Harvey Weinstein rushed from Rikers Island to hospital for emergency heart surgery

Two months following his hospitalization for various health issues, Harvey Weinstein has undergone surgery for emergency cardiac treatment.

The 72-year-old movie mogul, who is currently incarcerated as he awaits a retrial on sexual assault charges, was "rushed" to Bellevue Hospital Sunday night "due to several medical conditions" and underwent emergency heart surgery, representatives Craig Rothfeld and Juda Engelmayer confirmed to USA TODAY on Monday.

"We can confirm that Mr. Weinstein had a procedure and surgery on his heart today however cannot comment any further than that," their statement read.

"As we have extensively stated before, Mr. Weinstein suffers a plethora of significant health issues that need ongoing treatment. We are grateful to the executive team at the New York City Department of Correction and Rikers Island for acting swiftly in taking him to Bellevue Hospital."

ABC News was first the report the news.

Weinstein was transported after claiming he "didn't feel well," and the surgery removed fluid from his lungs and heart, Rothfeld told NBC News. Weinstein’s lawyer, Arthur Aidala, told The Associated Press that Weinstein had complained of chest pains over the weekend.

Harvey Weinstein: Movie mogul contracts COVID-19, double pneumonia following hospitalization

The surgery comes after Weinstein was hospitalized for "myriad" health conditions in July, including testing positive for COVID-19 and contracting double pneumonia.

He was taken to the Bellevue Hospital Prison Ward in New York City, where he was treated for the "conditions that he is still afflicted with on a daily basis such as diabetes, high blood pressure, spinal stenosis (and) fluid on his heart and lungs."

Amid his ongoing legal troubles, Weinstein was expected to make a court appearance this week, per ABC News, as prosecutors have been presenting evidence for a possible new indictment on sex crime charges.

Harvey Weinstein faces retrial after rape conviction overturned

In February 2020, Manhattan jurors found Weinstein guilty on rape charges, but New York Court of Appeals judges threw out the conviction in April.

This spring, they found that the embattled Hollywood heavyweight did not receive a fair trial because a judge improperly allowed testimony by accusers that Weinstein had not been formally charged with assaulting.

Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in prison after a jury found that the Miramax film studio co-founder sexually assaulted former production assistant Miriam Haley in 2006 and raped aspiring actress Jessica Mann in 2013. He was also sentenced to 16 years following a separate rape trial in California, although he has not begun serving the sentence.

Manhattan prosecutors revealed in July that they intend to charge Weinstein for "additional violent sexual assaults" after more women agreed to testify. The new accusers have not been publicly identified, and prosecutors are seeking to shield certain evidence from public view while they prepare to seek a new grand jury indictment.

During a July 19 hearing, Judge Curtis Farber set a tentative court date of Nov. 19 for Weinstein’s retrial, signaling he was also open to an earlier trial date in September depending on how pretrial discovery plays out.

The disgraced media mogul has denied wrongdoing or having any non-consensual sexual encounters with anyone. He is being held in New York City's Rikers Island jail ahead of his retrial.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Harvey Weinstein heart surgery: Embattled director hospitalized in NY