rape

Read recent rape news stories, accusations, and cases on Newser.com

Stories 1 - 20 |  Next >>

He May Be One of America's 'Most Prolific Serial Rapists'

Ronan Farrow investigates how Sean Williams stayed free for so long in Johnson City, Tennessee

(Newser) - A man named Sean Williams is currently serving a long prison sentence in Tennessee for the production of child pornography, but the 53-year-old's legal troubles might increase in a big way. "The number of allegations against Williams may make him one of the most prolific serial rapists in...

Russell Brand Is Charged With Rape
Russell Brand
Is Charged With Rape
Apr 4, 2025 8:43 AM CDT

Russell Brand Is Charged With Rape

London police allege attacks on 4 women going back to 1999

(Newser) - Actor and comedian Russell Brand has been charged with rape and sexual assault in London over alleged attacks on four different women between 1999 and 2005, reports the BBC . The 49-year-old faces five separate counts ranging from indecent assault to rape, per Deadline . Allegations surfaced against Brand in 2023 following...

After His Rape Conviction, 23 More Women Came Forward

Police in London say Zhenhao Zou could be one of the 'most prolific' serial rapists they've seen

(Newser) - A Chinese student at one of the UK's top universities raped dozens of women, some of whom may not know it, police say. Investigators say 28-year-old Zhenhao Zou preyed on fellow Chinese students in Britain, luring them to his apartments in London and China and giving them drinks laced...

Ex-Lawmaker Who Went Abroad for Sex With Boys Gets 10 Years

Ex-ND state Sen. Ray Holmberg is sentenced for more than a dozen trips to Czech Republic

(Newser) - Ray Holmberg is headed to federal prison. The former North Dakota state senator has been sentenced to 10 years behind bars after pleading guilty to traveling with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct—specifically with underage boys, according to prosecutors. The North Dakota Monitor reports that the 81-year-old's...

Fire, Fury Follow Death of 8-Year-Old Rape Victim

Protesters in Bangladesh demand systemic change, death for perpetrators

(Newser) - An 8-year-old Bangladeshi rape victim died of her injuries Thursday, adding to nationwide protests calling for systemic change to address gender-based violence. The case has "sent shockwaves through the nation and raised pressing questions about the safety of women and children" in the country, writes Mohammad Al-Masum Molla at...

Safety on Dating Apps: It's 'Going to Get Worse'

Critics say Match's platforms promise security for women, but that that's just 'safety theater'

(Newser) - Match Group has a problem: The parent of Match.com, Tinder, Hinge, OkCupid, and other dating apps has abusive users it's known about for years but has kept under wraps. That's per the Guardian , which centers on Stephen Matthews, a doctor serving a 158-year prison sentence for sexually...

City Goes After Rape Victim for Harassment
City Goes After
Rape Victim for Harassment
LONGFORM
Feb 16, 2025 8:01 AM CST

City Goes After Rape Victim for Harassment

Sharilyn Lux says Washington state's Snoqualmie mishandled her case; city says she's been harassing them

(Newser) - It's not unusual for victims of sexual assault to see their cases vanish into the ether, with unsolved cases caught in an often apathetic legal system. Sharilyn Lux's battle with the Seattle suburb of Snoqualmie, however, takes this kind of case further, as described by Kelsey Turner in...

Accuser Drops Sexual Assault Lawsuit Against Diddy, Jay-Z

'The frivolous, fictitious, and appalling allegations have been dismissed,' says Shawn Carter

(Newser) - The anonymous Alabama woman who accused Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter and Sean "Diddy" Combs of raping her when she was 13 dropped her lawsuit against the hip-hop moguls on Friday. Variety reports that the attorney representing the woman identified as Jane Doe voluntarily dismissed the charges with prejudice, which...

Chris Brown Sues for $500M Over Doc Alleging Rape

Singer with history of assault says he's 'never been found at fault' for a sex crime

(Newser) - Chris Brown has filed a $500 million lawsuit over a documentary accusing him of rape and evidence tampering, per the BBC . The R&B star accuses Warner Bros. Discovery and production company Ample Entertainment of defamation over claims made in Chris Brown: A History of Violence , released in October, which...

Man Convicted of Murder of Sleeping Trainee Doctor

Court finds Sanjay Roy raped and murdered a trainee doctor in Kolkata

(Newser) - A police volunteer has been found guilty of the August rape and murder of a trainee doctor in the hospital where she worked, in a case that deeply rattled India. Sanjay Roy had been accused of drunkenly arriving at the hospital and attacking the 31-year-old as she slept following a...

