BUCHAREST (AP) – A court in Romania’s capital on Friday extended geographical restrictions against an online influencer who is awaiting trial on charges of human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to exploit women.
The Bucharest Tribunal extended by 60 days the restrictions stipulating Andrew Tate, 37, may not leave the country. Tate had requested that he be able to leave Romania provided he stayed within Europe’s ID-check-free Schengen zone, which Romania partially joined in March. Eugen Vidineac, one of Tate’s lawyers, said they will appeal the decision.
Tate, a former professional kickboxer and dual British-United States (US) citizen, was initially arrested in December 2022 near Bucharest along with his brother Tristan and two Romanian women. Romanian prosecutors formally indicted all four in June last year and all four have denied the allegations.
On April 26, the Bucharest Tribunal ruled that the prosecutors’ case file against Tate met the legal criteria and that a trial could start but did not set a date for it to begin. That ruling came after the legal case had been discussed for months in the preliminary chamber stages, a process in which the defendants can challenge prosecutors’ evidence and case file.
