Harvey Weinstein was transferred to a New York state prison on Wednesday as he begins to serve a 23-year sentence for rape and sexual assault in his landmark #MeToo case, the Associated Press reports. The disgraced film mogul, who turns 68 on Thursday, is locked up at the maximum security Wende Correctional Facility near Buffalo. He is known behind bars as inmate No. 20B0584. The prison is likely just a temporary stop for Weinstein. He’ll be evaluated there to determine which state prison facility meets his security, medical, mental health and other needs.
Weinstein’s spokesman called the move “harsh.” Weinstein, convicted Feb. 24 and sentenced last week, had been splitting time between New York City’s notorious Rikers Island jail complex and a Manhattan hospital. He left court in an ambulance after the guilty verdict and detoured to Bellevue Hospital, complaining of chest pains and high blood pressure. He later had a stent inserted to unblock an artery. After his sentencing, he returned with more chest pains. Weinstein was convicted of raping an aspiring actress in 2013 and forcibly performing oral sex on a TV and film production assistant in 2006. He will appeal his conviction. Prosecutors in Los Angeles began the extradition process to send him there for an arraignment on charges he raped one woman and sexually assaulted another in 2013. That’s on hold because of the coronavirus crisis that has shuttered courthouses and limited travel.