Tate brothers’ lawyers and prosecutors to set schedule for UK extradition fight

Lawyers for social media influencers Andrew and Tristan Tate are set to meet US federal prosecutors in Miami to work out a schedule for the process of fighting extradition to the UK, where the brothers are accused of rape and sex trafficking.

A date for a bond hearing will likely be set during the status conference, along with other important dates such as deadlines for filings and a formal extradition hearing. The process could potentially take months.

The Tates made a brief court appearance two days after their arrest on July 18.

They are not required to attend Monday’s conference, and their lawyers said on Friday that the Tates have not planned on being there. They are being held in federal detention across the street from the courthouse.

The Tates promote wealth, male dominance and misogyny through their social media empire and are among the world’s most polarising internet personalities.

The former professional kickboxers, who have dual US and UK citizenship, have millions of social media followers and are vocal supporters of US president Donald Trump.

The White House has said the brothers should not expect any help from the president. When asked on Thursday whether the White House would intervene in the extradition process, press secretary Karoline Leavitt flatly rejected the idea.

“No, we’ve already answered that question,” Ms Leavitt said.

The Tates’ lawyer, Joseph McBride, said after last week’s hearing that they should remain in the US.

“We are of course objecting to extradition because Andrew and Tristan are innocent,” Mr McBride said.

“They’ve never done nothing wrong. They shouldn’t be extradited for crimes they did not commit.”

Mr McBride said the extradition attempt is politically motivated and suggested the case involved former prime minister Sir Keir Starmer’s decision to step down, though he provided no details.

Prosecutors in Britain said the new charges relate to four new accusers and were brought after authorities received evidence from UK police in Bedfordshire. The allegations, which span from 2010 to 2017, include rape, assault, trafficking and offenses relating to “indecent images of a child and extreme pornography”.

The brothers are already charged with rape, bodily harm, human trafficking and controlling prostitution for gain relating to three other accusers in the UK between 2012 and 2015.

The new allegations are the latest in a long-running international legal saga involving the Tates that has spanned the US, UK and Romania. The brothers have repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

The brothers moved to Romania in 2016 and were arrested there in 2022, accused of participating in schemes to lure women for sexual exploitation. They denied those allegations, and the Romanian case has not gone forward because of legal and procedural problems.

Travel restrictions were lifted last year, and they flew to Florida.

Andrew Tate, 39, became known a decade ago when he was a contestant on Big Brother. He was booted from the show when a video appeared to show him assaulting a woman.

He has amassed over 10 million followers on X but has been banned from other platforms, including YouTube, TikTok and Instagram, for violating hate speech guidelines. He has made widely condemned comments, such as saying women who are sexually assaulted should bear some responsibility for the attacks and sharing graphic descriptions of how he might attack women.

The Tate brothers have consistently denied allegations of abuse and human trafficking, claiming their violent and misogynistic statements have been taken out of context or were intended as jokes.