A New York City grand jury on Wednesday indicted movie producer Harvey Weinstein on charges of rape in the first and third degrees and first-degree criminal sexual act, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said.
Weinstein, 66, was arraigned last week on the same charges, seven months after women began to come forward with stories alleging sexual misconduct by Weinstein.
Weinstein, who intends to plead not guilty, according to his attorney, remains free on $10 million bond.
The charges stemmed from incidents with two women in 2013 and 2004, the Manhattan district attorney said in a statement, and were the result of a joint investigation between police and prosecutors.
"This indictment brings the defendant another step closer to accountability for the crimes of violence with which he is now charged," District Attorney Cyrus Vance said in a statement "The defendant’s recent assault on the integrity of the survivors and the legal process is predictable."
The investigation remains active and ongoing, Vance said.
Weinstein attorney Ben Brafman said the announcement of the indictment "does not come as a surprise."
"We remind everyone that an indictment is merely a formal accusation. Mr. Weinstein intends to enter a plea of Not Guilty and vigorously defend against these unsupported allegations that he strongly denies. We will soon formally move to dismiss the indictment and if this case actually proceeds to trial, we expect Mr. Weinstein to be acquitted," Brafman said in the statement.
As part of the agreement between Brafman and the DA’s office, Weinstein’s bond was set at $10 million at his arraignment on Friday. Weinstein is required to wear a GPS monitoring system and is only allowed to travel within New York state or Connecticut. He also surrendered his passport.
The judge also granted a temporary order of protection on behalf of an unnamed alleged victim in the case.
