WARNING: This article contains details about sexual exploitation.
Romanian prosecutors asked a Bucharest court on Friday to extend the detention of Andrew Tate by 30 days, after the divisive internet personality was arrested on suspicion of human trafficking, rape and forming an organized crime group.
Tate, a former professional kickboxer, and his brother Tristan were detained for the first time on Thursday for 24 hours alongside two Romanian suspects, organized crime unit prosecutors said in a statement after their properties were raided in Bucharest.
“Prosecutors against organized crime have notified the Bucharest Court of Rights and Freedoms Judge with a proposal for the pre-trial detention of the four suspects for 30 days,” prosecutors said on Friday.
The brothers declined to comment Thursday, but their attorney confirmed they had been arrested.
Prosecutors said the Tate brothers had been under criminal investigation since April.
Reports of online pornography
“The four suspects (…) appear to have created an organized crime group with the purpose of recruiting, housing and exploiting women by forcing them to create pornographic content intended to be viewed on specialized websites for a fee,” said the prosecutors in a statement. Thursday.
“They would have made significant sums of money.”
Prosecutors said they found six women who had been sexually exploited by the suspects.
History of misogynistic comments
Tate gained notoriety for misogynistic comments and hate speech. He has said that women are partially responsible for being raped and that they belong to men.
Several social media platforms banned Tate, including Twitter, but his account was reactivated in November, after Elon Musk took over the platform. In one of his tweets after his return to the platform, he said he was flying to California to tell Musk he was “a legend.”
Tate appeared to have sent a tweet on Friday, suggesting he had access to his phone and social media while in custody.
Earlier this week, climate activist Greta Thunberg took to Twitter to say the British national was “getting a life” after he told her he owned 33 cars with “huge emissions”.
Tate, a former contestant on the UK reality show Big Brother, runs “Hustler’s University”, which claims to have more than 160,000 users who pay a subscription to learn about topics such as cryptocurrency, investing and business.
Support is available to anyone who has been sexually assaulted. You can access crisis lines and local support services through this Government of Canada website or the Ending Violence Association of Canada database. If you are in immediate danger or fear for your safety or the safety of others around you, call 911.