An investigation reveals that Andrew Tate’s fame is being used to sell men around the world a method of abusing women.
Andrew Tate FOTO Profimedia
The BBC uncovered evidence that dozens of women were recruited for online sex work by members of influencer Andrew Tate’s “War Room” online group.
According to the BBC, 45 potential victims were identified between March 2019 and April 2020, but the total number is likely to be higher.
According to the discussions made public, the War Room members seem to believe that they are doing “Pavlovian conditioning” on women: “this is how dogs are trained”, according to a message on the group. Instructions are usually provided by “generals”.
Their method of “training” includes obedience tests, such as forcing women to tattoo War Room members’ initials on their bodies.
Andrew Tate says the War Room group – which one can subscribe to for $8,000 a year – is a network of powerful men and those who want to learn from them. “The War Room Group promotes self-discipline, motivation and building self-confidence, while providing members with access to thousands of professionals from around the world who encourage personal responsibility and accountability, emphasizing the importance of taking responsibility for your choices and actions,” reads a statement issued on behalf of Andrew Tate.
However, leaks from online chats indicate that War Room teaches members, through a so-called “PhD” course – the initials stand for “Pimpin’ Hoes Degree” – how to lure women into sex work.
The latest BBC investigation – featured in the documentary Andrew Tate: The Man Who Groomed the World? – focuses on 12,000 pages of encrypted messages on Telegram sent by the hundreds of members of the “War Room” chat group.
BBC access to the group’s discussions was limited to messages sent over a 13-month period – so the total number of women possibly targeted and exploited by the group, which was formed in 2019, could be much higher.
The BBC investigation suggests that Andrew Tate’s fame is being used to actually sell men around the world a method of abusing women. Andrew Tate denies any wrongdoing and says he is prepared to defend his innocence.
A statement from his representative said what the BBC had uncovered was “another shameless attempt to make one-sided and unverified allegations” against him. The former kickboxer, aged 36, was accused in Romania of rape and human trafficking. On August 4, he was released from house arrest pending trial. His brother, Tristan, and two associates are also indicted, but all proclaim their innocence. ‘Wizard Iggy Semmelweis’ Members of Tate’s group are trained by some of the War Room’s leaders – known as ‘generals’ – to romantically seduce, emotionally manipulate and socially isolate women before enticing them to appear in front of webcams , often taking all or most of the money they earn from video chat.
The messages – obtained exclusively by the BBC – suggest that violence against women was taught and encouraged by some of Andrew Tate’s “generals”. While most of the media attention surrounding this case has focused on the Tate brothers, the BBC investigation found that a self-proclaimed “wizard”, known by the pseudonym “Iggy Semmelweiss”, appears to be the real leader and intellectual driving force behind the War Room group .
As an example, the BBC plays a message from “Iggy Semmelweiss” to members of the War Room: “We’re deliberately lowering our attention and seeing if she’s following us. / Then we set up a “coffee date” and make a move to find out if she’s WILLING to pay for our coffee and serve us. / After that, she follows a series of gradual steps to remove the entire support structure from her life. / Then we “punish” her for a transgression – real or imagined – by making her tattoo our name on herself and leave her house/apartment/city/country, family”.
Victim: “He used a lot of sex to manipulate me”
The BBC investigation found that as of August 2022, there were 434 War Room members worldwide. Although not all acted on the “teachings” from the group, the BBC was able to identify many of the women who may have been ensnared by the group’s members, plus a further 29 women who were targeted during the same period. The BBC spoke to two women who said they were exploited by War Room members.
Although they live thousands of kilometers apart, their stories show that the men followed the same tactics. Both women said they initially believed they were romantically involved with these men – who then gradually began manipulating them into working for sex, a strategy known as the “loverboy method”. “He used a lot of sex to manipulate me,” said “Maria” – a fictitious name given to the victim – from Buenos Aires, Argentina.
The women also say that they were subjected to violence, isolated from friends and forced to perform humiliating tasks to demonstrate their submission. “Amanda” – also a pseudonym – who lives on the west coast of the USA, told the BBC that she was trained by one of Andrew Tate’s “generals”. She claims she gave up to 80% of what she earned at one point – a total of $95,000 – to two War Room members. The woman told the BBC that she was slapped by a “general” who exploited her and showed reporters photos of her bruises.
“He had control over everything,” she testified. Tate ‘wizard’ revelations Eli, a whistleblower who says he spent two years as the Tate’s head of sales and marketing, told the BBC: “War Room is about getting women to serve you in life.” Eli says he was “brainwashed” by the Tate group, which he describes as a “cult.” Eli also portrayed the role of “Iggy Semmelweiss” on War Room.
Asked who was really in charge of the group, the whistleblower said: “Iggy is at the top.”
“Iggy’s” real name is Miles Sonkin. Born in Chicago, Illinois in 1961, he is a former member of at least two alleged cults, developed an interest in the far right in the 2000s, and reportedly met Andrew Tate around 2018. Shortly thereafter , Tate began selling her own courses, and War Room was founded in 2019.
Sonkin sends all new War Room members a reading list and a manifesto outlining the group’s agenda.
When the BBC reporter wanted to ask him for a reaction, in front of his home in Los Angeles, California, Sonkin made no comment.
However, it is Andrew Tate – with his 7.6 million Twitter followers and his legions of fans who want to emulate his lifestyle – who remains the focus of the group, despite his upcoming trial take place in Romania.
In a statement to the BBC, his spokesman said the BBC’s findings “not only present false allegations, but insult the massive community that sees Andrew Tate as a positive force changing their lives”.
Andrew Tate “is prepared to take all legal action necessary to defend his innocence and hold accountable those responsible for the defamatory statements,” the spokesman added.
2023-08-31 11:56:56
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