Getty/Instagram Harvey Weinstein and Ambra Battilana Gutierrez
On February 24, 2020, a jury found film producer Harvey Weinstein guilty of two of five criminal charges: one count of criminal sexual assault in the first degree and one count of rape in the third degree. He was subsequently sentenced to 23 years in prison.
One of his accusers is Italian-Filipina model Ambra Battilana Gutierrez. In 2015, Gutierrez alleged that Weinstein sexually assaulted her in his office when they were reviewing her portfolio. An hour after the incident, Gutierrez reported it to the police.
The next day, she collaborated with officials by wearing a wire to get Weinstein’s confession to the crime. Here is the audio that Gutierrez captured:
During the clip, listeners can hear Weinstein repeatedly ask the model to come into his hotel room. At one point she asked, “Why yesterday you touch my breast?” Weinstein answered, “Oh, please, I’m sorry, just come on in. I’m used to that. Come on. Please.”
She then asked, “You’re used to that?” and Weinstein answered, “Yes, come on.” As Weinstein was trying to get her to come inside, she said, “Yesterday was too much for me.” He then said, “I will never do another thing to you. Five minutes. Don’t ruin your friendship with me for five minutes.”
She never entered the room, with the audio clip ending with the model saying, “No, but I wanna leave,” and Weinstein answering, “OK, bye.”
Despite the audio recording, District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. did not press charges, citing a lack of evidence.
In an interview with Sky News after Weinstein’s conviction in February, Gutierrez stated that she faced a major backlash after the recordings became public, and she was “exiled from New York.”
Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, she said, “The media went against me. Everyone tried to cover up for him. So, I really feel that now we are changing that. That’s actually the biggest victory, to have people opening eyes and understanding what’s going on.”
Ambra Battilana Gutierrez Reacted to Harvey Weinstein’s Conviction
Gutierrez kept the recordings from 2015, and during the Sky News interview, she said, “in 2017, they validated all of these women, and I’m so happy for it.”
When asked for her reaction to Weinstein only being partially convicted, she said, “I’m waiting for the [Los Angeles] case to start. I’m going to be a witness in there, and hopefully they’re going to use those recordings as well.”
Even though he was sentenced to 23 years in prison on two charges, Harvey Weinstein is facing another trial and charges, including forcible rape, forcible oral copulation and sexual penetration by use of force.
She said, “I hope I can do something because I feel that this trial in New York was for the other women, and I’m happy for the outcome, but of course, he deserves more and I’m trying to do something about it.”
Here’s her entire interview with Sky News:
Gutierrez Is Still Working as a Model & She Is Involved as an Equal Rights Advocate
The Italian-Filipina model, who was a finalist for Miss Italy, still works as a model and lives in New York City. She is represented by One Management and Prima Stella MGT.
Gutierrez is also an equal rights advocate for The Model Alliance, a non-profit organization focusing on research, advocacy and policy within the fashion industry. She also supports Humanility, an organization that works to “emancipate and empower victims of poverty and children at risk through compassionate care and sustainable economic and educational development.”
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Ambra Battilana Gutierrez Update: The Harvey Weinstein Accuser Today