Crime & Justice

Harvey Weinstein Hit With 6 New Sexual Assault Charges

MORE AND MORE

This is the second time that the criminal complaint against Weinstein in Los Angeles has been amended to include even more counts.

GettyImages-1202993438_zvyp9w
ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty

Disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, who was convicted in New York in February of rape and sexual assault, has been charged with six more counts of forcible sexual assault, Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey said Friday. The new charges—involving two victims and stemming from incidents more than a decade ago—include four counts of forcible oral copulation and forcible rape, two counts of sexual battery by restraint, and one count of sexual penetration by force. “Harvey Weinstein has always maintained that every one of his physical encounters throughout his entire life have been consensual and that hasn’t changed. At this moment we cannot comment on the new charges until we learn more about them,” Weinstein’s spokesperson told The Daily Beast.

It’s the second time that the criminal complaint against Weinstein in L.A. has been amended to include more counts. Weinstein is serving a 23-year sentence in prison for New York convictions but could face up to 140 years to life in state prison on the new charges. “I am thankful to the first women who reported these crimes and whose courage have given strength to others to come forward,” Lacey said. “The willingness of these latest victims to testify against a powerful man gives us the additional evidence we need to build a compelling criminal case.” Los Angeles authorities are still investigating the case.

Read it at Reuters