(Bucharest) The British masculinist influencer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan, arrested at the end of December in Romania in a pimping case, pleaded on Tuesday before the Bucharest court for their release.
The two former kick-boxers, aged 36 and 34 respectively, appeared handcuffed, dressed all in black, at the hearing which was held behind closed doors, AFP journalists noted.
“The day was long, the defendants were able to express themselves,” declared their lawyer Eugen Vidineac, at the end of the hearing which lasted several hours. The decision is expected at the earliest “in the evening”, he said, saying he was “confident”.
Accused by the prosecution of “creating an organized criminal group, trafficking in human beings and rape”, they had appealed against their pre-trial detention, ordered by the judges on December 30 for a period of 30 days.
The judges had invoked a “risk of absconding” and a “danger to public order in view of the gravity of the crimes” charged.
Six potential victims have been identified at this stage. Duped by the two men who feigned feelings for them, they would have been forced by violence into prostitution and the production of pornographic films, and for some sequestered.
For mee Vidineac, “there is not a single piece of evidence to suggest that a crime of rape has been committed”. He is also denying the other charges and has vowed to “bring out the truth”, according to recent remarks in local media.
The prosecution, which has been investigating for many months, had searched several Andrew Tate properties at the end of December, and placed the two brothers in custody. Two of their relatives, of Romanian nationality, were also arrested.
Andrew Tate, who also has a US passport, had appeared on the TV show Big Brother in 2016. He was eliminated from the competition after a video emerged showing him punching a woman.
He then turned to social networks where he had promoted masculinist theses, believing in particular that women victims of sexual abuse should be held responsible.
His Twitter account was then suspended before being reactivated in the wake of the takeover of the network by Elon Musk.
Now followed by 4.5 million people, the influencer was noticed shortly before his arrest by a very lively and extensively commented exchange with the ecologist Greta Thunberg.
Shaved head, well-trimmed beard and bulging muscles, he claims to be a multimillionaire and gives advice to men to help them become rich via “Hustler University”, a paid coaching website which claims more than 160,000 customers.
Many of the men’s assets, including their collection of luxury cars, were placed under seal.