Brothers Tristan and Andrew Tate are under investigation by one of the toughest DIICOT prosecutors. The magistrate has been at the helm of some of the toughest cases and has been guarded by special forces after allegedly receiving death threats following the arrest of vicious drug dealer Marian Bejan.
After the initial raids in the spring, brothers Tristan and Andrew Tate seemed convinced that investigators did not have enough evidence and expected the case involving human trafficking and rape to be closed.
As a result, the two Britons continued to pose on social media as successful businessmen, living in lavish mansions, driving cars worth hundreds of thousands of euros and relaxing on select holidays in exclusive locations.
In reality, sources in the investigation say, the Tate brothers used this opulence to lure young women who were promised serious relationships but ended up being sexually exploited, a criminal method known as "loverboy".
What Tristan and Andrew Tate didn't know was that the case, which for nine months seemed to be stalling, was coordinated by the chief prosecutor of the DIICOT's Anti-Trafficking in Persons Service, Rareș Petru Stan.
Judicial sources revealed to Gândul that Rareș Petru Stan is one of the toughest anti-mafia prosecutors, who has dealt with famous cases, including the one concerning the fire at the Colectiv club, as well as cases with a particularly high degree of risk.
The sources cited said that prosecutor Stan coordinated the investigation into the group that, from 2017 until November last year, allegedly stole $2 million worth of diesel from the US military base in Mihail Kogălniceanu, but also handled the case in which Marian Bejan, considered one of the most dangerous drug traffickers in Romania, and members of the group controlled by him, which included anti-drug officer Robert Badea, were arrested.
According to investigators, while he was investigating the case in which Bejan was accused of four attempted murders in addition to drug trafficking, Rareș Petru Stan allegedly received death threats and was guarded 24 hours a day by fighters of the Special Gendarmerie Brigade "Vlad Țepeș", trained for anti-terrorist missions.
"Not enough DIICOT prosecutors to investigate human trafficking"
Rareș Petru Stan said on 22 October, during the "Together against human trafficking" debate, that there are too few DIICOT prosecutors and not enough logistical facilities, given the huge number of criminal cases registered.
"The trauma suffered by victims of human trafficking has an impact on those involved in preventing and combating the phenomenon. It is an area that is avoided, I will give you examples: we have found that there is a shortage of human resources, namely prosecutors and police officers involved in the fight against human trafficking. We have identified situations where, for a population of around one million citizens or at the level of a territorial office, two police officers dedicated to the fight against trafficking in human beings work alongside one or two prosecutors", said then Chief Prosecutor Rareș Stan.
The brothers Tristan and Andrew Tate were arrested on Thursday by DIICOT prosecutors, along with two young Romanian women, for setting up an organised criminal group, trafficking in human beings and rape.
Gândul has published the first exclusive images after the arrest of brothers Tristan and Andrew Tate, as well as the two Romanian girls, all of whom were taken out of the DIICOT headquarters on Thursday night, handcuffed, after several hours of hearings, and taken to the Capital's police custody.
They are accused that, together with the two Romanian women, one of whom is a former police officer at the 7th Precinct in Bucharest, they "set up an organised criminal group with a view to committing the crime of trafficking in human beings in Romania and other countries, such as the United States and the United Kingdom".
The first information about the involvement of a former policewoman from Bucharest in the human trafficking ring of brothers Tristan and Andrew Tate was published exclusively by Gândul on Thursday, immediately after the search and arrest of the two Britons from their villa in Pipera.
Investigators revealed that six victims have been identified so far, all recruited through the loverboy method.
"They were then transported and sheltered in properties in Ilfov county where, through acts of physical violence and psychological coercion (through intimidation, constant surveillance, control and the allegation of alleged debts), were sexually exploited by members of the group by being forced to engage in pornographic acts with a view to producing and disseminating such material via social media platforms and by being forced to perform forced labour with a view to obtaining significant financial benefits consisting of sums of money obtained as a result of users accessing the material," the DIICOT announced.
Prosecutors are asking this Friday for the preventive arrest of brothers Tristan and Andrew Tate, as well as the two Romanian women who allegedly supported the human trafficking group.