Andrew Tate posts bizarre tweet after being arrested on suspicion of rape and trafficking
Tate and his brother have reportedly been under investigation since April
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Andrew Tate has posted a bizarre tweet after being arrested on suspicious of rape and human trafficking.
Romanian authorities confirmed on 29 December that the 36-year-old social media influencer had been detained on suspicion of human trafficking, rape, and forming an organised crime group.
At 10.30am GMT, Tate posted to his Twitter account: “The Matrix sent their agents.”
The tweet, made in reference to his arrest, has led to confusion whether Tate is still under detention.
After Tate’s arrest, it was announced by the Romanian authorities that the former kickboxer and problematic internet guru, will be detained for 24 hours for questioning alongside two Romanian suspects, according to a statement from the prosecutors from the anti-organised-crime unit.
The siblings have been under criminal investigation since April, it was reported.
Prosecutors said they had found six women who had been sexually exploited by the suspects.
Authorities reportedly used Tate’s social media post, which prominently displayed pizza boxes from a local chain, Jerry’s Pizza, to confirm he was in the country.
Tate was arrested within 24 hours of posting the video to social media.
The video was made with the intention of addressing Tate’s Twitter exchange with climate activist Greta Thunberg, in which the 19-year-old mocked Tate for bragging about his 33-strong car collection.
In the initial tweet, Tate asked the campaigner to offer her comments on the carbon emissions of his cars.
“I have 33 cars,” he began, before listing the specifications for his fleet of Bugatti and Ferraris.
Tate then asked Thunberg for her email address “so I can send a complete list of my car collection and their respective enormous emissions”, attempting to bait her into a conversation about the environmental impact of his cars.
In the reply, Thunberg replied on Wednesday (29 December) with a brutal response, writing: “Yes, please do enlighten me. email me at smalld***energy@getalife.com.”
Tate later responded: “How dare you?!”
Thunberg made a cheeky dig at Tate on Twitter following his arrest, writing: “This is what happens when you don’t recycle your pizza boxes” in response to Tate’s video posted prior to his arrest.
Tate was banned from Twitter in 2017 for violating its terms of service for saying that women should “bear responsibility” for being sexually assaulted.
His account was reinstated in November 2022, after Twitter’s policy changed under Elon Musk, which promotes “freedom of speech, but not freedom of reach”.
Follow along with live updates about Andrew Tate’s arrest here. Read everything you need to know about Andrew Tate here.