'Sound of Freedom' producer urged to apologize for defending accused sex trafficker Andrew Tate
A film producer behind last year's popular movie "Sound of Freedom," which raised awareness about the prevalence of human trafficking, is facing criticism after he expressed solidarity with social media personality Andrew Tate, who is accused of sex trafficking.
In a statement published last week, the Washington-based advocacy group National Center on Sexual Exploitation condemned "Sound of Freedom" producer Eduardo Verastegui for recently meeting with Tate.
Describing Tate as an "accused sex trafficker," the advocacy group called on Verastegui to "disavow and publicly apologize" for meeting with Tate and retweeting "Tate's message disparaging the Romanian sex trafficking prosecution against him."
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"It is abhorrent and an affront to victims and survivors of sex trafficking everywhere for the producer of a successful anti-sex trafficking film to meet with one of the world's most infamous accused sex traffickers," said NCOSE President Dawn Hawkins. "Sound of Freedom producer Eduardo Verastegui has given legitimacy to accused rapist and human trafficker and self-proclaimed misogynist Andrew Tate. This is inexcusable."
In an April 29 post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Tate shared pictures from a dinner he attended with Verastegui. The post showed a waiter pouring alcohol into Verastegui's glass as the two of them posed. Verastegui retweeted the post, which stated, "When this obvious Matrix attack against me is over, we will fix REAL human trafficking."
"The elites attack anyone who tells you the truth," Tate added. "They say TikTok is human trafficking, then traffic children FOR REAL."
Noting that Varestegui was "the mastermind behind 'The Sound of Freedom,'" Tate pointed to his support as evidence that "The sound grows louder as the Matrix cracks."
Hawkins said that a human trafficking "is not always someone from a foreign nation kidnapping innocent children."
"Instead, it is often charismatic, wealthy men who emotionally and physically abuse vulnerable women, grooming them into commercial sexual exploitation," Hawkins continued. "Andrew Tate has openly bragged about running a pornography business where he scammed men consuming this material and lied to the women he controlled."
"That is a picture of modern-day sex trafficking," she added. "To end human trafficking, we need to stop consuming human beings through exploitive industries and stop excusing and idolizing violent, abusive men who prey on women."
Hawkins asked, "Verastegui and the other producers of Sound of Freedom to disavow and apologize for this meeting with Tate."
"Tate has already used the meeting as an opportunity to discredit his victims along with the Romanian and United Kingdom law enforcement agencies doing their jobs to investigate rape and human trafficking," she stated.
"Without a full disavowal, the Sound of Freedom legacy will be one of fraud and ignorance that has done harm to the anti-trafficking movement and victims everywhere."
Tate and his brother, Tristian Tate, have been charged with human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women. They were arrested with two Romanian women in December 2022. In April, a court ruled that the trial against Tate could commence.
NCOSE accuses Tate of having "waged a PR campaign against his victims" and Romanian law enforcement agencies in the past year.
"In March 2024, a Romanian Judge approved an extradition request from the United Kingdom regarding an ongoing rape and human trafficking investigation into the Tate brothers there," NCOSE explained in a statement.
Romanian authorities allege that "Victims were recruited by British citizens by misrepresenting their intention to enter into a marriage/cohabitation relationship and the existence of genuine feelings of love (the loverboy method)."
"They were later transported and housed in buildings in Ilfov county where, by exercising acts of physical violence and mental coercion (through intimidation, constant surveillance, control and invoking alleged debts), they were sexually exploited by group members by forcing them to perform demonstrations pornographic for the purpose of producing and disseminating through social media platforms material having such a character and by submitting to the execution of a forced labor," the Romanian authorities stated at the time of his arrest.
In a previous interview with The Christian Post, NCOSE Senior Legal Counsel Dani Pinter detailed how under the "loverboy method," human traffickers "do this love bombing technique where they shower this person with praise, affection, build them up, make them feel so good, so special, and they create this sort of bond."
Pinter maintained that "a lot of times, the trafficker will just keep that going and guilt trip and use other forms of coercion and not get violent."
Pinter suggested Tate used the fact that he was a "celebrity" and a "really charismatic person" to endear himself to his victims.
"I think that's what Tate used. He's a celebrity; he's out in the open. Everyone knows who he is; he's famous," she contended. She surmised that Tate's "super exciting and intriguing" background and personality enabled victims "to let their guard down," noting "then he showered them with affection."
"That's hard to turn away from, and that's super common," she remarked. "The truth is that sex trafficking is whenever someone is sexually exploited for something in exchange" such as money and "favors or other things."
Tate has steadfastly maintained his innocence. At the time of his client's arrest, Tate's attorney insisted that there was "no evidence" that he had committed any wrongdoing.
Ryan Foley is a reporter for The Christian Post. He can be reached at: [email protected]
