Disgraced film producer Harvey Weinstein rushed to hospital for emergency heart surgery

Disgraced former film producer Harvey Weinstein has been rushed to a hospital for emergency heart surgery.

The 72-year-old was taken to the hospital from the Rikers Island jail in New York , where he is being held in custody, a spokesperson for his attorney Arthur Aidala told the PA news agency.

The former film mogul had been experiencing experiencing chest pains, according to US outlets.

Weinstein is serving a prison sentence following a rape and sexual misconduct conviction in Los Angeles related to an incident in 2013 where he appeared uninvited in a woman’s hotel room during a Los Angeles film festival.

He was sentenced to 16 years’ prison in February 2023.

He is currently in custody in Rikers Island jail complex while awaiting a retrial in Manhattan after a 2020 conviction for rape was overturned earlier this year in a majority decision from the Court of Appeal in New York.