Harvey Weinstein has been charged with six additional counts of sexual assault ahead of the disgraced producer’s Los Angeles trial on sex crime charges, Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey’s office announced Friday.
The amended indictment against Weinstein added three felony counts each of forcible rape and forcible oral copulation stemming from a pair of new victims coming forward. The incidents include an alleged rape of a female victim that took place at a Beverly Hills hotel between September 2004 and September 2005 and another alleged rape of a different woman that occurred on two occasions at a Beverly Hills hotel between November 2009 and November 2010
“I am thankful to the first women who reported these crimes and whose courage have given strength to others to come forward,” District Attorney Lacey said in a statement. “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.”
Following Friday’s announcement, Weinstein now faces a total of four counts each of forcible rape and forcible oral copulation, two counts of sexual battery by restraint and one count of sexual penetration by use of force, involving five victims for crimes that span from 2004 to 2013. If found guilty to all of those charges, Weinstein could receive up to 140 years to life in state prison, prosecutors said Friday.
Weinstein — who tested positive for coronavirus earlier this year while in prison — is currently serving a 23-year sentence after being found guilty of New York charges for third-degree rape and a first-degree criminal sexual act. Prosecutors are seeking the temporary custody of Weinstein from New York, with an extradition hearing is set for December 11th in Buffalo, New York.