Kevin Spacey to face UK court over sexual assault charges

By Lauren Said-Moorhouse, CNN

US actor Kevin Spacey is set to appear before a UK court later this week after being charged with four counts of sexual assault against three men, London’s Metropolitan Police Service said on Monday.

Spacey, 62, was also charged with causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent, police said.

The actor will appear at Westminster Magistrates Court in London on Thursday.

The charges relate to two alleged incidents in London in 2005, another two in 2008, and a further incident in Gloucestershire in 2013.

The alleged victim of the 2005 incidents is now in his 40s, while the two men allegedly involved in the 2008 and 2013 incidents are now in their 30s, the force said.

The decision to formally charge Spacey came after “a review by the Crown Prosecution Service of the evidence gathered by the Metropolitan Police in its investigation,” police added.

Britain’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) authorized the charges against the actor last month, but the charges could not be formally applied until he was in the UK.

Following the CPS authorization, Spacey had said he intended to travel to the UK to deny the charges, according to a statement released to Good Morning America reported by the UK’s PA Media news agency.

“While I am disappointed with their decision to move forward, I will voluntarily appear in the UK as soon as can be arranged and defend myself against these charges, which I am confident will prove my innocence,” the statement read.

Spacey has won two Academy Awards for his roles in “The Usual Suspects” and “American Beauty,” and was artistic director of London’s Old Vic theater from 2003 to 2015.

He has also starred in the Netflix political series “House of Cards,” and returned to acting in the past year.

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CNN’s Rob Picheta contributed to this report.