The British-American former kickboxer-turned-internet personality and podcaster, Andrew Tate (36) and his brother, Tristan, have been arrested and detained in Romania as part of an investigation into alleged human trafficking, rape and an organised criminal ring.
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In a statement by Romania’s Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism – Four individuals, two United Kingdom citizens and two Romanian nationals – are alleged to have carried out human trafficking in Romania as well as other countries including the UK and the United States.
The brothers were initially detained for only 24 hours but Romanian prosecutors requested they remain detained at a detention centre for an additional 30 days.
As reported by News24 – “Investigators identified six alleged victims who had been sexually exploited by the group, which lured the women by expressing interest in a romantic relationship before using physical violence, intimidation and surveillance to force them into producing pornographic material.”
Romania’s Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism said, “The individuals are being investigated on suspicion of operating an organised criminal group, human trafficking and rape.”
The brothers were questioned by Romanian authorities in April 2022 after receiving a tip-off about an American woman being held against her will but both men were released after questioning without an arrest being made.
Andrew took to social media shortly after the incident in April to proclaim his innocence in a Youtube video saying that he was “pranked by someone making a false report.”
Tate has a following of more than 10 million across various social media platforms and has become a polarizing figure due to his extreme misogynistic statements including that women bear some responsibility for sexual assault. His TikTok videos have been viewed more than 12 billion times.
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Picture: Andrew Tate / Instagram