Current:Home > FinanceLawyers of alleged Andrew Tate’s victims say their clients are being harassed and intimidated -FutureWise Finance
Lawyers of alleged Andrew Tate’s victims say their clients are being harassed and intimidated
View
Date:2025-04-13 06:30:27
BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Lawyers for alleged abuse victims of Andrew Tate, the social media influencer charged with rape and human trafficking, said Thursday that the accused and his followers are trying to intimidate their clients into silence.
Speaking at a news conference held at a central Bucharest hotel the lawyers, who represent a legal team from the United States and another from the United Kingdom, said they wanted to take a “united stand” against Tate and his followers and address “ongoing attempts to silence those who are speaking out.”
The 36-year-old Tate, a former professional kickboxer, is also charged in Romania with forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women. He has amassed 8 million followers on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
One of the legal teams, McCue Jury & Partners, represents women suing Tate in the U.K. for allegations of rape and physical assault, while the National Center on Sexual Exploitation Law Center and Laffey Bucci & Kent, represent “key witnesses” of the prosecution in the Romania case who Tate is suing in the U.S. for defamation.
Tate’s spokesperson denied the claims made by the lawyers on Thursday.
“These threats will not work, they will not prevent people from coming forward, and they will not prevent courts around the world from hearing their cases,” the lawyers said in a joint statement. “We encourage people to play their part in stopping the spread of disinformation online and to think carefully about how their words in these spaces can affect people already suffering immensely.”
Four women had reported Tate to the U.K. authorities for alleged sexual violence and physical abuse, but the Crown Prosecution Service decided not to prosecute him. Afterward, the alleged victims turned to crowdfunding to cover their legal costs as they pursue a civil case against him.
“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 UK authorities would not prosecute him,” they state on their campaign page, which has so far raised £30,000 of their £50,000 ($60,000) target. “It’s our one remaining route to hold him accountable.”
In a media letter last month, Tate described the allegations by the women in Britain as “malicious and disputed” and said that, “if proceedings are brought, I shall resist any attempt to claim anonymity for all or any of the complainants.”
The legal firm McCue Jury & Partners who represent the women, however, claimed on Thursday that Tate’s letter “was riddled with inaccurate and misleading statements.”
“Tate claimed that there is no U.K. case against him and that the firm suggested mediation through financial compensation,” the lawyer firm said. “Unfortunately for Mr. Tate, there is absolutely a legal claim being brought in the U.K. against him ... We made clear to Tate that any settlement would have to contain an admission of liability.”
In a separate case, Romanian prosecutors formally indicted Tate in June along with his brother, Tristan, and two Romanian women. All four were arrested in late December and have denied the allegations against them.
The National Center on Sexual Exploitation Law Center, which is repressing witnesses in the Romania case, said that since the Tate brothers’ compound was raided by authorities last year, the brothers and their associates “have been maliciously harassing and threatening our clients.”
In July, the Tate brothers sued a Florida woman, her parents, another woman who lived at the Tates’ estate near Bucharest, and a male friend of the woman. The Tate brothers claimed she falsely accused them of imprisoning her in Romania and are seeking at least $5 million in the lawsuit, which was filed in Palm Beach County.
Jillian Roth, of the law firm Laffey, Bucci & Kent, said that the lawsuit “was filed only with the intent to intimidate, harass and to retaliate against the women who came forward to speak out against their abuse.”
“These women are very afraid, they’re terrified,” Roth said, “they have been threatened, they’ve had people come to their place of work.”
Andrew Tate has repeatedly claimed that prosecutors in Romania have no evidence against him and that there is a political conspiracy designed to silence him. He was previously banned from various prominent social media platforms for expressing misogynistic views and for hate speech.
Last week, a Bucharest court ruled to ease geographical restrictions on Tate, which means he can now travel anywhere in Romania. Prior to that decision, he was restricted to Bucharest Municipality and the nearby Ilfov County unless he obtained prior approval from a judge. Still, he cannot leave the country.
___
McGrath reported from Sighisoara, Romania.
veryGood! (35)
Related
- McConnell absent from Senate on Thursday as he recovers from fall in Capitol
- In New York’s 16th Congressional District, a Progressive Challenge to the Democratic Establishment Splits Climate Groups
- Texas Justices Hand Exxon Setback in California Climate Cases
- For the Sunrise Movement’s D.C. Hub, a Call to Support the Movement for Black Lives
- EU countries double down on a halt to Syrian asylum claims but will not yet send people back
- Tired of Wells That Threaten Residents’ Health, a Small California Town Takes on the Oil Industry
- Shannen Doherty Recalls “Overwhelming” Fear Before Surgery to Remove Tumor in Her Head
- Why Kim Kardashian Is Feuding With Diva of All Divas Kourtney Kardashian
- As Trump Enters Office, a Ripe Oil and Gas Target Appears: An Alabama National Forest
- Q&A: An Environmental Justice Champion’s Journey From Rural Alabama to Biden’s Climate Task Force
Ranking
- A White House order claims to end 'censorship.' What does that mean?
- Newark ship fire which claimed lives of 2 firefighters expected to burn for several more days
- How a scrappy African startup could forever change the world of vaccines
- Pregnant Stassi Schroeder Wants to Try Ozempic After Giving Birth
- Tarte Shape Tape Concealer Sells Once Every 4 Seconds: Get 50% Off Before It's Gone
- High School Graduation Gift Guide: Score an A+ With Jewelry, College Basics, Travel Needs & More
- Unclaimed luggage piles up at airports following Southwest cancellations
- Everything to Know About the Vampire Breast Lift, the Sister Treatment to the Vampire Facial
Recommendation
Brianna LaPaglia Reveals The Meaning Behind Her "Chickenfry" Nickname
We battle Planet Money for indicator of the year
Investors prefer bonds: How sleepy government bonds became the hot investment of 2022
CVS and Walgreens limit sales of children's meds as the 'tripledemic' drives demand
John Galliano out at Maison Margiela, capping year of fashion designer musical chairs
U.S. destroys last of its declared chemical weapons
A Southern Governor’s Climate and Clean Energy Plan Aims for Zero Emissions
Hundreds of Toxic Superfund Sites Imperiled by Sea-Level Rise, Study Warns