Influencer Andrew Tate loses appeal against seizure of 10 properties and luxury cars in Romania

Andrew Tate leaves the Court of Appeal in Bucharest, Romania. Credit: AP

Social media personality Andrew Tate has lost his appeal against the seizure of 10 properties and luxury cars by prosecutors in Romania.

The 36-year-old British-US citizen is being investigated on charges of being part of an organised crime group, human trafficking and rape.

A court in Romania’s capital Bucharest rejected the appeal by Tate and his brother, Tristan, who is charged in the same case, on Wednesday against the seizure of the properties and luxury cars.

Tate, who has amassed 4.4 million followers on Twitter, rose to fame as a professional kickboxer but has since become known as divisive figure on social media for his controversial opinions which many have branded misogynistic.

Andrew Tate and his brother, Tristan, are escorted in handcuffs into court in Romania’s capital Bucharest. Credit: AP

Prosecutors investigating the case have so far seized 15 luxury cars - 11 in December raids and four last week.

At least seven of the vehicles are thought to be owned by the Tate brothers, and more than 10 properties and land are owned by companies registered to them.

The cars seized reportedly include three Porsches, two BMWs, two Ferraris, an Aston Martin, a McLaren, a Lamborghini and five Mercedes cars.

This comes after the influencer lost his appeal on Tuesday against a judge’s earlier decision to extend his arrest period from 24 hours to 30 days.

Ramona Bolla, a spokesperson for Romanian anti-organized crime agency DIICOT, said the court had “decided that the seizures are legal and (that) the goods remain at our disposal."

Romanian court upholds arrest of influencer Andrew Tate
Lawyers for the Tate brothers, Eugen Vidineac (right) and Ioan Gliga speak to media. Credit: AP

Ms Bolla said it is not clear whether any assets seized since December were included in Wednesday's appeal.She added if prosecutors can prove the Tate brothers have gained money through human trafficking, then the assets could be used to cover the expenses of the investigation and compensation for victims.

Constantin Gliga, one of the lawyers representing Tate, told the media before the court ruling on Wednesday that the asset seizures are disproportional to the charges.

The influencer was initially detained on December 29 in an area north of the capital Bucharest along with his brother. Two Romanian suspects are also in custody.

Romanian authorities share video of a raid following the arrest of Andrew Tate

All four suspects had challenged a judge's decision on December 30 to grant the prosecutors' request to extend the arrest period to 30 days.

A document explaining the judge’s motivation for the extension said “the possibility of them evading investigations cannot be ignored,” and that they could “leave Romania and settle in countries that do not allow extradition”.

DIICOT said it has identified six victims in the human trafficking case who were subjected to “acts of physical violence and mental coercion” and were sexually exploited by the members of the alleged crime group.

The agency said victims were lured by pretences of love, and later intimidated, surveilled, and subjected to other control tactics into performing pornographic acts intended to reap substantial financial gains.

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