Crime

Harvey Weinstein's back on the West Coast, and just faced the judge in his L.A. sexual assault case -- he's now been formally indicted, and denied wrongdoing ... with an official plea.

The one-time movie producer appeared in person for a hearing Wednesday in an L.A. County courthouse where the 11 charges he's facing were read to him, one by one.

The charges are for alleged sexual assaults over several years, involving 5 different women. In response, Weinstein entered a not guilty plea -- something he was expected to do based on how he'd pled in the recent past.

Now, we're told Weinstein will remain in the custody of L.A. authorities while the case is pending. If it ends up going to trial -- which it appears it will at this point -- that could mean he'll be here for a long time.

As we reported ... Weinstein was extradited from NY to L.A. Tuesday. TMZ posted the first shots of HW getting off the plane, and he appeared to be in civilian clothes ... not a prison jumpsuit. Remember, he's already doing hard time in a NY state prison for sexual assault.

Harvey Weinstein is currently aboard an airplane for the first time in over a year -- but it's not for any type of vacay ... the guy's on his way to L.A. to face even more charges.

The disgraced movie producer's attorney, Mark Werksman, tells TMZ ... Weinstein's legal team was notified their client is being extradited Tuesday, and is said to be on a flight right now from New York to Los Angeles for a possible hearing in court Wednesday.

Another attorney of Weinstein's, Norman Effman, adds that he believes Weinstein is on a federal aircraft medically equipped to handle his many ailments. We haven't confirmed that just yet, though. In any case, it sounds like HW is California-bound for the first time in a while.

Remember, he's been on the East Coast since at least 2019 ... fighting a rape case that he was ultimately convicted in just last year, and sentenced to 23 years behind bars. That was just a New York matter, though ... he's still got Los Angeles charges to face, which is why he's being brought out here.

As we've reported ... Weinstein was indicted on 11 counts of sexual assault involving 5 different women, following an investigation on the heels of scores of women coming forward to accuse him of either sexual misconduct, or full-blown assault ... coast-to-coast.

As for how exactly this transfer is supposed to go down ... law enforcement sources tell TMZ that the FBI is assisting in transporting Weinstein from NY to LA, and will turn him over to the authorities when they touch down.

Weinstein's rep, Juda Engelmayer, tells TMZ ... despite trying to negotiate an agreement to waive Weinstein's extradition, he knew this would probably be coming eventually. Engelmayer also says he's disappointed in the L.A. County District Attorney for not waiting for a judge's ruling.

Engelmayer says the team will be fighting for Weinstein to receive the medical care he needs, while also adding he has a right to due process ... and is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Ron Bultongez -- a former 'American Idol' contestant who made it pretty far during his 2018 season -- is facing multiple counts of sex with a minor in his home state.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the singer and one-time 'Idol' sensation was arrested in Grapevine, TX when he turned himself in on July 15.

We're still gathering details of the allegations, but according to the Tarrant County D.A.'s charging documents, Bultongez is charged with 4 counts of sexual penetration of a minor under the age of 17 on 4 occasions.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ, prosecutors say the alleged incidents occurred between December 2020 and February 2021.

Bultongez was released from custody a couple days after his arrest ... once he posted a $50,000 bond. We're told he has not made his initial court appearance yet to face the charges.

If the show "America's Dumbest Criminals" is ever revived it's got prime content courtesy of a woman in Oklahoma who got herself arrested after commenting on Tulsa PD's "Most Wanted" Facebook post ... about her whereabouts.

So, here's the deal, Tulsa PD posted Lorraine Graves as the "Weekly Most Wanted" for accessory to murder in a homicide that went down earlier this year. Graves' comment was about the reward money. She asked, "What's where's the reward money at." Not smart.

The post was quickly flooded with comments from others ... including a woman who said, "Giiiiirl you better stay off social media they can track you!!" A man responded, "Ain't gonna be as funny when you get processed." The post drew around 1,200 comments.

The day after the post ... cops say detectives tracked down Graves and arrested her and charged her with accessory to murder. Her bond's been set at $500k.

Two other suspects had previously been arrested earlier this year and were reportedly hit with murder charges for a shooting that killed a 30-year-old man at an apartment complex.

