Andrew Tate and His Brother Charged With Rape, Human Trafficking

Andrew Tate, his brother Tristan, and two of their unnamed associates will go to trial on charges of rape, human trafficking, and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women, Romania’s organized crime agency said in a statement on Tuesday. While none of the four defendants were named in the statement, a spokesperson for the Tate brothers confirmed to NBC News that they were among the four defendants.

Per the crime agency, called DIICOT, Tate and his associates are charged with a range of crimes that include luring seven victims to Romania on false pretenses by deceiving the women into thinking they were in romantic relationships (what DIICOT calls “the loverboy method”). Upon bringing the women to Romania, the women were allegedly kept in the Tate brothers’ numerous properties and subjected to physical violence and sexual exploitation.

Following the indictment of Tate, Tristan, and their collaborators, prosecutors also requested permission to seize a long list of property, including 15 properties, 15 luxury cars (in addition to Tate’s cars that were already seized by authorities earlier this year), and about $385,000,000 worth of bitcoin.

Tate and his brother were arrested at the end of 2022 and held in Romanian jail through the end of March. For months, their repeated pleas to be released were ignored. While in jail, Tate continued to make frequent social media posts, where he bemoaned that “cockroaches, lice, and bed bugs are my only friends at night.” He repeatedly claimed that the charges against him were part of a Matrix-based conspiracy—despite how his own website and social media posts boasted about the criminal behaviors for which he was jailed. Since March 31, the brothers, who are dual U.S.-British citizens, have remained under house arrest in Romania.

While Tate was incarcerated, multiple reports came to light detailing allegations of rape and violence in addition to the charges Romanian authorities have brought forth. In 2015, Tate was reportedly investigated by police in the U.K. after being accused of rape by three women and assault by another. Earlier this month, Tate received a legal letter from four women accusing him of sexual assault and physical violence, warning Tate of imminent legal action in London’s High Court.

“While this experience has been extremely traumatic for us, we have taken strength in the fact that we have decided to take a stand, and are not alone,” one of the unnamed plaintiffs said in a statement. “We hope that bringing this claim will encourage other people to speak out against their abusers, no matter how powerful they are.”

The spokesperson for the Tate brothers told NBC that they deny all of the allegations brought against them by Romanian prosecutors and regard their impending trial as an opportunity to “demonstrate their innocence and vindicate their reputation.” No date has been set for the trial yet—but despite (or perhaps because of) all of this, the brothers maintain their mega-influence among men—especially young men and boys—around the world. And given their unapologetic embrace of overt, violent misogyny, the inevitable spectacle that their trial will produce is concerning.