Los Angeles Police Are Investigating Harvey Weinstein For Rape

Get the Full StoryYann Coatsaliou AFP Getty Images

Los Angeles police are investigating Harvey Weinstein for rape after an Italian actor filed a report alleging he sexually assaulted her in her hotel room in 2013.It is the first criminal sexual assault case to be opened against Weinstein in the Los Angeles area, where the movie mogul used his considerable power to mask his alleged misconduct.Dozens of women have come forward to allege Weinstein sexually assaulted or harassed them after the New York Times and New Yorker published reports detailing some of their stories.Weinstein already faces sex crime investigations in New York and London, which do not have the same statute of limitations as in California.The woman at the center of the LA case was not identified by police officials, who reportedly took her statement on Thursday.

The Los Angeles Times reported that the 38-year-old woman asked not to be named because she is fearful of retaliation and wants to protect her children’s privacy.She told the Times that the assault occurred in February 2013 at the Mr. C Beverly Hills hotel after she attended the 8th Annual Los Angeles, Italia Film, Fashion and Art Fest.She alleges that Weinstein showed up at her hotel room knocking, and when she answered, forced his way in."Once inside, he asked me questions about myself, but soon became very aggressive and demanding and kept asking to see me naked," the woman told the Times. "He grabbed me by the hair and forced me to do something I did not want to do. He then dragged me to the bathroom and forcibly raped me."She added that she had only met Weinstein once before in Rome.After about 45 minutes in her Beverly Hills hotel room, Weinstein departed."When he left, he acted like nothing happened," the woman told the Times.A representative for Weinstein on Thursday released the following statement reiterating his response to other allegations of sexual misconduct:"Mr. Weinstein obviously can't speak to anonymous allegations, but he unequivocally denies allegations of non-consensual sex."The Italian woman's attorney, David Ring, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.Weinstein's fall from grace has been swift and steep as more and more women have come forward in the wake of detailed accounts from the likes of Ashley Judd, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Angelina Jolie, alleging they were sexually assaulted by Weinstein.Weinstein has since been booted from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the Producers Guild of America as the scandal puts Hollywood and its culture of silence front and center.Also on Thursday, "select members" of Weinstein's staff released an unsigned statement expressing shock and horror over the avalanche of sexual misconduct allegations facing their former boss."We all knew that we were working for a man with an infamous temper. We did not know we were working for a serial sexual predator. We knew that our boss could be manipulative. We did not know that he used his power to systematically assault and silence women. We had an idea that he was a womanizer who had extra-marital affairs. We did not know he was a violent aggressor and alleged rapist," the statement read in part. "But to say that we are shocked and surprised only makes us part of the problem."Days after the allegation were published, Weinstein was fired from the company he helped establish.

LINK: Harvey Weinstein Recast Lead Role Because She Wasn't "Fuckable," Director Says

LINK: Harvey Weinstein's Handling Of The Sexual Assault Scandal Could Mean Big Trouble Down The Road

LINK: Here Are The Women Who Harvey Weinstein Has Allegedly Sexually Harassed Or Assaulted

Share: