LAST UPDATE | 4 Aug 2023

A ROMANIAN COURT has lifted a house arrest order on controversial influencer Andrew Tate and his brother, who will now be placed under judicial control as they await trial on human trafficking charges.

Tate – a self-described misogynist with a large online presence – has also been indicted on charges of rape and forming a criminal group to sexually exploit women.

The court ruled that it “replaces the measure of house arrest of the defendants … with the preventive measure of judicial control, for a period of 60 days, from 4 August 2023 to 2 October 2023″.

Tate, his brother and two accomplices have to report to police and are not allowed to leave the wider Bucharest region without prior approval.

The Tate brothers are not allowed to meet with the two Romanian women also accused in the case.

All four accused were detained late last year and then placed under house arrest at the end of March. They have repeatedly challenged the order to keep them under house arrest.

A trial date has not yet been set.

Tate has said he is sure he will be “absolutely exonerated” of criminal charges.

He told reporters outside his home in Romania: “In January when I was thrown into a jail cell the media reported and told the world that I was a terrible person, they said that I hurt people and that I make a lot of money from a criminal enterprise.

“Here we stand seven or eight months later and I have not seen a single victim on the news, I have seen lots of girls sticking up for me, lots of people defending me, I’ve not seen a single person stand up and say that I have hurt them, not one.

“It’s very exhausting to continue to perpetuate lies, it’s very hard to keep lies afloat when you have no actual evidence, we’ve been completely innocent since the beginning of this and I have to give absolute faith to the Romanian judicial system for finally making the right decision in letting us free.

“I’m sure in the end we will be absolutely exonerated and everybody who was pushing these lies and reporting things on repeat without any substantial evidence are going to have to analyse within themselves why they decide to try and destroy people’s lives purely for views.

“I’ve done nothing wrong, God knows I’ve done nothing wrong, in my heart I know I’ve done nothing wrong. I think the people at home with a functioning brain understand we’ve done nothing wrong.”

Prosecutors allege that the two brothers and the two women set up a criminal organisation and sexually exploited several victims “through acts of physical violence and psychological coercion”.

The victims were allegedly forced to engage in pornographic acts with a view to producing and disseminating such material via social media platforms.

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

In 2016, Tate appeared on the “Big Brother” reality television show in Britain but was removed after a video emerged showing him attacking a woman.

He then turned to social media platforms to promote his divisive views.

Giving tips on how to be successful, along with misogynistic and sometimes violent maxims, his videos have made him one of the world’s best-known influencers.

© AFP 2023