娱乐英语新闻:U.S. comedian sentenced to 3-10 years in prison for sexual assault

WASHINGTON, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Famous U.S. comedian Bill Cosby was on Tuesday sentenced to 3 to 10 years in prison for sexual assault, becoming the first prominent celebrity to be sentenced in the "MeToo" movement.

Judge Steven O'Neill of a court in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania said that the evidence indicating that Cosby planned to drug and sexually assault his victims was "overwhelming."

Cosby, 81, was convicted on April 26 of aggravated indecent assault for drugging and sexual assault of Andrea Constand in 2004, whom Cosby was mentoring.

While Constand was the only one who sought criminal charges against the comedian, more than 60 women, including actresses, models, flight attendants, have called out Cosby's actions dated back to the 1960s.

Cosby started his entertainment career in the 1960s as a stand up comedian, and then rose to nationwide fame with the television show I Spy. In the 1980s he produced and starred in the sitcom The Cosby Show, which was rated as the number one show in the United States from 1984 to 1989.

The sentencing of Cosby is the first trial of a celebrity convicted with sexual assault. Harvey Weinstein, another Hollywood heavyweight, is also undergoing legal process after more than 80 women accused him of sexual assault.