According to a statement from local prosecutors on Tuesday, Andrew Tate, the influencer who was detained in December by Romanian officials, has now been officially accused of rape, human trafficking, and the creation of an ‘organized crime group.’
His brother, Tristan, as well as two Romanian women, face similar charges. A spokesperson for the Tate brothers expressed their determination to prove their innocence and restore their reputation.
During the past six months, all of them have been in police custody, initially in jail and later under house arrest, while awaiting the formal filing of charges.
The following is a statement from Romanian prosecutors translated through Google: In the case, it was noted that, at the beginning of 2021, the four defendants constituted an organized criminal group in order to commit the crime of human trafficking on the territory of Romania, but also in other countries, such as the United States of America and Great Britain.
The injured persons were recruited by the foreign nationals, by misleading them about the intention to establish a marriage/cohabitation relationship and the existence of real feelings of love (the loverboy method). They were later transported and housed in buildings in Ilfov county where, by exercising acts of physical violence and mental coercion (through intimidation, constant surveillance, control and invoking alleged debts), they were sexually exploited by group members by forcing them to perform demonstrations pornographic in order to produce and disseminate through some social media platforms materials having such a character. The 7 injured persons identified during the criminal investigation were subjected to forced labor,
Of the 7 injured persons who were sexually exploited by the organized criminal group, three became civil parties in the criminal process.
Regarding the crime of rape, it was noted that, in March 2022, an injured person was forced by one of the defendants, through the exercise of physical violence and mental pressure, to repeatedly have sexual relations (two material acts).
Regarding the crimes of illegal access to the computer system and alteration of the integrity of computer data, it was noted that, in October 2021, one of the defendants illegally accessed the computer system belonging to one of the injured persons and posted on the social media account belonging to her the materials that – obtained in this way, which depicted her in compromising poses.
With regard to the crimes of inciting to hit or other violence, respectively hitting or other violence, it was noted that, in October 2021, in order to “punish” one of the injured persons, who refused to continue making materials of a nature pornographic and requested to be allowed to leave the building located in Ilfov county, at the instigation of one of the defendants, another defendant exercised acts of violence on the injured person.
The indictment requested the confiscation of several movable and immovable assets (unavailable and seized): 15 lands and buildings located within the counties of Ilfov, Prahova and Braşov, 15 luxury cars, 14 luxury watches, 2 ingots and a medal, the social shares held within 4 commercial companies, the amounts of 86,580 lei, 52,650 euros, 17,430 USD and 10,370 pounds and the amount of 21,080508 BTC, existing in cryptocurrency wallets (approximately 384,904,789 USD), as well as obliging the defendants to pay some advanced legal expenses of the state in the amount of 300,000 lei.
Also, through the referral act, the case was ordered to be dismissed regarding the commission of the crimes of money laundering, favoring the perpetrator, influencing statements, trafficking in minors and human trafficking.
Pursuant to the provisions of art. 330 of C. proc. pen. it was proposed to maintain the preventive measure of house arrest ordered regarding the 4 defendants.
The file was submitted for competent resolution to the Bucharest Court.
We specify that this stage of the criminal process represents, according to the Code of Criminal Procedure, the completion of the criminal investigation and the sending of the indictment to the court for trial, a situation that cannot in any way defeat the principle of the presumption of innocence.
Read the charges here.
