Tate brothers vow to fight UK extradition on rape and sex trafficking charges

MIAMI — Social media influencers Andrew and Tristan Tate appeared handcuffed and shackled in federal court Monday as their attorneys vowed to fight an extradition request from the United Kingdom on sex-crime charges, including rape and sex trafficking. The brothers, who were arrested by US Marshals Saturday on their way to a bare-knuckle boxing event in Miami, remain in custody after the hearing. The brothers were already facing rape and human trafficking charges in the UK over allegations from 2012 to 2015. New charges were brought Sunday after Bedfordshire Police investigated reports made by four additional victims, UK authorities said. Attorneys for the brothers, who are dual US and UK citizens, asked for their release pending the outcome of the case. One of those attorneys, Joseph McBride, has said they are innocent and has publicly pleaded with the Trump administration to intervene. The brothers waived their attendance for the next hearing, which has been scheduled for next Monday, during their appearance in court. Both Andrew and Tristan Tate remained in custody as of Monday afternoon. McBride said they have spent multiple days in solitary confinement. During the brief hearing, the judge emphasized the full extradition process has not been formally completed and Monday's hearing was not a criminal proceeding. Before the hearing, McBride referenced the Trump administration, specifically Secretary of State Marco Rubio — who has the final say on extradition requests — framing the case as a prosecution against free speech. But as of Monday, Rubio — who retains discretion to deny extradition — had not spoken to the Tate brothers or their lawyers, and the State Department had “no plans to act” on their effort to fight the UK's extradition request, a senior State Department official told CNN. President Donald Trump is also not expected to get involved in the extradition case, two sources familiar with the matter told CNN. Andrew Tate faces 42 charges, including rape, human trafficking, indecent images of a child and assault, according to the UK Crown Prosecution Service and Bedfordshire Police. Tristan Tate faces 17 charges, including sexual assault, rape and trafficking, according to officials, bringing the total to 59 charges between them. The extradition request followed an investigation by the UK Crown Prosecution Service, which said the alleged offenses were reported by seven women and took place in the East of England, north of London, between 2010 and 2017. “We are thankful to the United States and United Kingdom authorities for courageously pursuing justice with the arrest and extradition of accused sex traffickers Andrew and Tristan Tate,” said Dani Pinter, chief legal officer and director of the Law Center at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, which represents a client it says was coerced into a sex trafficking operation in Romania by the brothers. “Most importantly, our client Jane Doe and her family, who have been victims of a campaign of harassment and witness intimidation at the hands of the Tate brothers, are safer,” Pinter said. After their 2022 arrest in Romania, the Tate brothers were prohibited from leaving the country. But after Romanian authorities lifted the travel restrictions on the pair last year, they flew to Florida on a private jet. The extradition process requires a hearing before a US judge to determine whether the treaty's requirements are met, but the final decision rests with Rubio. The brothers have the option to mount legal challenges. The extradition process can take months, depending on what challenges are brought, legal experts said. The Justice Department confirmed the arrests “were made in accordance with the treaties and law enforcement agreements governing Justice Department extraditions.” The arrests were approved by the leaders of the department's criminal division, a source told CNN. McBride argued that the UK's extradition request interferes with the brothers' legal cases in Florida and Romania. “There is a long-standing agreement between the UK and Romanian governments that the UK would not seek extradition while the Romanian proceedings are pending,” McBride said. “Those proceedings are ongoing right now. That agreement exists because no nation gets to trample the judicial sovereignty of another for political convenience.” Romanian courts ruled in 2024 the brothers should be extradited to the UK once their Romanian case concludes, British prosecutors previously said. Any agreement or understanding between British and Romanian authorities would not legally bind the United States, which was not a party to it. The Tates are ardent Trump supporters, and allies of the brothers have been reaching out to people in Trump's orbit in hopes of building a campaign in support of them, a source familiar with the matter told CNN. Despite reports the Trump administration pressed Romanian authorities to ease restrictions on the brothers last year, White House officials said the US government had no direct role in bringing them to Florida, and Romania's foreign minister said he did not face pressure to lift the restrictions. McBride appears to be nodding to a “political offense” exception in the US-UK extradition treaty, framing the UK's sex-offense charges as a politically motivated prosecution. “Yes, it's politically motivated. There's no question about it. These guys went to DC to exercise their First Amendment rights. They met with members of Congress as private citizens. They met with friends in Washington, DC. They walked the grounds of the Capitol, and three days later, they're in the jumpsuit,” McBride told reporters Monday morning. “You do the math.” McBride said he believes Trump administration officials “are not fans of communism” and wouldn't want to see the brothers jailed for “free speech.”