Soulja Boy has agreed to stay the hell away from a woman accusing him of sexual assault and battery ... according to new legal docs obtained by TMZ.

The woman filed for a restraining order in L.A. court back in January ... and the rapper agreed to a 3-year domestic violence restraining order, which will expire on July 16, 2024.

Neither party appeared at the restraining order hearing. They were instead repped by their attorneys. The woman who wants Soulja to stay away from her is the same woman who sued Soulja back in January claiming he hired her to be his personal assistant, then raped and assaulted her for nearly 2 years.

As we first reported ... Soulja -- who went up against Bow Wow in last month's "Verzuz" battle -- is alleged to have started abusing her shortly after he hired her in December 2018. She claimed it started with him sending unsolicited nudes before evolving into a romantic relationship that went south when he got violent.

He allegedly pushed her out of a car, and forced her to walk 5 miles. She also claims Soulja sexually assaulted her, and "expressed remorse" by paying her $1,000.

Lil Durk got a rude awakening, when some people busted into his home and exchanged gunfire with him and his girlfriend ... this according to law enforcement.

According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation ... the rapper and his girlfriend, India Cox, were the victims of a home invasion and aggravated assault this past Sunday a little after 5 AM.

Law enforcement tells us several unidentified individuals entered Durk's home in the Chateau Elan neighborhood of Braselton -- about an hour outside Atlanta -- and a shootout ensued.

The GBI says Durk and India discharged their firearms, but they were not injured during the incident.

It's unclear exactly how many people allegedly entered the home, but cops are asking for tips from the public in the case as part of the investigation.

British police say they've arrested 4 people for racially abusing Black England soccer players following the team's Euro 2020 loss ... and officials say the hunt for more is nowhere near over.

Jadon Sancho, Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka -- who are all Black -- were ambushed by racial slurs on social media after they each missed key kicks in England's shootout loss to Italy on Sunday.

The comments and remarks were vile -- many featured the n-word and others contained violent threats -- and it got so bad, UK police launched an investigation into it all.

And, in an update on the probe Thursday, British officials said they've arrested four in connection with the online attacks ... adding more arrests could be coming soon.

"We are working very closely with social media platforms, who are providing data we need to progress enquiries," British police official Mark Roberts told reporters.

"If we identify that you are behind this crime, we will track you down and you will face the serious consequences of your shameful actions."

Of course, in England, it's illegal to make racist statements or threats, as there's no First Amendment protection.

Nikolas Cruz -- the gunman responsible for killing 17 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School -- is facing new charges for attacking a jail guard ... and the video showing the whole thing go down is chilling.

Cruz was captured on surveillance video, released in court Wednesday, in an all-out brawl with a Broward County Jail guard. Just before the attack, which happened in 2018 -- but is just now coming to light -- Cruz can be seen walking in circles with his head down.

Cruz and the guard then appear to exchange words ... the guard said in court he told Cruz not to drag his feet so he wouldn't ruin his jail-issued sandals. Cruz appears to flip him off with both hands and then charges at him. They wrestle for a bit before Cruz throws some heymakers.

Eventually, the guard takes control, after pulling out his taser, and Cruz gets on the ground and taken into custody. It does not appear the stun gun was deployed.

Cruz was was hit with battery and assault charges from the incident. The jail altercation is reportedly being tried separately from his ongoing first-degree murder case.

Cruz's attorneys say the jail guard mistreated Cruz and that he provoked the attack.

The famous Versace Mansion is now the scene of a death investigation -- this after cops in Miami say they found 2 dead men inside one of the luxury hotel rooms.

Miami Beach Police say they got a call Wednesday afternoon from the Versace Mansion -- housekeeping told cops staffers they had discovered 2 dead bodies inside a room.

MBPD says cops and fire rescue responded to the Versace Mansion and found the bodies ... and now detectives are investigating.

As you know, the Versace Mansion is extremely popular with celebs looking to party or spend the night ... and it's where Gianni Versace was infamously shot and killed by gunman Andrew Cunanan on July 15, 1997.

It's unclear if the 2 deaths have any connection to the macabre anniversary.

