The Japan Times - Influencer Andrew Tate in US despite charges in Romania

Romanian prosecutors allege that former kickboxer Tate, 38, his brother Tristan, 36, and two women set up a criminal organization in Romania and Britain in early 2021 and sexually exploited several victims.

The brothers traveled to Florida together on a private jet, their lawyer Ioan Gilga told CNN -- but received a frosty reception just before landing as state authorities said they were not welcome. The Tates have not stated publicly the purpose of this trip.

The government in Bucharest said the Tates, who have British and US nationality and have been under judicial supervision in Romania, need to return to court on March 24 and a no-show could lead to "preventive arrest."

Four British women, who have accused Tate of rape and coercive control in a separate case, voiced concern last week that the US government might push Romania to ease the Tates' travel restrictions and let them escape.

Romanian Foreign Minister Emil Hurezeanu has said Richard Grenell, special envoy for President Donald Trump, raised the case at the Munich Security Conference earlier in February.

But Trump denied all knowledge of any advocacy for the Tates from his administration -- or help in bringing them to Florida.

"I know nothing about that. I don't know -- you're saying he's on a plane right now? Yeah, I just know nothing about it. We'll check it out. We'll let you know," he told reporters when asked about the visit.

Justice Minister Radu Marinescu told AFP on Thursday he was "not aware of any pressure from anyone" and had "not received any kind of request from the US authorities."

A spokesperson for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer -- who was visiting Trump in Washington -- declined to comment on the situation or whether the UK wanted to see Tate extradited to Britain.

A Romanian court has already granted a British request to extradite the Tates, but only after legal proceedings in Romania have concluded.

- Not welcome -

In a joint statement on Thursday, the four British women said they "feel retraumatized by the news that the Romanian authorities have given in to pressure from the Trump administration to allow Andrew Tate to travel."

The women are bringing a civil case in the UK against Tate, accusing him of rape and coercive control between 2013 and 2016.

Matthew Jury, their lawyer, said Starmer should raise the issue "on behalf of the many British women who Tate is alleged to have raped and sexually assaulted who may now be denied justice."

On Thursday, a Romanian court granted the Tate brothers' appeal to lift the seizure of their assets -- properties, vehicles, bank accounts and company shares, their PR team said.

Andrew Tate moved to Romania years ago after first starting a webcam business in the UK.

He leapt to fame in 2016 when he appeared on the UK's "Big Brother" reality television show, but was removed after a video emerged showing him attacking a woman.

He then turned to social media platforms to promote his often misogynistic and divisive views on how to be successful.

Banned from Instagram and TikTok for his views, Tate is followed by more than 10 million people on X watching his homophobic and racist posts.

Last year, the Tates were sentenced in a tax fraud case in Britain.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said before the brothers landed that the state was not involved in organizing their trip, did not welcome them and had been exploring legal options to prevent the visit.

"Florida is not a place where you're welcome with that type of conduct in the air," he told a news conference.

"And I don't know how it came to this. We were not involved, we were not notified."

K.Nakajima--JT