1 of 2 | Representatives for ex-Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein (pictured in May while waiting on his second sex crimes trial) say the disgraced Hollywood producer had emergency heart surgery on Monday at New York's Bellevue Hospital. "We can confirm that Mr. Weinstein had a procedure and surgery on his heart today however cannot comment any further than that,” Weinstein's official representatives said Monday. Pool Photo by Angela Weiss/UPI |
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Sept. 9 (UPI) -- Ex-Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein, waiting on his second sex crimes trial, had emergency heart surgery on Monday at New York's Bellevue Hospital, his representatives confirmed.
The Hollywood mogul was rushed to Bellevue Sunday night after experiencing chest pains, Weinstein representatives Craig Rothfeld and Juda Engelmayer told ABC News in first reporting it.
Weinstein, 72, was taken from his prison facility at Rikers Island to Bellevue also after reports of telling his attorney over the weekend "how ill he was," Weinstein lawyer Arthur Aidala told The Post.
He was taken due to "several medical conditions," his representatives stated.
"We can confirm that Mr. Weinstein had a procedure and surgery on his heart today however cannot comment any further than that," they added.
Aidala noted that Rothfield, Weinstein's private "jail consultant," reportedly worked with officials to see Weinstein taken to Bellevue.
"Luckily, they heeded our emergency calls," said Aidala.
In their statement, Engelmayer and Rothfield expressed gratitude to the city's Department of Corrections and Rikers Island for acting quickly.
"As we have extensively stated before, Mr. Weinstein suffers a plethora of significant health issues that need ongoing treatment," they continued.
Weinstein was due back in court on Thursday, where he previously has been seen in a wheelchair, for a pre-trial hearing in Manhattan Supreme Court as prosecutors show evidence to a grand jury and work to secure for Weinstein a new indictment on related sex crime charges.
More than 80 women have accused the Oscar-winning producer of sexual assault or harassment while he has maintained that any alleged sexual encounter was consensual.
Weinstein, who was in Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan last month for health issues, is facing a retrial scheduled for Nov. 12 after the state Court of Appeals overturned his rape and sexual assault conviction from 2020.
He was convicted of assaulting his former production assistant, Miriam Haley, in 2006 and raping Jessica Mann, an aspiring actress, in 2013.
In April, the court threw out the guilty verdicts and his 23-year sentence based on testimony provided by three women about uncharged instances of sexual violence.