A former Far North Queensland nurse has been found guilty of the 2018 murder of Toyah Cordingley, a case that now joins the long and devastating list of Australian women killed through gendered violence.

He has been sentenced to a non-parole period of 25 years.

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After seven hours of deliberations, a Supreme Court jury unanimously found Rajwinder Singh, 41, stabbed Ms Cordingley and cut her throat on Wangetti Beach before fleeing to India, where he lived in hiding for more than four years.

In leaving the country, he abandoned his wife, three children and parents who were financially dependent on him and would later lose their home, according to ABC News.

During the trial, Singh was described as a capable and respected nurse by his colleagues, a portrayal that stood in stark contrast to the violence of the crime.

What Happened To Toyah Cordingley?

Ms Cordingley, a 24-year-old animal shelter volunteer, had gone to the beach on the afternoon of October 21, 2018, to walk her dog, Indie. Her father, Troy Cordingley, found her body the following morning after hours of searching. Indie was found alive nearby, tightly tied to a tree.

Police have said they believe the attack may have been sexually motivated.

The verdict was delivered at the end of a four-week retrial in Cairns, eight months after Singh’s first trial ended in a hung jury. As the decision was read aloud, emotion surged through the public gallery. Ms Cordingley’s father was heard calling out, “rot in hell, you bastard,” while Singh sat motionless in the dock.

Outside court, Ms Cordingley’s mother, Vanessa Gardiner, described the outcome as long-awaited justice, but not closure.

“Today is a big piece of this journey that needed an ending and most of all, justice for our Toyah,” she said. “This event turned our world upside down for years and we all know a special part of our fun, tight-knit family is now gone for ever, due to the actions of this individual.”

She remembered her daughter as a “loveable, innocent, full-of-life young woman” and said the family would never forgive Singh. She also acknowledged the wider circle of harm, including Ms Cordingley’s former partner Marco Heidenreich and Singh’s own wife and children.

“There are multiple victims in this,” she said.

Queensland Police Inspector Sonia Smith said the murder had left a “deep scar” on the Far North Queensland community and described the investigation as one of the largest and most complex in the region’s history.

The post After 4 Years, Toyah Cordingley’s Murderer Has Finally Been Charged appeared first on marie claire.

Luigi Mangione, the 27-year-old accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, returned to a Manhattan courtroom this week for a pretrial hearing. Once again, he arrived as both defendant and spectacle.

Outside, a cluster of fangirls reportedly waited for hours in freezing temperatures to catch a glimpse of him.

Inside, Mangione entered alongside his legal team in a grey suit and red chequered button-down, neatly groomed, freshly cut and, as netizens quickly noted, immaculately styled.

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His courtroom looks have become part of the cultural discourse surrounding the case. In February, Mangione styled his bulletproof vest with dark green knit sweater, khaki trousers and brown loafers. Within 24 hours, searches for “Luigi Mangione outfits” spiked by 350 percent on Google, while interest in his loafers surged by 1,400 percent, according to WWD.

Yet the crowd waiting in the cold and the fashion chatter that ripples outward from each appearance represent only the most visible layer of a far larger and stranger support ecosystem that has grown around Mangione since his arrest last winter.

As his case has unfolded, he has become an unlikely avatar for an overlapping mix of internet stan culture, anti-corporate anger, criminal justice activism and obsessive parasocial devotion.

From inside the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, Mangione reportedly receives as many as 115 letters a day from more than 50 countries. Some supporters insist on his innocence. Others believe he is guilty but see the act as vigilante justice against the health insurance industry.

Still others support him regardless of the facts, framing him as a symbol of institutional corruption and state overreach. His image now circulates as meme, martyr, folk hero and political lightning rod, often all at once.

Each court appearance only intensifies the feedback loop. Protesters arrive with handmade signs and LED trucks displaying victims of alleged insurance denials. Activists distribute health care reform literature steps away from fans in “Free Luigi” merchandise. Online, thirst posts sit beside fundraising links for his legal defence and calls for death penalty abolition. The spectacle has become inseparable from the case itself.

With proceedings expected to continue throughout the week and a full trial slated for January, Mangione is likely to remain a fixture of both the legal system and the internet’s strangest cultural crossover, where true crime, protest politics and fashion commentary collide.

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A Christmas cake may become the most expensive mistake of Chiara Ferragni’s career.

This week, Italy’s most recognisable influencer appeared in a Milan courtroom as prosecutors formally sought a 20-month prison sentence over an advertising scandal that has quietly become one of Europe’s most consequential legal tests of creator power.

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The charges stem from a 2022 holiday collaboration with Italian confectioner Balocco.

The limited-edition co-branded pandoro cake, wrapped in Ferragni’s signature pink and promoted across her vast social platforms, was presented as a charitable initiative tied to donations for the Regina Margherita Children’s Hospital in Turin.

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Tamika Chesser, the former Beauty And The Geek contestant accused of beheading her boyfriend in Port Lincoln, is pregnant. She is currently being held at South Australia’s James Nash House mental health detention facility.

Health Minister Chris Picton confirmed Chesser became pregnant before her admission to the detention facility, saying, “Our clinics and staff are working with corrections, appropriately following the protocols that have been in place for some time.”

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What Happened To Julian Story? 

The case centres on the death of 39-year-old Julian Story, which has become one of the most harrowing investigations in recent South Australian history.

Story was discovered on June 19 after emergency services responded to a small fire at the couple’s Port Lincoln home. Inside, officers made a horrific discovery, as Story had been killed and his head was missing.

Chesser was arrested at the scene and charged shortly afterwards.

Court documents state that a witness noticed smoke in the home and attempted to put out the flames.

“In the bathroom of the unit, he located a bundle of clothing rags and debris which was smouldering. The witness doused this and repeated this with a second bucket of water,” they read.

Police later entered the unit “and in the bathroom sighted the deceased remains” before finding Chesser outside.

“The accused was seated in a garden chair in the rear yard adjacent to unit 3 in a catatonic and unresponsive state at this time.”

Nearly a month later, at a press conference on July 31, authorities revealed that a dog walker had found a skull in nearby bushland. Police later confirmed the remains were Story’s missing head.

Investigators believe Story was killed around midnight on June 17, two days before the fire. Chesser has been charged with murder, disposing of human remains to pervert the course of justice and assaulting a police officer. Police have not yet established a motive.

Chesser, who appeared on Beauty And The Geek in 2010, describes herself online as a “model & actress.” The identity of the baby’s father is unknown, and the child is expected early next year. Her next court hearing is scheduled for next month, when detectives will determine which charges to proceed with.

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For years, Allison Mack’s name was synonymous with NXIVM, the self-help group that devolved into a coercive sex cult led by Keith Raniere.

Once a rising star on Smallville, Mack became one of Raniere’s most trusted lieutenants, later serving two years in federal prison for her role in recruiting and controlling women within the organisation.

Now, at 43, Mack is speaking for herself in Allison After NXIVM, a seven-part podcast from CBC’s Uncover series.

Hosted by journalist Natalie Robehmed and produced by Vanessa Grigoriadis, the project offers a rare glimpse into how someone once branded a villain is attempting to understand her own complicity and rebuild a life after public disgrace.

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In the podcast, Mack revisits her early days as a child actor and her breakout role as Chloe Sullivan in Smallville, which she filmed in Vancouver from 2001 to 2011.

It was there, she recalls, that a co-star first introduced her to NXIVM. What began as an innocuous self-improvement course soon consumed her identity.

1800RESPECT is the national domestic, family, and sexual violence counselling, information and support service. If you or someone you know is experiencing, or at risk of experiencing, domestic, family or sexual violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732, chat online via www.1800RESPECT.org.au, or text 0458 737 732.   Men’s Referral Service: 1300 766 491.

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Murphy is known to seize upon true crime events that have long been a source of fascination of Hollywood. He’s previously tackled the Menendez Brothers and OJ Simpson—but Ed Gein might be his most unintentionally influential subject yet, despite most people having never heard of him. Gein’s gruesome history of murder is said to have inspired a number of famous films, including The Silence Of The Lambs, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Psycho—three of the biggest horror films ever made. However, each of these films—and Murphy’s new interpretation of Gein’s story—offer their own spin on the murderous figure at their core.

In Monster: The Ed Gein Story, the serial killer is played to unnerving perfection by Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy, The Gentlemen). But how much of this character is real, and what liberties were taken with the horrifying story of Ed Gein? Here, we break down the true story of the Monster serial killer.

WARNING: Graphic Content and Spoilers ahead

Who Is Ed Gein? The Life and Crimes Of The Netflix Serial Killer

Ed Gein is one of the most notorious killers in American history—famous for grave robbing, murder and making skin suits of his victims.

Hailing from Plainfield, Wisconsin, and sometimes called the Plainfield Ghoul or the Butcher of Plainfield, Gein lived a reclusive life, working as a handyman in his local community. Up until 1945 he lived on a rural property with his family, all of whom died within the space of five years. Gein’s father, George, was the first to pass away, succumbing to heart failure in 1940. It has been suggested that Gein’s father had been abusive to Gein and his older brother, Henry.

In 1944, Henry died at the age of 43 in a fire. Some researchers have alleged Gein was responsible for the death of his brother, but no autopsy was ever conducted and the official cause of death remains asphyxiation from the fire.

Gein was very close to his mother, Augusta, a devout Lutheran who preached to her son that sex was evil. She suffered a stroke shortly after Henry’s death, after which Gein became her primary carer. As depicted in Monster: The Ed Gein Story, it is believed Gein was obsessed with and heavily influenced by his mother (portrayed by Laurie Metcalf in the series), and the relationship impacted Gein’s crimes, where he preferred victims who reminded him of his mother.

In 1945, Augusta Gein suffered a second, fatal stroke, killing her and leaving Gein entirely alone.

The Murders Begin

Trigger Warning: Extremely graphic content

Gein confessed to ‘body snatching’—exhuming dead bodies from graves—which he claims began in 1947. Speaking to investigators, Gein said he estimated around 40 visits to the cemetery for this purpose, but felt he was in a ‘daze-like’ state, and didn’t retrieve bodies during every visit. Presumed to be a symptom of his obsession with his mother, Gein targeted the graves of recently-deceased middled-aged women.

Gein would make clothing and objects from the body parts of his victims. After Gein was caught and police searched his home, they found chairs upholstered in human skin, skulls on bedposts, a skin corset in the style of a woman’s torso, multiple faces of skinned victims, a belt of nipples, and dozens more horrifying body parts and clothing items made from Gein’s victims.

Gein’s first confirmed murder was committed in 1954, after he shot Mary Hogan, a 54-year-old divorced tavern owner. Hogan had been missing and it wasn’t until Gein’s arrest that he admitted to her murder.

In November, 1957, Gein committed his second confirmed murder with the kidnapping and beheading of local hardware store owner Bernice Worden.

When police raided Gein’s house in search of Worden, they found her body strung up by her ankles in Gein’s barn, partially flayed, with some of her organs removed. She had been decapitated, and her head was discovered inside Gein’s house.

How Was Ed Gein Caught?

Receipts showed that Gein was the last customer Bernice Worden served in her hardware store before her disappearance. This lead investigators straight to Gein’s house, where they discovered the grizzly scene, including Worden’s mutilated body.

How Many People Did Ed Gein Kill?

Ed Gein was only ever convicted of killing two people—Mary Hogan and Bernice Worden—to which he confessed.

However, it has been alleged he could be behind other killings. In The Ed Gein Story, Addison Rae plays a babysitter, Evelyn, who Gein was once questioned about. The teenage Evelyn had been babysitting when she disappeared from a home in Wisconsin. When questioned, Gein denied involvement and passed two lie detector tests to that end. None of Evelyn’s remains were found on Gein’s property.

When Gein was arrested, investigators reportedly found the remains of at least 15 different women in his home. It is unknown which had been killed by Gein.

Was Gein Ever Convicted?

Ed Gein was found guilty of the murder of Bernice Worden, but later found not guilty by reason of insanity. Having said that, he was ordered to be institutionalised at mental facility, where he spent the rest of his life. He was never tried for Mary Hogan’s murder, but did confess to the crime.

How Did Ed Gein Die?

Ed Gein lived a relatively long life in various mental care facilities until his death. Gein died on July 26, 1984 at the age of 77, a resident of the Mendota Mental Health Institute. He died of respiratory failure, linked to lung cancer.

What Did Ed Gein Look Like?

If you’re wondering how close Charlie Hunnam came to the real Ed Gein, there are some obvious physical differences. Ed Gein, who was arrested at the age of 51, was a slight man with greying hair at the time of his arrest. With his small stature, some investigators had wondered if he was even capable of wrenching bodies from their graves.

Hunnam, 45, who is famous for his broad frame, committed to the part of Gein, reportedly losing around 13 kilograms for the role.

