Harvey Weinstein, who was convicted of sex offences in Los Angeles and New York, has been diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia, sources told ABC News.
According to the outlet, Weinstein is undergoing treatment from behind bars at Rikers Island in New York. Weinstein’s authorised legal healthcare representative in New York, Craig Rothfeld, declined ABC’s request for comment and said, “Out of respect for Mr. Weinstein’s privacy, we will offer no further comment.”
The American Cancer Society states that chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is a type of cancer that develops in the blood-forming cells of the bone marrow and invades the blood and that 15 per cent of leukemias in adults are CML.
The diagnosis arrives amid Weinstein’s mounting health issues. Last month, the disgraced mogul was moved to a hospital for an emergency heart surgery. He was hospitalized in July after testing positive for Covid-19 and double pneumonia.
Weinstein’s 2020 conviction was overturned in April, after an appeals court ruled that the judge who oversaw the first trial should not have allowed testimony from accusers who weren’t part of the case.
The following month, prosecutors indicated that they might bring additional charges from accusers against Weinstein, with Assistant District Attorney Nicole Blumberg telling the court at the time that “some people who were not ready to speak out in 2020 now appear ready to do so.”
In September, he was indicted on a further sexual assault charge in New York and accused of sexually assaulting a woman in a Manhattan hotel room in 2006. He has pleaded not guilty. The official charge is one count of criminal sexual act in the first degree.
From Rolling Stone US