Social media influencers Andrew and Tristan Tate have sought to persuade a US judge they were playing characters online when they made crude, outlandish statements, as they seek release on bail from a Miami jail.
The Tate brothers were seeking to pre-empt federal prosecutors' argument that they should remain detained as they contest extradition to Britain, where they face charges of rape, assault and facilitating trafficking, because they would pose a danger to the community if released.
After the Tates testified, prosecutor Abbie Waxman showed the court a video of Andrew Tate saying, “slap, slap, grab, choke, shut up bitch, sex.”
"They promote incredible violence against women," Waxman said.
"It is not a character, it is who they are."
The Tates recruited dozens of women to work for a webcam pornography business starting in 2014, and later ran online courses called "Hustler's University," prosecutors with the Miami US Attorney's office said in an August 10 court filing.
The brothers were arrested in Miami on July 18 after Britain requested their extradition. The Tate brothers, who have dual US and British citizenship, have denied any wrongdoing.
The former kickboxers have built a large online following promoting their views on masculinity and wealth. Andrew Tate, 39, has previously described himself as a misogynist.
On the witness stand, Andrew Tate said he stopped saying "stupid things" on the internet when he was first arrested in Romania about five years ago. The brothers face human trafficking charges in Romania.
"Top G is a caricature," he said, referring to an online moniker that he called a "hyperbolic character."
"I do this to shake men out of apathy," he said.
Tristan Tate, 38, testified he and his brother played characters online to help their posts gain traction.
"It’s his flamboyant, outlandish, sometimes crude comedy that makes him go viral," Tristan Tate said, referring to his brother. "He’s the only person in the world who is judged by a character that he plays."
It was unclear if the strategy would succeed in convincing US Magistrate Judge Lauren Louis they would not pose a danger to the community or pose a flight risk if released. Prosecutors say there is a strong presumption in favour of detention in extradition cases.
At the hearing, the brothers were shackled at the feet, wore beige prison garb and sported beards.
The Tates' defence lawyers proposed that Louis release them on the conditions they post bond, surrender their passports and submit to location monitoring.
Earlier, the mother of one of Andrew Tate's children, Natasha Sesay, said his sometimes provocative comments online did not reflect who he truly was.
"It’s a very different character between the person that you see online and the person I know," said Sesay, who is expecting another one of Andrew Tate's children next month.
The legal process for determining whether the Tate brothers may be extradited could take months. Britain has until September 16 to submit its full extradition request to the State Department, US court records show.
The impetus for the brothers' arrests in Miami was new charges brought by Britain's Crown Prosecution Service relating to alleged offences involving four alleged victims between July 2010 and August 2017.
They had previously faced rape and human trafficking charges in Britain related to three alleged victims, the CPS said. A British judge issued a warrant for their arrests in 2024. They have not appeared in British court to enter a plea to those charges.
Britain is seeking to extradite the brothers to face both sets of charges.
with AP
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