Matvei Rumiantsev, 23, drunkenly beat up the victim when he became jealous of her blossoming friendship with Mr Trump, 19, after she met him through social media. During the assault, he answered a FaceTime call on her phone from Mr Trump and turned the camera to show her crying on the floor. Mr Trump was a key witness in the case, and sent an email to police last May describing the “very brief” sight he had of the assault as it unfolded. Mr Trump grew up in the public eye as the only child of Donald and Melania Trump and was rumoured to be helping his father with his election strategy in 2024. At trial, Ms Gates said Rumiantsev was jealous of the woman’s friendship with Barron Trump, perhaps because of his “public profile”.

Source: The Times March 27, 2026 17:52 UTC