Andrew Tate and Tristan Tate are escorted by police officers outside the headquarters of the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism in Bucharest (DIICOT) after being detained for 24 hours, in Bucharest, Romania. — Reuters
NEW YORK: Provocative right-wing influencer and self-proclaimed misogynist Andrew Tate was charged with sex trafficking and rape in Romania on Thursday, according to Romanian media.
Tate and his brother, Tristan, were arrested at their compound in the eastern European nation, Romanian newspaper Libertatea reported.
Romania's organised crime and anti-terrorism agency confirmed two British citizens were arrested and charged with sex trafficking and rape, but did not name the suspects. Both Tates are British, and several Romanian outlets reported they were detained.
The Tates conspired with Romanian citizens to trick women into coming to their villa in the country's Ilfov County, which includes the capital of Bucharest, according to police.
Once the women arrived at the compound, they were physically and mentally intimidated, then forced to stay and film porn videos, police said.
At least one victim was raped twice, investigators said. Six victims were rescued from the compound.
Cops first levied the allegations against Tate back in April 2022, but he brushed them off as a prank. This time, Romanian media captured video of the Tates being led out of their compound. Police said they would be detained for at least 24 hours.
Andrew Tate, 36, started his adult life as a kickboxer but retired and pivoted to hyper-misogynist Internet content. In an interview, Tate said he was "absolutely a sexist" and "absolutely a misogynist."
On Tuesday, he tweeted at climate activist Greta Thunberg bragging about his many cars and their harmful effects on the environment.
Thunberg shot back on Wednesday. Her tweet received more than three million likes.
Twitter kicked Tate off the platform in 2017. However, new CEO Elon Musk let him back on after he bought the company. – New York Daily News/dpa