“I lost almost 30 pounds just to get a more malnourished, light frame. Ed was incredibly lithe. And so that was a big part of the physicality,” Hunnam told Tudum. “I spent a lot of time thinking about where his energy was, that he’s not particularly confident or, like, front-foot type of energy … How to not take up a lot of space, not to be sort of front and center and too confident in my physicality was really important.”

Hunnam also pitched his voice higher for the role.

Monster: The Ed Gein Story is available to watch on Netflix from October 3, 2025.

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Erin Patterson has been sentenced to prison following a guilty verdict in her trial on July 7th of this year.

Patterson, 50, was sentenced to life in prison with a non-parole period of 33 years today. The sentence, handed down by Justice Christopher Beale, makes her Victoria’s longest-serving female inmate.

The mother-of-two received life sentences for each of the three counts of murder and a 25-year sentence for the attempted murder charge against the sole survivor, Ian Wilkinson.

Patterson was found guilty in July after a 10-week long trial for the murders Don and Gail Patterson as well as Gail’s sister, Heather Wilkinson and attempted murder of Gail’s husband, Ian.

Prosecutors alleged that on July 29, 2023, Patterson deliberately served a beef Wellington dish laced with death cap mushrooms at her home in Leongatha, a quiet town about 130 kilometers southeast of Melbourne.

At the time, Patterson pleaded not guilty to the charges and has maintained that the three deaths were a tragic accident. 

What Was Said During Erin Patterson’s Sentencing?

During the sentencing Justice Beale gave an insight into the victim impact statement provided by sole survivor, Ian Wilkinson.

In his statement Wilkinson wrote: “In regards to the many harms done to me, I make an offer of forgiveness to Erin. I say harms done to me advisedly. I have no power or responsibility to forgive harms done to others. However, I encourage Erin to receive my offer of forgiveness for those harms done to me with full concession and repentance. I bear her no ill will.″⁣

The Judge also spoke about the notoriety Patterson has received in response to the case.

“I infer that given the unprecedented media coverage of your case and the books, documentaries and TV series about you, which are all in the pipeline, you are likely to remain a notorious prisoner for many years to come, and as such, remain at significant risk from other prisoners,” he said.

Before handing down the sentence, the judge told the ocurt he found Pattersons offence to have fallen “into the worst category for the offences of murder and attempted murder.”

Adding to this, he also spoke of the devastating impact the crime has had on Patterson’s own two children.

“Your offending involved an enormous betrayal of trust. Your victims were all your relatives by marriage. More than that, they had all been good to you and your children over many years, as you acknowledged in your testimony,” Judge Beale said.

“Not only did you cut short three lives and cause lasting damage to Ian Wilkinson’s health, thereby devastating the extended Patterson and Wilkinson families, you inflicted untold suffering on your own children, whom you robbed of their beloved grandparents.”

How Long Is Erin Patterson’s Sentence?

Following the guilty verdict on three counts of murder and one of attempted murder, Erin Patterson’s sentence is life in prison. The 50-year-old will not be eligible for parole for 33 years, making her 83 years of age when she will be up for release.

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The Rundown

• 33,000 pages of Jeffrey Epstein files have been released: Including flight logs, prison surveillance footage, and police raid videos.
• Most of the documents aren’t new: 97% were previously public, leaving major gaps and redactions.
• Survivors and lawmakers seek more: Arguing the release avoids full transparency and justice.

What’s In The 33,000 Jeffrey Epstein File Release?

The headline number is staggering: 33,000 pages tied to Jeffrey Epstein have been released by the House Oversight Committee. But there is one large catch: less than 1,000 pages are actually new. The majority of the files are duplicates of previously available court records, victim statements and DOJ documents.

These details shine a light on Epstein’s movements and associates, but still stop short of full transparency. However, the below items dole out fresh insight for some of what had been previously skimmed over:

Jeffrey Epstein Jail Surveillance

Among the most striking elements of the new release is the nearly 14 hours of surveillance footage from the Metropolitan Detention Centre, covering the evening of Epstein’s death. Core to this is the so-called “missing minute”, a gap between 11:58:58 and midnight that had long thrown kerosene to a piled pit of conspiracy theories.

The video now shows movement, near Epstein’s cell, which officials deduce is a result of merged footage rather than deliberate deletion. While the clip is unlikely to satiate sceptics, it begs the question if Epstein was in fact being monitored.

Flight Logs

In what has been perhaps the most hotly anticipated of releases of the unsealed files, new information sheds light on flight and re-entry logs from Epstein’s private jet from 2000 to 2014. While the passenger names still remain heavily redacted, the routes themselves have drawn out renewed interest.

Past versions of these logs have linked celebrities, CEOs, and even royals to Epstein’s travels. This fresh batch of records add to the mythos of the “Lolita Express”, a point that continues to come up.

Victim Interviews

In another vivid turn of events, the files further contain partially redacted victim interviews and communications between the Department of Justice and the Bureau of Prisons about Epstein’s confinement. These documents echo the survivors’ longstanding concerns regarding safety, oversight and accountability within the system.

Still, with the names and details of the victims obscured, the interviews lack enough clarity to reshape the public narrative. In essence, this has left activists deeply frustrated with the lack of transparency.

Mansion Footage

To top it all off, the files also include police raid videos from Epstein’s infamous Palm Beach estate (since demolished). The footage reveals startling imagery of walls covered in nude photographs, massage tables, and a post-it note on a computer warning “Do Not Touch“.

Even more chilling, is Epstein seen in images rubbing shoulders with prominent figures, such as Jogn Paul II and Fidel Castro. Showcasing both his social reach and the bizarre mix of power and depravity in his home.

Who Is In The Client List?

One of the biggest myths surrounding Epstein has been the alleged “client list” and its existence. The new release confirms what the Department of Justice has repeatedly stated: no such list exists. That hasn’t stopped the buzzing speculation, especially considering that Epstein’s private jet, chillingly dubbed the “Lolita Express” regularly carried notable celebrities, CEOS and politicians.

Past records have already linked stars like Kevin Spacey, Chris Tucker, and Prince Andrew to certain flights. The association alone has kept public interest alive and makes every new log release headline news.

How Are Epstein’s Survivors Reacting To The Release?

Survivors of Epstein’s trafficking ring remain largely unsatisfied. Many have come out to say the new documents feel like yet another stall tactic, a modicum of the justice they are seeking. The real answers and accountability still remain largely out of reach. These latest attempts have felt futile at best, and have since reignited debate at how justice could prevail.

How Is Congress Responding And What Is Next?

The release continues to be a political football for US Congress. Republicans, including Speaker Mike Johnson, claim the dump makes further petitions unnecessary. Meanwhile, Democrats argues that this is simply “more smoke than fire” given there mere 3 percent of information is new.

Bipartisan momentum continues to build for the building of the “Epstein Files Transparency Act“, this in effect would compel unredacted disclosure of all Epstein related files. Thankfully, there are upcoming hearings scheduled to keep the coals burning.

The post The Biggest Revelations From The Jeffrey Epstein Files appeared first on marie claire.

In a tale that shook Beal City and all of True-Crime social media alike, a troubling mystery unfolded beginning in early 2021. A teenage girl, Lauryn Lacari (then 13), began receiving relentless, vicious messages through text and social media along with her then-boyfriend, Owen.

Over months, the harassment escalated, anonymous messages mocked Lauryn’s appearance, relationship and self-worth. Text messages arrived in droves dozens of times a day. From the outset, authorities suspected fellow classmates but the truth would shock them all.

An investigation involving Beal City Schools. the Isabella County Sheriff’s Department, and eventually the FBI revealed the unthinkable: the cyberbully was none other than Lauryn’s mother, Kendra Gail Licari. Using VPN’s, fake numbers, and software to mask her identity, she even helped lead the investigative efforts, all the while perpetrating the abuse.

Where Is Kendra Licari Now?

In April 2023 Kendra pled guilty to two counts of stalking a minor and received a sentence of 19 months to 5 years in prison.

Her story inspired a slew of debates online, with Reddit threads and TikTok ablaze with hot takes about her sentencing. After serving the lower end of her sentence, Kendra is currently on parole with conditions likely extending through August 2026. Now living in Pontiac, north of Detroit, reports indicate she has minimal contact with Lauryn.

In the Unknown Number documentary, Kendra shares that she wanted to participate, to “tell her story from her perspective“, and hoped Lauryn would see her doing that.

Director of the series, Skye Borgman describes Kendra as “remorseful“, aware her actions likely damaged her relationship with her daughter for the long haul.

Whether or how their relationship will rebuild remains uncertain at this point in time.

Where Is Lauryn Licari Today?

Now 18 years old, Lauryn has endured a harrowing transformation, processing deep betrayal and redefining her life path forward, In interviews for the documentary, her journey unfolds, initially longing for her mother, then gradually shifting toward cautious introspection and independence. Lauryn is figuring out what it means to take control of her emotions, her identity and her future.

Her relationship with her father, Shawn appears to have strengthened, offering her a source of stability amid all the chaos. She and Owen, her teenage boyfriend and fellow target of harassment are no longer in contact by the time of the documentary’s conclusion.

Why Did Kendra Do It?

The number one question from true-crime sleuths: What exactly drove Kendra to torment her own daughter? In court, she admitted to struggling with feelings of rejection and insecurity, and a need of control after her divorce. Prosecutors argued at the time that she projected her frustrations onto Lauryn.

Creating fake accounts and messages as a twisted form of keeping herself at the centre of her daughter’s world.

Psychologists interviewed in the series suggest Kendra’s behaviour aligned with patterns of obsessive control and emotional dependence, as well as an inability to separate her own identity from her child’s. While Kendra has since expressed remorse, her actions revealed deep issues with boundaries, mental health and self esteem that turned devastatingly destructive.

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Unknown Number: The High School Catfish is the latest exposè documentary on the ominous world of social media adolescence. A look inside the murky pools of social media use in a middle American high school with a wild twist: a twist of our worst nightmares, flipping all we believed about trust and cyber-safety in our own home.

What Is Unknown Number About?

The story centres on 13-year old Lauryn Licari and her boyfriend Owen McKenny, two school sweethearts navigating early adolescence in tight-knit Beal City.

One Halloween a single, ominous text arrives:

“Hi Lauryn Owen is breaking up with you”.

This unnerving text marks the beginning of a nearly two-year ordeal that escalates into relentless cyberbullying.

Lauryn received up to 30 to 50 messages a day that escalate to unnerving harassment. Threats and manipulation that reference personal details like Lauryn’s nickname “Lo” stirring suspicion that the perpetrator is someone close.

Who Was Sending The Texts In Unknown Number?

As expected, anxiety mounts among students and parents. Initially suspicion falls on her classmates. Numerous friends in Lauryn’s circle are questioned, with rumours swirling around the text messages anonymity.

Thanks to the many apps that generate fake numbers, attempts to pin down the culprit become hazy. Local efforts are thwarted and forces intervention from the FBI.

In an unlikely turn, that upends everyone’s assumptions, the harassing messages are traced not to a peer, but to Lauryn’s own mother, Kendra Licari.

The revelation is nothing short of devastating, filmed in a real-time confrontation, the viewers get a front row seat to the emotional turnout.

The Sentencing Of Kendra Licari

Kendra pleaded guilty to stalking charges in April 2023 and was sentenced to 19 months to 5 years in prison.

She was released on parole in August 2024. As a result, the family have been torn apart, their reputation now completely in shambles.

Kendra’s custody rights were quickly dashed, and the lifelong trust between the family was completely shattered. Lauryn has since cut off contact with her mother but throughout the series she expressed a tentative hope to reconnect someday.

Where Can I Watch Unknown Number?

This documentary is more than a whodunit, it’s a study in fractured trust, adolescent vulnerability, and the unseen hazards of technology. It delivers a powerful truth: sometimes the most damaging betrayal can come from the person you rely on most.

Social media has been rife with hot takes from Reddit threads, to TikTok think pieces. The show is set to land on Netflix on August 29, bringing with it a fresh wave of followers and cybercrime sleuths.

The post Who Was Behind The Terrifying Texts In Unknown Number? appeared first on marie claire.

On November 2, 2007, 21-year-old Meredith Kercher was found dead in her room in Perugia, Italy, where she was living while studying abroad. Her body was discovered beyond a locked bedroom door, covered by a quilt on the floor of her bedroom, mortally wounded by stabbing. It was a grizzly scene discovered by her housemates, including a 20-year-old Knox.

Investigators zeroed in on Knox, with whom the press had also developed an obsession. The media ran with conspiracy theories about what actually happened to Meredith, including one particularly outlandish suggestion that Knox, her boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, and a third person, Rudy Guede, had killed Meredith in a “sex game gone wrong”.

