Weinstein charged with rape

NEW YORK: Disgraced Hollywood powerbroker Harvey Weinstein was arrested and charged on Friday with rape and sex crimes on two women, nearly eight months after his career imploded in a blaze of assault accusations that triggered the global #MeToo movement.

The former mogul -- once the toast of Hollywood and whose films won scores of Oscars -- was escorted out of a Manhattan police station in handcuffs and was expected to appear in court later on Friday.

The New York Police Department announced in a brief statement he was "arrested, processed and charged with rape, criminal sex act, sex abuse and sexual misconduct for incidents involving two separate women."

They are the first criminal charges against the twice-married, shamed former titan, who already faces a slew of civil lawsuits, is reportedly under federal investigation and whose former studio has filed for bankruptcy.

"The NYPD thanks these brave survivors for their courage to come forward and seek justice," the police department said.

The 66-year-old former studio boss walked into the downtown Manhattan police station shortly before 7:30 am (1130 GMT) wearing a white shirt, pale blue sweater and dark blazer before a mob of television cameras and photographers.

He stepped out of a black SUV, clutching several books, among them what appeared to be the Rodgers and Hammerstein biography "Something Wonderful" and a book on director Elia Kazan, and looked glum as he walked up the steps into the station.

Weinstein was understood to have had his mugshots and fingerprints taken before being driven away in an SUV from the station, close to his former Miramax office in Tribeca and the townhouse he once shared with his estranged wife.

As part of a bail package negotiated in advance, he will put up $1 million in cash and will agree to wear a monitoring device. His travel will be restricted and he will surrender his passport, The New York Times reported.

The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office and police have been investigating Weinstein for months, coming under growing pressure from the Time’s Up movement and Hollywood actresses to bring the disgraced producer to justice.

Lucia Evans, who said Weinstein forced her into oral sex in 2004, is thought to be at least one of the women whose cases triggered charges.

New York police have previously confirmed an active Weinstein investigation regarding Evans, who was an aspiring actress at the time, and a credible rape allegation after "Boardwalk Empire" actress Paz de la Huerta accused the former producer of raping her twice at her New York apartment in late 2010.