Andrew Tate and brother Tristan Tate charged with human trafficking in Romania

Andrew Tate, a self-described misogynist and former kickboxing champion, has been imprisoned in Romania together with his brother Tristan on charges of human trafficking and organizing a gang.

Tate, his brother, and two Romanian suspects might be detained for up to 30 days at the request of a Romanian anti-organized crime unit. The four suspects were the subject of a warrant on Thursday that was only good for 24 hours. One more individual was accused of rape, but the spokesperson declined to identify them due to regional restrictions.

At the court in Bucharest, the Tate brothers were supposed to show up in person. The accused are being put on trial by the prosecution, where they might receive years in prison if found guilty.

The Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism, or DIICOT, spokeswoman Ramona Bolla stated in a telephone interview that "we will take further action in investigating this crime, regardless of what the judge decides [on the longer detention].

In a statement released on Thursday, Romanian prosecutors claimed to have named six individuals who they claim were recruited in the county of Ilfov, which includes the nation's capital, Bucharest, and later subjected to sexual assault.

Authorities claim that one of the suspects sexually assaulted a victim twice in March and that the victims were forced to participate in pornography for social media distribution. The statement claims that the victims were subjected to "acts of physical violence and mental coercion," but it makes no mention of the Tate brothers or names the specific suspect accused of rape.

Despite being both a British and American citizen by birth, Andrew Tate has previously claimed to reside in Romania. Bolla said the investigation began in April after the U.S. Embassy called the Romanian authorities to report that a U.S. citizen was being held against his will at a home in Ilfov. Bolla also confirmed that the Tates were legally present in the country. When The Washington Post contacted the embassy in Bucharest early on Friday, they did not react right away.

According to the police, the four suspects formed a gang at the beginning of 2021 and planned to engage in human trafficking not only in Romania but also in the United States and Great Britain. In Romania, sentences for human trafficking convictions range from three to ten years in prison. Penalties for rape can range from five to ten years in prison.

In April, two residences in the county of Ilfov were searched by police, who claimed to have found and taken property connected to the investigation. The Tates were detained after five home search warrants were carried out, according to police. According to Bolla, the claimed American victim has left the nation. The remaining five suspected victims were from Moldova and Romania.

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