Lawyer on New Charges: 'Andrew and Tristan Tate Will Walk Free'

Romanian prosecutors have formally charged Andrew Tate with trafficking minors and other crimes, saying he built his pornographic webcam business by luring victims with fake promises of love or marriage. The indictment filed on Friday accuses the influencer of trafficking minors, money laundering, sexual acts with a minor, and witness tampering, per Reuters. His brother, Tristan Tate, is charged with assisting him. Both deny any wrongdoing. The brothers, dual US-British citizens and ex-kickboxers, have been under investigation in Romania since late 2022 and are now jailed in Miami as a judge weighs Britain's bid to extradite them on separate rape charges.

Romanian authorities haven't decided whether to seek their extradition as well and could put them on trial in absentia, though legal reviews mean any trial is unlikely to begin very soon. "Today's decision ... does not determine guilt and it should not be presented as though it does," a lawyer for the brothers said in a statement, per the Independent. Another attorney for the Tates tells Newsweek: "The world knows Andrew and Tristan are innocent. ... We are confident that once a competent judge sees the facts, and once the Department of Justice confronts this egregious abuse of its own authority, Andrew and Tristan Tate will walk free."