07 June 2023 , 09:30
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A fourth woman has claimed that Andrew Tate raped her after choking her unconscious while the pair were getting intimate in 2014, years before his social media fame.
The four-time kick-boxing world champion was already facing three alleged victims in a planned UK civil suit before this latest accusation, which reportedly happened in his hometown of Luton. Tate is already under house arrest in Romania after spending the first four months in a detention centre amid allegations of human trafficking, rape and forming an organised criminal group.
Tate is one of the most well-known personalities on the internet, and last year overtook the likes of US President Donald Trump and Kim Kardashian as the most searched person on Google. After achieving success in kick-boxing at a high level, he and his brother Tristan catapulted to international fame last year when a series of their controversial videos went viral across social media.
Andrew Tate was arrested last year (Uncredited/AP/REX/Shutterstock)The latest accuser, who has become the fourth to speak out about Tate and is planning legal action, claims that they met at a bar in Luton while she was a university student. Speaking with BBC Newsnight, she said: "I think I knew what had happened I didn't consent to. But I didn't see it as rape or sexual assault because this was 10 years ago."
Tate is alleged to have "put his hand on" the woman, who was given the pseudonym of Evie, by the throat and "strangled". "He kept saying: 'I own you, you belong to me'," she claims. "All throughout the night he was being fairly aggressive and saying horrible things."
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Mr Tate said he "vehemently denies" the allegations against him.
A spokesman for Mr Tate told the BBC in response to the allegation: "Andrew strongly encourages women who have experienced assault, in any form, to report it to the relevant authorities. He is saddened that a few opportunistic women who he has allegedly spent time with nearly a decade ago have decided to try and take advantage of his current situation.
Mr Tate said he "vehemently denies" the allegations against him (AFP via Getty Images)"We will not be commenting any further on anyone's alleged intention to pursue legal action unless such action is submitted to the authorities." Mirror Fighting understands that the claims in the civil case relate to personal injury and psychiatric harm as a result of alleged violent sexual and physical assault as well as coercive control.
In an unrelated investigation taking place in Romania, Tate was arrested at the end of last year and forced to spend the final days of 2022 and his first three months of 2023 behind bars with his brother Tristan who was a kick-boxing champion at the European level. They are both still under house arrest under suspicion of human trafficking and forming an organised criminal group.
Tate was eyeing up a return to the fighting world before his arrest, with offers aplenty and ongoing feuds with major YouTube boxers KSI and Logan Paul. But he had dealt with eye injuries late in his kick-boxing career that forced his retirement, and is now facing multiple legal battles.