Donald Trump Jr. has become the latest high-profile conservative to defend British comedian and actor Russell Brand, who was sentenced earlier this week to 10 and a half years in prison for raping one woman and sexually assaulting three others in allegations dating back to 2004.
The president’s eldest son suggested on the latest episode of his Rumble show that Brand’s shift toward conservatism may have played a role in his prosecution, claiming that “no one seemed to have a problem” with the entertainer at the height of his fame.
Trump Jr. and Brand have been photographed together in recent years. Trump Jr. also publicly defended Brand when the sexual assault allegations first surfaced.
With a chyron reading “Britain’s Two-Tier Justice Exposed,” Trump Jr. alleged that Brand was a victim of a “two-tier justice system” that punished people based on “who you are and not what you did.”
He also claimed that Muslim immigrants in the U.K. who had committed more serious offenses had received lighter sentences.
“A two-tier justice system is not just an American problem. Across the Atlantic, Britain handed down a sentence today, which, unfortunately, makes the point clearer than ever,” claimed Trump Jr.
He then questioned the evidence behind Brand’s conviction and the timing of the allegations.
Trump Jr. said:
“Russell Brand was sentenced at Southwark Crown Court to 10 years and 6 months in prison: one rape conviction, three sexual assault convictions. He was convicted, by the way, with no forensic evidence, no DNA, no police report from the time, now decades old, to allegations dating back to 1999. 1999, guys. So, 27 years later, so when he was married to Katy Perry, he was one of the most famous actors in the world, no one seemed to have a problem. No one seemed to think he was a rapist then. But he finds God, I guess, changes his ways, sees some aspects of conservative life, talks about them and now he’s going to spend 10 and a half years in prison for rape when no one had a problem with it in the prior 27 years.”
“This raises, I think, some pretty obvious questions about why his sentence was more severe than, I don’t know, sentences handed to Muslim grooming gangs across the U.K., right?” the president’s son asked.
A jury found Brand guilty of raping one and assaulting three of his six accusers. He was cleared on two counts of rape and one count of attempted indecent assault, in allegations dating back to 1999.
During sentencing, Judge Joel Bennathan said Brand had shown a “casual and arrogant disregard” for women and had “become a sexual predator.”
Brand now faces further scrutiny over allegations involving two other women.
And on Tuesday, London’s Metropolitan Police said several more people had now provided information or reported potential criminal allegations, according to the BBC.