But while the media frenzy took off, the investigation into Kercher’s death was plagued by police bungles, crime scene contamination and a lack of forensic evidence. As a result, there continues to be a lot of mystery around what actually happened to Kercher.

As we now know, Knox and Sollecito were eventually acquitted in 2015, with courts concluding—once and for all—that neither were involved in Meredith’s death.

But what of Rudy Guede?

Guede remains the only person still convicted of Meredith Kercher’s murder. But why did his trial play out so differently? Why did investigators still pursue Knox and Sollecito, despite a lack of conclusive DNA evidence? It’s a question currently being tackled in the Knox-produced Hulu series, The Twisted Tale Of Amanda Knox. But while the series offers a dramatic re-telling of events, here’s what we actually know about who killed Meredith Kercher.

Who Killed Meredith Kercher?

Skip to a section:

• Who is Rudy Guede?
• The Investigation Into Rudy Guede
• Whose DNA Was Found On Meredith Kercher?
• What Actually Happened To Meredith Kercher?
• The Investigation Of Amanda Knox & Raffaele Sollecito
• Where Is Rudy Guede Now?

Who Is Rudy Guede?

Rudy Guede is known as the man who killed Meredith Kercher. Prior to this, Guede was known to police for conducting petty thefts and burglaries.

Only five days before Kercher’s murder, Guede had been caught inside a local nursery school in Perugia, attempting to steal a laptop and mobile phone. He had defecated in a corner—a piece of evidence that was used in the case of Meredith Kercher, after his faeces was also found in a toilet in her home.

Guede was born in Côte d’Ivoire, but moved to Perugia as a child. He was fostered by a local family as a teen, during which time he was well-known in the town for his basketball skills. However, Guede was asked to leave the family after he becoming involved in petty crime. Guede’s relationship with his parents isn’t really known.

Guede was something of a drifter. He had been known to frequent some local bars in Perugia, but little else was known outside his life of petty crime. He had reportedly briefly met Amanda Knox weeks prior to Meredith’s murder while visiting Knox and Kercher’s downstairs neighbour. Knox didn’t really recall meeting him.

Guede was convicted of murdering Meredith Kercher on October 28, 2008. He was simultaneously convicted of sexual assault and theft, and sentenced to 30 years in prison. Guede ultimately served a total of 13 years before being released to serve three additional years of community service.

The Investigation Into Rudy Guede

The initial investigation into Meredith Kercher’s death focused largely on Knox and Sollecito. It wasn’t until around November 20—more than two weeks after Meredith’s murder—that DNA evidence linked Rudy Guede to the crime scene.

By this stage, Guede had fled to Germany, where he was arrested and extradited back to Italy. Guede would claim to prosecutors that he was “scared” he would be wrongly pursued because of his race, which is why he left Italy. The courts dismissed these claims.

After Guede’s arrest, he requested a fast-tracked trial—a viable legal option in Italy which allows the accused to access a lesser sentence.

Guede has always denied murdering Kercher, suggesting that he was on the toilet when another person (a “shadowy figure”) entered the apartment and killed her. He claimed he had been invited to the apartment by Kercher, whom he had kissed the night before, and that any sexual contact between the two had been consensual.

However, a barrage of DNA evidence tying Guede to the murder scene ultimately led to his conviction.

In terms of evidence against Guede, the prosecution alleged his DNA was all over the scene. In particular, the bloodied handprint discovered on Kercher’s pillow was a match for Guede.

Whose DNA Was Found On Meredith Kercher?

To date, Rudy Guede’s was the only DNA found on Meredith Kercher and at the murder scene. This contradicts earlier theories about DNA found around the apartment and on Meredith’s bra.

Guede’s DNA was found in various places around the murder scene. His DNA was reportedly found on a vaginal swab, as well as on her bra, handbag and clothing. A key piece of evidence included a bloodied handprint (matching Guede’s) which was found on Kercher’s pillow. Guede had also used a toilet in the apartment, leaving his faeces in the bowl.

Early in the investigation, prosecutors attempted to allege that a kitchen knife was the murder weapon in Kercher’s death. The knife handle allegedly had Knox’s DNA on the handle, but forensic examination later concluded there were no traces of Meredith’s blood, nor did it match the wounds inflicted on Kercher. Knox’s DNA was also found throughout the apartment, which should have been expected given she lived there. As for the murder scene, none of Amanda Knox’s DNA was actually found in Meredith’s room.

Another piece of oft-discussed DNA evidence is that of Raffaele Sollecito’s DNA being found on Meredith’s bra clasp. However, his defence attorneys and forensic experts found multiple people’s DNA on the bra, suggesting it was most likely contaminated when moved around the crime scene.

What Actually Happened to Meredith Kercher?

Rudy Guede continues to deny that he murdered Meredith Kercher. Without his cooperation, we may never know what actually happened to Meredith, and why she was killed. Per the investigation, prosecutors claimed Rudy Guede killed Meredith Kercher after an alleged burglary and sexual assault escalated. There had been signs of a struggle and evidence of physical violence, plus there was evidence of a break-in and Kercher’s mobile phones were later found dumped in a neighbour’s garden.

As for Meredith Kercher’s cause of death, an inquest conducted by a UK court concluded, based on autopsy results, that she died of “haemorrhagic shock from stab and incised wounds to the vasculature of the neck.” Kercher suffered severe blood loss after the deep knife wound in her neck, which ultimately led to her death.

The Investigation Into Amanda Knox & Raffaele Sollecito

When reviewing the facts of the case, it can be a head-scratcher as to why police honed their investigation on Knox, given the lack of evidence tying her and Sollecito to the murder scene. Over the years, a number of reasons have been suggested regarding why exactly the case honed in on Knox, and why prosecutors pursued her conviction. Media pressure and perhaps a trial-by-jury certainly had something to do with it, as was the thesis of the 2016 Netflix documentary, Amanda Knox.

As Knox has said herself has often maintained, she should have been a footnote of this investigation. “I would love for Kercher’s case to become known as ‘The murder of Meredith Kercher by Rudy Guede’ because it would ‘place me as the peripheral figure I should have been, the innocent roommate’,” Knox wrote on Medium in 2021.

Looking back on the events of the investigation, it does sound a little odd.

Police initially arrested and charged Knox after she exhibited, what they deemed to be, strange behaviour. You might remember news stories about Knox doing cartwheels in the police station when she and Sollecito were brought in for questioning, for example. Another oft-cited stretch was that Knox and Sollecito were seen kissing on the street as police conducted their first investigation following the discovery of Meredith’s body.

Then there was Knox’s interrogation. Knox maintains that the police interrogation was not valid, and even won a human rights case to this effect in 2023. However, police often used Knox’s alleged blaming of local bar owner, Patrick Lumumba, as evidence of her guilt. During her interrogation, Knox accused Lumumba of murder, but shortly after said she produced this theory due to the stress of the police interrogation. (Knox was later successfully sued by Lumumba who, after spending two weeks in prison, was cleared of any wrongdoing.)

A times during Knox’s trial, police would allege that Knox’s DNA found on a kitchen knife in Sollecito’s apartment suggested evidence of a murder weapon. The prosecution would even claim that Knox was the one who delivered the “fatal blow”. This has since been discredited by Knox’s defence team, and further forensic testing.

As for motives, the prosecution’s pursuit of Knox and Sollecito originally alleged that the couple—who had been dating for less than a week—had taken part in a “sex game gone wrong”, that resulted in Kercher’s killing. They later revised this to suggest that Knox and Kercher had been fighting about money.

Knox and Sollecito were first convicted of the murder in December 2009, after already serving two years in prison. Both received a 25-year jail sentence, though Knox received an additional year for making allegations against Patrick Lumumba. In October 2011, these convictions were overturned on appeal, and Knox returned home to the United States. In 2013, a retrial was ordered by Italy’s highest court, resulting in another conviction in 2014, again giving Knox the larger sentence of 28.5 years. However, in March 2015, Italy’s Supreme Court of Cassation finally declared that Knox and Sollecito were acquitted citing both a lack of evidence and failures in the investigation process.

In 2023, Knox won a case with the European Court of Human Rights, in which she successfully alleged that Italian police violated her rights during their investigation of Meredith Kercher’s death.

Where Is Rudy Guede Now?

Rudy Guede ended up serving 13 years in prison for the murder of Meredith Kercher. While initially being handed a 30-year sentence, this was soon reduced to 26 years. Upon appeal, this was reduced again to 16 years.

In 2021, Guede was released for good behaviour, and allowed to serve the rest of his 16-year sentence as community service.

In 2023, Guede was placed under surveillance after a girlfriend accused him of sexual assault and violence. At the time of publishing, Guede is expected to return to a court in Rome in November, charged with sexual assault of his ex-girlfriend.

Related Articles:

• Where Is Amanda Knox Now?
• Where To Watch The Twisted Tale Of Amanda Knox

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Knox’s trial was one of the first major court cases of the digital age. It spawned a media frenzy, and has become synonymous with gender-biased trials by media. One only needs to recall her headline-grabbing nickname, ‘Foxy Knoxy’, to understand how the media painted Knox as a wanton femme fatale who (they claimed) murdered her roommate in a sex game gone wrong. This constructed public image captured the imaginations of audiences worldwide, who consumed the Amanda Knox case like episodes of their favourite TV show.

It’s no surprise then that Hollywood has been drawn to Knox’s story, resulting in a number of screen projects. The latest is the eight-part Hulu series, The Twisted Tale Of Amanda Knox, on which Knox herself served as a producer.

Since her acquittal, Knox, now 38, has been busy proving herself a fierce advocate, creative and entrepreneur of a growing media empire. Penning two memoirs, hosting a string a podcasts, and publicly advocating for those who have experienced wrongful convictions or lofty media treatments, Knox has attempted to make something meaningful of her experience. She’s even looped her husband, Christopher Robinson, into the mix, with the two hosting a successful podcast that has featured major names, like Monica Lewinsky, Malcolm Gladwell and Jon Ronson.

Curious about how Knox landed on her feet, and what her life is like now? Scroll on…

Where Is Amanda Knox Now?

Upon her release in 2011, and her return home to America, Knox attempted to resume living a normal life. She completed her degree in creative writing from the University of Washington, and went on to work as a journalist in Seattle.

However, unable to escape her tabloid notoriety, Knox’s parlayed her fame into multiple creative and advocacy projects. She has hosted a number of podcasts and series dedicated to sharing the stories of wrongful convictions and public shaming.

Most recently, Knox served as an executive producer on the Hulu miniseries, The Twisted Tale Of Amanda Knox. Among her co-producers was Monica Lewinsky, another woman who has found herself at the centre of a gender-biased media circus.

Prior to this, Knox has hosted the podcasts, The Truth About True Crime With Amanda Knox, The Scarlet Letter Reports (A Facebook Watch series on media shaming), and Labyrinths, a podcast which began as a look into police reform but has grown into the now-rebranded series Hard Knox, which also delves into themes of overcoming trauma.

Knox has penned three books, including two related to her trial. Her first memoir, Waiting To Be Heard, published in 2013 (prior to her final acquittal), tells the story of her arrest, trial and imprisonment in her own words. A second autobiography, Free: My Search For Meaning, was published this year and reflects on how the trial has shaped her life. “Though she was exonerated, it’s taken more than a decade for her to reclaim her identity and truly feel free,” the summary notes.

Her final published book, The Cardio Tesseract, was a creative project with her husband, Christopher Robinson—a book of love poems. She and Robinson have been married since February 2020, and continue to reside in Seattle. They have two children.

Who is Amanda Knox’s Husband?

Amanda Knox is married to poet and author Christopher Robinson, who now co-hosts their podcast, Hard Knox.

The two were reportedly married in a low-key legal ceremony in 2018, but celebrated the union with family in 2020.

Knox and Robinson, now 43, met at the book launch for Robinson’s first novel, War of the Encylopaedists, in 2015. Knox interviewed Robinson, which turned into a “hang out sesh”, after which Robinson made a sort-of move. “When we shook hands goodbye, he said, ‘I think you’re someone I should be friends with,’ ” Knox told PEOPLE. “It was an amazing moment because that hadn’t happened to me yet, where I came home and someone I didn’t know — who I admired for their accomplishments but also thought of potentially as a peer — could be my friend.”

Despite meeting Knox only months after her exoneration, Robinson confessed he didn’t know who she was at the time. “I was probably the only person at the party who didn’t really know who she was,” he said. “I knew [about] Italy and some legal stuff and something that shouldn’t have happened. But I didn’t really know her story.”

Knox verified this, telling PEOPLE in a later interview that “the thing that really distinguished him was how not interested he was in the worst experience of my life.”

The two moved in together in 2016, and became engaged in 2018.

Does Amanda Knox Have Kids?

