Right-wing, self-proclaimed misogynistic influencer, Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan, are suing a Florida woman, saying she falsely accused them of imprisoning her in Romania, leading to their arrest there on human trafficking charges.
On Tuesday, the Tate brothers filed a lawsuit and are seeking at least $US5 million ($7.3 million) from the woman, her parents, another woman who lived at the Tates’ Bucharest estate and a male friend of the woman.
The Tates are accusing the five people of conspiring to falsely accuse them of human trafficking and rape. The pair say this cost them their freedom and millions of dollars in income from their social media, podcasting and business ventures.
In December, Romanian officials arrested the Tates and indicted them, alleging the brothers forced seven victims into pornography and subjected them to physical violence. The women were allegedly controlled by “intimidation and constant surveillance”.
Investigators said the Tates and two Romanian women formed a criminal group in 2021 “in order to commit the crime of human trafficking” in Romania, the United States and Britain.
The Tate brothers remain under house arrest in Romania.
Attorneys for the Tate brothers, Thomas Maniotis and Joseph D McBride called the woman a “professional con artist” and say she pursued a sexual relationship with Tristan Tate in order to move to Romania, then tried to defraud the brothers. When that failed, the attorneys claim she conspired with the others to make false statements to Romanian and US embassy authorities that led to the arrests.
“At no point did the Tate brothers engage in human trafficking,” the lawsuit said.
Neither the woman or her parents are being named, as she is the alleged victim of sexual assault.
The lawsuit says the woman and her parents are residents of Palm Beach County, which is where it was filed.
Several women in Britain are pursuing civil claims against Andrew Tate, alleging they were victims of sexual violence.
Andrew Tate has been banned from social media platforms– TikTok, Youtube and Facebook– for alleged hate speech and misogynistic rhetoric, including comments that women should bear responsibility for being sexually assaulted. He remains popular on Twitter, with many of his 7 million followers being young men and children.
If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au. In an emergency, call 000.