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Tate and his brother Tristan are part of a defamation case in Florida against a woman who accused them of imprisoning her in Romania.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Influencer brothers Andrew and Tristan Tate, who are charged with human trafficking in Romania, left for the U.S. after authorities lifted travel restrictions imposed as part of the case, an official said Thursday.
According to multiple reports and Gov. Ron DeSantis, the brothers’ destination is Florida. Live reporting from the BBC said the Tate brothers landed around 11:30 a.m. Thursday in a private jet at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.
DeSantis said Thursday in response to a question, “Florida is not a place where you’re welcome with that type of conduct.”
The Tates — who are dual U.S.-British citizens and have millions of online followers — were arrested in late 2022 and formally indicted last year on charges they participated in a criminal ring that lured women to Romania, where they were sexually exploited. Andrew Tate was also charged with rape. They deny the allegations.
In December, a court ruled that the case couldn’t go to trial because of multiple legal and procedural irregularities on the part of the prosecutors. The case, however, remained open, and there is also another ongoing investigation against them in Romania.
A court also ruled on Thursday in favor of an appeal by the Tates to lift the seizure of multiple assets, according to the brothers’ spokesperson, Mateea Petrescu. The assets include six luxury vehicles, land and properties, and company shares. All previously frozen bank accounts have been unfrozen, she said.
“While some assets remain under precautionary seizure, this ruling marks a significant step toward justice,” she said.
Who are the Tate Brothers?
Andrew Tate, 38, and Tristan Tate, 36 are dual U.S.-British citizens.
Andrew Tate is a former professional kickboxer and self-described misogynist who has amassed more than 10 million followers on X. He also runs an online academy where he says he teaches young men how to get rich and attract women. Tristan Tate is also a former kickboxer.
The Tates are avid supporters of President Donald Trump.
What are they charged with in Romania?
The Tate brothers and two Romanian women were arrested in Bucharest in late 2022.
The Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism alleged the four defendants formed a criminal group in 2021 “in order to commit the crime of human trafficking” in Romania as well as the United States and Britain.
They were initially formally indicted last year. In April, the Bucharest Tribunal ruled that a trial could start but didn’t set a date.
In December, a court in Bucharest ruled that the case against the Tates and the two Romanian women couldn’t go to trial because of multiple legal and procedural irregularities on the part of the prosecutors.
The case hasn’t been closed, and there is also a separate legal case against the brothers in Romania.
Andrew Tate has repeatedly claimed that prosecutors in Romania have no evidence against him and that there is a political conspiracy to silence him. But they were charged with forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women, among other charges.
Last August, DIICOT also launched a second case against the brothers, investigating allegations of human trafficking, the trafficking of minors, sexual intercourse with a minor, influencing statements and money laundering. They have denied those charges as well.
The Tate brothers’ legal battles aren’t limited to Romania.
Four British women who accused Andrew Tate of sexual violence and physical abuse are suing him in the U.K., after the Crown Prosecution Service decided not to prosecute him.
The women said in a joint statement on Thursday that they are “in disbelief and feel re-traumatized” by news that the travel restrictions were lifted.
Matthew Jury, a lawyer with McCue Jury & Partners, which is representing the women, called the decision to lift the travel ban “disgusting and dismaying.”
In March, the Tate brothers appeared at the Bucharest Court of Appeal in a separate case after U.K. authorities issued arrest warrants over allegations of sexual aggression in a case dating back to 2012-2015.
The appeals court granted the U.K. request to extradite the Tates, but only after legal proceedings in Romania have concluded.
Late last year, meanwhile, a U.K. court ruled that police can seize more than $3.3 million to cover years of unpaid taxes from the pair and freeze some of their accounts. Andrew Tate called it “outright theft” and said it was “a coordinated attack on anyone who dares to challenge the system.”
What led to the travel ban being lifted?
DIICOT, Romania’s anti-organized crime agency, said in a statement Thursday that prosecutors approved a “request to modify the obligation preventing the defendants from leaving Romania,” but that judicial control measures remained in place. The agency didn’t say who had made the request.
The control measures include the requirement to “appear before judicial authorities whenever summoned,” the statement read.
The agency said the Tates were “warned that deliberately violating these obligations may result in judicial control being replaced with a stricter deprivation of liberty measure.”
Their departure came after Foreign Minister Emil Hurezeanu said this month that a U.S. official in the current Trump administration had expressed interest in the brothers’ legal case in Romania at the Munich Security Conference. The minister insisted it didn’t amount to pressure.
What about Tate brothers’ defamation case in Florida?
A hearing was set Thursday in West Palm Beach, Florida, in a defamation lawsuit brought by the Tate brothers against a woman who accused them of imprisoning her in Romania.
The hearing in Palm Beach County Circuit Court concerns a motion by the woman, identified as Jane Doe, seeking an indefinite delay in the lawsuit so that proceedings in Romania can continue.
The Tates’ lawyers say there is no reason to delay the defamation case. “The Romanian process is expected to take several more years,” their lawyer said in a court filing.
The Tate brothers filed the defamation lawsuit in July 2023.
What did DeSantis say about the Tate brothers’ arrival in Florida?
At a news conference Thursday morning, a reporter asked Gov. Ron DeSantis if the Tate brothers’ arrival in Florida was “welcome.”
“We have no involvement in that,” DeSantis said. “I read about it through the media. Clearly, the federal government has jurisdiction whether they want to rebuff his entry into the United States, and I have confidence that whether it’s Pam Bondi or Christy Noam, that they will be looking at that.”
“I do know our Attorney General James Uthmeier is looking at what state hooks and jurisdiction we may have to be able to deal with this, but the reality is, no, Florida is not a place where you’re welcome with that type of conduct, um in the air, and I don’t know how it came to this,” he continued. “We were not involved, we were not notified.”
