- Romanian authorities have seized a fleet of luxury cars as part of an investigation into controversial influencer Andrew Tate.
- Tate was arrested as part of a human trafficking investigation in December.
Romanian authorities have seized a fleet of luxury cars as part of an investigation into controversial influencer Andrew Tate, Reuters reports.
Tate is a former kickboxer turned online influencer known for his misogynistic views. His fleet of luxury cars went viral after he tweeted a photo of them to climate activist Greta Thunberg,bragging about his 33 cars and their "enormous emissions"
The two had a Twitter feud that when massively viral. Shortly after, Tate was arrested as part of a human trafficking investigation in Romania.
Reuters reports that they witnessed several luxury cars, including a Rolls-Royce, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz, being taken from Tate's estate in Bucharest, Romania, on Saturday.
The seizing of Tate's property began earlier this week when authorities took 11 cars belonging to Tate and his brother, who is also a part of the human trafficking investigation.
Ramona Bolla, a spokesperson for Romania's DIICOT investigations agency, told Insider's Lindsay Dodgson that the vehicles were being held to "sustain the cost of the investigation" into Tate and that they would also be collateral to fund any payments awards to their alleged victims.
Romanian prosecutors alleged that Tate and his brother, who has been under criminal investigation since April 2022, have exploited women at their mansion in Bucharest.
The prosecutors alleged the brothers had "created an organized crime group with the purpose of recruiting, housing and exploiting women by forcing them to create pornographic content meant to be seen on specialized websites for a cost," according to Reuters.
The brothers were arrested on December 29. The pair are being held in a Romanian jail for 30 days. An appeal to be released was denied on the ground that they might be a flight risk.