Romanian prosecutors announced on Sept. 4 that they had issued a formal indictment against social media personality Andrew Tate on charges including trafficking minors, money laundering, having sex with a minor and witness tampering. His brother Tristan has been indicted for complicity, according to the prosecuting unit.
The brothers, who hold both U.S. and British citizenship and previously competed as kickboxers, were arrested in Miami in late July after authorities in Britain sought their extradition. They have been based primarily in Romania since 2017 and have been the subject of criminal probes there since December 2022, with Romanian investigators examining allegations that include human trafficking. Both men have publicly rejected the charges.
Prosecutors allege the Tates recruited victims by seduction and by falsely representing that they sought a romantic relationship or marriage. Once recruited, the indictment says victims were coerced into producing pornographic material for a webcam operation.
"We will examine every aspect of (the indictment) with the same level of scrutiny and we will challenge any evidential, procedural or legal deficiencies through the appropriate judicial process," said the brothers' Romanian lawyer, Eugen Vidineac. "Our clients continue to reject the allegations against them."
At present, both brothers remain in U.S. custody while a U.S. judge considers Britain’s extradition request, which seeks to return them to the United Kingdom on separate rape charges. Romanian prosecutors from the anti-organized crime unit DIICOT, which conducted the investigation, said it was not immediately clear whether they will request the extradition of the brothers from the United States.
Romanian law allows defendants to be tried in absentia, so a trial in Romania could proceed without the physical presence of the accused. However, the legal process in Romania requires that the indictment first be forwarded to a preliminary chamber of court, where a judge conducts a legality check of the case files. While statute gives the preliminary chamber judge 60 days to complete the report, prosecutors note that in practice this preliminary stage often takes considerably longer.
Andrew Tate has previously said he relocated to Romania because he believed local law enforcement to be less strict. Both brothers have cultivated a substantial following, primarily among young men, by projecting an ostentatious, hyper-masculine persona emphasizing fast cars and relationships with attractive women.
The unfolding legal proceedings leave multiple procedural uncertainties - chiefly the timing and venue of any criminal trial, the potential for extradition from U.S. custody, and how DIICOT will proceed regarding cross-border cooperation. For now, the indictment formalizes the allegations Romanian investigators have been developing since late 2022.