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‘The Matrix is real’: Andrew Tate responds to having his home raided by authorities, again

August 21, 2024 | | Print Article

Romanian police raided influencer Andrew Tate’s home Wednesday as part of a new investigation into allegations involving the trafficking of minors.

Romania’s anti-organized crime prosecuting unit DIICOT said Wednesday that the investigation concerned “a criminal case regarding the commission of the crimes of setting up an organized criminal group, trafficking of minors, human trafficking, sexual intercourse with a minor, influencing statements and money laundering,” as reported by Reuters.

Representatives for Tate and his brother, who’s also been under the spotlight, confirmed the raid in a statement.

“Although the allegations in the search warrant are not yet fully clarified, they include suspicions of human trafficking and money laundering,” they said. “The brothers’ legal team is present to ensure that all formalities are carried out correctly.”

Tate personally responded to the raid with the following tweet:

In an additional tweet, he also sought to explain the “minor” part of this new investigation.

“The ‘minor’ they are talking about is 24 years old,” he wrote. “But because she first followed me years ago, when she was 17. They say I INTENDED TO traffic her. Even though, I literally did nothing to her and we’ve been friends for years. Matrix Attack.”

Look:

Tate and his brother, Tristan, were originally indicted in Romania in June of 2023 on charges of human trafficking, rape, and forming a gang to sexually exploit women.

A day after the charges were filed, four British women filed a civil suit against Tate accusing him of rape, physical violence, and coercive control between 2013 and 2016.

At the time, one of the women told Newsweek that she couldn’t watch Tate “get away with what he’s done again and again.”

“It is torture trying to live my life with constant reminders from work colleagues, friends online, the radio, the hairdressers, basically anyone randomly mentioning his name,” she said. “This isn’t supposed to happen. The person who put you through the worst time of your life, who you tried to stop hurting others 10 years ago, isn’t supposed to become famous online.”

On July 5th of this year,  a court ruled that the influencer may freely travel within the European Union as he awaits trial. However, an appeals court overturned that ruling days later, making it so that Tate must remain in Romania for the duration of the trial.

“In its decision, the appeals court said it rejected Tate’s ‘unfounded’ request to ‘replace the obligation to not leave Romanian territory with the obligation of not leaving the European Union,'” according to Forbes.

There’s more.

“Earlier this year, U.K. authorities issued an arrest warrant against the controversial internet figure, who holds both British and American passports, based on allegations of sexual aggression dating back to 2012-2015,” Forbes notes. “Romanian authorities have agreed to extradite Tate to the U.K. after their trial is completed.”

Tate’s spokesperson, Mateea Petrescu, said at the time that the brothers “express profound disappointment that such serious allegations are being resurrected without substantial new evidence.”

The U.K. allegations against Tate were reportedly made by four women who originally reported the alleged abuse to the Crown Prosecution Service but were essentially rebuffed, as the CPS declined to prosecute.

Frustrated, the four women then launched a crowdfunding campaign to bring attention to their story.

The fundraiser decried the inaction against Tate, stating, “We handed over our evidence about the horrific acts of violence we endured and waited for action. But four years later we were told the U.K. authorities would not prosecute him. It’s our one remaining route to hold him accountable.”

Vivek Saxena
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