The coronavirus pandemic has delayed extradition for convicted rapist Harvey Weinstein, who still faces sex crimes charges from three separate incidents that allegedly occurred in Los Angeles.
Weinstein has been in custody in New York since he was found guilty of third-degree rape and first degree criminal sexual act in a landmark #MeToo case in March. The disgraced movie mogul was transferred from Rikers Island to Wende Correctional Facility, a maximum-security state prison east of Buffalo.
Weinstein tested positive for COVID-19 after arriving at the facility, Michael Powers, president of the New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association, previously told NBC News.
The global pandemic has also delayed Weinstein’s extradition to Los Angeles, Greg Risling from the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office said Tuesday.
"The virus has delayed the processing of the extradition paperwork,” Risling said. “There is no time estimate on when he will appear in a Los Angeles courtroom."
Weinstein is set to face charges of forcible rape, forcible oral copulation, sexual penetration by use of force and sexual battery by restraint. The January charges stem from an alleged rape of one woman and a sexual assault of another in separate incidents in February 2013.
The Los Angeles District Attorney’s office added a new sexual battery charge last month from an alleged incident that occurred at the Beverly Hills Hotel in in May 2010. If convicted, Weinstein faces a maximum sentence of 29 years in state prison.
Weinstein is already serving a 23-year sentence from his March 11 conviction in New York City. He has continually denied all allegations of nonconsensual sex and pleaded not guilty in the New York case.
In all, more than 80 women have accused the disgraced Oscar-winning producer behind "Pulp Fiction" and "The King's Speech" of sexual assault and harassment going back decades, though the charges were based primarily on allegations from Haley and Mann, who each testified during the trial.
Representatives for Weinstein did not respond to a request for comment from NBC News Tuesday.
