Andrew Tate: Police can seize more than £2m from Tate brothers, court rules

A court has decided that law enforcement can take over more than £2 million from the controversial influencer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan. This action comes after they did not pay taxes on £21 million earned from their online ventures.

The police in Devon and Cornwall had attempted to take control of the money stored in seven frozen bank accounts belonging to the brothers and another individual known as J.

The head judge at Westminster Magistrates' Court stated that what seemed to be a "complicated financial situation" was, in reality, a "simple act of defrauding the tax authorities."

Andrew Tate referred to the decision as "unjust" and described it as a "planned assault."

Investigators have connected part of the earnings to the accusations of human trafficking that the brothers are facing in Romania.

The court earlier learned that the brothers had deposited nearly $12 million (£9.5 million) into an account registered in J's name.

Additionally, they set up a second account in her name, despite the fact that she was not involved in their online ventures, such as the War Room, Hustlers' University, Cobra Tate, and OnlyFans, as stated during the hearing.

Some of the funds that the police sought to confiscate were digital currency stored in an account registered under J's name.

Lawyers representing Devon and Cornwall Police informed the court that Andrew Tate openly stated he had not settled his tax obligations in the UK. They highlighted that his strategy was to "ignore, ignore, ignore, believing that eventually, the authorities would lose interest."

The authorities contended that the brothers' documented income of £21 million from 2014 to 2022 appeared to be unusual since they lacked "noteworthy qualifications, business background, recognized enterprises, stock holdings, intellectual property, or comparable assets."

In favor of the police, Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring stated that the brothers had not provided any proof regarding their tax payments. However, their attorneys maintained that the transfer of funds was part of lawful business operations.

In his written decision, the judge expressed that he was "convinced" the brothers had "participated in ongoing, intentional actions to avoid paying their taxes."

The authorities have the ability to confiscate a total of £2,683,345, which includes digital currencies.

After the decision was announced, Andrew Tate claimed he had been a target of "the system" and accused others of "blatant stealing."

"It's a planned assault on anyone who has the courage to question the established order," he stated.

"Challenge the system, and they will attack your freedom, tarnish your reputation, and threaten your way of life."

Andrew Tate has been removed from TikTok, YouTube, and Facebook due to allegations of hate speech and misogynistic remarks. However, he still has a presence on X, where he has over 10 million followers.

In June of the previous year, Romanian authorities filed charges against him for rape, human trafficking, and establishing a criminal organization.

Tristan Tate is accused of human trafficking, with Romanian officials stating that the case involves seven supposed victims who were lured in with deceptive offers of love and marriage.

The Tate brothers reject the accusations made against them.

Judge Goldspring mentioned that one of the accounts was utilized for transferring funds in connection with the accusations.

"I am pleased to confirm that this account has been utilized for payments related to female complainants in the Romanian allegations, as well as for important transactions to co-defendants involved in the criminal case in Romania," he stated.

The Romanian criminal courts will ultimately decide if the webcam business activities of the respondent brothers constitute modern slavery or other crimes.

"For the purposes of this discussion, I am confident that none of these funds were reported to the tax authorities in the UK or Romania."

He stated that this backed up his belief that the financial dealings of the brothers show clear signs of coordinated tax evasion and money laundering.

When the duo was first charged with concealing the money from tax officials, they informed the court that they planned to present testimony from a professional accountant.

That plan was eventually dropped, and Judge Goldspring stated that they ultimately did not present any evidence to refute the police's claims.

Devon and Cornwall Police expressed their approval of the judge's ruling.

A representative from the police stated, "From the very beginning, our goal has been to show that Andrew and Tristan Tate avoided paying taxes and funneled money through bank accounts in Devon."

It is claimed that both individuals hid the true sources of their income by using 'front' accounts to manage their funds. This behavior is considered illegal and makes their earnings derived from criminal activity.

"We will hold off on making any additional statements until the 28-day appeal timeframe is over."

In a different matter, Bedfordshire Police is pursuing the extradition of the Tate brothers back to the UK concerning accusations of rape and human trafficking, which they have rejected.

A judge in Bucharest has stated that the extradition request will be addressed only after the case in Romania is resolved.