Romanian authorities deny pizza box led to Andrew Tate’s arrest as influencer held for 30 days
Prosecutors say they found six women sexually exploited by suspects
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Your support makes all the difference.Romanian authorities say a pizza box did not tip agencies to the whereabouts of misogynist influencer Andrew Tate who has been arrested on charges of human trafficking, rape and forming an organised crime group.
Memes and a widely shared screengrab of Tate eating from a pizza box in a Twitter video response to climate activist Greta Thunberg drew speculation that the local pizza place gave away his whereabouts.
But the arrest of the 36-year-old misogynist social media personality and his brother on Thursday followed a months-long investigation, according to authorities.
Tate, a British citizen previously banned from social media platforms for his misogynistic views and hate speech, was arrested along with his brother Tristan and two Romanian suspects, according to officials who raided their properties in Bucharest.
All four suspects, including Tate, will be held for 30 days after a judge extended their initial detention period of 24 hours, said Ramona Bolla, of anti-organised crime agency Diicot. She said the decision was not final and the suspects may appeal.
Prosecutors say they found six women who had been sexually exploited by the suspects.
Elon Musk appears to once again taunt Andrew Tate over his arrest.
Musk tweeted on Saturday evening: “Sometimes it’s just better to make pizza at home" - an apparent reference to Tate’s detention after a widely shared image of him eating from a pizza box in a social media video response to climate activist Greta Thunberg drew speculation that the local pizza place gave away his location.
But the arrest of the social media personality followed a months-long investigation and the “hard job” of “gathering all the evidence,” Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIIOCT) spokesperson Ramona Bolla told The Washington Post.
Tate’s arrest sees Romanian pizza company overwhelmed with positive reviews
ICYMI: A Romanian pizza company that featured in Andrew Tate ‘s viral response video to Greta Thunberg was inundated with positive reviews online following his arrest.
The fast food chain, Jerry’s Pizza, is rated 4.3 stars on Google and is said to be “worth doing time for”, plus it tastes “so good you’ll dox yourself to get a slice”.
Reports suggested local authorities could have used Tate’s video, featuring pizza boxes from the prominent Romanian takeaway, as proof he was in the country.
But did the pizza box really give away his location?
Find out here:
Did the Romanian pizza box in Andrew Tate’s video give away his location?
Tate arrested within 24 hours of posting his clapback video
Romania urged to act on traffickers by campaigners in 2021
A rights group called GRETA (Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings) called attention to the crime in Romania last year, even as far-right influencer Andrew Tate was detained by authorities in the country on Thursday.
In a press release in June 2021, GRETA urged Romania to ensure that human trafficking offences lead to effective and dissuasive sanctions and that victims of trafficking have access to compensation.
The report also noted that Romania remains predominantly a country of origin of victims of trafficking in human beings.
The year-old press release by the group has resurfaced after Mr Tate locked horns with climate activist Greta Thunberg on Twitter.
Read the full story by Sravasti Dasgupta here:
Romania urged to act on traffickers by GRETA in 2021
The GRETA report notes that Romania remains predominantly a country of origin of victims of trafficking in human beings
Influencer Andrew Tate’s social media account continues to blame “The Matrix” for his arrest in Romania.
A tweet, posted on Saturday evening as he remains behind bars, read: “God is on our side, so the Matrix will not win. Inshallah.”
An earlier tweet sent from the former kickboxer’s account appeared to respond to the arrest, saying: “The Matrix sent their agents”. Another said: “The Matrix will only tell you what The Matrix needs you to believe.”
Tate is known for spreading misogynistic views online and has previously been banned from social media platforms for hate speech.
Who is the controversial TikTok influencer Andrew Tate?
Andrew Tate has been criticised for peddling “misogynistic views” and “negative presentations of masculinity”.
The former kickboxer and social media influencer was born in the US but came to live in Britain when he was four years old.
He is also the founder of Hustler’s University, an online “academy” where members pay a monthly membership fee in exchange for advice on how to make a passive income from several online industries.
Read more about him and his controversies here:
Everything you need to know about Andrew Tate
Tate was arrested by Romanian authorities over human trafficking and rape charges on 29 December
What are the controversies surrounding Andrew Tate?
In 2016, Andrew Tate was booted from the 17th season of Big Brother after just six days, after a video surfaced showing Tate hitting a woman with a belt. In a statement, Tate and the woman in the video both said the actions in the video were consensual.
Tate has since been the subject of much criticism, primarily for his views on women, which have been denounced as misogynistic.
In one video in which he is seen discussing feminism, Tate said women should “shut the f*** up, have kids, sit at home, be quiet and make coffee”.
Some of his most viral videos see him expressing opinions such as “women can’t drive”, that men can cheat but women can’t, and that 18-year-old women are “more attractive than 25-year-olds because they’ve been through less d***”.
Which social media platforms have banned him and why?
TikTok has permanently banned an account belonging to Tate as part of an ongoing investigation to remove content that violates its policies.
“Misogyny is a hateful ideology that is not tolerated on TikTok. We’ve been removing violative videos and accounts for weeks, and we welcome the news that other platforms are also taking action against this individual,” a spokesperson told The Independent.
However, most viral videos of Tate on the platform are shared by fan pages and other users.
TikTok said it is using technology to remove duplicated clips of Tate’s content from the platform altogether and is reviewing new content as it is shared.
Tate has also been removed from Facebook and Instagram. A spokesperson for Meta told The Independent that Tate had been banned from both platforms for violating its policies, citing the company’s guidelines on “Dangerous Individuals and Organisations”.
Andrew Tate's model girlfriend and ex-police worker arrested as fellow suspects, report says
A model and a former police worker are believed to be the other two suspects arrested along with Andrew Tate in connection with an investigation into allegations of human trafficking and an allegation of rape.
While the Romanian police is yet to confirm this, two women named Luana Radu, 32, and Georgiana Naghel, 28, were arrested for working as Tate’s ‘closest lieutenants’, according to Daily Mail.
Radu is a former sub inspector in the Romanian police while Naghel has been described as a businesswoman who is said to be in a relationship with Tate.
Voices: This is what Andrew Tate’s arrest means for Muslim women like me
“I can only hope that this will finally discredit him, and raise more mainstream awareness about his dangerous, misogynistic ideology that’s at total odds with Islam,” writes Hafsa Lodi.
Read more:
Opinion: This is what Andrew Tate’s arrest means for Muslim women like me
I can only hope that this will finally discredit him, and raise more mainstream awareness about his dangerous, misogynistic ideology that’s at total odds with Islam
Pizza box didn’t lead to Andrew Tate’s arrest, Romanian authorities say
A pizza box did not tip Romanian law enforcement agencies to the whereabouts of misogynist influencer Andrew Tate before his arrest on human trafficking charges, according to officials.
Memes and a widely shared image of Mr Tate eating from a pizza box in a social media video response to climate activist Greta Thunberg drew speculation that the local pizza place gave away his location.
But the arrest of the 36-year-old misogynist social media personality and his brother on Thursday followed a months-long investigation.
Alex Woodward has more details here:
Pizza box didn’t lead to Andrew Tate’s arrest in Romania, according to authorities
The idea that the misogynist influencer’s video response to Greta Thunberg ultimately gave away his location is “funny” but innacurate, Romanian authorities said