Andrew Tate and brother charged with rape: UK prosecutors

Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan have been charged in the UK with several counts of rape, assault and trafficking. (AFP/File)

• Andrew Tate and his brother have been charged in the UK with several counts of rape, assault and trafficking

LONDON: Avowed misogynist and social media influencer Andrew Tate and his brother have been charged with several counts of rape, assault and trafficking, UK prosecutors said Wednesday.

The accusations, which date back to between 2012 to 2015, were authorized by the Crown Prosecution Service in January 2024, but have only been revealed now.

Former kickboxer Tate, 38, faces 10 charges in the UK including rape, actual bodily harm, human trafficking and controlling prostitution relating to three women.

His brother, Tristan, 36, has been accused of 11 similar charges against one woman.

“A European arrest warrant was issued in England in 2024, and as a result the Romanian courts ordered the extradition to the UK of Andrew and Tristan Tate,” prosecutors said in a statement.

“However, the domestic criminal matters in Romania must be settled first.”

Andrew Tate is facing legal action in several countries, including some cases where he is accused alongside his brother.

In Romania, the Tate brothers face separate allegations of trafficking minors, sexual intercourse with a minor and money laundering.

Both men, who have dual British-US nationality, have denied all charges against them.

Andrew Tate, the figurehead of the online masculinist movement, traveled to Florida with his brother in February, marking the first time they had left Romania since their 2022 arrest.

Romanian prosecutors allege that the brothers and two women set up a criminal organization in Romania in 2021 and sexually exploited several victims.

In a separate civil case in the United Kingdom, four British women have accused Andrew Tate of rape and coercive control.

Tate moved to Romania years ago after first starting a webcam business in Britain.

He leapt to fame in 2016 when he appeared on the “Big Brother” UK reality television show, but was removed after a controversial video emerged.

He then turned to social media platforms to promote his often misogynistic and divisive views on how to be successful.

Tate is followed by more than 10.7 million people on the social network X, where he shares his angry vision of masculinity and often homophobic and racist posts.