Court says social media influencer Andrew Tate can leave Romania but stay in EU while awaiting trial

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — A court in the Romanian capital ruled Friday that social media influencer Andrew Tate can leave Romania but must remain in the European Union while he awaits trial on charges of human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women.

The Bucharest tribunal's decision to allow 37-year-old Tate to leave the country was hailed by its spokeswoman Mateea Petrescu as a “significant victory and a big step forward” in the case. It is unclear whether prosecutors can or will appeal the court's decision.

Tate, a former professional kickboxer and dual British-American citizen, was originally arrested near Bucharest in December 2022 along with his brother Tristan and two Romanian women. Romanian prosecutors formally charged all four in June last year, and all four deny the allegations.

Following Friday's decision, Tate wrote on social media platform X: “I AM FREE. FOR THE FIRST TIME IN THREE YEARS I CAN LEAVE ROMANIA. THE FAKE CASE IS FALLING FALLING.”

“We welcome and applaud the court's decision today. I view it as an expression of exemplary conduct and support of my clients,” said Eugen Vidineac, one of Tate's lawyers, adding that the Tates “remain determined to clear their name and reputation.”

On April 26, the Bucharest tribunal ruled that the indictment against Tate met the legal criteria and a trial could begin, but did not set a date for it. The ruling came after the legal case had been argued for months in pre-trial proceedings, a process in which the defendants can challenge the prosecution's evidence and indictment.

After their arrest, the Tate brothers were held in police custody for three months before being placed under house arrest. They were later exiled to the city of Bucharest and the nearby Ilfov County, and then to Romania.

Vidineac said the ability to travel within the 27 EU countries will allow the Tates to “pursue professional opportunities without restriction.”

Andrew Tate, who has 9.5 million followers on social media platform X, has repeatedly claimed that prosecutors have no evidence against him and that there is a political conspiracy to silence him. He has previously been banned from various social media platforms for allegedly expressing misogynistic views and using hate speech.

In another case, Andrew Tate was served with a civil suit at his home in Romania filed by four British women after a similar action was filed in the High Court in London, according to a statement released in May by law firm McCue Jury & Partners, which is representing the four women.

The four claim Tate sexually and physically assaulted them and reported him to British authorities in 2014 and 2015. After a four-year investigation, prosecutors decided not to prosecute him in 2019. The alleged victims then turned to crowdfunding to launch a civil case against him.

In a separate third case, the Tate brothers also appeared before the Bucharest Court of Appeal in March after British authorities issued arrest warrants on allegations of sexual assault in a British case dating from 2012 to 2015.

The Court of Appeal granted the British request to extradite the Tates to the United Kingdom, but only after the trial in Romania had been concluded.

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McGrath reported from Brasov, Romania.

Stephen McGrath and Nicolae Dumitrache, The Associated Press