British police have seized £2 million from Andrew Tate and his brother to settle unpaid taxes, but the pair also face human trafficking charges in Romania.
British police on Wednesday won a legal bid to seize more than 2 million pounds ($2.5 million) from controversial influencer Andrew Tate and his brother to settle millions of dollars in unpaid taxes. did.
A London court has ruled in favor of police who had applied to seize money from seven frozen bank accounts in a civil fraud case against the brothers.
The two remain in Romania, and Wednesday's ruling will decide whether former professional kickboxer Tate, 38, and his brother Tristan, 36, will go on trial on human trafficking and rape charges. The decision was made ahead of a public hearing scheduled for Thursday in Bucharest.
In a civil case at Westminster Magistrates' Court, police told a hearing the brothers had failed to pay tax on £21m of income from their online business.
The action was brought by Devon and Cornwall Police in south-west England against them and a third party, simply referred to as 'J', over alleged non-payment of tax on income from 2014 to 2022. Ta.
Also read: Romanian court finds 'illegality' in indictment against influencer Andrew Tate
Chief Justice Paul Goldspring said in his judgment that what appeared to be a “complex financial matrix” was in fact “simple fraud” on the part of the UK tax authorities.
At an earlier hearing, barrister Sarah Clarke, representing the police, quoted from a video posted online by Andrew Tate, in which he said: “When I lived in the UK, I refused to pay my taxes.” Ta.
The court was told the defendant said he was going to “ignore, ignore, ignore because eventually he will leave”.
Mr Clark claimed the brothers had a “vast number of bank accounts” in the UK, seven of which are now frozen, and that money had “flown” to them.
“This is what tax evasion looks like, this is what money laundering looks like,” she said.
Also read: Romania detains Andrew Tate on UK sex crime charges
The court said the money came from products they sold online and the OnlyFans subscription site.
“This is not justice.”
Tate, an American-born Brit, responded to X by attacking the authorities who pursued him in court.
“First of all, they labeled me a trafficker, but they couldn't find a single woman to stand against me,” he said.
“Once that narrative fell apart, they turned to outright theft, freezing my accounts for over two years and now seizing everything they could get their hands on. This is not justice. It's not about daring to challenge the system. “This is a systematic attack on those who do so,” he added.
Also read: UK court hears tax evasion case against influencer Andrew Tate
Andrew Tait started his webcam business in the UK before moving to Romania a few years ago.
He then turned to social media platforms to promote divisive opinions.
His videos offering tips for success, along with misogynistic and sometimes violent sayings, have made him one of the most famous influencers in the world.
Romanian prosecutors allege that Tate, his brother and two women set up a criminal organization and sexually exploited several victims.
But last month, after the men appealed the charges, the Bucharest Court of Appeal ordered Romania's public prosecutors office to “correct the deficiencies in the indictment and specify within five days whether it upholds the decision to send the defendants to trial.” commanded.
Also read: Former professional kickboxer Andrew Tate charged with human trafficking
In a separate case, a Romanian court in August placed Andrew Tate under house arrest and placed his brother Tristan under judicial supervision over a new investigation involving minors.
Prosecutors are investigating charges of “organized criminal group formation, human trafficking of minors,” “sexual relations with minors,” and “money laundering.”
The Tates also face allegations of rape and assault in separate cases in the UK.
– Posted by: © Agence France-Presse
