Andrew Tate, a controversial online influencer, and former professional kickboxer, was detained in Romania on Friday on charges of human trafficking and rape.
The former kickboxer and social media personality, who has been banned on several social media platforms for misogynistic comments and hate speech, was arrested along with his brother and two other suspects.
The move comes just days after Tate had a heated Twitter exchange with Swedish environmentalist Greta Thunberg, which internet users speculate has helped Romanian police find and arrest her.
Read this also | ‘We deliver swift justice’: Jerry Pizza’s jibe goes viral amid Andrew Tate controversy
A viral Twitter exchange between Tate and Thunberg this week fueled speculation on social media, from “heavy-emission” cars to pizza boxes.
After the arrest, there were many questions on people’s mind such as whether there was any connection between the verbal dispute between Greta Thunberg and Tate’s arrest as to whether the pizza box led to the arrest.
News18 explains all the queries regarding the arrest:
Why was Andrew Tate arrested?
Tate and his brother Tristan Tate, both American-British citizens, were arrested along with two others in connection with an “organized crime group” that used to recruit, house and exploit women for the purpose of forcing them to make pornographic material. were doing, meant to be seen specifically. websites for the cost,” according to Romanian officials.
Authorities said the men recruited the women by “misrepresenting their intention to enter into a marriage/cohabitation relationship and the existence of genuine feelings of love”. Afterwards, the victims were subjected to “physical violence and psychological coercion”, sexually abused by members of the group and forced to perform pornographic acts with the intention of obtaining “significant financial gain”.
Was the pizza box arrested?
Several reports last week claimed that a pizza box helped police locate Tate’s whereabouts, leading to his arrest. Memes in a social media video response to climate activist Greta Thunberg and a widely shared image of Tate eating from a pizza box led to speculation that a local pizza place gave away his location.
but the Romanian law enforcement agency Confirmed that Jerry’s Pizza Box Ultimately, Andrew Tate was not arrested. Ramona Bolla, a spokeswoman for the Directorate of Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIIOCT), told The Washington Post that their arrests came after a months-long investigation and the “hard work” of “gathering all the evidence”.
Read this also | Elon Musk Unbanning Kanye West, Andrew Tate’s Twitter Accounts Cause Outcry
Prosecutors have been investigating the suspects since early 2021 and had already searched Tate’s villa in April.
According to a DIIOCT spokesperson, the description of the pizza box ultimately disclosing its location is incorrect.
“Funny, but no,” the spokesperson told The Associated Press.
long misogynist past
Andrew Tate has a long misogynistic past and was removed from several social media platforms.
He returned to Twitter in 2017 after being banned for violating its terms of service when he tweeted that rape victims “carry some responsibility”.
In August this year, he was banned from YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok after violating the platform’s hate speech policies.
However, his Twitter account was recently reinstated in November after being owned by Elon Musk, who reinstated previously suspended accounts.
Read this also | ‘Better to make pizza at home’: Elon Musk Romania takes a dig at Andrew Tate after his arrest
He promotes a lavish, violent and “playboy” lifestyle where he portrays himself as someone who “gets what he wants” and asks others to follow his teachings. .
Row With Greta Made Arrest Prominent
The immediate thought that ran through people’s minds after Tate’s arrest was: was his detention related to his feud with Greta Thunberg?
Simple answer is no.
The Council of Europe, through the Group of Experts on Action Against Human Trafficking (GRETA), last year urged Romania to effectively prosecute human trafficking.
You can’t make it up. Romanian authorities were urged last year by GRETA, a group of experts against human trafficking, to effectively prosecute human traffickers. pic.twitter.com/rPsX2PD244— Alejandra Caraballo (@Esqueer_) December 29, 2022
On Tuesday, Tate tweeted the 19-year-old Swedish activist to tell her about her car collection and asked for her email address “so that I can send a complete list of my car collection and their associated heavy emissions.”
Greta replied, “Yes, please enlighten me. Email me at smalldickenergy@getalife.com.”
His reaction has been viewed nearly 275 million times on 28 December and has been shared over 670,000 times on the platform as of 31 December.
In another video, Tate smokes a cigar in a cloak while an off-camera person hands him a stack of pizza boxes from Romanian pizza chain Jerry’s Pizza.
This is what happens when you don’t recycle your pizza box – Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) December 30, 2022
He was arrested on 29 December.
Although netizens had jokes and big laughs over the Twitter spat, Greta was not linked to Tate’s arrest. Authorities also denied a connection between the Twitter feud and Tate’s arrest.
read all latest explainer here