A woman in the United States has filed a lawsuit against internet personalities Tristan and Andrew Tate, accusing them of conspiring to coerce her into sex work, luring her to Romania, and defaming her after she testified to Romanian authorities, NBC News reports.
The civil complaint, filed in Florida on Monday, marks the first lawsuit against the brothers to be filed in the US, according to a report by the New York Times.
The plaintiff, identified in court documents as Jane Doe, alleges that the Tate brothers attempted to “bully and harass” her through a prior defamation lawsuit they filed against her in 2023. The suit claims the brothers lured her to Romania and then coerced her into sex work.
Doe, 23, and her parents have been granted anonymity by the court due to safety concerns, as reported by the New York Times.
The Tate brothers have been embroiled in numerous legal battles in both Romania and Britain. The accusations against them include forming an organized criminal group, human trafficking, trafficking of minors, sexual intercourse with a minor, and money laundering. They have consistently denied all wrongdoing.
Representatives for the Tate brothers were not immediately available for comment. However, Joseph D. McBride, a lawyer representing the brothers, was quoted by the Times as stating that there is no evidence to support the allegations of human trafficking and that “the truth” is on his clients’ side.
The lawsuit comes amidst ongoing legal proceedings against the Tate brothers in Romania. Just last month, a Romanian court lifted a house arrest order against Andrew Tate, replacing it with a lighter preventative measure as the criminal investigation continues. Andrew Tate was initially placed under house arrest in August following the initiation of a second criminal investigation against him, his brother Tristan, and four other suspects.
A previous criminal case against Andrew Tate was dismissed in December when the Bucharest Court of Appeals ruled against his trial and sent the case back to prosecutors.
The Tate brothers, both former kickboxers holding dual US and British citizenship, are considered the highest-profile suspects facing trial for human trafficking in Romania.
