Romanian court upholds arrest of influencer Andrew Tate

Interesting 11:40 11.01.2023

A court in Romania's capital Bucharest has upheld the 30-day arrest of divisive social media personality and self-described misogynist Andrew Tate on charges of organized crime, human trafficking and rape, an official said late Tuesday.

Ramona Bolla, a spokesperson for Romanian anti-organized crime agency DIICOT, said the court rejected an appeal by Tate against a judge’s earlier decision to extend his arrest from 24 hours to 30 days.
 
Tate, 36, a British-U.S. citizen who has 4.5 million followers on Twitter, was initially detained on Dec. 29 for 24 hours along with his brother Tristan, who was charged in the same case. Two Romanian women also were taken into custody.
 
The court late Tuesday rejected all four appeals against a judge's Dec. 30 decision to grant prosecutors' request to extend the arrest period. A document explaining the judge’s reasoning said “the possibility of them evading investigations cannot be ignored,” and that they could “leave Romania and settle in countries that do not allow extradition.”
 
Tate and the other three defendants arrived at Bucharest’s Court of Appeal in handcuffs Tuesday and were taken away in the afternoon. Eugen Vidineac, a Romanian defense lawyer representing Tate, told journalists after a morning hearing that “all four of the accused have made statements” and that “the lawyers' pleas were listened to entirely.”
 
Tate, a former professional kickboxer, is reported to have lived in Romania since 2017, previously was banned from various prominent social media platforms for expressing misogynistic views and hate speech. The week of his arrest, he traded insults on Twitter with teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg.
 
DIICOT said it had identified six victims in the trafficking case who were subjected to “acts of physical violence and mental coercion” and were sexually exploited by the members of the alleged crime group.
 
The agency said victims were lured by pretenses of love, and later intimidated, kept under surveillance and subjected to other control tactics while being coerced into performing pornographic acts that were intended to make money for the alleged persecutors.
 
Prosecutors investigating the case have seized 15 luxury cars, at least seven of which were owned by the Tate brothers, and more than 10 properties or land owned by companies registered to them, DIICOT spokesperson Bolla said.
 
Bolla said that if prosecutors can prove the Tates gained money through human trafficking, the assets "will be taken by the state and (will) cover the expenses of the investigation and damages to the victims.”
After the appeals court upheld the arrest warrant extension, prosecutors can now request detentions of up to 180 days for the four people charged.
 
Since Tate’s arrest, a series of ambiguous posts have appeared on his Twitter account. Each tweet garners widespread media attention.
 
One, posted Sunday and accompanied by a Romanian report suggesting he or his brother have required medical care since their arrests, read: “The Matrix has attacked me. But they misunderstand, you cannot kill an idea. Hard to Kill.”
 
Another post, from Saturday, read: “Going to jail when guilty of a crime is the life story of a criminal … going to jail when completely innocent is the story of a hero.”
 
Hope not Hate, a U.K. advocacy group, said it monitored Tate for years “because of his close links to the far right.” It described the influencer in a report it produced last year as an “extreme misogynist” who holds conspiratorial views.
 
“Our major concern is that his brand of extreme and sometimes violent misogyny is reaching a young male audience and that he could serve as a gateway to wider far-right politics,” Hope not Hate said in a statement after Tate was banned by Facebook parent company Meta in August.

 

Lavrov: 3+3 platform initiated by President of Azerbaijan becoming more and more promising - VİDEO

News line

Forbes reveals this year's most influential women
Forbes reveals this year's most influential women
23:00 06.12.2023
Biden: I will defeat Trump
22:39 06.12.2023
Netanyahu says Israeli troops surround house of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar
22:12 06.12.2023
Houthis claim ballistic missile launch toward Israel
21:21 06.12.2023
Nasa and UAE in talks to send Emirati astronauts to the Moon
Nasa and UAE in talks to send Emirati astronauts to the Moon
20:42 06.12.2023
President Ilham Aliyev received US Assistant Secretary of State - UPDATED
20:17 06.12.2023
Armenia not attending CSTO assembly not to affect decision on organization’s air defense
19:19 06.12.2023
Turkey continues dialogue with Russia on prospects for reforming UN — Erdogan
19:00 06.12.2023
Russian Foreign Ministry: Armenia’s failure to appear at CSTO assembly won’t affect decision on organization’s air defense
18:36 06.12.2023
UN: 'Heightened risk of atrocity crimes' in Gaza
18:10 06.12.2023
Taylor Swift Is Time’s person of the year
Taylor Swift Is Time’s person of the year
17:54 06.12.2023
Azerbaijan's President: European Union is our main trading partner
17:36 06.12.2023
Hamas radicals launched over 11,500 rockets at Israel since October 7
17:27 06.12.2023
Condition of Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action employee revealed
17:12 06.12.2023
Italy reportedly withdraws from Belt and Road
16:50 06.12.2023
President Ilham Aliyev: 'It will depend on the dreams, which Borrell sees'
16:35 06.12.2023
President: Unfortunately, we have populist leaders in Europe like Mr. Borrell, like Madame Metsola
16:32 06.12.2023
Boris Johnson apologizes for 'pain' during pandemic
16:26 06.12.2023
At least 73 dead, 123 injured in Israeli strikes
16:20 06.12.2023
Azerbaijan, FAO discuss food security
16:13 06.12.2023
UK expands sanctions against Russia by 45 positions
15:57 06.12.2023
Erdogan: Netanyahu will pay for war crimes in Gaza
15:39 06.12.2023
Ambassador: UK supports Azerbaijan's WTO membership
15:22 06.12.2023
President of Azerbaijan: We need firm guarantees that there'll be no attempt of revanchism in Armenia
15:00 06.12.2023
Saakashvili calls on Pashinyan to ‘run’ to EU, NATO
14:47 06.12.2023
President Ilham Aliyev: Armenia seems now more ready to accept those famous five principles
14:39 06.12.2023
Umud Mirzayev: "IEPF always comes up with new initiatives based on the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN"
14:30 06.12.2023
Fall 2023 French Press Review
Fall 2023 French Press Review
12:00 06.12.2023
IDF death toll in Gazaclimbs to 406
20:55 05.12.2023
Erdogan: Netanyahu puts region's future at risk
20:20 05.12.2023
In this country forgetting your wife's birthday could be jail sentence
In this country forgetting your wife's birthday could be jail sentence
19:49 05.12.2023
Russia: Maduro's visit expected by year's end
Russia: Maduro's visit expected by year's end
19:19 05.12.2023
Belgium to give F-16 jets to Ukraine in 2025
Belgium to give F-16 jets to Ukraine in 2025
18:55 05.12.2023
US State Department appreciates Ukraine's counter-offensive operations
18:29 05.12.2023
Uzbek parliamentary delegation visits city of Fuzuli
18:00 05.12.2023
Russian, Iranian top diplomats ink declaration on countering unilateral sanctions
Russian, Iranian top diplomats ink declaration on countering unilateral sanctions
17:46 05.12.2023
James O'Brien to travel to Baku
17:32 05.12.2023
Senior official warns of risk of terror attacks in EU during New Year holidays
Senior official warns of risk of terror attacks in EU during New Year holidays
17:17 05.12.2023
Are one-on-one meetings the only peace format without an alternative? - Survey among international experts
17:00 05.12.2023
Azerbaijani, Iranian Navy Commanders meet in Baku
16:51 05.12.2023
Hamısı