The New Yorker released on Tuesday, for the first time, a secret New York Police Department recording in which Harvey Weinstein admitted he groped a woman, and that he did so often.
A week after the New York Times reported the powerful media mogul settled multiple sexual harassment claims, the New Yorker added that at least three women have accused Weinstein of rape.
In one instance, Weinstein allegedly groped and put his hands up the skirt of Italian actress Ambra Battilana Gutierrez. Gutierrez immediately went to the police and filed a report. Working together, they decided to stage a sting operation against Weinstein.
While secretly being recorded, Weinstein repeatedly pressured Gutierrez to enter his room. She refused, and asked him why he groped her the day before.
"Oh, please, I’m sorry, just come on in," Weinstein said. "I’m used to that. Come on. Please."
"You’re used to that?" Guttierrez asked.
"Yes," Weinstein said, before adding, "I won’t do it again." He then pressured her for nearly two minutes to enter his hotel room before finally letting her go.
But despite the admission, he wasn't charged by New York prosecutors. Sources told the New Yorker the case became complicated after Weinstein's associates leaked stories to the tabloids that casted Gutierrez as a gold-digger who had accused other men of rape.
A year after Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr. declined to press charges, Weinstein's longtime lawyer David Boies donated $10,000 to his reelection fund. Boies' law firm maintains there was nothing untoward about the donation, noting that he also donated to Vance before the incident.