Burnley charity Depher returns donation from Tristan Tate

A plumber from Burnley who fixes boilers for the elderly and vulnerable for free has returned a donation from Tristan Tate following his accusations of human trafficking.

James Anderson runs Depher, (Disabled and Elderly Heating Emergency Repairs) - a charity set up to help people keep their boilers and heating running.

A few weeks ago, Tristan donated to Depher after seeing a social media post that they were tagged in.

James said: "Within of couple of minutes of the donation, there was backlash on social media.

"We did this to protect Depher. We didn't do it because someone told us to do it, we did it because it was the right thing to do at that present moment in time.

"The accusations thrown at the Tate's, that's between them and the courts.

"I was not aware of who they were prior to the donation."

Tristan Tate and his brother Andrew were freed from house arrest in Romania in August after winning an appeal pending his trial on rape and human trafficking charges.

The controversial influencer and his brother Tristan have been under house arrest since March.

They were charged in June but both deny the charges.

Speaking outside his home in Romania he said he was sure he will be "absolutely exonerated."