Amanda Knox and her husband share two children: A daughter, Eureka, born in 2021, and a son, Echo, born in 2023. She keeps her kids largely out of the spotlight, spare the odd Instagram snap of a family outing.

In 2025, Knox revealed to Today what she tells her four-year-old daughter when she asked “when mummy went to Italy”.

“It’s very simple,” Knox said. “It’s just, ‘When Mummy was young, Mummy went to Italy, and she made friends and she had fun, but then someone hurt her friend, and the police thought Mummy hurt her friend, and so they put Mummy in jail.

“And Mummy was in jail for a long time, and she was very sad, but then one day, Mummy proved that she was innocent and she got to go home, and then she met your daddy and had you and happily ever after’.”

Knox has said she doesn’t hide her story because it’s part of her advocacy for other wrongfully convicted people.

Amanda Knox Worth

There’s no way of knowing a celebrity’s net worth for sure. However, as of 2025, multiple sources estimate Amanda Knox’s net worth as approximately US $500,000 (AU $776,880).

It was reported that Knox received US $4 million from Harper Collins to publish her memoir, Waiting To Be Heard, in 2013. Knox has said the sum went towards paying back legal fees and loans from family, as well as for part of her sister’s college tuition. Robinson reiterated this, adding that she repaid her mother and grandmother, who mortgaged their homes to move to Italy when Knox was in prison.

In 2019, Knox received roughly US $21,000 in damages from Italy after the European Court of Human Rights found that the nation had violated her right to a fair trial.

When Knox and Robinson wed in 2020, the nuptials made headlines amid criticisms of the couple’s choice to ask guests for money in lieu of gifts.

In further legal news, Knox was sued by bar owner, Patrick Lumumba, after she accused him of murdering Meredith Kercher. The courts found her guilty of slander, with Knox required to pay an undisclosed amount in damages and legal costs.

Now, with the release of The Twisted Tale Of Amanda Knox and an Executive Producer credit to her name, Amanda Knox’s worth may have changed.

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The siblings mixed blue cordial, milk and ice-cream into the milkshake maker, and promptly gagged at the taste, throwing the failed experiment down the sink. There was the time they were obsessed with playing Nintendo, devoting hours to competing against each other in Mario Kart and Legend of Zelda battles.

There was the time Loren would watch her daredevil brother come flying down the hill on his roller blades, launching through the air off the ramp he built with the neighbourhood kids, twisting and twirling in mid-air. “He was just fearless,” Loren recalls fondly.

“I enjoyed watching him be a really talented skater. I’d see him down at the proper big skate ramps and the kids he was hanging out with were a few years older than him but he was doing tricks that they couldn’t. Not to show off, just to have a go. He was really bold and brave, but modest, and I was always so proud to be his big sister.”

With only two-and-a-half years between them, their close bond continued into adulthood. Dan opened up to Loren about his struggles with depression and anxiety, leaning on her for support. He spent a lot of time on his mental health, seeing a psychologist and learning about Buddhism.

He travelled the world and maintained a healthy lifestyle, going on to run a successful Brazilian jiujitsu academy in Melbourne, where he lived with his girlfriend of three years. At just 24, he seemingly had his whole life ahead of him.

But on an ordinary morning on July 15, 2011, Dan disappeared.

He had been staying at Geelong with his parents, Des and Lori, for a few nights and was due to meet up with Loren in two days for a fun run they had been training for. There was no indication beforehand that anything was amiss.

“He was still behaving and conversing normally and I had no reason to doubt I’d be seeing him that Sunday morning for the run,” says Loren. In movies and on television, when someone goes missing there is always a keen-eyed, work-addicted detective team whose singular purpose is to find the missing person. But Loren soon found out real life was nowhere close to what was depicted on the screen.

Resources and experience levels differ from station to station and from state to state. It took the Victorian police three days to come to her parents’ house to get photos of Dan, and even then it was only because the media had started reporting on it.

“When he was first reported missing, the police said, ‘Oh, well, he’s 24. He’s probably just blowing off some steam. He’ll be back in a couple of days.’

But we knew that wasn’t like Dan. It was completely out of character,” says Loren. “We felt as if we had to try to convince police that this was serious, and trying to convince them to care when you’re in a really distressed state, you’re not thinking clearly, you’re not sleeping, you’re not eating … It’s really devastating to feel that you need to prove your loved one is worthy of attention, to beg them to do the job you think that they’re supposed to do.”

Since Dan’s disappearance wasn’t considered suspicious, the police did not conduct a search. Instead, that was left in the hands of the family.

“I was madly running around Geelong, asking people if they’d seen Dan,” recalls Loren. “It was a really traumatic time. I asked the police what to do and they said, ‘Do whatever you feel like you need to do,’ which isn’t helpful.”

In the 14 years since, Loren says she’d like to think improvements have been made. “Victoria Police do seem to allocate some resources to non-suspicious cases now, which is good. But it still seems ad-hoc and not enough has changed,” she says. “It’s a complex space, and 85 per cent of cases relate to mental health, so we do really need to reframe missing persons as a community issue and a public health issue, rather than just lumping it on the police. Unless there’s a crime involved or a risk to the community, it’s kind of outside their remit because their primary function is to protect the community and respond to crime.”

If the O’Keeffe family felt let down by the police, their spirits were bolstered by the outpouring of love and support from the public. A Facebook page set up to find Dan amassed 10,000 followers in that first year alone.

By the fourth year it would have 70,000 followers. Posters of Dan’s smiling, handsome face were plastered in local cafes and workplaces and on bumper stickers. Hordes of strangers turned up when the family organised a search of the area surrounding their Geelong home. But the biggest effect was having people contacting them to say that seeing the impact of Dan’s disappearance on the family had prompted them to seek help for their own mental health, instead of going missing themselves.

“To know that our awareness was actually preventative, sparing other families our same fate, was a massive silver lining – completely unforeseen,” says Loren. “It’s still one of the biggest things for us to have taken out of this whole experience.”

In Australia, more than half of the missing person reports received by police each year relate to people aged between 13 and 17. There are about 2700 long-term missing people, defined as those missing for more than three months.

Although there have been no major changes in the number of missing persons reported in the past few years, the annual figure was about 30,000 back in 2011 and is about 57,000 today, so the numbers have almost doubled in less than 15 years.

While a completely centralised register of missing persons across Australia does not exist, the National Missing Persons Coordination Centre, a non-operational arm of the Australian Federal Police (AFP), facilitates national coordination and information sharing between states and territories.

More than 99 per cent of missing persons reports are resolved (meaning the person is located), and typically within a short period of time.

Dr Sarah Wayland, a professor of social work at CQU Sydney, who has worked in the missing persons sector for the past 21 years, says it is rare for returned people to voice their experience publicly. “This speaks to a few issues: shame and stigma about going missing, wanting to protect their privacy, especially if media outlets have previously shared their image during the time of searching, as well as not wanting to upset their family [by reminding] them of the time they were absent,” she says.

The disappearance of Tony Jones while backpacking in 1982 was the catalyst for the establishment of National Missing Persons Week (NMPW) in Australia in 1988 by the Jones family. Held annually during the first week of August, this year’s theme is Forever Loved, with a focus on acknowledging the experiences of families of missing persons.

“National Missing Persons Week raises awareness by sharing profiles of missing persons and appeals to the public for any information that could help locate them, reminding the public that even the smallest piece of information can be crucial in solving these cases,” AFP commander Joanne Cameron tells marie claire. “NMPW also serves as a reminder of the impact on families and communities that the disappearance of a loved one leaves. The uncertainty and pain of not knowing what happened can be overwhelming.”

As the days turned into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years, Loren and her family lived with this uncertainty and pain.

“That heightened awareness to every clue, idea, social media comment or even news about another missing person being located can be all-consuming,” says Wayland. “This is the lived experience of an ambiguous or unresolved loss, a feeling of not knowing, and unending pain that shapes each hour of each day. We know from research that the space between hopefulness and hopelessness is a constant tension.

Families of missing people feel that they are living a post-traumatic stress response. The trauma is both the person’s disappearance and the information that is known, as well as the imagined trauma of what they have gone through. Families tell me they would not wish this type of pain on their worst enemy.”

At first, the non-stop liaison with the public, media and police kept Loren going. Moreover, there was the hope that through each of those interactions, a resolution would soon come. A year later, while feeling completely demoralised by the failed efforts to find Dan, she started the charity Missing Persons Advocacy Network, now The Missed Foundation, which provides practical and emotional support to families just like hers. “Once I started the charity, I had a sense of purpose and meaning,” she recalls. “I really needed that to stay alive for all those years of the unending not-knowing. And it is still what gets me out of bed each day.”

In 2016, nearly five years after Dan went missing, he was found in an underground, hidden space beneath the family’s Geelong home. He had died by suicide. “I was crushed,” Loren says of finding out about Dan’s death.

“Even if a family of a long-term missing person does get resolution, you never get all the answers. And ambiguous loss stays with you forever. There is, of course, a sense of relief in being able to locate them. But when they’re found deceased, it’s a whole new layer of grief, with the obliteration of hope and the devastation of bereavement. Closure is a ridiculous concept people like to use to avoid the messiness of grief.”

Yet Loren is reminded every day how fortunate her family is to have a resolution, despite the devastation of losing Dan. “We do our best to live with positivity in his honour, and I am especially grateful to have found purpose through the work we do in his memory,” she says.

“We carry our grief, and it’s heavy, but I’m always conscious of how easily we could have been a family stuck with the unending not-knowing for decades or even, most tragically, the rest of our lives. We are grateful for that and for the 24 years we got to have Dan.”

Visit The Missed Foundation at missed.org.au for support. You can also call Lifeline for help anytime on 13 11 14 or visit lifeline.org.au. You do not have to wait 24 hours to report a person missing. If you have concerns for someone’s safety and welfare and their location is unknown, you can file a missing person report at your local police station.

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The Dutch model’s final hours read like a thriller – alcohol, drugs, sex, and a fatal fall no one can quite explain. But this isn’t fiction. The stakes are real, the questions louder than ever. What really happened that night? And who – if anyone – killed Ivana Smit? 

A Glamorous Beginning 

Ivana was no stranger to the spotlight. At just 15, she had already come second in a Malaysian supermodel competition. But by 18, she was navigating a much darker world – one that led her to a high-rise apartment in Kuala Lumpur with crypto entrepreneur Alexander Johnson and his wife, Luna. They admitted to a night of partying and a consensual threesome with Ivana. Hours later, she was dead. 

A Botched Investigation And A Global Mystery 

At first, the official word was “misadventure.” No signs of foul play, said Malaysian authorities in 2019, despite bruises, strangulation marks, and reports of a loud argument in the apartment before her fall. 

But Ivana’s mother refused to stay silent. 

She fought back. Hired private investigators. Got independent forensic reports. Pushed until a court finally agreed – yes, mistakes were made. Big ones. 

Police didn’t preserve the crime scene. Key evidence was ignored. And shockingly, the couple at the centre of it all? Allowed to leave the country. No charges. No real answers. 

Justice (Finally) Reignited 

Now, in a landmark 2025 ruling, a Malaysian judge has reopened the case and awarded Ivana’s family over $350,000 in damages for police negligence. The investigation must be restarted – this time, properly. 

Her mother’s lawyer called the decision “historic.” And for the first time in nearly a decade, the case is officially being treated as a potential homicide. 

Interpol has even been asked to help track down the Johnsons, who remain abroad. 

Her parents say they’re not after revenge. Just the truth. 

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The tragic case of murdered 39-year-old Julian Story, allegedly at the hands of girlfriend and former Beauty And The Geek star, Tamika Chesser, is nothing short of horrifying.

Story’s body was found on June 19 around 3.35pm after police were alerted to a small house fire at the couple’s home in Port Lincoln on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula. The grim discovery continued when they learned Story’s head was missing.

Almost one month later, police believe it’s just been uncovered. 

In a press conference held on July 31, police revealed a skull was found in bushland by a member of the public who had been walking their dog at the time.

Detective Superintendent Darren Fielke told the press they believed the skull to be that of Julian Story.

“One of those situations where the dog ran off into the scrub, the dog didn’t come back immediately on being called,” Fielke said.

“The person who’s walking the dog has gone in to see what’s going on and that’s how those remains were discovered.

What Happened To Julian Story? 

Police are alleging that Story’s girlfriend, Tamika Chesser, is responsible for his gruesome death. The reality star was arrested at the scene of the June 19 fire at their apartment and later charged with his murder.

“We know that after his alleged murder, Julian was dismembered,” Fielke told media last month.

“We know that after his alleged murder, Julian’s body was dismembered and while I won’t provide any further details about that at this time, I can tragically say that we have not recovered the head of Julian Story,” he said at the time.

According to documents from South Australian police a witness spotted flames and smoke before entering the unit with a “bucket of water” to help put out the fire.

