Barron Trump Emerges as Key Remote Witness in UK Assault and Rape Trial
US president’s son alerted London police after allegedly witnessing attack during a video call, court hears
Barron Trump, the youngest son of the United States president, has become an unexpected remote witness in a high-profile criminal trial in London after contacting British police from the United States to report an ongoing assault he witnessed during a video call with a woman.
Jurors at Snaresbrook Crown Court heard that Trump, then nineteen, placed an emergency call to City of London Police on January 18 2025 after receiving a FaceTime call from the woman, whom he had met on social media and described as someone he was “very close with.” In the transcript released to the court, Trump can be heard urgently telling the operator that the woman was being beaten and urging immediate assistance before providing the address where the alleged attack was unfolding.
Prosecutors say the woman was at her home in east London when her ex-boyfriend, twenty-two-year-old Matvei Rumiantsev, allegedly assaulted her, and that Trump’s intervention helped ensure police attended rapidly.
Rumiantsev is accused of two counts of rape, assault, intentional strangulation and perverting the course of justice but denies all charges.
He acknowledged in evidence that he became aware of the woman’s friendship with Trump in late 2024 and admitted feeling “upset” about messages she sent to Trump, but denied he was angry at the time of the attack.
The court heard that during the video call, Rumiantsev answered the ringing phone and briefly showed the screen to the alleged victim before the view flipped, and Trump observed signs of violence and called emergency services.
In an email to London police later, Trump wrote that what he saw was “very brief indeed but indeed prevalent,” describing how the view shifted from a shirtless man to the woman crying and being struck.
The woman has testified that Trump’s call helped save her life and that she endured repeated assaults, including rape, during the period covered by the charges.
Defence counsel has challenged aspects of her account, but prosecutors continue to present evidence linking Rumiantsev’s alleged actions to jealousy and violence.
The trial continues as the case explores complex issues of digital evidence, transatlantic witness involvement and domestic violence allegations.
Jurors at Snaresbrook Crown Court heard that Trump, then nineteen, placed an emergency call to City of London Police on January 18 2025 after receiving a FaceTime call from the woman, whom he had met on social media and described as someone he was “very close with.” In the transcript released to the court, Trump can be heard urgently telling the operator that the woman was being beaten and urging immediate assistance before providing the address where the alleged attack was unfolding.
Prosecutors say the woman was at her home in east London when her ex-boyfriend, twenty-two-year-old Matvei Rumiantsev, allegedly assaulted her, and that Trump’s intervention helped ensure police attended rapidly.
Rumiantsev is accused of two counts of rape, assault, intentional strangulation and perverting the course of justice but denies all charges.
He acknowledged in evidence that he became aware of the woman’s friendship with Trump in late 2024 and admitted feeling “upset” about messages she sent to Trump, but denied he was angry at the time of the attack.
The court heard that during the video call, Rumiantsev answered the ringing phone and briefly showed the screen to the alleged victim before the view flipped, and Trump observed signs of violence and called emergency services.
In an email to London police later, Trump wrote that what he saw was “very brief indeed but indeed prevalent,” describing how the view shifted from a shirtless man to the woman crying and being struck.
The woman has testified that Trump’s call helped save her life and that she endured repeated assaults, including rape, during the period covered by the charges.
Defence counsel has challenged aspects of her account, but prosecutors continue to present evidence linking Rumiantsev’s alleged actions to jealousy and violence.
The trial continues as the case explores complex issues of digital evidence, transatlantic witness involvement and domestic violence allegations.
