Controversial media personality and former professional kickboxer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan were detained in Romania on Thursday.
This after they were suspected of human trafficking, rape, and forming an organised crime group, the country’s Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) said in a statement.
Two other Romanian citizens were also detained and taken in for questioning.
This reportedly includes a former police officer from Bucharest rumoured to be a girlfriend of one of the brothers, Romania TV reports.
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Sexual coercion
DIICOT said the Tate brothers and other suspects were allegedly accused of forming a criminal group to recruit and exploit women to create pornographic content, to be broadcast for a fee online.
Those said to have allegedly been recruited by the brothers were said to have been tricked into believing they were in a relationship with them, coined the “loverboy method”.
After falling in love, the women would be taken to their home in Ilfov County, where they were allegedly coerced into being sexually exploited.
DIICOT said the alleged crimes, said to have started in 2021, were committed in Romania, the US and the UK.
Six women allegedly fell prey to the Tate brothers’ reported sexual exploits.
The rape charge dates back to March this year, DIICOT said.
It was confirmed that Tate and the other two suspects were taken in for questioning and detained on Thursday for 24 hours.
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