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Read the press release here.

Harvey Weinstein Will Not Face Charges in Alleged Grope of Italian Model

By Murray Weiss | April 10, 2015 5:37pm
 Ambra Battilana said producer Harvey Weinstein rubbed her breasts and thighs at the Tribeca Film Center.
Ambra Battilana said producer Harvey Weinstein rubbed her breasts and thighs at the Tribeca Film Center.
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TRIBECA — The Manhattan District Attorney won't charge movie mogul Harvey Weinstein after he was accused of groping an Italian model, DNAinfo New York has learned.

Weinstein, 62, was accused of grabbing the breasts of Ambra Battilana, 22, during a meeting to discuss her career inside his office at the Tribeca Film Center on March 27.

Battilana, who was previously embroiled in a scandal that toppled Italian Prime Minster Silvio Berlusconi, also said Weinstein put his hands under her skirt after he grabbed her breasts to determine "if they are real," sources said.

But sources said the alleged incident occurred when the duo — who had met only a day earlier at a New York Spectacular event at Radio City Music Hall that Weinstein produced — discussed whether she could get a job modeling with Victoria's Secret.

NYPD detectives believed her account, and she later placed a "controlled" phone call to Weinstein that was recorded by the NYPD Sex Crimes Unit in which Weinstein acknowledged touching her breasts, sources said.

But the Manhattan DA concluded the conversation was not enough to merit charges for Weinstein. In the end, prosecutors determined that the case would rest on her credibility versus his.

Most troubling for investigators was the fact that Battilana repeatedly denied to Manhattan prosecutors that she was in court battles in Italy involving older men who had provided her with financial support, sources said.

"The fact she repeatedly denied that, even when there were public records about it, made it difficult to go forward with the case," a law enforcement source explained. "The lying was a problem."

Joan Vollero, a spokeswoman for the DA, said “this case was taken seriously from the outset, with a thorough investigation conducted by our Sex Crimes Unit."

"After analyzing the available evidence, including multiple interviews with both parties, a criminal charge is not supported," she added.

A spokesman for Weinstein, whose films include "Pulp Fiction" and "Shakespeare in Love," could not immediately be reached for comment.