Coronavirus: Convicted rapist Harvey Weinstein tests positive in prison
Written by News on 23/03/2020
Convicted rapist Harvey Weinstein has tested positive for coronavirus, a US federal prison union official has said.
The former Hollywood producer has been placed in isolation at Wende Correctional Facility, a maximum security prison east of Buffalo, New York.
He was moved from New York City’s Rikers Island jail where he is serving a 23-year sentence.
The president of the New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association, Michael Powers, said he learned that Weinstein’s test came back positive on Sunday morning.
Several prison staff have since been quarantined, Mr Powers added.
A lawyer for Weinstein, Imran Ansari, said his legal team had not been notified of the coronavirus diagnosis.
“Given Mr Weinstein’s state of health, we are of course concerned, if this is the case, and we are vigilantly monitoring the situation,” Mr Ansari said.
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Weinstein, 68, was convicted of sexually assaulting former production assistant Mimi Haleyi in 2006 and raping former aspiring actress Jessica Mann in 2013 following a landmark trial earlier this year.
Prosecutors said he had committed a “lifetime of abuse towards others”.
His conviction was hailed as a victory for the #MeToo movement against sexual misconduct by powerful men.
More than 100 women, including famous actresses, have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct stretching back decades.
He has denied the allegations, saying any sex was consensual.
Once one of Hollywood’s most influential figures, Weinstein won an Academy Award for producing Shakespeare In Love and was responsible for other acclaimed films including Pulp Fiction, The English Patient and Gangs Of New York.
(c) Sky News 2020: Coronavirus: Convicted rapist Harvey Weinstein tests positive in prison
