Harvey Weinstein allegedly tried to delete sensitive files before scathing exposés

Harvey Weinstein released a statement denying accusations of rape from Rose McGowan. (Reuters)

Disgraced Hollywood director Harvey Weinstein allegedly tried to delete sensitive documents and search through employees’ online communications days before The New York Times exposé was published in October.

Vanity Fair reported that Weinstein’s last days at The Weinstein Company, the film studio giant he built with his brother Bob, were filled with panic.

Weinstein was aware The New York Times and The New Yorker were ready to publish exposes that ultimately ruined his career so he reportedly took matters into his own hands. Weinstein lawyered up and spent loads of money to employ bigshot lawyers David Boies, Lisa Bloom and Charles Harder. He also hired “former intelligence operatives and a private-security firm” to find who leaked out information to the press that detailed his alleged sexual misconduct.

Weinstein also allegedly used a “coterie of loyalists” to search and attempt to delete sensitive documents. They also allegedly surveilled “ex-employees' online communications” in order to find who the leaker could be.

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Employees who worked at the company told Vanity Fair Weinstein looked “awful” a few days before the New York Times' exposé was released on Oct. 5, 2017.

“He looked awful and could not focus,” an employee told Vanity Fair. “He was burning through [money].”

Vanity Fair reported Harvey Weinstein was searching to see who leaked information to the press. (AP)

Another colleague said Harvey seemed to be “obsessed” with who spilled the beans on his inappropriate behavior.

“Harvey’s concern was who did him in, not what he had done,” the colleague said.

Vanity Fair also reported Frank Gil, the vice president of human resources for The Weinstein Company, went into the company’s headquarters in New York City and may have removed files.

“Gil entered the offices of TWC employees without their knowledge and may have been responsible for the disappearance of personnel files,” a statement from the office stated. The officesaid Gil looked through were David Glasser, the company’s CEO and president and Irwin Reiter, the company’s comptroller.

Reiter reportedly became vocal about Weinstein’s neurotic behavior toward subordinates.

Two senior officials said not only were the files missing but two Oscars for Best Picture also vanished.

Two days before The New York Times exposé, Weinstein and some staffers attempted to delete a file titled “HW friends” from the company’s servers. However, the document did not vanish and Vanity Fair reported it obtained it which contained a list of 63 women’s names and locations. It was not immediately clear why Weinstein wanted the list destroyed.

Harvey Weinstein and some staffers attempted to delete a file titled "HW friends." (Reuters)

Gil reportedly has parts of Weinstein’s personnel file, which included a personnel file that belonged to a former assistant of the disgraced producer who sued the company for “sexual discrimination and harassment.”

Gil was put on administrative leave following the allegations and then resigned from the company.

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“We suspended Frank Gil after discovering that he sought compensation from Harvey Weinstein in exchange for private information about company executives. . . . Mr. Gil decided to resign from the Company,” The Weinstein Company said in a statement.

The day after Gil’s resignation, Weinstein was fired. Following the exposés, more women, including prominent actresses such as Angelina Jolie and Gwyneth Paltrow, came forward detailing sexual misconduct they experienced from Weinstein. The disgraced producer has kept a low profile following the bombshell allegations.