On January 28th, Barron Trump, the youngest son of President Trump, was involved in a case in which a 22-year-old Russian man was convicted of assault after a trial in London. The incident, witnessed by Barron through a video call, took place in London. Barron alerted the London police, leading to the conviction of Matvei Rumiantsev on January 28th for the assault.
In the late hours, Barron made a FaceTime call to a woman he knew from social media and was shocked to see a “shirtless man” answering the call instead. The image lasted only a second before switching to the woman crying and being attacked in a video call in Russian. Barron immediately contacted the London police for help after the call was abruptly ended.
On January 18, 2025, the police arrested Rumiantsev at the address in London. During the trial on January 23, the victim, whose name was not disclosed for legal reasons, testified in court that Barron’s video call “helped save her life.”
Rumiantsev faced charges of assault, causing actual bodily harm, two counts of rape, intentional strangulation, and perverting the course of justice. He denied all the allegations. The Snaresbrook Crown Court in London announced the judgment against Rumiantsev on January 28, finding him guilty of attacking a woman on January 18, 2025. He was also convicted of perverting the course of justice. However, he was acquitted of the rape and intentional strangulation charges on the day Barron reported the case, as well as another alleged rape and attack in November 2024.
Rumiantsev resides at Canary Wharf in East London. According to BBC reports, on the night of January 17, 2025, Rumiantsev and his girlfriend (the assaulted woman) were drinking until the early hours of the next day.
Rumiantsev’s defense lawyer, Sasha Wass, questioned how much Barron could have seen in the brief 5 to 7-second video. Barron did not testify in court. Before the jury deliberated, Judge Bennathan advised caution in considering Barron’s statements, including the recorded emergency call and subsequent emails to investigators, as he had not been questioned by the defendant’s lawyers. Judge Bennathan stated that Barron would face inquiries if he testified in court, such as whether he clearly witnessed the incident, genuinely saw the woman being attacked, or just concluded based on her screams.
Rumiantsev was also found guilty of perverting the course of justice for sending a letter from prison to the woman asking her to drop the charges. His sentencing is scheduled for March 27.