Andrew Tate, famous social media influencer and alleged trafficker, loses appeal to be released from Romanian prison

Andrew Tate and his brother, who were arrested days ago on charges of rape and human trafficking in Romania, lost an appeal to be released this week and will remain in custody as they await trial.

The two brothers appealed their detention over authorities seizing their assets and lost the appeal on Tuesday.

The controversial British social media influencer and former professional kickboxer, had reportedly been in hiding from law enforcement up until December. Just after Christmas, Tate engaged in a public Twitter feud with climate activist Greta Thunberg, and posted a video that showed a delivery pizza box that appeared to give away gis location. However, Romanian authorities denied that they used the pizza box in catching him.

The court in Bucharest ruled on Tuesday that Tate and his brother shall remain in custody for the remainder of his 30-day detention, and a separate ruling decided their seized assets would remain in the possession of Romanian authorities.

A spokesperson for DIICOT, a Romanian agency that fights organized crime, Ramona Bolla, told The Associated Press this week the judge had “decided that the seizures are legal and (that) the goods remain at our disposal.”

Romanian authorities have seized over a dozen luxury vehicles as well as ten land plots owned by the Tate brothers since their arrest, and can be used to pay off court and investigation costs related to the case as well as compensating the victims.

So far, a total of six victims have been identified by law enforcement. Tate is accused of luring victims to a house under the pretense of a loving relationship, and then keeping them there and forcing them to perform sex acts on and off camera.