Andrew Tate charged with rape and human trafficking

Andrew Tate has been charged with rape, human trafficking and forming organised crime group to sexually exploit women.

Officials have said Romanian prosecutors are sending Tate to trial alongside his brother Tristan and two other suspects.

All four suspects have been charged with human trafficking offences and of constituting an organised crime group.

Andrew Tate has also been charged with raping one of the victims, while his brother Tristan has been charged with instigating others to violence.

All four suspects are all currently under house arrest while an investigation into accusations made by seven women are investigated.

Twitter/@CobraTate

The trial will not start immediately and is expected to take several years.

All four suspects have denied the allegations.

A Romanian judge now has 60 days to inspect the case files before it can be sent to trial.

Earlier this month, Romanian prosecutors announced that they have changed the charge of human trafficking.

Reuters reported on 13 June, that prosecutors said that Tate, his brother and two other suspects were now being investigated for human trafficking in continued form.

They said it was a more serious crime than the separate counts of trafficking that officials had previously been investigating.

Legal representatives for Andrew and Tristan Tate said that the change to the charges was in their 'legal interest'.

They said: "The legal framework has been revised and altered to ensure an impartial investigation is upheld."

Twitter/Andrew Tate

Romania's Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) notified the four accused that their charge of human trafficking they were investigating had been changed to trafficking in continued form.

Tate and his brother were first arrested at their home in Bucharest, Romania, on 29 December and they remained in custody until 31 March, after which they were placed under house arrest.

At the initial time of arrest, DIICOT said the six victims they had initially identified had been subjected to 'acts of physical violence and mental coercion' by the alleged crime group.

The indictment deposited with the Bucharest court now names seven alleged victims who claim they were recruited by the Tate brothers through false promises of love and marriage.

Tate is an infamous social media influencer who has gained notoriety for posting content containing controversial and, at times, misogynistic views.

Past clips from Tate have seen him say he believes women are the 'property' of men and likening being in a relationship with a woman to 'training a dog'.