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A Russian man and former MMA fighter has been convicted of assaulting a woman after Barron Trump called UK police when he witnessed the attack during a FaceTime video call in January 2025.
Matvei Rumiantsev, 22, was found guilty on January 28, 2026, at Snaresbrook Crown Court in east London of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and perverting the course of justice. The jury cleared him of rape charges and intentional strangulation related to the same incident, as well as a separate count of rape and assault alleged to have occurred in November 2024.
Former MMA Fighter Man Convicted of Assault After Barron Trump Witnesses Attack on FaceTime
The incident took place in the early hours of January 18, 2025, when Barron Trump, then 18 years old and now 19, was attempting to reach his friend via FaceTime from the United States. During the call, which lasted between five and seven seconds, Trump saw Rumiantsev answer the woman’s phone and turn the camera toward her while she was crying and screaming on the floor. Trump later told police he “just saw a ceiling and could hear screaming” before observing “a guy’s head on the phone, and then the camera turns to her crying and getting hit”.
Trump immediately contacted London emergency services using the 999 system, telling operators: “I’m calling from the US. I just got a call from a girl I know. She’s getting beat up”. He emphasized the urgency, stating “it’s really an emergency” and provided the woman’s address. When police arrived at Rumiantsev’s residence at New Providence Wharf in Canary Wharf, the woman confirmed that Trump had called authorities. She later testified in court that Trump “helped save my life. That call was like a sign from God at that moment”.
Matvei Rumiantsev is a Russian former MMA athlete with a background in freestyle wrestling. He moved to London and was working as a receptionist at New Providence Wharf in Canary Wharf at the time of the January 2025 incident. His combat sports experience became relevant during the assault case, as prosecutors highlighted his physical capabilities when presenting evidence of the attack on the woman.
Despite his athletic background, Rumiantsev maintained throughout the trial that he did not intentionally strike the victim, claiming instead that she was experiencing a mental health crisis and he was attempting to de-escalate the situation. The jury ultimately rejected his account and found him guilty of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and perverting the course of justice on January 28, 2026.
Matvei Rumiantsev
Prosecutors argued that Rumiantsev was jealous of the woman’s friendship with Trump. The court heard that Rumiantsev became aware of their friendship in October 2024. Tensions escalated in November 2024 when the woman called Trump “sweetheart” in a message, prompting Rumiantsev to allegedly smash her air fryer in a fit of jealousy. The woman told police at the time that Rumiantsev was “controlling of who I can be friends with”.
On January 17, 2025, Rumiantsev and the woman spent the evening drinking together. The prosecution alleged that during the subsequent assault, Rumiantsev pulled her hair, forced her to the ground, and kicked her in the stomach while shouting derogatory insults. Defense attorney Sasha Wass KC argued that the woman fabricated her allegations and only accused Rumiantsev after she acted violently toward him.
Rumiantsev, who has experience in freestyle wrestling and MMA, admitted to feeling “jealous to some extent” about the woman’s communication with Trump. He told the court: “What I was really unhappy about was that she was frankly leading him on”. However, he denied intentionally hitting her, claiming she was “in a stage of complete breakdown” and exhibiting “hysterical behaviour”. Rumiantsev claimed he answered the FaceTime call hoping it would calm her down, stating: “I was demonstrating to her that she would not behave in the same way in front of other people”.
Rumiantsev, a Russian citizen who was working as a receptionist at the time of the incident, is scheduled to be sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court on March 27, 2026.