“In the bathroom of the unit, he located a bundle of clothing rags and debris which was smouldering. The witness doused this and repeated this with a second bucket of water,” it reads.

After being called to the scene by firefighters, police entered the unit “and in the bathroom sighted the deceased remains” before finding Chesser outside: “The accused was seated in a garden chair in the rear yard adjacent to unit 3 in a catatonic and unresponsive state at this time.”

Police also allege the murder took place around midnight on June 17, two days prior to the apartment fire. 

Chesser was subsequently charged with murder, disposing of human remains to pervert the course of justice, and assaulting a police officer. A motive remains unclear, according to police. 

Who Is Beauty And The Geek Star, Tamika Chesser?

Tamika Chesser, 34, appeared on reality TV series Beauty And The Geek in 2010. Chesser was paired with fellow contestant and ‘geek’ Thomas Richardson-Smith, with the pair going on to become runners-up in the second season of the show.

At the time her profession on the show was listed as ‘cocktail waitress’ however, according to her current Instagram bio she has been working as a “model & actress”. 

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Pleading guilty to four counts of first-degree murder in a deal that saw him avoid the death penalty, Kohberger, 30, will serve four consecutive life terms without the possibility of appeal.

Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin – four students who resided in the rented sharehouse targeted by Kohberger – were stabbed to death as they slept on the morning of November 13, 2022.

At the time, the crime sent shockwaves through the college town of Moscow, Idaho, and has since been the subject of a wave of podcasts, true crime docuseries and amateur sleuth investigations.

But while the murderer has finally been sentenced, the motive for his heinous crimes may never be known.

Acknowledging the shared pain of family members, friends and relatives of the late students present to hear the sentence being handed down, Judge Steven Hippler said: “I share the desire expressed by others to understand the why.”

“But upon reflection, it seems to me, and this is just my own opinion, that by continuing to focus on why, we continue to give Mr Kohberger relevance, we give him agency.”

“The need to know what is inherently not understandable makes us dependent on the defendant to provide us with a reason, and that gives him the spotlight, the attention and the power he appears to crave.”

Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson agreed with the judge’s sentiment, telling the court that the vision of Bryan Kohberger being carried off in shackles through a prison door that would close behind him forever, was the “closure we seek.”

Dylan Mortensen, a roommate who survived the brutal killings addressed the court in a final statement that spoke of her strength and power to overcome the trauma she’d experienced.

She described how Kohberger “took the light they carried into each room,” adding that Kohberger is “a hollow vessel, something less than human.”

Afterwards, the sister of Goncalves took the stand to address the killer with a chilling final blow: “You didn’t win, you just exposed yourself as the coward you are,” Alivea Goncalves said. “You’re a delusional, pathetic, hypochondriac loser.”

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The Amy Bradley Website 

Internet sleuths have been running a website called Amy Lynn Bradley is still missing for some years. The site serves as a noticeboard to share tips, leads and information regarding the possible whereabouts of Amy.

The website has provided some leads in the missing persons case including an anonymous tip that included a link to sex workers for hire, on which “FBI forensic analysis determined that one of the women looked like Amy” Time reveals.

According to the publication, the family regularly updates the website posting “family pictures because they’ve noticed that an IP address from Curaçao and Barbados visits it around holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries—and dwells on the site for about 45 minutes.” 

Was Amy Bradley Ever Found? 

Sadly, Amy Bradley is still missing to this day and is currently listed as such on the FBI website’s missing persons list.

As detailed in the documentary, there are a number of alleged sightings of Amy through the years including retired US Navy seaman Bill Hefner, who believes he met a distressed Amy in a bar in Curacao around January 1999.

This lends itself to the family’s website lead and theory that perhaps Amy had been kidnapped and sex trafficked.

Other theories and speculation suggest Amy could have fallen from the ship and drowned while some believe, mostly due to the IP address regularly visiting the website, that she may have snuck off the ship and run away. The many possibilities and lack of answers is exactly what makes this case so fascinating.

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During the trial, held in the town of Morwell, the jury heard from forensic and medical experts who had treated all four of Patterson’s relatives as well as testimony from Ian, the sole survivor.

Patterson pleaded not guilty to the charges and has maintained that the three deaths were a tragic accident. 

What Was Erin Patterson’s Motive?

When Will Erin Patterson Be Sentenced? 

Now that the verdict is in, the next step in the judicial process will be sentencing. No date or further information has been confirmed but it will require a separate sentencing hearing involving submissions and arguments from the prosecution and defence about the sentencing length and details. 

According to the Sentencing Advisory Council, in Victoria, the charge of murder serves a maximum sentence of life in prison. Given Patterson has been found guilty on three counts of murder, she could face three life sentences

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Oslo police announced the charges on Friday Saturday local time, revealing that the case involved a “double-digit” number of alleged victims.

Marius Borg Høiby, the stepson of the heir to the throne, Crown Prince Haakon, and eldest son of Crown Princess Mette-Marit, was four when his mother married into the Norwegian Royal family. While he holds no title or official duties, he is stepbrother to Australia’s newest royal-in-residence, Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus – the second and third (respectively) in line to Norway’s royal throne.

Høiby has been the subject of police investigation since August 2024, when he was arrested following allegations of rape and preliminary charges of bodily harm and criminal damage.

Speaking at a press conference regarding the matter, Oslo police attorney Andreas Kruszewski revealed the extent of the charges against Marius Høiby.

“I cannot go into further detail about the number of victims in the case beyond confirming that it is a double-digit number,” he said, adding that Høiby has been cooperating with investigators.

Høiby’s lawyer, Peter Sekulic, confirmed as much, adding that his client is “taking the accusations very seriously, but doesn’t acknowledge any wrongdoing in most of the cases – especially the cases regarding sexual abuse and violence.”

The charges come less than a year after Høiby revealed to Norway’s public broadcaster that he had caused bodily harm and destroyed objects in an apartment while he was under the influence of drugs and alcohol.

Prosecutors will determine whether or not the 28-year-old will be indicted on the charges, with further updates expected in the coming months.

Related articles:

• Norwegian Royal Family Drama Has The Makings Of A Reality Show
• Why Norway’s Future Queen Is Moving To Sydney

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Behind Every Statistic, A Story 

These numbers represent people. Women. Mothers, sisters, aunties, and daughters – the glue that holds our communities together. They represent a woman I lived with who gave birth to twins days before she was eligible for release, only to be separated from them until her release. They represent mums imprisoned for driving unlicensed, who lose their homes and jobs for a crime that should never have led to prison. They represent a woman who defended herself against a knife-wielding husband and paid for it with a six-year sentence. These women have stories of survival you couldn’t imagine – and I know, because one of those stories is mine. 

Addiction, Abuse, and a System That Fails 

At 18, I started using drugs. By 19, I was smoking ice every day. I survived years of violence too harrowing to detail – physical, sexual, emotional. I was eventually charged with drug supply, possession, and utensils. On bail, I was offered no support to treat my addiction. I reoffended, unsurprisingly, and ended up in custody. I pled guilty to things I didn’t do just to secure a court date. Like so many others, I was left to suffer, not just in prison, but long after release. 

A Broken System Costing Us All 

It costs taxpayers $422 per person per day to imprison someone – that’s over $152,000 a year. In 2023, Australia spent $2.4 billion incarcerating people for non-violent offences. In Queensland, 38% of incarcerated women were locked up for driving offences. Meanwhile, women in prison are fed on a budget of less than $5 a day, and paid as little as $38 a week for prison labour. The “luxuries” of incarceration are a myth – the real cost is human. 

When Policy Makes Prison Populations Soar 

Victoria once saw a promising drop in female incarceration thanks to Poccum’s Law – a bail reform named in honour of Aunty Veronica Nelson. But recent changes to bail laws have reversed that progress. In fact, incarceration rates of Aboriginal women jumped 155% following the reforms. Most women behind bars are victims before they are offenders. And yet the system continues to punish survival. 

Are We Really Safer? 

Since 2000, the global number of women in prison has risen 57%. For men, it’s only risen 22%. Our system disproportionately impacts First Nations women and offers no social benefit in return. So, we must ask: are we building safer communities, or just bigger prisons? 

Change won’t come from the top. Politicians prioritise optics and power over evidence. Real solutions live in community – in listening to Elders, in dismantling propaganda that tells us unhoused or formerly incarcerated people are dangerous. We don’t have a crime problem. We have a kindness problem. 

Freedom Requires Support, Not Sentences 

What helped me might not help another woman – our needs are complex and varied. But what unites us is the need for safety, support, and opportunity. Without therapeutic help in prison (a program that’s now defunded), stable housing on release, and the love of my family – I wouldn’t be here. Now, I use my story to hold space for others and to push for systems that heal, not harm. 

About Tahlia Isaac

Tahlia Isaac is a proud First Nations woman, a mother of 2 boys and a formerly incarcerated criminologist who founded a charity that supports women in prison and upon release – Project:herself. Her goal is to walk with women to build self determined lives, use storytelling to build social cohesion and remove the social barriers women who have been in prison face. She is a radical change maker, determined to change the narrative about women in prison and create stronger safer communities.

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OneTaste founder,  Nicole Daedone, 57, and its former head of sales, Rachel Cherwitz, 44, were convicted of conspiracy to commit forced labour. The charges allege the two women subjected employees and some participants to coercive tactics that included emotional, psychological, and financial abuse designed to control and exploit them.

Prosecutors argued that under the guise of sexual empowerment, Daedone and Cherwitz coerced workers into gruelling hours of unpaid or severely underpaid labour, including sexual services performed for the company’s investors and clients.

One witness recounted how she was forced to become a “handler” for OneTaste’s primary investor –  a role requiring her to live with him, cook for him, and perform demeaning sexual acts under his control.

In one course for healing sexual trauma sexual healing, prosecutors said Cherwitz enlisted one employee, a rape victim, to “re-enact” her rape before a group of attendees. It involved the employee performing oral sex on a partner while being told “I love you,” – just as her real rapist had.

Other survivors shared stories of being threatened with professional or social consequences if they refused to comply with their demands.

The Rise And Fall of OneTaste’s Sexual Wellness Empire

The jury’s verdict brought an end to the company’s ground-breaking ride where it was heralded as a new breakthrough movement for female sexual empowerment. Nicole Daedone founded OneTaste in 2004, a company that promoted “orgasmic meditation” – a practice involving 15 minutes of genital stimulation aimed at female sexual empowerment and healing trauma. With headquarters in San Francisco, the business expanded rapidly, opening locations in New York, Los Angeles, London and Australia, offering workshops, coaching sessions, and retreats often costing thousands of dollars.

OneTaste was marketed as a revolutionary approach to female sexuality, claiming to unlock emotional wellness and spiritual growth. By 2017, Daedone sold the company for $12 million, seemingly marking a successful exit. But behind the scenes, the business harboured a dark undercurrent of abuse, manipulation, and exploitation that has only now been exposed in court.

What Is Orgasmic Meditation – And How Was It Used?

Orgasmic meditation (OM), OneTaste’s flagship practice, involved a person stimulating a woman’s clitoris for 15 minutes while the woman remained nude from the waist down. Marketed as a path to healing sexual trauma and improving relationships, OM classes attracted many women seeking wellness and empowerment.

However, the prosecution presented evidence that this practice was weaponised within OneTaste’s ecosystem. Employees were reportedly expected to perform OM on each other regularly as part of their “work,” often with inadequate compensation.

More alarmingly, some were coerced into performing OM or other sexual acts on wealthy investors and clients, with the implication that their sexual labour was tied directly to the company’s financial success.

Nine former OneTaste employees testified over the four-week trial in Boston with many claiming Daedone and Cherwitz groomed them into performing numerous sexual acts. Many entered OneTaste searching for healing from past trauma but found themselves subject to constant surveillance, sleep deprivation, and emotional manipulation that eroded their autonomy.

Many victims testified to being pressured into opening lines of credit to pay for OneTaste’s expensive courses and living under constant surveillance in communal homes.

The government’s case portrayed the defendants as predators who exploited vulnerable individuals, leveraging promises of empowerment and wellness to extract unpaid labour and sexual services.

The jury agreed.

“The jury’s verdict has unmasked Daedone and Cherwitz for who they truly are: grifters who preyed on vulnerable victims,” said Brooklyn US Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr.  “By making empty promises of sexual empowerment and wellness only to manipulate them into performing labor and services for the defendants’ benefit.” 

The Defence’s Position And Planned Appeal

Attorneys for Daedone and Cherwitz vowed to fight the verdict.

Throughout the trial Daedone’s legal team strongly denied the allegations and pleaded not guilty to the charges. They argued that all employees voluntarily participated in the company’s practices and that no one was physically forced to stay or engage in any acts against their will. During the trial, Daedone’s attorney stated that former workers had “full and complete autonomy over their brains and their bodies” and accused prosecution witnesses of retroactively blaming Daedone and Cherwitz for their own decisions.

