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High Court Rejects Tate Brothers’ Bid to Force CPS to Name Alleged Victims

The judge accepted the Crown Prosecution Service’s time‑limited decision to withhold identities to protect witnesses until the brothers are surrendered and prosecuted in the UK.

Overview

  • Mr Justice Chamberlain dismissed the Tates’ judicial review on Friday, finding the CPS decision was coherent and not an arguable breach of their human rights.
  • The CPS told the court it withheld names temporarily because the brothers’ high public profile and online reach risked identifying or deterring complainants.
  • The Tates offered financial undertakings and to be interviewed from Romania but the judge and prosecutors treated those proposals as insufficient to remove the risk to witnesses.
  • The identities will be disclosed "if and when" the brothers are surrendered to and prosecuted in this jurisdiction and the CPS said it will keep the decision under review.
  • The dispute sits inside a wider cross‑border process: the brothers remain subject to Romanian proceedings, face later extradition to the UK on 21 charges from 2012–2016, and courts are generally reluctant to override prosecutors on time‑sensitive witness‑protection choices.