Andrew and Tristan Tate arrested in Miami on UK extradition warrant
U.S. marshals detained the influencer brothers on a sealed warrant as British prosecutors seek extradition over rape and trafficking allegations.
By Sofia Marchetti · World Affairs Correspondent
3 min read
Andrew Tate and Tristan Tate were arrested Saturday in Miami as British authorities moved to extradite them on rape and sex trafficking charges. The arrests put the United States into a case that has already involved prosecutors and courts in Romania and the United Kingdom, according to The Associated Press.
Brady McCarron, a spokesperson for the U.S. Marshals Service, told the AP that the brothers were taken into custody on a sealed warrant. A person familiar with the matter told the AP that the brothers are expected to appear in federal court in Miami early next week; the person spoke anonymously to discuss sensitive law enforcement operations.
British prosecutors seek extradition
The U.K.’s Crown Prosecution Service said Saturday that it is seeking the brothers’ extradition over allegations that they raped and trafficked women from 2010 to 2017, the AP reported. British authorities have said the alleged crimes occurred in an area north of London, where the brothers grew up.
The brothers, who hold U.S. and British citizenship, moved to Romania in 2016. Romanian authorities arrested them in 2022 over accusations that they helped lure women into sexual exploitation, the AP reported. The brothers denied the Romanian allegations, and that case has not advanced because of legal and procedural issues, according to the AP.
Romanian authorities allowed the brothers to leave the country last year, and they traveled to Florida by private jet, the AP reported.
Lawyers for Andrew Tate, 39, and Tristan Tate, 38, have said the brothers deny the U.K. allegations. Joseph McBride, an attorney for the brothers, told the AP on Saturday evening that he had not yet spoken with his clients and called the British charges “filth and slander” aimed at interfering with defamation lawsuits the brothers filed in the United States.
“They’re pulling out all the stops to make sure these guys never get their day in court,” McBride told the AP.
New charges announced in Britain
The Crown Prosecution Service said the case includes charges announced in 2025 involving alleged crimes against three women, and 38 additional charges tied to “four further victims,” according to the AP.
British authorities accuse both brothers of rape and human trafficking, the AP reported. Andrew Tate also faces a charge of profiting from prostitution and 19 counts tied to indecent images of a child and extreme pornography, according to U.K. authorities cited by the AP.
Karena Thomas, an assistant chief constable with Bedfordshire Police, which investigated the case, said the department would continue supporting victims and investigating reports. “There is no place for male violence against women and girls,” Thomas said, according to the AP.
Online influence and bans
Andrew Tate became known to a wider audience in 2016 as a contestant on the British reality show “Big Brother.” He was removed from the program after a video appeared to show him assaulting a woman, the AP reported.
The brothers later built a large online following around messages about wealth, masculinity and male dominance. Andrew Tate has more than 10 million followers on X, according to the AP, but he has been banned from YouTube, TikTok and Instagram for violating hate speech rules.
The AP reported that Andrew Tate’s criticized statements include comments saying women who are sexually assaulted should carry some responsibility for the attacks, descriptions of violence against women and attacks on people seeking mental health care. The brothers have denied abuse and trafficking allegations and have said violent or misogynistic remarks were taken out of context or meant as jokes, according to the AP.
This story draws on original reporting from Fortune.