Women suing Andrew Tate say misogynist’s link to crossbow massacre is ‘wake-up call’
Four women suing social media influencer Andrew Tate today spoke of their horror at his links to the triple crossbow massacre.
Solicitors for the women fear the misogynist, 38, and his online content could lead to future tragedies if continues being platformed. It comes after it emerged jilted Kyle Clifford, 26, searched for Tate’s podcasts just 24 hours before slaughtering his ex Louise Hunt, her mum Carol and sister Hannah.
Prosecutors say the “violent misogyny promoted” by former kickboxer Tate “fuelled” Clifford’s murderous attack in which he killed Hannah and Louise with a crossbow and stabbed Carol to death with a 10in butchery knife.
Last night Jennifer Sayles, the solicitor representing women who claim they were attacked by Tate, said: “We must rid our social media feeds of Andrew Tate’s hateful, sexist content that celebrates violence against women and girls.
“If the authorities do not step up and take action against Tate then I fear that there will be further tragedies.”
She added: “The fact that Kyle Clifford was watching Andrew Tate videos in the lead up to raping and killing his former partner, Louise Hunt, and killing Louise’s mother and sister is the devastating reality we are faced with as violent misogyny online rises.
“We can’t prevent or control every time a man does the unthinkable to a woman or girl in his life, but we can do things to decrease its likelihood. Starting with social media companies removing dangerous Tate content from their platforms.
“The UK accusers have called for immediate action from those that continue to platform Tate.” The four British women are suing Tate after he allegedly choked them until blood vessels burst in their eyes. They have made claims of rape, coercive control, and choking in the High Court.
They say they were victims of sexual violence by Tate between 2013 and 2016 – before he became known as an influencer. Tate denies the claims. His alleged victims have called for him to be banned from social media platforms.
In a statement released through McCue Jury & Partners, the women said: “Hearing that Kyle Clifford watched videos of Andrew Tate in the lead up to his murders of his ex-girlfriend, her mother and sister, is deeply upsetting to us, but sadly not surprising.
“This should be a wake-up call for all the social media companies who are continuing to platform Tate and his dangerous messages.
“These companies should take immediate steps to remove Andrew Tate from their platforms, rather than continue to reap enormous profits from his hateful content.
“Clifford’s case should be a warning to world leaders and all those who belittle the seriousness of allowing incitement of violence against women online fester. Our thoughts are with the Hunt family.”
Clifford was this week found guilty at Cambridge Crown Court of raping his ex-girlfriend Louise, 25, after he bound and gagged her at the family home in Bushey, Herts.
He wrote a card thanking Louise’s parents for their “love and kindness” after she dumped him for boasting about bedding other women at a wedding. But it was a “ruse” to get into the property and within a minute of stepping inside he murdered Carol, 61, with a 10in butchery knife he had bought on Amazon.
He then lay in wait for Louise, who was working in a pod in the garden where she ran her dog-grooming business, before tying her hands and feet with duct tape and raping her during a three-hour ordeal. He shot her with a crossbow and then killed her sister, Hannah, with the same weapon when she returned home from work.
Clifford’s hatred of women was spelled out in legal argument before the rape trial. He admitted the murders of BBC racing commentator John Hunt’s wife Carol, 61, and two of their daughters – Hannah, 28, and Louise.
Prosecutor Alison Morgan KC said Clifford told an acquaintance the day before last July’s massacre he had been online “looking at Tate or some of his outpourings”. Police found several Tate videos on his phone. The ex-kickboxing champ, who faces rape and human trafficking charges, is a “widely known misogynist”, Ms Morgan said.
The Tate searches revealed Clifford’s “mindset” and “why sexual violence was an important part of this attack”. Ms Morgan added: “It is misogyny. He is seeking to control Louise Hunt in a final act of spite.” But the judge barred it from evidence.
Tate, who has 10 million followers on X, flew to Florida last week from Romania with brother Tristan, 36.
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