The Bucharest Tribunal decided last week to maintain judicial control in the case of Andrew and Tristan Tate, a restrictive measure imposed as the two are waiting for their trial to start in Romania. However, the court also ruled they could leave Romania and travel within the European Union (EU), Hotnews.ro reported.

The controversial influencer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan have been charged with forming an organized criminal group, human trafficking, and rape. However, they have repeatedly denied the allegations.

Eugen Vidineac, one of the Tate brothers' lawyers, told Hotnews.ro that they have no intention of leaving Romania.

"They have no plans to leave Romania, but the person's freedom is essential, and it is the rule, not the exception; the measures in criminal matters, over time, must be relaxed and can be relaxed by the court's order. It is a legal, fair decision and one that we understand to welcome because this is the natural course of criminal proceedings," the lawyer said.

In a post on X quoted by the BBC, Andrew Tate said: "The sham case is falling apart."

Romanian prosecutors sent the Tate brothers to trial in June 2023, and in April of this year, the Bucharest Tribunal ruled that their trial could start.

Andrew and Tristan Tate, who are dual UK-US nationals, as well as their accomplices, are accused of having formed an organized criminal group in early 2021 with the intention of committing human trafficking on the territory of Romania, the United States, and the United Kingdom. 

According to the prosecutors, seven victims were recruited through deception and told that the defendants wanted to marry them. They were later taken to properties just outside Bucharest, where, through acts of physical violence and psychological coercion, they were sexually exploited by members of the group. They were forced to engage in pornographic acts for the purpose of production and distribution through online platforms. 

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Inquam Photos/Sabin Cirstoveanu)