US Politics
Hero Barron Trump ‘saved’ a woman’s life after learning she was being beaten by jealous man, court hears
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.
Read more
A friend of Barron Trump says he saved her life by calling the cops after seeing her being beaten up by her ex-boyfriend on a FaceTime call, according to a report.
The woman, whose name has not been shared publicly, told a London court that she called Trump last January as her ex-boyfriend, Matvei Rumianstev, 22, allegedly started hitting her because he was jealous of her friendship with the president’s son, Metro UK reported on Wednesday.
Trump, 19, reached out to authorities in the UK, telling the 911 operator, “I just got a call from a girl I know. She’s getting beaten up.”
After giving her address, he told the operator, “It’s really an emergency, please. I got a call from her with a guy beating her up,” according to the report.
Bodycam footage from when police arrived was also played in Snaresbrook Crown Court, showing officers telling the woman that someone from the United States had been in touch.
“I am friends with Barron Trump, Donald Trump’s son,” she told authorities, explaining that she called him on FaceTime earlier. One of the officers can then be heard telling a colleague, “So apparently this informant from America is likely to be Donald Trump’s son.”
The officers later asked her to call Trump back to confirm what she told them, with the footage capturing her saying, “Hello, Barron — did you call the police or anything?”
He can be heard replying, “I had someone call the police.”
“She called me. I picked up the phone expecting a nice hello or something. I just saw a ceiling and could hear screaming. I could see a guy’s head on the phone, and then the camera turns to her crying and getting hit,” he said of the short, 15-second phone call.
“I called you guys — that was the best thing I could do. I wasn’t going to call back and threaten things to him because that would just make the situation worse,” he added.
During cross-examination, the woman was questioned about her claims that Trump “saved” her, and she doubled down on her claims.
“He helped save my life. That call was like a sign from God at that moment,” she said.
The woman told jurors that Rumiantsev assaulted her, including by strangling, after they got into an argument last January.
Months later, she also filed a complaint to police that she’d been raped by him twice, the second time just hours before police responded to the January assault, according to the report.
Rumiantsev denies the assault, ABH (Assault Occasioning Actual Bodily Harm), two counts of rape, intentional strangulation and perverting the course of justice, according to the report.