Romanian prosecutors say they have changed a human trafficking charge against the social media influencer Andrew Tate to a more serious one.
Tate, 36, his brother Tristan and two other suspects are now being investigated for human trafficking in continued form, according to prosecutors. That is a more serious crime than separate counts of trafficking, they said.
The Tate brothers and two Romanian women are under house arrest pending a criminal investigation for suspected human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women. They have denied the accusations.
Prosecutors are expected to commit the four suspects for trial later in June.
Tate, a British-US citizen have been held in police custody from 29 December 2022 until 31 March this year, when a Bucharest court placed them under house arrest.
Romania’s directorate for investigating organized crime and terrorism (DIICOT) notified the Tate brothers on Tuesday that the human trafficking charge had changed to trafficking in continued form, a DIICOT spokesperson said.
Under Romanian law, trafficking of adults carries a prison sentence of up to 10 years.
One more victim has been added to the case, which initially had six women.
The Tate brothers’ legal team said the changes were in the suspects’ legal interest. “The legal framework has been revised and altered to ensure an impartial investigation is upheld,” they said.
The victims were allegedly been coerced to produce pornographic content for social media sites, with the suspects keeping most of the gains.
