Romanian prosecutors indict Andrew and Tristan Tate on child trafficking and money laundering charges
The Romanian anti-organized crime agency DIICOT has referred a new indictment against Andrew and Tristan Tate to the Bucharest Tribunal, alleging the multi-year sexual exploitation of a 15-year-old girl and the laundering of over $1.25 million.
Indictment and exploitation charges
The Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) filed a formal indictment on 31 August 2026 against Andrew Tate and Tristan Tate, registering the case at the Bucharest Tribunal on 3 September 2026. Andrew Tate, 39, faces charges of trafficking of minors, continuous sexual acts with a minor, money laundering in continued form, and witness tampering. His 38-year-old brother, Tristan Tate, is charged with complicity in child trafficking, continuous money laundering, and witness tampering. The indictment also names two Romanian associates, Alexandra-Luana Radu and Georgiana Manuela Naghel. The filing follows a December 2024 ruling by the Bucharest Court of Appeal, which returned an earlier human trafficking and rape indictment to DIICOT to redo the criminal investigation.
- Andrew Tate allegedly recruits a 15-year-old girl in Luton for sexual exploitation
- Tristan Tate begins managing video chat accounts and collecting victim revenue
- The Tate brothers establish residency in Romania
- The alleged nine-year exploitation of the victim concludes
- Bucharest Court of Appeal returns the initial indictment to DIICOT for reinvestigation
- Both brothers are arrested in the United States under a British extradition request
- DIICOT files a revised indictment against the Tate brothers at the Bucharest Tribunal
Scope of the multi-year operation
Prosecutors allege that Andrew Tate recruited a 15-year-old girl in 2012 by misleading her into believing he had genuine feelings and intended to build a romantic relationship. The victim was initially housed at a property in Luton in the United Kingdom, before being moved repeatedly between Britain and Romania. After the brothers relocated to Romania in 2017, the victim was sheltered across several locations in Ilfov County, including Voluntari, a house in Tunari, and an apartment in Pipera. DIICOT states that Andrew Tate established an environment of continuous surveillance, emotional blackmail, threats of abandonment, and physical violence to force the victim into webcam broadcasts and pornographic production.
Financial proceeds and administrative roles
Investigators claim Tristan Tate took an active operational role starting in November 2014, knowing the victim's age and recruitment method. He managed her online accounts, tracked daily schedules, set revenue quotas, and handled the collection of payments while also using physical abuse. According to the indictment, the defendants extracted $1,251,833.30 from the victim between 2012 and December 2021, representing approximately 80% of the total earnings generated by her video chat work. Prosecutors also accuse the brothers of offering cash, mobile phones, and legal assistance to witnesses and victims in an effort to influence their testimony. DIICOT has requested the confiscation of four luxury vehicles valued together at 825,000 euros, alongside approximately $1.25 million in cash.
Extradition proceedings in the United States
Andrew and Tristan Tate remain held in pretrial detention at a federal facility in Miami, following their arrest in July 2026 on a British extradition warrant. Authorities in the United Kingdom seek their extradition on separate charges of rape, grievous bodily harm, human trafficking, and controlling prostitution for gain involving three individuals, which both men deny. During a hearing before US Federal Judge Lauren Louis, defense counsel argued that Romanian criminal proceedings should take priority over the British extradition request.
Well, I'm telling you right now what happens if they don't return to Romania. They will get life in prison. They will be tried in absentia. They will be convicted, and if they go to the UK and serve 5 years there or win their trial there or win it here in the US, the moment they leave, they will be sentenced to life imprisonment in Romania.
United States prosecutors continue to oppose the brothers' release from custody, and federal judges have yet to issue a final determination on whether to authorize their transfer to the United Kingdom or return them to Romania.
