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

Andrew Tate arrested by Romanian police over human trafficking and rape charges

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.

Key Points

• Andrew Tate detained for 30 more days in Romanian jail in human trafficking and rape inquiry
• Did the Romanian pizza box in response video to Greta Thunberg give away Andrew Tate’s location?
• Andrew Tate used ‘loverboy method’ to lure women into the trafficking ring, authorities say
• Andrew Tate: Who is the controversial social media influencer arrested in Romania?
• Greta Thunberg makes cheeky dig at Andrew Tate over pizza box following arrest

[31 December 2022 13:00 · Graeme Massie]

‘I think she’s cool’: Elon Musk praises Greta Thunberg amid Andrew Tate drama

ICYMI: Elon Musk shared his two cents on teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg amid her viral argument with online personality Andrew Tate.

Earlier this week, Thunberg was widely praised for wittily shutting down Tate on Twitter, who’d tried to engage her in a debate about his cars.

A day later, news broke that Tate and his brother Tristan had been arrested in Romania as part of a human trafficking and rape investigation.

Tom Murray has more:

[31 December 2022 13:58 · Sam Rkaina]

Elon Musk taunts Andrew Tate after tweet blaming ‘The Matrix’ for trafficking arrest

Elon Musk has taunted influencer Andrew Tate after tweets from his social media account blamed “The Matrix” for his arrest in Romania.

Tate was arrested on Thursday on charges of human trafficking, rape and forming an organised crime group, and is currently in prison.

One tweet from Tate’s account seemed 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.”

Click here for the full story.

(Twitter)

[31 December 2022 14:45 · Sam Rkaina]

Pizza box didn’t lead to Andrew Tate’s arrest in Romania, authorities said

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 and the “hard job” of “gathering all the evidence,” Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIIOCT) spokesperson Ramona Bolla told The Washington Post.

Click here for the full story.

(Twitter/Andrew Tate)

[31 December 2022 15:30 · Holly Bancroft]

Andrew Tate’s Twitter account tweets about The Matrix again

Andrew Tate’s Twitter account has blamed “The Matrix” for his arrest on charges of human trafficking, rape and forming an organised crime group.

One post from the early hours of this morning read: “The Matrix will only tell you what the Matrix needs you to believe.”

Now the account has posted again saying: “God is on our side, so The Matrix will not win. Inshallah”.

The account posted earlier about the “insanity of the ruling elite”.

Andrew Tate is currently in the custody of the Romanian police.

[31 December 2022 16:41 · Holly Bancroft]

Opinion: Why are so many British Muslims getting seduced by Andrew Tate?

Here is an opinion piece Rabbil Sikdar wrote earlier this year about Andrew Tate’s notoriety:

“Online notoriety is easy to attain these days. One moment someone exists in obscurity, and in the next, they’re all over Instagram, Tiktok or YouTube.

One of the latest fixations is a man called Andrew Tate. Almost overnight, Tate has become a cult-like figure to young men and boys across many English-speaking countries. A former kickboxer, now an online personality, his appeal to disillusioned men is unsurprising: he spends a lot of his time discussing how men can improve themselves. But just as often, content for men quickly becomes entangled with views on women, relationships, and feminism. And for many young men who find the dating world to be a story of rejections, Tate’s criticisms of women sound valid.”

Read more here:

[31 December 2022 17:46 · Holly Bancroft]

Charity calls for TikTok to ban Big Brother star Andrew Tate over ‘misogynistic’ videos

Here’s a reminder of the harm that Andrew Tate’s content is doing online. Tate was permanently banned from Tiktok this summer for his hateful videos.

The former kickboxer has previously said that women “belong in the home”, are a “man’s property”, “can’t drive” and he has also said that he thinks rape survivors must “bear responsibility” for their attacks.

Some of his most viral videos see him expressing opinions such as “women can’t drive”, that 18-year-old women are “more attractive than 25-year-olds because they’ve been through less d***”, and that women should “shut the f**k up, have kids, sit at home, be quiet and make coffee”.

[31 December 2022 18:43 · Holly Bancroft]

Andrew Tate’s kickboxing record edited on Wikipedia to show Greta Thunberg Twitter defeat

ICYMI: Andrew Tate was detained in Romania on suspicion of human trafficking, less than 24 hours after the kickboxer turned controversial influencer hit out at climate activist Greta Thunberg on Twitter.

Following the pair’s heated Twitter exchange, an edited Wikipedia entry has gone viral showing Tate was knocked out by Thunberg in a kickboxing match located on the “Twitter streets”.

The saga began on 29 December when Tate – who was recently reinstated on Twitter after Elon Musk took over the platform – directed a tweet at Thunberg, in which he attempted to bait the 19-year-old climate campaigner into a debate about the carbon emissions of his “33 cars”.

[31 December 2022 19:28 · Hafsa Lodi]

Opinion This is what Andrew Tate’s arrest means for Muslim women like me

“Is it him? That shiny bald head, manicured beard, and gradient “I’m a celebrity” sunglasses are unmistakeable. A four-minute clip of Andrew Tate, a controversial figure who is known for making vulgar and inflammatory statements about women, has infiltrated the intimate boundaries of my smartphone through a forwarded WhatsApp video. Prior to this, I’ve actively avoided researching or discussing Tate, despite his notoriety on social media – I’d hate to give any more airtime to the self-proclaimed misogynist who is already one of the most frequently googled people on the internet.

But this time I give in, and a quick search leads me to the original video, posted on YouTube a year ago by a “male self-improvement” podcast that hosts “Womanizer Wednesdays”. In the three-hour interview, Tate spews some twisted and simplistic statements about Islam in his apparent attempt to praise the religion.

Those sharing his content – particularly older men who aren’t on social media – may be oblivious to the fact that Tate is a controversial and notorious misogynist, and that he was arrested on Thursday in Romania on suspicion of rape and human trafficking (after a very satisfying Twitter exchange with Greta Thunberg). Along with his brother, Tate has been under investigation for the kidnapping of two young women and participation in a criminal group that sexually exploits women.”

Read more from Hafsa Lodi’s opinion piece here:

[31 December 2022 20:25 · Harriet Williamson]

Andrew Tate proves once again that he is the ultimate loser

“It was the ultimate clash of good versus evil, like Gandalf against Saruman, or Obi-Wan battling Anakin, or the Avengers vs Thanos; like when Taylor Swift was proved right over Kanye West, or when Meghan Markle’s point was made by a Jeremy Clarkson own goal.

It was a moment of pure, unadulterated, snort-Diet-Coke-from-your-nose joy. It was Twitter at its very best.

Nineteen-year-old Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg, four times Nobel Peace Prize nominee and youngest ever Time person of the year, slapped down controversial influencer Andrew Tate in the most supremely careless and perfect way.”

Read more from Harriet Williamson’s opinion piece here:

[31 December 2022 20:30 · Stuti Mishra]

Elon Musk taunts Andrew Tate after tweet blaming ‘The Matrix’ for arrest

Elon Musk has taunted influencer Andrew Tate after tweets from his social media account blamed “The Matrix” for his arrest in Romania.

One tweet from Tate’s account seemed 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.”

In apparent response to these, Twitter CEO Elon Musk posted a meme.

Holly Bancroft has more: