Andrew Tate’s ‘private army’: Social media star hired gun-toting bodyguards to patrol his Romanian compound and was so paranoid about his security he revealed he slept with a MACHETE – as neighbours reveal shock at arrest
- The Big Brother star describes himself as a ‘security-conscious individual’
- He has armed guards, hi-tech CCTV control room and his own weapons
- But he was led away in handcuffs in criminal probe into rape and trafficking
‘Security conscious’ Andrew Tate had armed guards, hi-tech CCTV and a range of weapons at his secretive Romanian hideout, he said before his arrest yesterday.
The social media star, 36, previously revealed he is so scared for his safety that he not only has his own private army but he also sleeps next to a machete at his £600,000 bolthole.
The former Big Brother star said the guards are allowed to be armed because the property is registered with the Romanian authorities as a shooting range.
The disgraced influencer was arrested along with his brother and two Romanians as part of a criminal probe into alleged human trafficking and rape. Prosecutors today asked to extend the 24-hour arrest by 30 days.
Andrew Tate hires his own private army at the lavish property but they could do nothing to stop him being led away in handcuffs
In the hideout in Pipera, a wealthy area on the outskirts of Bucharest where US diplomats live, Tate is said to have stashed wads of cash, gold and watches into safes the size of fridges and keeps a coterie of supercars.
He told The Times in September: ‘I’m a security-conscious individual.’
The businessman was asked about a clip online of him saying: ‘Bang out the machete, boom in her face and grip her by the neck. Shut up, b****.’
He replied: ‘That was about me sleeping with a machete next to my bed.’
He claims a girl picked up the machete and said he would chop off his head if he cheated, and he replied saying what he would to do stop her if she tried.
Despite the kickboxing star’s apparent propensity to violence, having been axed from Big Brother for allegedly hitting a woman with a belt, his neighbours in Pipera said they were shocked by his arrest yesterday.
Andrew Tate and Tristan Tate are escorted by police officers outside the headquarters of the Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism in Bucharest
The former Big Brother star said the guards are allowed to be armed because the property is registered with the Romanian authorities as a shooting range
The influencer moved to Romania to avoid police interference, where he hosts his webcam business
Adrian, a gardener, in his mid 20s, said: ‘I have known Andrew for the past three years. Him and his brother have been no trouble in the time that they have been here.
‘I have seen Andrew often driving around in expensive cars, but we have never had any problems with him.’
Another neighbour called Bianca, said: ‘I live around here but I don’t know much, only what I saw at TV.
‘I am surprised by this. They have never disturbed me. They have enjoyed some parties in the past, but nothing to really disturb me.’
The influencer, who claimed he was a ‘trillionaire’ but is believed to be worth £100million, regularly showcases his lavish lifestyle at his concrete fortress.
Interior shots posted on his and his brother’s Instagram pages show plush leather sofas, a hi-tech security room with multiple live CCTV feeds and glass display cases for his kickboxing belts.
One James Bond themed glass wardrobe shows off an array of guns and black jackets.
A wood-panelled cigar room with leather armchairs and desk chairs appears to be the room he recorded his widely-mocked riposte to Greta Thunberg where he was seen smoking a cigar and flexing his pecs.
He also owns a large chessboard as a tribute to his father Emory Tate, an international Master who was among the top 2,000 active players in the world.
A video chat studio is housed 500 yards from the main property, where several women were found during a police raid in April.
From the site, he also runs his ‘Hustler’s Academy’ where 127,000 mostly men and boys pay him £39-a-month for tips on getting rich and dealing with life is another income stream.
The adult webcam mogul had previously said he moved to Romania five years ago with Tristan, who lives on the top floor of the mansion, for less interference by police.
He said in a YouTube video: ‘I’m not a rapist, but I like the idea of just being able to do what I want. I like being free.’
A wood-panelled room with leather armchairs and desk chairs appears to be the room he recorded his widely-mocked riposte to Greta Thunberg
Tate’s Twitter account posted this morning, the day after his arrest: ‘The Matrix sent their agents’
The luxury Romanian compound which was raided by police yesterday was filled with guns, supercars and a chess board dedicated to his Grandmaster father
The influencer regularly showcases his lavish lifestyle at his concrete fortress, with a coterie of 33 supercars
The adult webcam mogul had previously said he moved to Romania for less interference by police
Interior shots posted on his and his brother’s Instagram pages show a hi-tech security room with multiple live CCTV feeds
He added in a separate interview explaining why he was attracted to Romania: ‘I like living in a society where my money, influence, and power means I’m not below or beholden to any of these bulls*** laws.’
But prosecutors have now said the brothers are suspects in an alleged organised crime ring that sexually exploited at least six women, who were recruited, housed and forced into performing pornographic videos for sale online.
This morning, the former Big Brother contestant’s account tweeted: ‘The Matrix sent their agents.’
He made a similar comment as he was being led away in handcuffs by armed officers as he said to the camera: ‘The Matrix has attacked me.’
Tate has previously said he believes we live in a matrix where people are programmed by computers to work until they die, referencing the blockbuster film about a simulated reality.
The concept of the films has been co-opted by a number of far-right conspiracy theorists and men’s rights groups in recent years.
Tate and his brother will face questioning by the country’s organised crime and terrorism team as part of the probe into alleged sex crimes and human trafficking offences.
It’s believed that his online spat with Greta Thunberg contributed to the timing of the raids – which came a day after he taunted the climate activist while posing alongside a Romanian pizza box, potentially confirming his location to authorities.
Today, the teen activist took another swipe at Tate, saying: ‘This is what happens when you don’t recycle your pizza boxes.’
