Former professional kickboxer and social media influencer, American-British businessman Andrew Tate (L) and his brother Tristan Tate (R) are escorted by Romanian police officers outside of the Court of Appeal building after the hearing in their trial in Bucharest, Romania, 10 January 2023. On 29 December 2022, Andrew and Tristan Tate were arrested as a result of Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) division inquiry under the charges of human trafficking and the intention of forming an organized crime group. Romanian police stated that the two brothers and their associates coerced victims for creating a paid pornography service for social media platforms. A Romanian judge ordered on 30 December 2022 that Andrew Tate shall remain in police custody for 30 days, as criminal police investigation is ongoing. In total, 11 cars and ten buildings located near Bucharest, or in Ilfov and Prahova counties, owned by the Tate brothers, were seized by the Romanian authorities until the inquiry will be finished. EPA-EFE/Robert Ghement Tate, his brother Tristan and two Romanian female suspects have been in police custody since Dec. 29 pending an ongoing criminal investigation on charges of forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women, accusations they deny.
On Thursday, a Romanian court extended their detention until Feb. 27. Prosecutors have said the Tate brothers recruited their victims by seducing them and falsely claiming to want a relationship or marriage.
The victims were then taken to properties on the outskirts of the capital Bucharest and through physical violence and mental intimidation were sexually exploited by being forced to produce pornographic content for social media sites that generated large financial gain, prosecutors said.
They also said Andrew Tate, a former professional kickboxer who holds U.S. and British nationality, raped one of the victims in March last year, which he had denied.
"They know we have done nothing wrong," Tate told reporters as he was brought in for further questioning by anti-organised crime prosecutors, the first comments made to the media since his arrest. "This file is completely empty. Of course it's unjust, there is no justice in Romania unfortunately."
Asked whether he has hurt women, Tate said: "Of course not."
Earlier this month, Romanian authorities said they had seized goods and money worth 18 million lei ($3.99 million), including luxury cars and properties as a part of the investigation.
"There is no evidence against me," Tristan Tate told reporters on Wednesday. "The authorities are planning to steal my cars and steal my money. That is why I am in jail."
Prosecutors have said the seizure was meant to prevent the assets being sold or concealed.
Andrew Tate gained mainstream notoriety for misogynistic remarks that got him banned from all major social media platforms, although his Twitter account was reinstated in November after Elon Musk acquired the social media giant.
He has said he moved to Romania because he liked living in countries where corruption was accessible to everybody.
(Reporting by Luiza Ilie and Octav Ganea; editing by Nick Macfie)
Comments
Scroll down to load comments...