How long have Andrew Tate and his brother been in prison in Romania? What are they accused of?

2023 has been blessed by the silence from Andrew Tate and his brother. Both have been in prison on human trafficking charges since a police sting at the end of last year, topping off a year which saw Andrew’s popularity rise and fall at spectacular rates. Despite the arrest, the influence of Tate’s openly misogynistic language is being felt in plenty of groups of young men and boys.

The brothers were arrested by Romanian police on 29 December, 2022. They have been remanded in custody since after judges accepted prosecutor requests for multiple extensions.

Speaking to the BBC in December, a spokesperson for the Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) said prosecutors had applied to hold Tate at a “detention centre” for an extra 30 days. The brothers’ appeal against this was denied.

This had been extended until the end of February with the judge citing the “particular dangerousness of the defendants”.

Another 30 day extension was granted on 21 February which is awaiting an appeal.

What are the brothers accused of?

The pair were arrested by Romanian police on charges of human trafficking.

“The four suspects (including two women linked with the Tate’s) ... appear to have created an organised crime group with the purpose of recruiting, housing and exploiting women by forcing them to create pornographic content meant to be seen on specialised websites for a cost,” Romanian prosecutors said in a statement on the day of the original arrest.

Since the arrest other aspects of the alleged crimes have been leaked on the internet. One victim told police she was forced to earn a minimum of €10,000 ($10,613) a month on social media platforms under the threat of violence. Other threats included publishing intimate pictures of the victim online.

Prosecutors acknowledged that some victims do not realise they were being human trafficked.