Andrew Tate is a controversial internet personality that has attracted more heat than support in recent years. ‘Top G‘ has amassed millions of followers through his self-help teachings and luxurious lifestyle.
His content is continually discussed among young men drawn to his hyper-macho image.
Tate, his brother Tristan and two Romanian women are now charged with human trafficking in continued form — which was described as a more serious charge than separate counts of trafficking, Romania’s DIICOT anti-organized crime prosecutors said Tuesday.
The four suspects are also facing charges of rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women.
The Tate brothers’ legal team said the changes were in their clients’ legal interest
“The legal framework has been revised and altered to ensure an impartial investigation is upheld.”
Tate’s legal team said
Prosecutors previously said the four suspects “appear to have created an organized crime group with the purpose of recruiting, housing and exploiting women by forcing them to create pornographic content.”
The group then pocketed the proceeds, prosecutors alleged.
The Tate brothers and their associates have been under house arrest in Bucharest since April.
They were first arrested in December and are being investigated on allegations of rape, people-trafficking and forming an organised crime group. They have always denied any wrongdoing.
On 12 June, all four suspects were called to the headquarters of Romania’s organised crime unit to be informed of the new allegations. Under Romanian law, trafficking of adults carries a prison sentence of up to 10 years.
The case Is still under investigation and is expected to be assigned a trial date later in June.
Tate, a British-US citizen, reportedly said that “probably 40% of the reason” he had moved to Romania in 2017 was because he believed it would be easier to evade rape charges in a now-deleted video, the Guardian reported.
“I’m not a rapist, but I like the idea of just being able to do what I want. I like being free,” he reportedly said.
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