Human trafficking and money laundering: Andrew Tate charged in Romania
A Romanian court has charged Andrew Tate with human trafficking, money laundering and sexual relations with a minor. The brothers deny all allegations.
Tate brothers brought to court in Romania
A Romanian court has charged Andrew and Tristan Tate with human trafficking, money laundering and other serious offences, according to SRF. The allegations against Andrew Tate include sexual intercourse with a minor and witness tampering.
According to Romanian law enforcement, one of his victims was 15 years old when he seduced her in Britain in 2012. He subsequently brought her to Bucharest and forced her to produce pornographic content for social media pages. Brother Tristan allegedly acted as an accomplice and used physical violence to coerce the victim.
The prosecution alleges the brothers recruited their victims through false promises of romance or marriage, then forced them to produce pornographic content for a webcam business. According to investigators, the brothers retained 1.25 million dollars of earnings from video chat sessions generated by the victim—approximately 80 per cent of total revenues. They are alleged to have laundered this money through the purchase of four luxury cars.
The Tate brothers, former kickboxers with dual US and British citizenship, were arrested in Miami at the end of July after Britain requested their extradition. They have lived primarily in Romania since 2017 and have been under criminal investigation there since December 2022.
Both are currently detained in the United States. A judge is currently deciding on the British extradition request—the brothers are being sought in Britain on rape charges. Whether Romanian authorities will in turn request extradition from the United States is not yet foreseeable, according to a spokesman for the prosecution.
In Romania, proceedings can be conducted in the absence of the accused, but do not commence immediately. Under Romanian law, the indictment is first forwarded to a pre-trial chamber, where a judge examines the lawfulness of the files.
This is not the first time the Tates have been charged in Romania: in June 2023, charges of human trafficking were brought against them. At the end of 2024, however, Bucharest's appeals court returned the case to the prosecution after finding some evidence inadmissible.
The brothers reject all allegations. "We will examine every aspect of the indictment with the same care and will contest any evidentiary, procedural or legal defects," declared a Romanian lawyer for the Tates. "Our clients continue to deny the allegations made against them."
Andrew Tate, who has described himself as misogynistic, previously stated publicly that he had moved to Romania because law enforcement there was more lenient.
Source: SRF