Romanian prosecutors have officially indicted social media influencer Andrew Tate for trafficking minors, money laundering, s£x with a minor, and witness tampering. CriminalLaw
His brother Tristan has also been indicted for complicity in charges that come years after prosecutors first began investigating them.
The Tate brothers, former kickboxers with dual US and British citizenship, were arrested in Miami in July after Britain requested their extradition.
They have been under criminal investigation in Romania on charges including human trafficking since December 2022. They have denied all wrongdoing.
Romanian prosecutors said the Tates recruited their victims by seducing them and falsely claiming to want a relationship or marriage, before forcing them to produce pornographic content for a webcam business.
‘We will examine every aspect of (the indictment) with the same level of scrutiny and we will challenge any evidential, procedural or legal deficiencies through the appropriate judicial process,’ a Romanian lawyer for the Tates, Eugen Vidineac, said in a statement.
‘Our clients continue to reject the allegations against them.’
The spokesman for the Romanian anti-organised crime prosecuting unit DIICOT – which is investigating the Tates – said it was not immediately clear whether the unit will seek their extradition from the US.
The Tates can be tried in absentia in Romania, but the trial will not start immediately. Under Romanian law, the indictment gets sent to a preliminary court chamber, where a judge will inspect the case files to ensure legality.
While the law states that the preliminary chamber judge has 60 days to finalise the report, indictments routinely take significantly longer. CriminalLaw
The Tate brothers remain in federal prison while a judge decides on the request for their extradition to Britain, where they are wanted on rape charges.
Last week, the brothers told a Florida court they should be released from jail in order to fight their extradition to the UK, where they are facing charges of rape and trafficking.
Andrew, 39, said he has ‘never committed the crimes I’m accused of’.
Tristan, 38, meanwhile, said his prison conditions were small and hot, adding that he gets little exercise and sunlight.
He told the court: ‘It’s beginning to grate on me because I can’t partake in helping with my defence.’
‘It’s death by scurvy,’ he said, adding he has so far lost 14lb (6.3kg). Tristan said there are ants and the only toilet in his cell is where anyone walking by can see him.
No date for an extradition hearing has been set, and the UK has until mid-September to provide evidence to the US State Department.