Disgraced former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein has had indecent assault charges against him discontinued by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in the UK. The decision was made after a review of the evidence concluded that there was no longer a realistic prospect of conviction.
Weinstein, 72, was charged in 2022 with two counts of indecent assault against a woman in London for alleged offences dating back to 1996. The alleged victim, who is now in her 50s, had come forward to the Metropolitan Police at the time.
Frank Ferguson, head of the special crime and counter-terrorism division at the CPS, emphasized the importance of continuously reviewing criminal cases and encouraged potential victims of sexual assault to report to the police.
Weinstein is currently serving a prison sentence in the US following a sexual assault conviction in Los Angeles in 2020. He is awaiting a retrial in Manhattan after a separate conviction for rape was overturned earlier this year.
More than 100 people have made rape and misconduct allegations against Weinstein, dating back to the late 1970s. The #MeToo movement was galvanized by the decision of his accusers to come forward and his subsequent conviction in New York.
Weinstein has always maintained his innocence and claimed he was the victim of a “set-up”. Despite his legal troubles, he co-founded the Miramax film studio, known for producing award-winning films like Shakespeare in Love and Pulp Fiction.
In 2020, Weinstein was stripped of his honorary CBE, which had been awarded for his contribution to the British film industry.
