Andrew Tate, a sexist social media celebrity, was subjected to a raid by masked and armed police on Wednesday in Bucharest. The search came in the wake of new allegations regarding human trafficking and sexual activity with minors.
Law enforcement officers conducted a total of four searches as part of an investigation into alleged criminal activity, which included human trafficking and sexual activity with a minor.
Despite the fact that Tate, who is 37 years old and considers himself to be a misogynist, has amassed millions of followers, particularly among young men and boys, by advocating for a very macho way of life that regularly disparages women.
They disputed the allegations that they were involved in human trafficking, rape, and the formation of a criminal group to sexually exploit women. These charges were brought against him and his brother Tristan in the previous year. The brothers and two Romanian women are currently awaiting trial, and they have denied the allegations that have been made against them.
On Wednesday, the Romanian anti-organised crime prosecuting unit known as Diicot announced that its officers had conducted four home searches in the county of Ilfov and the municipality of Bucharest.
In the statement, it was stated that the inquiry was about “a criminal case regarding the commission of the crimes of setting up an organised criminal group, trafficking of minors, human trafficking, sexual intercourse with a minor, influencing statements, and money laundering.”
Photographs show that several armed police officers wearing black balaclavas were on Tate’s property. In order to force admission, it appeared that two of them were carrying a battering ram.
Tate’s attorneys confirmed that law enforcement had searched the brothers’ home. “Although the allegations in the search warrant are not yet fully clarified, they include suspicions of human trafficking and money laundering,” a spokeswoman said in a statement. “The search warrant was issued in order to investigate the allegations.” There is a legal team representing the brothers there to make certain that all of the formalities are carried out appropriately.
During the month of July, a Romanian court of appeals rejected a prior verdict that had granted Tate the freedom to move about inside the European Union while he was awaiting another trial.
Tate, a former kickboxer who has 9.9 million followers on X, has asserted on multiple occasions that the prosecution does not possess any evidence against him and that there is a political plot to suppress him.
His earlier actions, which included expressing misogynistic views and engaging in hate speech, resulted in his being banned from a number of social media platforms.