Since Gianni's murder ... his mansion has since been transformed into The Villa Casa Casuarina -- a luxury boutique hotel with 10 guest rooms.

Joe Exotic just caught a potential break, and while he's not walking out of prison today ... he might get out a little bit sooner.

The federal appeals court in the 'Tiger King' star's case just upheld his conviction for murder-for-hire, but there's a silver lining ... his 22-year sentence has been vacated, and he'll be resentenced.

According to legal docs obtained by TMZ ... the appeals court reviewed Joe's case and upheld the conviction, but determined the U.S. District Court for the Western District in Oklahoma City made a technical error by not grouping the 2 murder-for-hire convictions at his sentencing.

So, Exotic's original sentence will be tossed, and the case is getting sent back to the lower court ... where he'll likely receive a shorter sentence now.

That's the good news, but ... even after the grouping error is corrected, he's looking at a sentence in the range of 17-21 years. Joe was convicted of murder-for-hire after all.

Still, Joe's legal team is celebrating the W. His appellate lawyer, Brandon Sample, tells us he's pleased with the appellate court’s decision. He says, "I knew when I agreed to represent Joe that an appeal would be difficult, but I also knew that the law was on Joe's side."

Sample adds, "I am optimistic that the decision today is but one of many more victories to come for Joe—and his eventual freedom."

Heartwarming scene in England on Tuesday ... a vandalized mural of soccer star Marcus Rashford was repaired -- all while crowds of anti-racists gathered around it to show their support.

The wall art was defaced after Rashford was one of several England players who missed crucial kicks in England's penalty shootout loss to Italy in Sunday's Euro 2020 final.

The vandalism was crass ... there were swear words and other vile things drawn on the picture of Rashford -- and police say they're treating the whole thing as a racially motivated incident.

But, the community surrounding the mural in Manchester rallied to cover up the graffiti shortly after it was tagged ... leaving messages of love and unity.

And, on Tuesday, when a street artist repaired it back to normal ... dozens showed up to cheer on and display messages of anti-racism.

"There’s been an outpouring of kind of love and solidarity," an official who helped initially put up the mural told TheJournal.ie, "and it’s really heartening."

23-year-old Rashford has dealt with a ton of abuse since Sunday's game ... in addition to the defaced mural, he and other Black stars dealt with threats and racist comments on social media.

It got so bad, Prince William released a statement condemning it all ... and police even said they'd launch an investigation into the online comments.

Former Disney star Kyle Massey is now a wanted man -- TMZ has learned a Washington State judge just signed a warrant for his arrest after he missed his arraignment in his immoral communication with a minor case.

Massey had been scheduled to appear for his arraignment Monday morning in King County, but prosecutors say the kid star never showed up ... so the judge ended up signing a $100k warrant for the actor's arrest.

Massey missed his arraignment in late June, so it was re-scheduled to today ... but with Massey not showing up again, it seems the judge was fed up and now the actor's a wanted man.

As we reported ... Massey -- best known for playing Cory Baxter on Disney shows "That's So Raven" and "Cory in the House" -- was charged with 1 count of communication with a minor for immoral purposes after prosecutors allege Kyle sent pornographic material to a 13-year-old girl he knew.

Prosecutors say Massey allegedly sent sexually explicit content to the girl from December 2018 to January 2019. As we told you, the case involves the same accuser as the civil suit we covered in March 2019.

You'll recall Massey was sued for $1.5 million for allegedly sending "numerous sexually explicit text messages, images, and videos" via Snapchat. He claimed he was being extorted.

Massey’s lawyer, Lee Hutton, tells TMZ ... Massey’s legal team has made several phone calls to the King County DA’s office but claims they've not yet gotten a courtesy response.

Hutton also says Massey has not been served and says they're "concerned with the misrepresentations made in court. Indeed, we will move forward to defend these allegations but also determine why due process has not been followed."

Former boxing champ James DeGale claims he has video of a person stealing his Olympic gold medal from his parents' house ... and now, he's begging for any information that could help him ID the suspect.

The 35-year-old pugilist says security video at his folks' home caught a person wearing all black walking up to a doorway at around 9 PM on Sunday.

