The British-American former boxer has been indicted in Romania for organising a criminal group, human trafficking and rape.
ADVERTISEMENTSurrounded by bodyguards, British-American media brothers Andrew and Tristan Tate arrived at the Bucharest court where the charges against them were read out: among others, human trafficking, organised crime and rape.
The prosecution has asked for 13 years in prison for Andrew Tate - an influencer with millions of followers famous for his controversial misogynistic statements - his brother Tristan and two Romanian women with whom he allegedly formed a criminal group.
The four were arrested at the end of 2022 and have been under house arrest since March.
A former professional boxer, Andrew Tate was previously banned from various social media platforms for expressing misogynistic views and hate speech. The 36-year-old has repeatedly claimed Romanian prosecutors have no evidence and alleged their case is a “political” conspiracy designed to silence him.
DIICOT said in a statement after the December arrests that it had identified six victims in the human trafficking case who were allegedly subjected to “acts of physical violence and mental coercion” and sexually exploited by members of the alleged crime group.
The agency said the Tate brothers recruited their victims by seducing them and falsely claiming to want a relationship. The victims were later intimidated, placed under surveillance and subjected to other control tactics while being coerced into engaging in pornographic acts for the financial gain of the crime group.