Tate brothers file defamation lawsuit against anonymous X users, journalists who formed group to investigate their criminal sex trafficking cases

On Tuesday, online influencers Andrew and Tristan Tate filed a federal civil lawsuit in Florida circuit court, accusing several anonymous social media users and attorneys of defamation and civil conspiracy. The defendants named in the 61-page lawsuit have spoken about the criminal and civil allegations against the "Tate Brothers" in Romania and the UK for alleged human trafficking, money laundering and sex crimes. 

The lawsuit appears to be an effort to muzzle critics, many of them who are anonymous users on X.

Andrew and Tristan Tate, who have lived in Romania for the past decade, claim that the X account "Murdered by Crayons" and numerous other X users defamed them on social media when they shared their independent research on the Tates' alleged sex crimes against women. This group of X users created an online group called "Team Matrix," where they share research on the five criminal and civil cases against the brothers.

The lawsuit alleges that "Team Matrix" had "conspired" to take down the brothers by creating an online group to "influence public opinion" on the criminal allegations against them through "defamatory postings."

The citizen research group was formed in 2023 after the brothers' 2022 arrest in Romania, where Andrew was charged with rape, human trafficking, and forming an organized criminal group, while Tristan was charged with instigating violence. Romanian authorities accuse the brothers, who are dual citizens of the UK and the US, of creating a criminal group to engage in human trafficking in Romania, the US and the UK.

Six alleged sex trafficking victims were housed in buildings outside of Bucarest and were allegedly coerced to perform sex acts, according to authorities. The brothers deny all the charges against them.

In addition to the charges in Romania, four women in the UK filed a civil claim against them, alleging human trafficking, sexual assault, and rape. Both of them are expected to be extradited to the UK after the criminal case in Romania is concluded. In December, a judge in Westminster ruled in favor of the Devon and Cornwall Police, who alleged the brothers owed £2.8m in taxes on unpaid earnings from their models on OnlyFans and other work. 

Law.com reports that the Tates' American civil lawsuit alleges that a British lawyer directly contacted and engaged with members of Team Matrix, allegedly offering informal guidance and support for their social media campaign.

Marcel van der Watt, president of the National Center on Sexual Exploitation said: "This SLAPP lawsuit against a NCOSE executive is utterly without merit and an attack on her First Amendment rights. The Tate brothers are credibly accused and charged with sex trafficking in Romania. They also face criminal charges of sexual violence in the United Kingdom where their extradition was already granted by a Romanian court. The Florida Attorney General says they are also under investigation in that state. This defamation suit is yet another intimidation tactic that is the Tate brothers’ modus operandi for silencing critics and witnesses against them. Andrew Tate publicly stated that he will use the legal system to harass dissenters, and that is exactly what he is doing." 

This isn't the brothers' only civil lawsuit in the US. In 2023, they filed a claim against two of their alleged sex trafficking victims, accusing them of defamation. However, one of the alleged victims filed a counter-lawsuit against Andrew and Tristan in February 2025, alleging they lured her to Romania, conspired to coerce her into sex work, and defamed her after she testified against them to Romanian authorities, per the New York Times. The brothers have denied her claims.

In the civil lawsuit filed this week in Florida, Andrew and Tate identified the alleged victim as a "Jane Doe" and claimed that Team Matrix had been working alongside her to defame them further.

The lawsuit claims that because the brothers are wealthy, they have become "targets for extortion by bad-faith actors" who have "exploited their generosity for selfish and sometimes even criminal reasons." They are seeking over $50,000 in damages from each defendant.

Lucy Brown, one of the defendants in the lawsuit, told The Post Millennial that her reaction to being named in the complaint was "laughter." She did not elaborate further.

Other defendants reached declined to comment.

The brothers recently flew to Florida after being given a conditional and limited release from house arrest in Romania. Upon arrival, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced he was opening a criminal investigation into them. At the time of publication, they are currently on their way back to Romania.

The Post Millennial reached out to some members of Team Matrix for comment.

Note: A previous version of this story stated that “members” of Team Matrix were reached. But only one person was contacted before the story's publication. Others have since been contacted. We apologize for the error.