- China says will issue special bonds to boost ailing economy
- China offers $325 bn in fiscal stimulus for ailing economy
- Dodgers drop Padres 2-0 to advance in MLB playoffs
- Alexei Navalny wrote he knew he would die in prison in new memoir
- Last-minute legal ruling allows betting on US election
- Despite hurricanes, Floridians refuse to leave 'paradise'
- Israel observes Yom Kippur amid firestorm over Lebanon strikes
- Trump demonizes migrants in dark, misleading speech
- X says 'alert' to manipulation efforts after pro-Russia bots report
- US, European markets rise before Boeing unveils sweeping job cuts
- Small Quebec company dominates one part of NHL hockey: jerseys
- Comoros shock Tunisia, Salah, Mbeumo strike in AFCON qualifiers
- Boeing to cut 10% of workforce as it sees big Q3 loss
- Germany win in Nations League as 10-man Dutch rescue point
- Undav brace sends Germany to victory against Bosnia
- Israel says fired at 'threat' near UN position in Lebanon
- Want to film in Paris? No sexism allowed
- Ecuador's last mountain iceman dies at 80
- Milton leaves at least 16 dead, millions without power in Florida
- Senegal set to announce breakaway development agenda: PM
- UN says 2 peacekeepers wounded in south Lebanon explosions
- Injury-hit Australia thrash 'embarrassing' Pakistan at Women's T20 World Cup
- Internal TikTok documents show prioritization of traffic over well-being
- Israel says fired at 'immediate threat' near UN position in Lebanon
- New US coach Pochettino hails Pulisic but worries over workload
- Brazil orders closure of 2,000 betting sites
- UK govt urged to raise pro-democracy tycoon's case with China
- Sculptor Lalanne's animal creations sell for $59 mn
- From Tesla to Trump: Behind Musk's giant leap into politics
- US, European markets rise as investors weigh rates, earnings
- In Colombia, children trade plastic waste for school supplies
- Supercharged hurricanes trigger 'perfect storm' for disinformation
- JPMorgan Chase profits top estimates, bank sees 'resilient' US economy
- Djokovic proves staying power as he progresses to Shanghai semi-finals
- Sheffield Utd boss Wilder 'numb' after Baldock death
- Little progress at key meet ahead of COP29 climate summit
- Fans immerse themselves in Marina Abramovic's first China exhibition
- Israel says conducting review after UN peacekeepers wounded in Lebanon
- 'Party atmosphere': Skygazers treated to another aurora show
- Djokovic 'overwhelmed' after 'greatest rival' Nadal's retirement
- Zelensky in Berlin says hopes war with Russia will end next year
- Kyrgyzstan opens rare probe into glacier destruction
- European Mediterranean states discuss Middle East, migration
- Djokovic proves staying power as progresses to Shanghai semi-finals
- Hurricane Milton leaves at least 16 dead as Florida cleans up
- Britain face 'ultimate challenge' in America's Cup duel with New Zealand
- Lebanon calls for 'immediate' ceasefire in Israel-Hezbollah war
- Nihon Hidankyo: Japan's A-bomb survivors awarded Nobel
- Thunberg leads pro-Palestinian, climate protest in Milan
- Boat captain rescued clinging to cooler in Gulf of Mexico after storm Milton
Andrew Tate: Misogynist influencer facing growing legal jeopardy
Showing off his muscles, cigars and fast cars, influencer Andrew Tate's videos on social media have captured the attention of millions of teenage boys.
But the 37-year-old US-born Briton is also accused of human trafficking in Romania, and police said Tuesday that he was taken into custody on UK sex offence charges.
This legal trouble follows a growing notoriety built on sexist and sometimes violent maxims, including Tate saying that women cannot be independent and placing blame on victims of rape or assaulted.
The former kickboxing champion's controversial output has made him one of the world's best-known influencers, and a self-proclaimed multi-millionaire with a fleet of fast cars and properties.
Yet Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan have been awaiting trial in Romania on charges of human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal group to sexually exploit women.
The men had been out of custody but were arrested Monday evening at their home near Bucharest on the UK case.
Lawyers for four British women who accuse Tate of rape and serious physical and sexual assaults said the UK warrant followed their warnings to police that he planned to flee Romania.
Tate's spokesperson said the UK charges date back to 2012-2015 and that the brothers deny all the accusations against them.
Throughout most of his legal woes, he has been posting on X (formerly Twitter), where he currently has almost nine million followers.
"The Matrix is afraid, but I only fear God," his handle, "Cobratate", posted Tuesday.
- Online rise -
Tate was born in the United States in 1986 and has US citizenship, according to his website.
But after his parents separated, he grew up with his mother and brother in Luton, north of London. He has lived in Romania for several years.
Before his rise to fame on social media, Tate was a professional kickboxer who gained the title of world champion.
He first came to wider attention by appearing as a contestant on Britain's "Big Brother" reality show in 2016. But he was quickly ejected after a video emerged showing him hitting a woman.
He then turned his focus to building his online presence, founding the so-called Hustler's University, initially on the social media platform Discord.
It promises customers paying at least the $50 joining fee "hands-on tutorials, dedicated millionaire mentors, a supportive community".
He also runs an online platform called "Tate's war room" -- charging nearly $8,000 to access -- which promises "to free the modern man from socially induced incarceration".
The Tate brothers claim they were once "broke" but are now "self-made multi-millionaires".
Tate has become increasingly prominent in the mainstream media, going viral in December 2022 after aggressively challenging climate change activist Greta Thunberg online.
"Please provide your email address so I can send a complete list of my car collection and their respective enormous emissions", he wrote to her, posting a photo of him filling a Bugatti with petrol.
Thunberg's crushing reply referencing his "smalldickenergy" was retweeted over 570,000 times in the immediate aftermath.
- De-platformed -
In August 2022, he was banned from social media platforms, including Instagram and TikTok, for misogynist messages.
His previous Twitter account was allowed back, however, after Elon Musk bought the company and renamed it X.
His attitudes towards women have proved increasingly controversial as his mainstream profile has grown.
Many adults have only learned of his outsized influence on young men in recent years -- in Britain in part when teachers started sounding the alarm.
In 2022, the words "Andrew Tate" were among the most searched on Google.
"There's no such thing as an independent female", Tate said in one podcast.
He also said: "I'm a realist and when you're a realist, you're sexist".
Tate describes how he would hit a woman who accused him of cheating on her and says that women who are assaulted or raped are to blame.
Following his 2022 arrest, his messages on X began to take on a different tone, quoting Nelson Mandela and the Koran.
Having declared himself an atheist, he claims to have converted to Islam, wishing his followers a blessed Ramadan two days ago.
His X account's posts have also become increasingly political and centred around far-right talking points.
"Europe is done. Western Europe is 0% European anywhere," stated a message last week.
"White girls get raped and murdered by migrants every day and the news won't show it."
P.Mathewson--AMWN