Amid reports that the Trump administration has urged Romanian authorities to lift travel restrictions on influencer Andrew Tate and his brother, Tristan Tate, as they await trial on charges including human trafficking and sexual misconduct, Andrew Tate criticized former President Joe Biden on social media on Monday.
Newsweek reached out to Andrew Tate’s lawyer and Biden via email for comment.
Why It Matters
The brothers, who hold dual United States and United Kingdom citizenship, were arrested along with two Romanian women in December 2022 on charges of human trafficking, sexual misconduct and money laundering, all of which they deny. Andrew Tate also faces a rape charge.
Their case has garnered significant attention within right-wing social media circles, where they are portrayed as martyrs of political persecution. With a strong following in the “manosphere”—an online movement that promotes male dominance and opposes feminism—the brothers have become influential figures among conservative social media users.
DANIEL MIHAILESCU/AFP/Getty Images
What To Know
According to a report by the Financial Times (FT), U.S. officials initially broached the subject of lifting travel restrictions during a phone call with the Romanian government, advocating for the return of the Tates’ passports and permission for them to travel while awaiting court proceedings.
Andrew Tate, 37, is under house arrest in Romania awaiting trial on human trafficking charges. His brother, 36, and two Romanian women are also awaiting trial.
The diplomatic effort was amplified when Richard Grenell, President Donald Trump’s U.S. envoy for special missions, met with Romanian Foreign Minister Emil Hurezeanu at the Munich Security Conference last week.
When contacted for comment Monday, a spokesperson for Andrew Tate told Newsweek: “We haven’t got anything to add to this specific story as Tate’s legal team gave a comment to the FT.”
Since the reports, Andrew Tate took to X, formerly Twitter, on Monday to criticize Biden and claim, without evidence, that the former president was responsible for his arrest calling it a “USAID sponsored attack.
“It was Biden who locked us up in the first place. USAID sponsored attack. UK foreign office heavily involved. They want me to serve time for tweets. None of the charges against me were ever real. I will do an expose that will blow your minds about the levels of corruption under the democrats and currently still in Europe.”
While it is unclear what exactly Tate is referring to when mentioning the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), his remarks come after Grenell this month alleged that, under Biden’s administration, America’s aid programs had been “weaponized against people and politicians who weren’t woke” and referenced Romania as an example.
“The Biden team spent US taxpayer money to support left wing programs and candidates around the world. Conservatives around the world were targeted. Romania is the latest example,” Grenell wrote on X.
Grenell’s post suggested that funding from USAID has been used to strengthen Romania’s judicial system. The remarks came after the Trump administration announced this month that nearly all USAID workers would be withdrawn from the field amid efforts to dismantle the agency, meaning many programs were put at risk of being ended.
The move followed an earlier freeze on foreign aid. The U.S. pays more in foreign aid than any other country, and dismantling USAID emerged as a key priority for Trump in the early days of his second term.
Andrew Tate’s remarks also came after he has said he would move back to the U.S. following Trump’s election victory in November.
“MAGA!” he told Newsweek at the time.
Details Of Tate’s Case
The Tate brothers were arrested in Bucharest by Romania’s anti-organized crime agency, DIICOT, in December 2022. They have been engaged in an ongoing legal battle with Romanian prosecutors, including fighting home detention and celebrating when their luxury goods seized during DIICOT raids were returned.
Along with allegations of human trafficking, including trafficking minors, DIICOT is also investigating alleged crimes of engaging in sexual acts with a minor, forming an organized criminal group, money laundering and tampering with statements.
The alleged offenses occurred between 2014 and 2024.
Along with the charges in Romania, Tate is the subject of a civil lawsuit by four women in the United Kingdom who accused him of multiple crimes against them between 2013 and 2016, including rape, physical violence and coercive control. Tate denied the claims in the lawsuit.
In March 2024, the Tate brothers were issued with a U.K. arrest warrant for allegations of “sexual aggression” between 2012 and 2015, but it is not known if they relate to the same claims in the civil lawsuit. They again claimed their innocence and slammed a Romanian court’s decision to allow them to be extradited to the U.K. once their criminal trial in Bucharest had concluded.
What People Are Saying
Richard Grenell, U.S. presidential envoy for special missions, told the Financial Times: “I support the Tate brothers, as evident from my publicly available tweets.”
Andrew and Tristan Tate’s attorneys, in a statement: “Their sole focus is on ensuring due process is followed and proving their innocence in a court of law.”
What Happens Next
In December 2024, the Bucharest Court of Appeal ruled that their human trafficking case could not proceed because of legal irregularities, sending it back to prosecutors for review.
Andrew Tate was released from house arrest in January under lighter judicial control, allowing him to travel within Romania. In the U.K., a British court ordered the seizure of about $2.5 million (more than £2 million) from the brothers for unpaid taxes.