Both defendants pleaded not guilty and remain free on bail while awaiting sentencing, scheduled for September.  The pair face up to 20 years imprisonment. Their lawyers have announced plans to appeal the verdict.

Netflix documented the company’s controversial practices in a series called Orgasm Inc: The Story of OneTaste

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Russell Brand has pleaded not guilty to five serious sexual offence charges during a court appearance in London on Friday. The 49-year-old comedian and actor formally denied accusations of rape, indecent assault, and sexual assault brought against him in relation to incidents said to have occurred between 1999 and 2005. 

Appearing at Southwark Crown Court, Brand said “not guilty” as each of the five charges was read aloud. The alleged offences involve four women and span multiple locations, including London and the seaside town of Bournemouth. The most serious charge relates to an alleged rape at a hotel during the 1999 Labour Party conference. Other incidents reportedly took place in television and radio studios, involving women who worked in or around the media industry at the time. 

Wearing sunglasses and a striped shirt under a grey blazer, Brand left the courtroom without speaking to reporters. He remains on conditional bail until his trial, which is scheduled to begin on 3 June 2026 and is expected to last four to five weeks. 

The charges against Brand follow an investigation conducted by Channel 4’s Dispatches and The Sunday Times in 2023, in which multiple women accused him of sexual misconduct and assault during the height of his career in British media. 

The incidents reportedly occurred while Brand was rising to fame as a provocative radio and television host. He gained national attention as the presenter of Big Brother’s Big Mouth and a BBC Radio 2 show, and later transitioned into Hollywood roles in films such as Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Get Him to the Greek. 

Among the allegations, one woman claims she was raped in a Bournemouth hotel room in 1999 after meeting Brand at a comedy event. Another alleges he tried to drag her into a men’s toilet at a London television station in 2001. Two further accusers say Brand forcibly groped and kissed them in 2004 and 2005, with one woman describing being pushed against a wall and touched without consent at a radio station. 

Due to UK legal protections, the identities of the alleged victims remain confidential and protected for life. 

Online Transformation and Public Denial 

Since stepping back from mainstream entertainment, Brand has rebranded himself as a wellness and spirituality influencer with a substantial online following. His recent content often includes religious messages, conspiracy theories, and critiques of the media and pharmaceutical industries. 

Brand has strongly denied all allegations against him, both in court and publicly. After charges were announced earlier this year, he posted a video to his social media channels declaring his innocence and framing the accusations as a spiritual trial. 

“I was a fool before I lived in the light of the Lord,” he told followers. “I was a drug addict, a sex addict and an imbecile. But what I never was was a rapist.” 

He added: “I’ve never engaged in nonconsensual activity. I pray that you can see that by looking in my eyes.” 

As he arrived at court on Friday, Brand carried a copy of The Valley of Vision, a collection of Puritan prayers, and did not speak to the press. On Monday, ahead of the hearing, he posted a five-minute prayer video to his social channels with the caption: “Jesus, thank you for saving my life.” 

Brand’s legal team has not made a formal statement since Friday’s plea. The case will continue next summer, with widespread public attention expected as it unfolds. 

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UPDATE: The Menendez brothers have had their sentence reduced, making them eligible for parole.

Despite objection from Los Angeles’ new District Attorney, Nathan Hochman, who previously filed a motion to withdraw the resentencing request, a judge had determined that Erik and Lyle Menendez, are to have their sentence reduced from life-without-parole to 50 years to life.

The resentencing update means that the Menendez brothers are immediately eligible for parole. However, as is the judicial process, Lyle and Erik will still have to go before a parole board to determine whether they can be released from prison.

Even if they are successful in their bid for freedom, the final decision still lies with Govenor Gavin Newsom, who could reject their release.

More updates to come.

The Long Road To Freedom For The Menendez Brothers

The Menendez brothers are currently serving life without parole for the 1989 murders of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, but were hopeful of a retrial based on new evidence and a renewed focus on the case.

Newly appointed D.A., Hochman, previously announced that his office had filed a motion seeking court approval to withdraw the resentencing request for Erik and Lyle in March.

Speaking in a press conference Monday 10 March, 2025, Hochman expressed his concerns over the Menendez brothers’ failure to acknowledge their alleged “lies” and claimed their self-defence plea was just one of the supposed fabrications.

“For now, while the Menendez brothers persist in telling these lies, and lies over 30 years about their self-defence defence, and persist in insisting that they did not subordinate perjury or attempt to suborn perjury, then they do not meet the standards for resentencing,” he said.

“Our position is that they shouldn’t get out of jail,” he continued.

The motion outlined a brief overview of the “shifting stories and deception” Hochman and his office believed to be reason for a retrial’s dismissal.

Court documents also pointed to a perceived lack of responsibility on the brothers’ behalf, an insight that Hochman and his office state has direct impact on their ability to safety return to society.

“The prior motion failed to examine at all how the continuity of failure of the Menendez brothers to exhibit insight into and accept full responsibility for their lies of self-defence, of their father purportedly violently raping Lyle’s girlfriend, of their mother purportedly trying to poison the family, of their attempts to get a handgun the day before the murders, and other lies impacts their risk of danger to the community and justifies resentencing,” the documents read.

A court hearing for Erik and Lyle Menendez was originally set for March 20-21, 2025, where newly discovered evidence was to be brought before the district attorney’s office following a petition by the Menendez brothers. This will now take place this week on April 17 and 18.

The recent shift in office meant the incoming La County District Attorney needed more time to familiarise himself with the case, previously announcing he would be reviewing the previous office’s submission, before making his findings known earlier this week.

Responding to the announcement, the Menendez family issued a statement that claimed Hochman and his office were playing “political games,” and holding Erik, Lyle and the family “hostage.”

“They have apologised for their actions, which were the results of José’s sexual abuse and Kitty’s enablement,” the family’s statement said.

“They have apologised for the horrific actions they took. They have apologised to us. And, they have demonstrated their atonement through actions that have helped improve countless lives. Yet, DA Hochman is effectively asking for them to publicly apologise to a checklist of actions they took in a state of shock and fear.”

The update more than 28 years after the Menendez brothers were convicted of murdering their parents, amid renewed focus following the success of Ryan Murphy’s series Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menenzes Story on Netflix.

New Evidence In The Menendez Brothers Case

In a press conference on Thursday October 4, 2024, then-Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón announced that new evidence had been discovered, making note of the brothers’ allegations of molestation at the hands of their father, José Menendez.

“We have been given evidence. We have been given a photocopy of a letter that allegedly was sent by one of the brothers to another family member talking about him being the victim of molestation,” Gascón said. “We’ve also got evidence that was provided by the defense, by his lawyers, that one of the members of the Menudo band alleged that he was molested by the father.”

One of the key factors in the potential retrial of the Menendez brothers has been the unsurfacing of new evidence, namely a letter sent by Erik to his cousin Andy that could affirm the claims the men had been victims of abuse at the hands of their father.

Further details about the contents of the letter were revealed in an episode of 60 Minutes on November 24th, 2024, where Erik writes that he had been “trying to avoid dad”.

“It’s still happening Andy. But it’s worse for me now,” the letter reads. “Every night I stay up thinking he might come in. I’m afraid. He’s crazy.”

Why is this letter only coming to light now, you may ask. Well, Andy passed away 15 years ago, but journalist Robert Rand, who has covered the case since day one, discovered the papers when invited to search through the cousin’s belongings on a fact-finding mission. The letter was written just eight months before the murders.

“As soon as I read that paragraph, I thought to myself, this could have a major impact on the case,” Rand told interviewer Tara Brown. 

Menendez Lawyer And Family Petition DA

After the news that the district attorney’s office may recommend resentencing the Menendez brothers, members of Erik and Lyle’s family gathered for a press conference in the hopes of convincing Gascón to announce his decision.

Around two dozen family members were joined by supporters of the Menendez brothers, where defence lawyer Mark Geragos called for a revised sentence.

Geragos spoke of the treatment the brother’s received during their trial, stating: ‘If they were the Menendez sisters they wouldn’t be in custody.’

The sentiment was echoed by Kitty Menendez’s sister, Joan Andersen VanderMolen, who described the layers of suffering her family has experienced.

‘Their actions, while tragic, were the desperate response of two boys trying to survive the unspeakable cruelty of their father,’ says Joan, who has always been an advocate for her nephews, most recently speaking with Vanity Fair about her nephews pain.

‘The truth is, Lyle and Erik were failed by the very people who should have protected them—their parents, the system, and society at large.”

A petition to support the brothers’ resentencing and release was also announced, and in addition to the press conference, Kyle and Erik’s relatives placed a full page ad in the LA Times, calling for ‘Justice for Erik and Lyle’.

The brothers’ attorney, Mark Geragos, also provided Gascon with further evidence – the letter Erik wrote to his cousin in which he revealed that he was still being raped by his father.

Is There An Appeal For Lyle And Erik?

While the brothers were originally trialled separately, resulting in mistrials, the pair were then tried together which lead to their conviction. At the time, Lyle and Erik were sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

A petition to review the case in 1998 and 1999 was declined after both the California Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of California upheld Erik and Lyle’s convictions.

The brothers maintain to this day that they were the victims of a lifetime of alleged sexual abuse at the hands of their father – claims which were not permitted to be presented as evidence during their trial.

In May 2023, Erik and Lyle’s legal team requested a new hearing, following evidence of their father’s alleged molestation of singer Roy Rosselló of the Puerto Rican boy band Menudo.

As the dramatised Netflix series gained traction, the streamer went on to release The Menendez Brothers documentary in quick succession. Both stories have garnered a huge swell in discourse around the brothers, with advocates accusing prosecutors of attempting to deny Erik and Lyle’s claims of sexual abuse based on gender.

Gascón responded to these concerns in his statement, where he said unequivocally that “both men and women can be the victims of sexual assault.”

READ NEXT: Menendez Brothers Resentencing Recommended By District Attorney’s Office

Erik & Lyle Mendendez’s Aunt Shares Disturbing Case Details, Calls For Their Release

The Biggest Revelations From The Menendez Brothers’ Documentary

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But on Tuesday, nearly a decade after she was bound, gagged, and held at gunpoint inside a discreet luxury residence during Fashion Week in 2016, Kardashian returned to the French capital – this time, not as a celebrity guest but as a witness in one of the most high-profile criminal cases France has seen in years. 

Kardashian, 44, delivered raw and emotional testimony before a panel of judges at the Palais de Justice. Ten people, dubbed the “grandpa gang” by French media, are on trial for their alleged roles in the armed robbery that stunned the fashion world and helped reshape the way celebrities think about privacy and security. 

“I absolutely did think I was going to die,” Kardashian said, recalling the early morning hours of October 3, 2016. She had just returned to her hotel suite, dressed in a robe and ready to sleep, when masked men dressed as police officers forced their way in, dragging with them the hotel’s night concierge, who had been handcuffed and threatened at gunpoint. 

The intruders demanded her jewellery – an estimated $10 million worth, including a 20-carat diamond engagement ring given to her by then-husband Kanye West – and tied her hands and feet with zip ties. At one point, a gun was pressed against her back. Another robber grabbed her by the neck. 

Kardashian said she feared not just for her life, but that she might be raped. “Everything was exposed… I was certain that was the moment he was going to rape me. I said a prayer. Then he closed my legs and ended up tying them.” She said she worried that her sister, Kourtney, would come home and discover her body. 

She described whispering to the concierge, begging him to translate her pleas. “I have babies. I need to make it home.” 

The night concierge, Abderrahmane Ouatiki, also testified, describing Kardashian’s terror as “unbearable to witness.” The robbers, he said, were volatile and impatient. “She was in serious terror; it was unbearable to see a woman in that state.” 

How the 2016 Paris Robbery Transformed Kim Kardashian’s Approach to Safety and Privacy 

Kardashian’s testimony was not just an account of one night but a reflection on how that night reshaped her life. She now travels with a full security detail. Jewellery is sent to separate locations rather than brought home. If she hears footsteps on stairs and there’s no response when she calls out, she says she panics. “That moment comes flooding back.” 

“I try to be strong and protective,” she told the court, “even if it’s excessive or ridiculous to other people. That’s what I need to feel safe.” 

“I Thought I Was Going to Die”. Kim Kardashian’s Emotional Courtroom Testimony

In a surprising moment, Kardashian wept as the court read aloud a letter of apology from one of the robbers, Aomar Ait Khedache, now 68, who expressed regret for his role. “I forgive you,” Kardashian said, though she added, “it doesn’t change the trauma or how my life has been forever changed.” 

