says that he wanted to "sleep five thousand women" in his lifetime and had set "rules" for himself to achieve this.

The first plaintiff, whose allegations Brand says are false, was told by prosecutors that Brand had assaulted her. At the time, in her 20s, Carmi Jones said she was told "exactly what she needed to hear" and that he manipulated the situation into having sex with her "against her will". The woman reportedly assumed Brand was gay and left the room to use the bathroom, telling him to make a cup of tea. Brand was partially undressed when he emerged from the toilet, prosecutors said. "He was taken aback, he was in shock and he didn't really know what to do, and he kind of froze," Carmi Jones said.

After the sexual assault allegations, prosecutors say Brand was questioned by police. He said he did not remember the incident if it had happened. He said he did not remember the plaintiff's name, but that he "never engaged in any non-consensual activity." The first plaintiff said she was "too scared to say anything" because of her celebrity status.

The second plaintiff's allegation of sexual assault dates back to 2001, when she was 30 years old and working at MTV. After admiring Brand's T-shirt, prosecutors said he offered to give the woman the clothes. "Make sure you wash it well first," he told her, suggesting to Brand where the toilets were. Here, prosecutors say, he asked her to "come in" and grabbed her forearm. He began to struggle and back away, the BBC reported, describing a "desperate, wide-eyed look on his face." Brand finally gave up and went to the toilet.

A third plaintiff says he met Brand at a party in London's Soho in 2004. Midway through the conversation, he leaned forward and grabbed her breasts and squeezed them with both hands, prosecutors told jurors. He said the woman was shocked and Brand had a big, weird grin on his face. He took her arm and pulled her towards the toilets. As they went somewhere later that afternoon, Brand pulled out his penis and told the plaintiff to "suck it," prosecutors say. "He simply laughed but seemed to accept her refusal," Carmi Jones said.

Prosecutors said the fourth complaint related to an incident in 2004/2005 at Radio Capital where Brand "grabbed" a woman's face with both hands and pushed her against a wall. According to Carmi Jones, he also grabbed her by her breasts, sides and buttocks - aggressively. Plaintiff's counsel tried to push her away, but "he was too strong. [...] He continued to kiss her on the face, neck and chest area, grabbed her palm and moved his mouth to her crotch, gripping her breast so hard it hurt." Then he was able to push him away. Reminder: The brand denies all these claims.

The fifth plaintiff is reportedly the youngest woman involved. She is said to have met Brand in 2009 when he was performing at London's Hammersmith Apollo. According to Karmy-Jones, "He said he didn't really enjoy the experience. He felt very uncomfortable and said it could have been anyone." Brand then sexually assaulted her as the woman pleaded with him to stop, the jury was told. Carmi Jones said: "She spent months and years blaming herself for what happened, and she became very depressed, and as a result she was still depressed.

After the interaction, prosecutors say, the woman received a text message from Brand, to which she replied, "Why are you texting me?" "Because you're dirty, and I want to push you harder," she allegedly replied. "I think you've pushed me enough - you've treated me like an animal," the fifth complainant says. His response was immediate - "I'm sorry" - and the jury heard he never saw or heard from Brand again. The prosecutor said Brand was interviewed in connection with the crime and provided a statement to the police, the prosecutor informed the court: "In that statement he stated that he had never engaged in non-consensual sexual activity and that any account was re-invented or imagined after a defamatory documentary and subsequent press report."

A sixth plaintiff accused Brand of sexual assault. She says she requested a massage when she was working with him in 2009. When he refused, Brand was described as "disgruntled" and said he wouldn't have done it otherwise. He is said to have dropped to his knees and placed his head directly in her groin. The woman then complained in 2009 and "went up the ladder", but she felt it was not taken seriously.

The brand denies each and every one of the allegations made by the six women. At the end of Wednesday's proceedings, jurors were again told that she had "provided a prepared statement that she never engaged in non-consensual sexual activity and that any account was reinvented or imagined after a defamatory documentary and subsequent press report."

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