Andrew and Tristan Tate, the influencer brothers whose online brand built around wealth, male supremacy and misogynistic rhetoric has made them two of the internet’s most divisive figures, were arrested Saturday in Miami as British authorities moved to extradite them on rape and sex trafficking allegations.
The U.S. Marshals Service detained the brothers on a sealed warrant, agency spokesperson Brady McCarron told The Associated Press. Their arrest brings the United States into a sprawling international legal fight that has already involved authorities in Romania and the United Kingdom.
Prosecutors in Britain said Saturday they are seeking the brothers’ extradition over charges accusing them of raping and trafficking women during a period spanning 2010 to 2017.
The Tates, who hold both U.S. and British citizenship, relocated to Romania in 2016. They were arrested there in 2022 amid accusations that they were involved in schemes to recruit women for sexual exploitation. The brothers denied the claims, and that case did not proceed after legal and procedural problems emerged.
The brothers are expected to make an initial appearance in federal court in Miami early next week, according to a person familiar with the case who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss sensitive law enforcement operations.
The U.K. charges center on alleged abuse of women in an area north of London, where Andrew and Tristan Tate were raised. Their attorneys have previously said the brothers deny the accusations.
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Joseph McBride, a lawyer for the Tate brothers, said in a phone interview Saturday evening that he had not yet been able to speak with his clients. He dismissed the new British allegations as “filth and slander,” arguing they were designed to interfere with defamation lawsuits the brothers have filed in the United States.
“They’re pulling out all the stops to make sure these guys never get their day in court,” McBride said.
“We are confident that once a competent judge sees the facts, and once the Department of Justice confronts this egregious abuse of its own authority, Andrew and Tristan Tate will walk free. America does not do Britain’s political dirty work.
Andrew Tate, 39, first reached a mainstream audience as a contestant on the U.K. reality television show “Big Brother” in 2016. He was removed from the show when a video surfaced that appeared to show Tate assaulting a woman. He and his brother, Tristan Tate, 38, are vocal supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Andrew Tate has amassed over 10 million followers on X but has been banned from platforms like YouTube, TikTok and Instagram for violating hate speech guidelines. His most widely condemned rhetoric includes comments that women who are sexually assaulted should bear some responsibility for their attacks, graphic descriptions of how he might attack women and criticisms of people who seek treatment for mental illness.
The Tate brothers have consistently denied allegations of abuse and human trafficking, claiming that violent and misogynistic statements have been taken out of context or were intended as jokes.
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