Andrew Tate is being held in Romania on suspicion of rape and human trafficking

Controversial internet influencer Andrew Tate was detained in Romania as a result of an investigation into rape and people trafficking.

While being kept hostage, Tate and his brother Tristan were assaulted at their house in Bucharest, the nation's capital.

A police spokesman provided the BBC with confirmation of the arrests.

After getting out from the British television show Big Brother in 2016 after a video that allegedly showed him beating a woman, the former kickboxer rose to fame.

He subsequently garnered notoriety online and was banned from Twitter as a consequence of his remarks that women should "bear responsibility" for being sexually assaulted. Later, he was given another chance.

He became famous by supporting a super-masculine, super-luxurious lifestyle, particularly among young men, despite social media bans.

He often appeared in recordings while flying on his private jet, operating a fleet of expensive sports cars, and enjoying opulent holidays.

According to a DIICOT officer who spoke to the BBC, the influencer was to be held in a "detention facility" for a further 30 days at the request of the prosecution.

A court will decide on the application on Friday afternoon, the spokeswoman said. The brothers and two Romanian nationals have been the subject of an investigation since April.

The four suspects "appear to have established an organized criminal gang to recruit, house, and exploit women by pressuring them to make pornographic footage meant to be watched on specialty websites for a price," according to a statement from DIICOT.

Tate and his brother were seen being led out of an opulent mansion in a social media video.

Tate was unable to provide the Daily Mirror any details on the arrest, according to a spokeswoman for Tate. He said, "Andrew and Tristan Tate, however, have the highest esteem for the Romanian authorities and will always collaborate and help in any way they can.

Later, a tweet from Andrew Tate's Twitter account referred to the 1999 movie The Matrix, which he often brings up in his posts.

"The Matrix sent its spies," read the message. Additionally, Elon Musk, the owner of Twitter, released Matrix memes that were posted by the account.

A statement issued on Thursday night by Romania's Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism said that two residents of Britain and two residents of Romania were allegedly participating in a human trafficking network. However, the message made no mention of the Tate brothers.

According to the statement, police had discovered six people who had been "sexually exploited" by what was described as an "organized criminal group."

According to police, the British nationals "recruited" the victims by seeming to be interested in dating them, a tactic known as "the loverboy approach."

According to the statement, they were subsequently coerced into participating in pornographic content out of fear of harm.

In a video of the raid that the police also made available to the public, there were weapons, knives, and money on show in one area.

Tate visited Romania in the last five years. According to online sources, Tate's uploading of a video insulting the environmental activist Greta Thunberg was what alerted authorities to his presence in the country.

In the video he posted, he was seen receiving a pizza box from a neighboring eatery, which some claim unwittingly revealed his location.

But nobody believes the pizza box to be significant.

The disagreement with the activist began earlier this week when Tate, 36, tagged the 19-year-old in a post boasting about the "enormous pollution" produced by his fleet of cars.

After being arrested, she tweeted regarding the circulating story, "This is what happens when you don't recycle your pizza boxes."

Before becoming well-known worldwide, Tate, a US-born British citizen, participated professionally in kickboxing and won world championships.

In 2016, he entered the Big Brother house, but he was swiftly sent out when a video emerged that allegedly showed him using a belt to hit a woman.

Tate called the video "a blatant fabrication trying to make myself feel bad" and claimed it had been edited at the time of his expulsion.

Mr. Tate's access to social media platforms including YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram has been restricted due to his declaration that "misogyny is a terrible philosophy that is not accepted." He was also taken off of TikTok.

He was previously banned from Twitter, but since Elon Musk took over, he has been allowed to use it again.