Kardashian, who has since become active in criminal justice reform, said she believes in second chances, but urged the court not to minimise the impact of the crime simply because the accused are older today. “It was almost a decade ago,” she said. “They were obviously a lot younger and stronger. It’s frustrating that they’re called the ‘grandpa gang’ – that’s not what it felt like.” 

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“Talented people who touch the buttocks of a girl are consigned to the deepest dungeon,” Bardot said during the televised interview, voicing dismay at the treatment of Depardieu, who she described as “a genius.”

Dismissing contemporary feminism as excessive and alienating, she added, “Feminism isn’t my thing. Personally, I like men.” 

The host pushed back gently: “But you can love men and be a feminist…”

Bardot’s response? “No.”

What Ever Happened to Bridget Bardot? 

Bardot’s performances in films such as And God Created Woman and Contempt helped define 1960s French cinema, and her image became synonymous with sensuality and freedom. She has largely retreated from public life, living in near seclusion in the south of France. In recent decades, Bardot has becoming an increasingly polarising figure, having been fined several times for inflammatory remarks and outspoken criticism of the #MeToo movement.

Bardot continues to oversee the Brigitte Bardot Foundation, dedicated to animal welfare.

Gérard Depardieu Found Guilty of Sexual Assault

Depardieu is a towering figure of French cinema and one of its most globally recognised stars. He has been found guilty of sexually assaulting two women during the filming of Les Volets Verts in Paris in 2021. On Tuesday, a Paris court sentenced the 76-year-old actor to an 18-month suspended prison term and ordered his name added to France’s sex offender registry.

The ruling marks a seismic shift in France’s reckoning with sexual violence in the entertainment industry, long criticised for protecting its cultural icons from accountability. Depardieu’s conviction is the most prominent in the country since the #MeToo movement erupted globally in 2017.

The assaults involved a 54-year-old set dresser, publicly identified only as Amélie, and a 34-year-old assistant director. Both women testified to repeated, invasive groping by Depardieu during the shoot. The judge ordered Depardieu to pay each woman €1,000 for “secondary victimisation” they suffered during the legal proceedings, including the courtroom tactics of his defence team, which the judge condemned as “excessively harsh.” Depardieu, who was absent during the verdict’s reading, plans to appeal the ruling, according to his lawyer Jérémie Assous. His current whereabouts remain unclear, though he was recently filming in the Azores with longtime collaborator Fanny Ardant.

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Here’s what we learnt during the opening statements and first witness testimonies in the first week of the Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs trial.

Cassie Ventura Testifies

The court heard how Ventura, then-19, first met Combs, then-37, as an aspiring artist before they entered into a romantic relationship – one that prosecutors will allege, resulted in over a decade of control, coercion and devastating trauma.

She alleged that she was subject to a relentless pattern of abuse that included being tasked with hiring male escorts for “freak-offs” in which she would be forced to perform for Combs’ voyeuristic whims. The court heard how these “freak-offs” happened so frequently, that they “became a job where there was no space to do anything else but recover and just kind of feel normal again.”

Between tears, she spoke about Combs using recordings of the “freak-offs” to blackmail and control her, preventing her from leaving or denying his continued requests for the encounters. “If Sean wanted to have it, that was going to happen. No way around it.”

Prosecutor Emily Johnson told that court, that the “freak-offs” were happening as often as once a week for days at time. Meaning that for almost half of every week, Cassie was in a dark hotel room, high and awake for days, performing sex acts that she did not want to do on male escorts.”

Ventura’s testimony will continue across a few days, but you can catch up on the biggest moments from day one, here.

Prosecutors Reveal Scope Of Allegations

In a powerful opening statement, federal prosecutors painted Combs as the perpetrator of crimes including kidnapping, arson, drug distribution, sex crimes and bribery. Prosecutor Emily Johnson told the court that Combs used his influence to ensure that he was surrounded by an inner circle that “carefully cultivated and guarded his reputation.”

“He called himself the king and expected to be treated like one,” Johnson added. “He expected his inner circle to cater to his every desire including his sexual desire. And his inner circle made sure he got everything he wanted.”

The legal team outlined how Combs used this protective shield to commit “crime after crime” before preparing the jurors for the testimony they were about to hear.

“They will tell you about some of the most painful experiences of their lives,” Johnson said. “The days they spent in hotel rooms, high on drugs, dressed in costumes to perform the defendant’s sexual fantasies.”

“Let me be clear…” she continued, as she reiterated that at its core “this case is not about a celebrity’s private sexual preferences. It’s coercive and criminal.”

Graphic “Freak Off” Details Emerge

Assistant US attorney Johnson described the alleged “Freak Offs” – events or parties where women were allegedly plied with drugs and forced to engage in long-lasting sex acts – at the centre of the federal case.

The court heard that Combs allegedly introduced ex-partner Cassie Ventura to such events from early on in their relationship. “Half of every week Cassie was in a dark hotel room high and awake for days performing sex acts she did not want to do on male escorts,” Johnson told the court, alleging that in some cases, the frequency was so severe that in another “Freak Off” Ventura “still had an open wound on her face from the defendant’s more recent assault.”

According to prosecutors, Combs would record the “Freak Offs” as another form of control over Ventura and others. “He told her he could destroy her career by releasing the videos of her performing sex acts on dozens of male escorts,” Johnson stated, before describing the extent of abuse. “He beat her when she didn’t answer the phone when he called. He beat her when she left a Freak Off without permission. He beat her when he thought she took too long in the bathroom.”

Two Victims To Be Focus Of Prosecutors Case

Opening statements revealed that much of the federal prosecutors’ case will be centred around two women – Cassie Ventura and a second victim who will be referred to under her pseudonym, Jane.

According to Johnson’s argument: “The defendant used lies, drugs, threats, and violence to force and coerce first Cassie and later Jane to have sex with him in front of male escorts. The defendant insisted that the sex occur in a very specific, highly orchestrated way. These sexual performances lasted multiple days and they involved multiple escorts.”

Preempting the defence, Johnson also warned jurors about the power imbalance between Ventura and Combs, sating that while his team may claim each party was “unfaithful, jealous and at times angry,” Combs held all the power in that relationship.

“Only one of them had control,” Johnson said. “And that was the defendant. And with that power and with that control, he made Cassie do his bidding in those dark hotel rooms.”

LA Policeman Israel Florez Called As First Witness

The jury was shown surveillance footage of Cassie Ventura in the hallway of the InterContinental hotel in 2016. Ventura is shown in front of the elevator putting on her shoes before Combs emerges behind her and pulls her onto the floor. Combs was shown kicking her as she lay on the ground, proceeding to pick up her belongings, dragging her backwards into their hotel room. Moments later, Ventura is seen in the hallway again, attempting to make a call on the hotel’s wall phone.

The court heard from Los Angeles police officer, Israel Florez, who was a security official at the time. He stated that he was contacted by hotel staff to respond to the altercation, in which he escorted Ventura and Combs back to their room before witnessing Ventura leave shortly after “with a purple eye”. He claimed that Combs approached him with cash, which he interpreted as a bribe (and declined), and that an incident report was filed describing the incident from “start to finish.”

Testimony will resume tomorrow and we will continue updating this page with the latest revelations from court. For a full timeline of the case and allegations leading up to this trial, see our comprehensive explainer here and explore our wider coverage at this link.

Related articles :

• Everything To Know About The Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Trial
• A Timeline Of Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ Most High Profile Relationships
• Cassie Ventura’s Testimony Reveals Devastating Scope Of Alleged Abuse

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Last week, a video obtained by ABC’s 7.30 revealed a shocking moment. A childcare worker at an Affinity Education centre in South Strathfield slapping a baby in the face while a colleague laughed – and filmed. The clip, shot in May 2023 and just nine seconds long, was later uploaded to Snapchat. It’s a moment no parent should ever have to imagine, let alone see. 

But it’s not an isolated incident. The footage is just one among hundreds of disturbing cases uncovered in newly released regulatory documents, obtained after NSW Greens MP Abigail Boyd petitioned the state’s childcare regulator to disclose its findings. The documents reveal that Affinity Education – one of Australia’s largest private childcare providers, with over 250 centres nationwide – racked up more than 1,700 regulatory breaches in New South Wales alone between 2021 and 2024. What the actual? 

One former employee described chronic understaffing, telling 7.30 that cost-cutting had pushed ratios to unsafe levels and “caused serious incidents in the centre.” Another said young, underqualified staff were being hired simply because they were cheaper than trained professionals. The video, she said, was a symptom of that larger rot. 

The childcare worker involved was convicted of common assault and received a community corrections order. She has been banned from working in childcare for 12 months. The colleague who filmed the incident resigned. 

Affinity CEO Tim Hickey issued an apology, saying: “I want to express again how profoundly sorry I am that something like this could occur to any child in our care.” He added that the company acted swiftly once police informed them of the incident, insisting it was not representative of “the dedicated, professional team who care for children every day.” 

But further examples from the same year suggest otherwise. In Elderslie, another Affinity staff member was caught on CCTV dragging a child across the floor by the arm. In Epping, a child needed medical treatment after an educator yanked them backwards, dislocating their elbow. Both were also banned from working in childcare for 12 months. 

These are not edge cases. They are flashing red signals. The documents reveal a pattern of failure – and a regulatory response that is far too soft. Despite thousands of breaches across centres, fewer than ten fines have been issued over three years. 

What kind of society tolerates that? 

The system we rely on to care for our youngest citizens is overburdened, underregulated, and often unsafe. Too many centres are run like profit-driven enterprises, where the wellbeing of children is a cost centre, not a core mission. Staff are underpaid and stretched thin. Experienced educators leave. The gaps are filled by those who don’t always have the training – or temperament – for the job. 

What we need isn’t more subsidies alone. It’s structural reform. Real enforcement. A cultural shift that treats caregivers with respect and children as more than economic inputs. 

My girls are now at school, so daycare drop-offs are long gone. I no longer feel guilty for working. But I do feel angry – angry at how easily we’ve accepted a system that too often fails the people who rely on it most. 

The post This Baby Was Slapped In Daycare: The Affinity Education Scandal Explained appeared first on marie claire.

Combs, the hip-hop and business heavyweight whose decades-long career once symbolised the heights of cultural power, is now facing a string of deeply serious charges. From sex trafficking and racketeering to transportation to engage in prostitution, the indictment sent shock waves through the entertainment industry and triggered renewed scrutiny over longstanding abuse allegations.

The first week of the federal trial began on Monday 5, 2025 (US time), and has currently undergone two days of testimony, including accounts from the prosecutors’ key witness, Cassie Ventura.

As federal courtrooms don’t allow electronic recordings inside, details of the ongoing case will be relayed through courtroom reporters and sketch artists, whose invaluable work will form the basis for the public’s understanding of the trial as it progresses. This also means, that unlike past high profile cases, the Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs federal trial won’t be broadcast to the public.

The accused, 55, has been held in the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn, New York, where he’s been awaiting trial since his arrest on 16 September, 2024.

So what exactly lies ahead for Combs as part of the federal indictment? Below, a concise guide to everything you need to know about the charges, evidence, testimonies and more.

Who Is The Judge In Diddy’s Trail?

What Was The Plea Deal For Diddy?

How Long Will The Trial Go for?

What Is Combs Charged With?

Who Are The Accusers?

Who Will Testify?

What Has Diddy Said About The Charges Against Him?

What Happens If Sean Diddy Combs Is Found Guilty?

TAKE ME TO

Who Is The Judge In Diddy’s Trail?

The federal trial against Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs will be presided over by Judge Arun Subramanian.

He was nominated to the Southern District by then-President Joe Biden in 2022, before being confirmed by the U.S. Senate in 2023.

Was There A Plea Deal?

During a pre-trial hearing in late April, the courtroom heard that Sean Combs’ team had rejected a plea deal, the terms of which have not been made public at this stage.

At the same hearing, Judge Subramanian also ruled that video evidence depicting security footage that showed Combs assaulting his then-partner Cassie Ventura, could be used during the trial.

The footage in question had previously been the subject of interrogation by Combs’ legal team, who’d sought to have the evidence omitted from the trial.

How Long Will The Diddy Trial Be?

While an official timeline has yet to be released, trials of this nature – particularly those involving multiple charges and high-profile witnesses – are expected to run for several weeks, if not months.

What Is Combs’ Charged With?

Combs is facing five federal criminal charges tied to what prosecutors describe as a “sprawling criminal enterprise” operating over more than two decades.

The indictment accuses Combs of running a criminal “enterprise” as an alleged racketeer that was responsible for coordinating what the indictment listed as “elaborate and produced sex performances.”

Prosecutors for the case note that the disturbing allegations also state that Combs used employees to “carry out, facilitate, and cover up his abuse and commercial sex” with security staff, household staff, and close associates acting as Combs’ “intermediaries”.

