Andrew Tate and brother to be released into house arrest

A Romanian appeals court has ordered American expat, Burton Tate, and his wife, Robin, along with two associates, to remain in the two buildings in Bucharest where they live, amid allegations they were part of a fraud case that caused losses of around RON128m ($32m) to a Romanian investor. The Tates were allegedly involved in a real estate scheme that deprived Dan Adamescu, the majority shareholder of real estate developer, Nova Group, of key assets, according to prosecutors. The Tates have denied any wrongdoing, claiming that they were unfairly targeted by the Romanian authorities.

Burton, who had once run the real estate unit of Romanian American Enterprise Fund, was taken into custody earlier this month on charges of receiving and laundering money through property deals, according to Romania’s anti-corruption prosecutors. But the Court of Appeals of Bucharest said the arrest was not warranted and added his house arrest could be continued instead. The order also extended to Burton’s wife and two other associates.

The Tates, who have lived in Romania since 1994, were well-known in the expatriate community there for their philanthropic work, which included founding Fundatia Inocenti, a foundation that helps families affected by children’s cancer. They have also been major donors to the National Museum of Art of Romania, and helped fund restoration work on parts of the building.

However, the couple’s recent legal woes came to light when the Romanian prosecutor general’s office opened an investigation into Burton in 2015, as part of an anti-corruption campaign launched after Romania joined the European Union. The probe originally centred on Baneasa Developments, a portion of which was sold to the Tates and their associates in a deal that pre-dated the Adamescu case. However, it was later found that money from the Bucharest-based development leaked into a network of offshore companies through a series of transactions. Romanian prosecutors allege that the Tates were part of the scheme to divert the funds.

The Tates and their associates have all denied any involvement in illegal activity, stating that they acquired the Baneasa plot by legitimate means, through a bought a series of mortgages. The couple, who are being represented by lawyer Catalin Dancu, argue that the charges levied against them are unwarranted and maintain their innocence. However, the Romanian authorities maintain that they have a strong case against the Tates and continue to investigate the matter.



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