Andrew Tate has been placed under house arrest in Romania, as prosecutors investigate new and serious allegations involving sex and trafficking of minors.
The controversial online influencer appeared in court earlier today with his brother Tristan, who was also placed under special judicial control.
It comes after Tate’s home was raided this week following fresh allegations of human trafficking and sexual exploitation involving a total of 35 victims, including a woman who was 15 at the time.
In a statement, Romania’s anti-organised crime agency, DIICOT, said six people had been detained in total, both Romanians and foreigners.
The charges included allegations of human trafficking, the trafficking of minors, sexual intercourse with a minor, influencing statements and money laundering, it said, although the agency did not specify which charges applied to the individual suspects.
As he left the courtroom, Andrew Tate made a furious statement denouncing the case against him as a ‘stitch-up’ and lies.
‘This is a set-up. It is absolutely disgusting,’ BBC reports. ‘Thirty of those girls say we have done nothing wrong. Two are the mothers of our children.’
When asked repeatedly by a BBC reporter about the allegations of sex with a 15-year-old girl, Tate refused to reply.
Tate’s spokesperson Mateea Petrescu said yesterday in response to the raids on his home in Bucharest that ‘although the charges in the search warrant are not yet fully clarified, they include suspicions of human trafficking and money laundering’.
Ms Petrescu did not comment on the allegations involving minors.
The Tate brother have previously been accused of rape and human trafficking, and are awaiting trial in Romania on those charges.
They were previously released from house arrest a year ago and told not to leave Romania.
This week’s charges are separate allegations, and involve grooming ‘vulnerable’ people and forcing them to create online pornography in a variety of locations, DIICOT reports.
As the brothers were taken into police custody on Wednesday night, Andrew Tate told reporters that prosecutors had gotten ‘desperate’.
‘This file is even more stupid than the first one. Wait till you see. They say I have lover-boyed the mother of my children. And we’ve tricked them into having kids. Unbelievable,’ Tate said.
‘Wait till you see. Remember the first file and the media wasn’t asking where’s the evidence. This is your chance.’
The ‘loverboy method’ is a technique employed by human traffickers which sees them groom and manipulate their victims by coercing them into romantic relationships. Once emotionally attached, the victim is coerced into exploitation, such as forced prostitution, under the guise of love or a future together.
Originally from Luton, Tate brothers Andrew, 36, and Tristan, 37, have attracted millions of followers on social media by promoting an ultra-masculine lifestyle often accused of promoting extreme misogynistic views.
The brothers have previously denied all charges made against them, and Andrew Tate has referred to the case as part of a mainstream ‘conspiracy’ to silence him.
A date for the trial has not yet been set.
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