The Swedish eco-activist tweeted this morning: ‘This is what happens when you don’t recycle your pizza boxes’ – in reference to reports that police were tipped to Tate’s location in Bucharest after he released a video of himself sitting beside a Romanian pizza box.
A spokesperson for Tate told DailyMail.com: ‘We cannot provide any details at the moment regarding alleged reports that they have been detained; however, Andrew and Tristan Tate have the utmost respect for the Romanian authorities and will always assist and help in any way they can.’
Tate has previously said he believes we live in a matrix where people are programmed by computers to work until they die
Tate and his brother will face questioning by the country’s organised crime and terrorism team
Police released footage of one of the raids – believed to be at Tate’s front door. Cops refused to name their suspects however footage from the raid clearly matches images of Tate’s home
Tate released a video of himself feuding with eco-activist Greta Thunberg. It’s believed that the pizza box in the video signalled to cops that he was still in Romania
Andrew Tate and Tristan Tate are taken into custody on Thursday. They will be held for 24 hours for questioning in a human trafficking investigation
The US State Department and FBI did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Thursday evening.
Chicago-born Tate, whose full name is Emory Andrew Tate III, has been branded ‘the king of toxic masculinity’ for his online diatribes against women – which have gained him notoriety and millions of followers.
Tate, a former pro kickboxer, first came to prominence when he appeared on the reality show Big Brother in 2016, but was ejected from the show after a video surfaced online which appeared to show him striking a woman with a belt – a clip he claimed had been edited.
Tate’s home in the Eastern European nation was also raided on April 11 this year as part of a human trafficking investigation.
Following the April raid, which was reportedly prompted by a complaint from a US citizen to the American Embassy in Bucharest, the Tate brothers were detained for several hours for questioning but ultimately released as the investigation continued.
Andrew Tate has previously boasted to his followers that ’40 percent’ of the reason he moved to Romania was because the police were less likely to pursue allegations against him.
An image of Andrew Tate (left) sitting in front of a television. The same television unit and wall pattern is seen in the police raid on Thursday (right)
Images from the raid also showed what appeared to be an elaborate home security system and a gorilla made of US currency
In a press release on Thursday, DIICOT – Romania’s police, crime, and investigation unit – said that they had raided five homes after obtaining search warrants.
The raids were executed as part of an ongoing investigation into an organised criminal group, international human trafficking, and rape.
The police statement did not name the suspects at the center of the probe, but said they included two British citizens and two Romanian citizens.
Andrew and Tristan Tate are both dual-citizens of the US and UK. The brothers were born to an American father and British mother, and grew up partially in both countries.
Police said the two British suspects lured female victims using the ‘loverboy method,’ falsely professing their love and intention to marry them.
The victims were then transported to buildings in Ilfov county on the outskirts of Bucharest, where they were ‘sexually exploited’ and forced to perform in pornographic videos for dissemination on social media, the police statement said.
Cops say the suspects used ‘physical violence and mental coercion’ to force the women to comply with their demands, including ‘intimidation, constant surveillance, control and invoking alleged debts.’
Andrew Tate is escorted by police officers outside the headquarters of the Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism in Bucharest
The victims were recruited, housed and forced into performing pornographic videos for sale online, according to prosecutors
Police say a total of six victims have so far come forward claiming they were sexually exploited by the organised criminal group.
Cops did not name the men whose homes were raided in Romania, but images from the raids appeared to clearly match scenes from Tate’s home previously posted on social media.
Police said the four suspects were taken for questioning on Thursday, and police ordered the suspects to be detained for a period of 24 hours.
According to local press reports, the property of a former Romanian policewoman was also raided on Thursday, and she was taken in for questioning as part of the probe.
Born in Chicago, Illinois, but brought up in Luton, England, Tate has garnered a dubious reputation over his various business activities.
Together with his brother Tristan, he allegedly set up a webcam business in Romania in which young models told sob stories to unsuspecting male viewers.
Despite previously saying that the site was ‘a total scam’, Tate claims to have made millions from it.
On Wednesday, Tate found himself in hot water after getting into a Twitter spat with eco-activist Greta Thunberg.
He called her out – and shared a photo of himself filling up his Bugatti supercar, asking her to send him her email address so he could detail the ‘enormous emissions’ his gas-guzzling performance cars spewed out.
Tate tweeted on Tuesday: ‘Hello Greta Thunberg. I have 33 cars. My Bugatti has a w16 8.0L quad-turbo. My TWO Ferrari 812 competizione have 6.5L v12s. This is just the start. Please provide your email address so I can send a complete list of my car collection and its enormous emissions.’
Andrew Tate, the prolific social media personality, had his house raided Thursday. He was arrested and taken for questioning, and will be detained for 24 hours
Tate (pictured) is a prolific social media personality – who boasts his lavish lifestyle online
Tate found himself in hot water after getting into a Twitter spat with eco-activist Greta Thunberg (pictured)
Miss Thunberg issued a brutal comeback in a tweet to her 4.9million followers , saying: ‘Yes, please do enlighten me. Email me at smalld***energy@getalife.com.’
Tate first came to prominence when he appeared on Big Brother in 2016, but was removed from the program after a video surfaced online which appeared to show him attacking a woman with a belt – a clip he claimed had been edited.
Since then, he has gained further notoriety for a string of comments about women, including suggesting that they ‘bear some responsibility’ if they are assaulted – an incident which led to him being banned from Twitter.
Tate had been banned from Twitter since 2017 until Elon Musk allowed him back on the platform last month.