Actress sues Weinstein for sex trafficking

This file photo taken on May 22, 2015 shows US producer Harvey Weinstein arriving for the screening of the film “The Little Prince” at the 68th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes. Weinstein was fired from his film studio the Weinstein Company on October 8, 2017, following reports that he sexually harassed women over several decades, according to US media.  (AFP FILE PHOTO)

NEW YORK — A New York lawsuit has accused Harvey Weinstein of sex trafficking by luring an aspiring actress into a French hotel room and sexually assaulting her.

The lawsuit was filed on Monday and said the movie producer went to London in 2014 and “groomed” Kadian Noble by telling her he had a film role in mind for her. It said that later that year he again approached Noble and took her to his room at the Majestic Hotel in Cannes, where he groped her and forced her to watch him masturbate.

A spokeswoman for Weinstein has denied the allegations.

The lawsuit was filed under a sex trafficking statute that has a 10-year limit for filing a complaint against someone who travelled to commit a sexual assault. It seeks unspecified damages.          /kga