Romanian prosecutors officially indicted social media influencer Andrew Tate on Friday for trafficking minors, money laundering, sex with a minor and witness tampering and his brother Tristan for complicity.
The brothers’ indictments 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.
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 that he has so far lost 14lbs (6.3kg).
Romanian prosecutors officially indicted social media influencer Andrew Tate (pictured, right) on Friday for trafficking minors, money laundering, sex with a minor and witness tampering and his brother Tristan (pictured, left) for complicity
He 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 State Department.
The Tates have become among the world’s most polarising internet personalities by promoting wealth, male dominance and misogyny through their social media empire.
Andrew has said women who are sexually assaulted should bear some responsibility for the attacks and shared graphic descriptions of how he might attack women.
Tristan has worked with his brother on multiple businesses, including the production of online webcam pornography.
The brothers have long claimed that their violent and misogynistic statements have been taken out of context or were intended as jokes.
‘That is not the real Andrew Tate, the person Andrew Tate,’ said his lawyer Howard Srebnick, who in court last Thursday compared Tate on social media to Sacha Baron Cohen’s confrontational Ali G character.
Attorneys for the Tates also say they largely exaggerated their claims of wealth to boost their social media personas.
They say their claims of multiple passports were satirical and a ‘$50-million-dollar [sic] superyacht’ featured in one of the brothers’ videos does not actually belong to them.
The expensive luxury cars, including a $2.1million Aston Martin, that were featured in other videos were rented, the defence says.
The Daily Mail has contacted a representative of the Tate brothers for comment.
More to follow.
