Controversial influencer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan have left Romania, where they were under investigation for organized crime and human trafficking.
The brothers took off on a private jet from Bucharest’s Băneasa Airport around 5:00 AM on Thursday, sources told the BBC, adding that the plane was heading in the direction of the United States.
Both siblings had been barred from leaving the country due to the ongoing criminal investigation, but last week, the Financial Times reported that American officials had asked the Romanian authorities to return their passports and allow them to travel.
Prosecutors confirmed on Thursday morning that they had approved the brothers’ request to travel outside Romania with the criminal investigation still pending, Reuters reported.
Andrew Tate, a British-American former kickboxer and self-proclaimed misogynist, has garnered a large and broadly right-wing following online, with inflammatory statements on the role of women, especially, drawing criticism.
The brothers were arrested by Romania’s police force—along with two Romanian women—in 2022, before being formally charged the following summer on multiple counts, including forming an organized crime group to exploit women sexually and the trafficking of minors. Andrew Tate is also charged with rape.
They deny all the charges.
Having spent a period under house arrest at their complex in the suburbs of Bucharest, the brothers were given limited freedom to travel starting in 2023, but were banned from leaving Romania. Requests to leave the country were rejected.
They are also facing separate charges lodged by prosecutors in the U.K.
Both siblings had been barred from leaving the country due to the ongoing criminal investigation, but last week, the Financial Times reported that American officials had asked the Romanian authorities to return their passports and allow them to travel.
Prosecutors confirmed on Thursday morning that they had approved the brothers’ request to travel outside Romania with the criminal investigation still pending, Reuters reported.
Andrew Tate, a British-American former kickboxer and self-proclaimed misogynist, has garnered a large and broadly right-wing following online, with inflammatory statements on the role of women, especially, drawing criticism.
The brothers were arrested by Romania’s police force—along with two Romanian women—in 2022, before being formally charged the following summer on multiple counts, including forming an organized crime group to exploit women sexually and the trafficking of minors. Andrew Tate is also charged with rape.
They deny all the charges.
Having spent a period under house arrest at their complex in the suburbs of Bucharest, the brothers were given limited freedom to travel starting in 2023, but were banned from leaving Romania. Requests to leave the country were rejected.
They are also facing separate charges lodged by prosecutors in the U.K.
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