The footage is chilling ... it appears to show the person blocking the camera with some sort of bag, before breaking into the home.

DeGale claims the person walked away with his gold medal and his MBE -- a very coveted British award -- and he's now asking for any sort of help to get his stuff back.

"He took two of my prize possessions MY OLYMPIC GOLD MEDAL AND MY MBE," DeGale said. "They are worthless to anyone other than me and they are two achievements that I prize from my boxing career."

"I am gutted and need my medals back. Can anyone help by reporting any information you have. Please share far and wide."

It's unclear if police are investigating ... we're working on it.

DeGale won the gold medal in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing ... and he later went on to earn the IBF super-middleweight title in 2015 -- becoming the 1st British boxer to win both honors.

Drake Bell won't be doing any time behind bars in his child endangerment case -- a judge just announced his fate, and the actor ended up getting probation instead.

The former Nickelodeon star was sentenced Monday in an Ohio court ... receiving 2 years of probation -- to be supervised in California, where he lives -- plus 200 hours of community service. If he doesn't keep his nose clean, he could face up to one year in prison on the felony charge of attempted endangering children -- to which he's pled guilty.

DB took the punishment in stride, saying he accepted it ... while also apologizing, explaining that it wasn't his intention to do harm, but that he's sorry to the girl and anyone else he hurt over this matter.

The woman, however, said he'd done irreparable harm -- issuing a victim impact statement via Zoom, and detailing what exactly this is all about. She claims they began exchanging messages online in 2017 (when she was 15), which she says eventually turned sexual in nature and included photos. She says this all happened over IG and Snap.

She went on to allege that she attended a concert of his back then, and that afterward ... he took her backstage to be alone -- where she claims she performed oral sex on him. Drake was seen shaking his head a few times during her remarks.

You'll recall, Drake was officially charged over this just earlier this year -- even though she filed a police report back in 2018. Up until now, it wasn't quite clear what sort of messages Drake was alleged to have sent to the minor -- but she shed a bit more light on it in her appearance.

Jodie Turner-Smith's Cannes Film Festival visit came to an abrupt halt this weekend -- this after having to talk to cops about someone jacking her jewels ... according to a new report.

The "Queen & Slim" actress -- who was there promoting her new film, "After Yang" -- filed a police report Sunday after an alleged theft from her hotel room from this past Friday, which left her out a ton of money ... so says Variety, citing sources familiar with the situation.

The outlet reports that Jodie spent a good amount of time with officers Sunday ... something she herself shed some light on through her Twitter account, writing -- "didn’t think i would be spending 2.5 hours in the police station on my final day in cannes, but here we are…"

According to Variety ... the estimated value of the jewelry taken was somewhere in the ballpark of several tens of thousands of euros -- which is a heck a lot of greenbacks, too.

Zoe McLellan -- an actress most famous from 'NCIS' -- has up and vanished with her and her ex's kid ... so claims the father ... who got a court involved, which has branded her as wanted.

Court records obtained by TMZ show an arrest warrant out of L.A. County was issued for Zoe a few months ago in May ... with outstanding charges of kidnapping, child custody deprivation and child stealing alleged against her for an issue dating back to 2017.

We covered the drama back then -- McLellan's ex-husband, J.P. Gillian, was in a custody war with her over their then 4-year-old, Sebastian ... whom Gillian claimed McLellan was taking to Toronto while she filmed "Designated Survivor" without his permission or consent.

It appears that ended up happening ... except, now, Gillian says he hasn't seen or heard from McLellan OR his boy since at least April 2019. His attorney, Lawrence Markey, tells us ... the child is still missing, and that Gillian and co. believe the kid is still with Zoe.

It doesn't appear she's been hauled in yet -- there's no record of her arrest within the L.A. County Sheriff's Office. Sources familiar with the case say last Gillian heard ... McLellan was said to be somewhere near NOLA. But again, we're told Gillian doesn't know their whereabouts now -- or their status for that matter. We're told they're virtually off the grid.

It's a pretty wild story ... made even more eyebrow raising by the fact that McLellan doesn't appear to have acted in anything major since 2019. So, there too she's kinda vanished.