More Accusations Emerge on Neil Gaiman
More Accusations
Emerge on Neil Gaiman
LONGFORM
Jan 13, 2025 11:43 AM CST

More Accusations Emerge on Neil Gaiman

New York magazine talks to 8 women who allege sexual assault, coercion, other abuse from writer

(Newser) - Over the summer, a podcast from Tortoise Media broke some shocking news in the world of fantasy lit: Two women accused renowned British author Neil Gaiman, who has referred to himself as a "feminist writer," of sexual assault. Now, Lila Shapiro dives deeper into the scandal for New ...

Cops: Beverly Hills Doc Drugged, Raped Employee

And authorities think Babak Hajhosseini, 42, may have more victims

(Newser) - The founder of Beverly Hills' Wound and Burn Centers of America has been accused of drugging and raping a staff member in his home. Per the Los Angeles Times , 42-year-old Babak Hajhosseini, also a doctor and visiting specialist for Catalina Island Health, was arrested late last month on suspicion of...

Lawyer for Dominique Pelicot: He Won't Appeal
Dominique Pelicot Won't Appeal
Dec 30, 2024 6:55 AM CST

Dominique Pelicot Won't Appeal

Lawyer says he won't seek to overturn ruling, to spare ex Gisele Pelicot any further 'ordeal'

(Newser) - The ex-husband of Gisele Pelicot won't appeal his 20-year prison sentence for drugging and raping her and allowing dozens of other men to also rape her while she was unconscious, in a case that revolted France, his lawyer said Monday. Dominique Pelicot wants to spare his ex-wife the ordeal...

Judge Scolds Jay-Z's Lawyer for Attacking Accuser

Jane Doe, who alleges she was raped at 13, can remain anonymous for now, judge rules

(Newser) - The Alabama woman who accuses Sean "Diddy" Combs and Jay-Z of sexually assaulting her in 2000 when she was 13 can remain anonymous for now, a judge ruled Thursday. The "Jane Doe," who sued Combs in October and later amended her complaint to name Jay-Z as well,...

Texas' $100K Billboard Campaign Warns Migrants of Rape

Gov. Greg Abbott has ordered 40 signs in 4 languages to go up in Mexico, Central America

(Newser) - Gov. Greg Abbott, who once pledged to "eliminate all rapists" from his state of Texas, is now warning migrants that traffickers could rape and abuse them if they try to make their way to the United States. Per the Washington Post , Abbott is doing so via 40 or so...

Gisele Pelicot Addresses Victims 'in the Shadows'

Rape survivor gives statement following Dominique Pelicot's conviction

(Newser) - Gisele Pelicot had a lot of people to thank following the conclusion of a rape trial that turned her into a global icon . The French woman spoke to the press shortly after her husband, Dominique Pelicot, was convicted of drugging and raping his wife and inviting 49 others to do...

Dominique Pelicot Guilty in Mass Rape of Wife

Gisele Pelicot's ex gets 20 years, the maximum sentence in France; 50 other men also convicted

(Newser) - The rape trial that has stunned France, and the world, has come to a close: It's a guilty verdict for Dominique Pelicot , accused of drugging and raping his wife, Gisele Pelicot , and inviting dozens of others to do the same over a span of years. CNN reports that on...

Hundreds in France Demand Justice for Gisele Pelicot as Verdicts Near

51 defendants are on trial in French court for rape

(Newser) - Hundreds of people gathered Saturday in the southern French town of Avignon ahead of the verdict in a trial in which dozens of men are accused of raping Gisele Pelicot while she was drugged and rendered unconscious by her husband. The court is expected to deliver its verdicts by Dec....

Real Estate Titans' Alleged Rapes Date Back to High School

More on the indictment against the Alexander brothers

(Newser) - Two big names in luxury real estate are accused of violently drugging and raping dozens of victims while operating a sex trafficking ring for a decade, alongside a third brother. But who are the Alexander brothers? For starters, twins Oren and Alon Alexander, 37, and their brother, Tal, 38, were...

Pelicot Wore Sunglasses 'to Protect Herself.' No More

BBC essay describes Frenchwoman as 'global icon of courage and defiance' as husband stands trial

(Newser) - Throughout the rape trial of Gisele Pelicot's husband, Dominique Pelicot , and the dozens of other men of sexually assaulting her while she was drugged unconscious, the world has seen the Frenchwoman go through a series of stages—from "serene grandmother, to anguished and shame-haunted rape victim, to fearful...

Stories 1 - 20 |  Next >>
Most Read on Newser