International

Andrew Tate put under house arrest in Romania

FILE - Andrew Tate, left, and his brother Tristan leave the Court of Appeal in Bucharest, Romania, July 6, 2023. On Tuesday, July 11, the controversial social media personality and his brother filed a Florida lawsuit against the woman whose allegations they say led to their arrest in Romania on human trafficking charges, accusing her of lying when she says they imprisoned her there. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru, File)

Internet personality Andrew Tate has been put on house arrest by a judge in Romania, according to his representative.

The former professional kickboxer was among six people taken into custody regarding a probe into sexual exploitation and human trafficking. He and his brother, Tristan Tate, were detained Wednesday following the police raid of their home related to the allegations.

Romania’s anti-organized crime agency, the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT), asked the court to detain both of the Tate brothers for 30 days. The judge placed Tristan under judiciary control while Andrew was put under house arrest, Andrew Tate’s spokesperson Mateea Petrescu said Thursday, Reuters reported.

“The Tates salute the decision and firmly deny all allegations levelled against them, emphasising that the accusations are baseless and unsupported by substantial evidence,” Petrescu said in a statement, according to Reuters.

Andrew Tate slammed the case.

“This is a setup. It is absolutely disgusting,” he said, according to BBC. “Thirty of those girls say we have done nothing wrong. Two are the mothers of our children, two have never even been here to Romania.”

Both brothers were previously indicted last year on allegations of forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women, rape and human trafficking. They’ve denied the allegations.

Prior to the house arrest, they were under a travel ban, unable to leave the country, but were able to travel within it.

DIICOT said it has launched four home search warrants, looking into allegations of human trafficking, sexual intercourse with a minor and organizing a criminal gang, according to Reuters.