The controversial social media influencer was brought to court after being charged last month on suspicion of being part of an organised crime group, human trafficking and rape
Andrew Tate and his brother, Tristan, (right) attended the Court of Appeal, in Bucharest, Romania, on Tuesday (Photo: Alexandru Dobre/AP Photo)
Andrew Tate has arrived at a Romanian court to appeal against a decision to detain him for 30 daysafter he was charged with being part of an organised crime group, human trafficking and rape.
The controversial social media influencer was brought to the court in handcuffs on Tuesday morning to appeal against the judge’s decision to extend his arrest period from 24 hours to 30 days.
Mr Tate, 36, who has 4.4 million followers on Twitter, was initially detained on Thursday 29 December with his brother, Tristan, and held while police raided his house in the capital, Bucharest.
The brothers, along with two Romanian women who are also in custody, immediately challenged the arrest extension granted on 30 December.
The group was understood to be a flight risk, with court documents saying that “the possibility of them evading investigations cannot be ignored” and that they could “leave Romania and settle in countries that do not allow extradition”.
A verdict from Bucharest’s Court of Appeal is expected to later on Tuesday, Eugen Vidineac, the Romanian lawyer representing Mr Tate, told the Associated Press.
Six victims have been identified who were allegedly subjected to “acts of physical violence and mental coercion” and were sexually exploited by group members, according to Romania’s anti-organised crime agency, DIICOT.
The agency, which was involved in the December raids, said the victims were lured under the pretence of love and later intimidated into performing pornographic acts intended to make significant amounts of money.
Prosecutors have seized 15 luxury cars, at least seven of which are owned by the Tate brothers, as well as more than 10 properties or land owned by companies registered to them, according to Ramona Bolla, a DIICOT spokeswoman.
If it is proved that the brothers made money via human trafficking, the property “will be taken by the state and [will] cover the expenses of the investigation and damages to the victims”, Ms Bolla added.
If the court rules to uphold the 30-day detention, prosecutors could ask to extend it for a maximum of 180 days. If the court rules in the Tates’ favour, they could be placed under house arrest or banned from leaving Romania.
Since Mr Tate’s arrest, his Twitter posts have continued, including a poll asking: “Do you believe Andrew Tate is totally innocent?”
His followers voted 86.3 per cent in favour of the option: “Innocent, Matrix attack,” while 13.7 per cent voted: “I believe the media.”
The day after his arrest, the account tweeted: “The Matrix sent their agents.” The tweet went viral with more than 120,000 retweets and 50 million views.