Disgraced producer Harvey Weinstein claims he was "punched hard" and left bleeding on the floor whilst serving a 16-year prison sentence. The Hollywood mogul, who was found guilty of rape and sexual assault by courts in New York and Los Angeles, has opened up about his life "under siege" at Rikers Island. The 73-year-old sex offender told The Hollywood Reporter: "One time while I was waiting to use the phone, I asked the guy in front of me if he was done.
"He got off and punched me hard in the face. I fell on the floor, bleeding everywhere. I was hurt really badly. The cops asked me who had done it, but I couldn't say. You can't be a rat. That's the law of the jungle." Weinstein was put behind bars at the Queens "hellhole" while awaiting a retrial for the third time on charges of raping an actress inside a Midtown hotel.
The producer is now wheelchair-bound following the decline of his health and spends most of his day in his cell without human interaction for up to 23 hours a day. The only people he speaks with are the guards and the nurses who care for him, and he admits he now lives a "lonely" life.
He claimed his fellow inmate "constantly threatens and derides" him, adding that he "wouldn't last long" among the general population in the secure unit. He told the publication: "It's too dangerous for me to be around anyone else. Other inmates get to go to the yard. But every time I'm out there, I feel like I'm under siege."
When asked if he was worried about dying in jail, the criminal admitted that the premise "scares the s**t out of him". Weinstein explained: "It's incredible to have the life that I had and the things that I did for society and not have the leniency to deal with me in a kinder way. Whatever they think I did bad in my life, I didn't get the death penalty."
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The Hollywood star also admitted that he isn't in touch with two of his daughters, despite reaching out to them both "lots of times". He confessed: "They never respond. Their mother cut me off, too. It's been radio silence from them ever since the allegations started."
Insiders confided to NBC News that the beleaguered movie star is undergoing treatment at Rikers Island prison in New York. The National Cancer Institute characterises his ailment as a "type of cancer in the bone marrow that makes a large number of abnormal blood cells."
Harvey's legal healthcare representative, Craig Rotherfeld, added: "Out of respect for Mr Weinstein's privacy, we will offer no further comment."
