Former Social Media Influencer Andre Tate received a court-appointed W while facing human trafficking charges in Romania. The country is allowing him to leave its borders from Friday (July 5), but Tate must remain within the European Union, according to the Associated Press.
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More details on Romania’s recent decision on Andrew Tate
Tate’s spokesman, Matea Petrescuwelcomed the Bucharest Court’s decision to allow the 37-year-old man to leave the country as “significant victory and a big step forward” in the case. One of Tate’s other lawyers, Eugen Vidineac, also spoke out:
“We embrace and applaud the court’s decision today, and I consider it a reflection of the exemplary behavior and assistance of my clients,” he said, adding that the Tates are “still determined to clear their name and reputation.”
Vidineac said the ability to travel within the 27-nation EU bloc would allow the Tates to “pursue professional opportunities without restrictions”.
It is unclear whether prosecutors can or will appeal the court’s decision. Tate’s 2022 arrest took place near Bucharest along with his brother Tristan and two Romanian women. Romanian prosecutors formally indicted all four in June last year, and all four have denied the allegations.
Andrew responded to Friday’s ruling via social media, writing: “I AM FREE. FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 3 YEARS I CAN LEAVE ROMANIA. THE SHAM CASE IS FALLING APART.”
Why is the influencer behind bars?
For context, Andrew Tate is also facing charges of rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women. Romanian authorities initially arrested the former professional kickboxer and British-American citizen in December 2022.
In a separate case, Andrew Tate was served with a civil lawsuit at his home in Romania by four British women after a complaint was issued by the High Court in London, according to a statement released in May by McCue Jury & Partners, the law firm representing the four women. The four allege that Tate sexually and physically assaulted them and reported him to British authorities in 2014 and 2015. After a four-year investigation, the Crown Prosecution Service decided in 2019 not to prosecute him.
Andrew Tate, who has amassed 9.5 million followers on social media platform X, has repeatedly claimed that prosecutors have no evidence against him and that there is a political conspiracy to silence him.
He has previously been banned from several social media platforms for allegedly expressing misogynistic views and using hate speech.
Meanwhile, a trial against Tate was approved in April but has not yet been scheduled. Once their trial in Romania is over, the UK is free to extradite the Tates to face similar charges.
For context, the Tate brothers also appeared in Bucharest’s Court of Appeal in March. British authorities issued arrest warrants for them over allegations of sexual assault in a UK case dating back to 2012-2015.
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Associated Press reporters Nicolae Dumitrache and Stephen McGrath contributed to this report.
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