Life imprisonment threatens: Harvey Weinstein transferred to Los Angeles for further trial

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In Los Angeles, too, several women accuse Harvey Weinstein of sexual assault (archive photo)

Photo: JOHANNES EISELE / AFP

Ex-film producer Harvey Weinstein, who is serving a long prison sentence for rape and sexual assault, is transferred from New York to Los Angeles.

Prosecutors in California want to try Weinstein on charges made by five women there.

Weinstein was handed over to the authorities on Tuesday morning (local time) from a maximum security prison in the north of the US state of New York for transfer to California, said a spokesman for the prison administration according to "Variety".

The 69-year-old could appear for a court hearing in Los Angeles this week, his defense attorney Mark Werksman told the Los Angeles Times.

Last year in California, five women had brought forward allegations of alleged sexual assault against the former film mogul.

These are said to have occurred between 2004 and 2013.

The Los Angeles District Attorney has filed charges of rape and sexual assault.

If found guilty, he faces life imprisonment.

In February 2020 in New York, the ex-film producer was found guilty of rape and sexual assault by a jury and sentenced to 23 years in prison.

He is serving this sentence in a prison in New York state.

His conviction marked a milestone in US legal history.

In the sensational case that played a key role in triggering the #MeToo movement, the jury believed the testimony of several women against Weinstein's pledges of innocence and despite the lack of evidence.

mjm / dpa