According to court documents, prosecutors for the Diddy trial allege that Combs used his vast influence in the music and entertainment industries to recruit, exploit and silence alleged victims who, it will argue, were coerced or manipulated into participating in “Freak Offs” involving drug use and non-consensual sexual activity.

The case is separate to the further 120 civil lawsuits expected to be laid against the Bad Boy Entertainment founder, which were announced by Texas attorney Tony Buzbee in late 2024.

Who Will Testify During The Diddy Trial?

While previous reports had mentioned several anonymous witnesses were due to take the stand, recent court documents have revealed that “Victim-1”, will be Combs’ ex, Cassie Ventura.

A motion filed on April 4, 2025 by federal prosecutors, sought an amendment to a previous filing (obtained by People) referring to a “Victim -1”. Sources have since confirmed that Cassie Ventura – previously known as “Victim-1” – will take the stand using her own name, joining three others who will remain anonymous as “Victim-2, Victim-3, and Victim-4.”

The federal indictment has been amended several times since it was first filed in September 2024. Most recently, two charges of sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution have been added to the existing indictment, along with a new count of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion.

Ventura’s testimony, which began on May 13 and is expected to last several days, will address the new count, which according to court documents, claim that Combs “recruited, enticed, harbored, transported, provided, obtained, advertised, maintained, patronized and solicited [Victim-2], and attempted, aided and abetted, and wilfully caused [Victim-2], to engage in commercial sex acts, knowing and in reckless disregard of the fact that Victim-2 was engaging in commercial sex acts as a result of force, fraud, and coercion.”

While headlines about additional celebrity involvement have been circulating – specifically in relation to Michael B. Jordan, Kid Cudi, Mike Myers and Michelle Williams – it’s not for reasons related to a potential testimony being called for. Instead, references to the A-listers are part of the jurors questionnaire, which is given to potential jury members during the selection process to determine whether they will remain as credible (impartial) members.

And while we’ve unpacked the celebrity mentions in more detail previously, there are still questions surrounding how they will be brought up once the trial begins.

What Has Diddy Said About The Charges Against Him?

Combs has consistently and repeatedly denied all allegations made against him.

In a statement released by his legal team in April, Combs’ counsel described his accusers as “former long-term girlfriends, who were involved in consensual relationships. This was their private sex life, defined by consent, not coercion.”

Combs’ attorneys also argued, at a pre-trial hearing, that the disgraced rapper thought it was “appropriate” to have multiple sexual partners. “There’s a lifestyle, call it swingers or whatever you will, that he thought was appropriate because it was common,” Combs’ lawyer Marc Agnifilo explained to the court. “Many people think it’s appropriate because it’s common,” he added.

What Happens If Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Is Found Guilty?

If Sean ‘P Diddy’ Combs is found guilty of racketeering, he faces a maximum life sentence. For the sex trafficking charges, he faces another statutory minimum sentence of 15 years, according to U.S. state law.

If Combs is found guilty for the charges relating to transportation for purposes of prostitution, then he is facing a maximum of 10 years behind bars.

Needless to say, the Diddy trial is more than just a legal reckoning, the case represents a broader cultural moment. As with the Weinstein and Epstein trials before it, Combs’ case is about power, accountability, and what happens when influence is left unchecked.

The weeks to come aren’t just about one man. They’re about exposing an entire system that enabled abuse, silenced victims, and let alleged criminal behaviour continue behind closed doors and in plain sight.

We’ll be following every update as it happens.

For a full timeline of the case and allegations leading up to this trial, explore our wider coverage at this link.

Related articles:

• The Biggest Revelations From Day One Of Diddy Trial Testimony
• Which Celebrities Will Take The Stand At P Diddy’s Trial?
• Cassie Ventura’s Testimony Reveals Devastating Scope Of Alleged Abuse

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As disgraced film producer Harvey Weinstein returned to a Manhattan courtroom for the opening of his rape retrial, a new voice emerged in the long-running legal saga that helped galvanise the #MeToo movement. 

On the 24th of April, prosecutors introduced allegations from Kaja Sokola, a former model from Poland, marking the first time her claims have been presented in a criminal courtroom. The retrial comes nearly a year after Weinstein’s previous conviction was overturned by New York’s highest court on procedural grounds. This week, Kaja Sokola will testify before the court.

“As you will hear when she testifies this week, Kaja was just a teenager when Harvey Weinstein, a rich and powerful 54-year old Hollywood magnate, preyed on her,” says Lindsay M. Goldbrum, Partner at Goddard Law PLLC who is representing Kaja.

What Are Kaja Sokola’s Allegations Against Weinstein?

According to prosecutors, Sokola met Weinstein in 2002 when she was just 16 years old, having travelled to New York alone to pursue modeling work. She alleged that a professional lunch invitation from the Oscar-winning mogul turned into an unexpected and unwanted detour to his apartment – where she says Weinstein demanded she undress and then groped her, forcing her to touch him inappropriately. 

While the criminal charges pertain to a separate alleged assault in 2006, Sokola’s earlier experiences with Weinstein are now being used to establish a pattern of behaviour. Prosecutors say Weinstein forcibly performed oral sex on Sokola in a Manhattan hotel room after luring her there under the pretence of reviewing scripts. 

“This trial is about power, accountability, and how long survivors have been forced to wait for justice. Kaja’s voice is powerful and clear, and it speaks for every person who was manipulated into silence and every survivor still waiting to be heard,” says Goldbrum.

How Did Weinstein’s Team Defend The Allegations?

Despite the traumatic encounters, Sokola remained in contact with Weinstein over the years – a dynamic prosecutors described as an example of the power imbalances young women often face in industries like entertainment. 

“He held the keys to their dreams,” said Assistant District Attorney Shannon Lucey, addressing jurors during opening statements. “He wrote the script, staged the encounters, and directed their silence.” 

Lucey emphasised that Sokola’s ongoing communication with Weinstein did not negate her claims. Instead, she said, it reflected the complicated reality of navigating ambition, survival, and fear in an industry long known for its blurred ethical lines. 

Weinstein, 73, who now uses a wheelchair and appeared frail in court, has pleaded not guilty. His lawyer, Arthur Aidala, dismissed the prosecution’s claims as one-sided and misleading, arguing that his client’s accusers were complicit participants in what he characterised as a transactional Hollywood culture. 

“The casting couch is not a crime scene,” Aidala said, asserting that the women made choices based on mutual benefit. “This is not the blockbuster the prosecution wants it to be.” 

Why Was Weinstein’s Case Reopened?

Weinstein was originally convicted in 2020 of third-degree rape and criminal sexual acts, a watershed moment that helped validate the accounts of dozens of women who came forward publicly. But in 2024, New York’s Court of Appeals overturned the conviction, ruling that the judge had improperly allowed testimony about alleged misconduct not directly related to the charges. 

That decision sparked outrage from survivors and activists who feared it would undercut years of progress in holding powerful men accountable for sexual abuse. The current retrial, expected to last six weeks, is being closely watched. 

Sokola previously filed a civil suit against Weinstein, which resulted in a reported $3.5 million settlement. But this week marked her first time stepping into a criminal court proceeding. 

Photos from the early 2000s show Sokola and Weinstein appearing together at public events. Prosecutors said Weinstein also arranged a reference letter for her to attend acting school – a gesture they argue was part of a long-standing pattern of manipulation and control. 

Has The #MeToo Movement Changed The Landscape For Women?

“For far too long, the entertainment industry has been riddled with enablers who turned a blind eye, creating a culture where powerful men preyed on young women and girls with impunity—and while some progress has been made, there are still deep, systemic issues that must be confronted and dismantled,” says Goldbrum.

“Change is not possible without the courage of the brave woman like Kaja who have come forward to hold abusers accountable. Kaja, we are astounded by your steadfast courage, your bravery, and your spirit and we are proud to stand beside you.”

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The charges include one count of rape, one of indecent assault, one of oral rape, and two counts of sexual assault. The specific incidents are said to have taken place in locations including Bournemouth and London. Brand has denied the allegations, maintaining that he never engaged in non-consensual sexual activity. He is due to appear again at the Old Bailey on May 30 for further proceedings.

How Has Russell Brand Responded To The Allegations?

The charges follow a lengthy investigation launched in September 2023 after a joint inquiry by The Sunday Times, The Times, and Channel 4’s Dispatches program. The investigation featured testimonies from several women who accused Brand of sexually inappropriate behaviour spanning multiple years during the height of his fame. This includes his time as a presenter on Big Brother’s Big Mouth and his work with the BBC and Channel 4.

In an online video posted in April, Brand addressed the allegations, stating, “I have never engaged in non-consensual activity, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to clear my name.” He also commented on his belief that these allegations were part of a wider effort to attack his character, particularly in relation to his outspoken political views and social commentary.

What Happened During Russell Brand’s Appearance in Court?

At Friday’s hearing, Brand was dressed in a dark blue shirt and grey trousers, wearing sunglasses. He stood in the courtroom and confirmed his name, age, and address. Brand said he understood the court’s proceedings and was granted bail by the chief magistrate, Paul Goldspring. The magistrate informed Brand that he would be required to attend a trial at the Old Bailey on May 30.

Despite the severity of the charges, Brand did not speak to reporters or answer questions as he left the court, instead quickly entering a car and being driven away.

What Are The Allegations Against Russell Brand?

The charges against Brand relate to four separate women, with alleged offenses occurring between 1999 and 2005. One of the women claims she was raped by Brand in Bournemouth in 1999. Another woman accuses him of indecently assaulting her in Westminster, London, in 2001. Two other women have alleged that Brand sexually assaulted them between 2004 and 2005, with one of the assaults reportedly being oral rape.

The Metropolitan Police launched an investigation following the media revelations in September 2023, with Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy urging anyone who had further information to come forward. The police have continued to support the women who have made allegations, with the investigation still ongoing.

How Did Russell Brand Become Famous?

Russell Brand rose to fame in the early 2000s as a stand-up comedian and later became a popular television presenter. His breakthrough came as the host of Big Brother’s Big Mouth, which garnered him significant attention and led to a slew of high-profile media opportunities. He hosted the MTV awards, the Brit Awards, and appeared in several Hollywood films, including St Trinian’s and Arthur.

Of course, Brand’s rise to fame was not without controversy. His humour, characterised by sharp wit and outrageous antics, led to clashes with broadcasters and public figures. His infamous Sachsgate incident, in which he and Jonathan Ross left inappropriate voicemails for actor Andrew Sachs, resulted in Brand’s departure from his BBC Radio 2 show.

In recent years, Brand has reinvented himself as a social commentator, using his YouTube channel and podcast to share views on a range of topics, from spirituality to politics. He has also openly discussed his struggles with addiction, having achieved sobriety at the age of 27. Brand’s personal transformation has included his embrace of Christianity, culminating in his baptism in 2024 during a ceremony with adventurer Bear Grylls (and yes, we’re thinking what you’re thinking – what the?).

Russell Brand’s Relationships

Brand’s personal life has also been a source of media attention, particularly his marriage to pop star Katy Perry. The couple married in 2010 but separated in 2012. In a previous interview, Brand explained that the split was primarily due to their contrasting lifestyles and the pressures of being in the public eye.

Currently, Brand is married to Laura Gallacher, the sister of TV presenter Kirsty Gallacher. The couple shares two children, Mabel and Peggy.

Why Did Russell Brand Split from Katy Perry?

Russell Brand’s marriage to pop star Katy Perry was brief, lasting from 2010 to 2012. The couple’s high-profile relationship ended amicably, with Brand later revealing that the split was primarily due to their different lifestyles. Brand has said that while he loved Perry, their differing career paths and personal desires made it difficult for them to maintain a relationship. The end of their marriage was widely covered by the media, and it remains one of the most talked-about aspects of his personal life.

At What Age Did Russell Brand Get Sober?

Russell Brand has been open about his struggles with addiction. He has shared that he suffers from substance abuse issues and mental health challenges. Brand got sober at the age of 27, after years of battling drug and alcohol dependence. His story of recovery has been a significant part of his public persona, and he has used his platform to advocate for sobriety and mental health awareness.

Did Russell Brand Know Amy Winehouse?

In short, yes. The two were friends, and their relationship was well-known within the celebrity community. Brand has spoken publicly about his admiration for the late singer and expressed his deep sadness over her tragic passing in 2011. Their connection was rooted in shared struggles with addiction, and Brand has often referenced Winehouse as an example of the devastating toll substance abuse can take on an individual’s life.

What Does The Trial Say About The Link Between Fame and Power?

As Russell Brand stands in the courtroom, the public is increasingly divided on how to view him. Some continue to see him as a brilliant comic and entertainer, while others are questioning whether fame has shielded him from facing the consequences of his actions. With numerous allegations now in the spotlight, the trial is forcing society to consider whether celebrities can escape the same legal scrutiny as ordinary people, or if their fame affords them a different standard of justice. What’s next? Only time will tell.

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