Saturday, September 5, 2026 - Romanian prosecutors have officially indicted social media influencer Andrew Tate for trafficking minors, money laundering, s£x with a minor, and witness tampering.
His brother Tristan has also been indicted for complicity in
charges that come years after prosecutors first began investigating them.
The Tate brothers, former kickboxers with dual US and
British citizenship, were arrested in Miami in July after Britain requested
their extradition.
They have been under criminal investigation in Romania on
charges including human trafficking since December 2022. They have denied all
wrongdoing.
Romanian prosecutors said the Tates recruited their victims
by seducing them and falsely claiming to want a relationship or marriage,
before forcing them to produce pornographic content for a webcam business.
'We will examine every aspect of (the indictment) with the
same level of scrutiny and we will challenge any evidential, procedural or
legal deficiencies through the appropriate judicial process,' a Romanian lawyer
for the Tates, Eugen Vidineac, said in a statement.
'Our clients continue to reject the allegations against
them.'
The spokesman for the Romanian anti-organised crime
prosecuting unit DIICOT – which is investigating the Tates – said it was not
immediately clear whether the unit will seek their extradition from the US.
The Tates can be tried in absentia in Romania, but the trial
will not start immediately. Under Romanian law, the indictment gets sent to a
preliminary court chamber, where a judge will inspect the case files to ensure
legality.
While the law states that the preliminary chamber judge has
60 days to finalise the report, indictments routinely take significantly
longer.
The Tate brothers remain in federal prison while a
judge decides on the request for their extradition to Britain, where they are
wanted on rape charges.
Last week, the brothers told a Florida court they
should be released from jail in order to fight their extradition to the UK,
where they are facing charges of rape and trafficking.
Andrew, 39, said he has 'never committed the crimes I'm accused of'.
Tristan, 38, meanwhile, said his prison conditions were small and hot, adding that he gets little exercise and sunlight.
He told the court: 'It's beginning to grate on me because I
can't partake in helping with my defence.'
'It's death by scurvy,' he said, adding he has so far lost
14lb (6.3kg). Tristan said there are ants and the only toilet in his cell
is where anyone walking by can see him.
No date for an extradition hearing has been set, and the UK
has until mid-September to provide evidence to the US State Department.
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