A London courtroom heard starkly different accounts Friday as a young man accused of a violent sexual assault sought to distance himself from allegations that jealousy over a connection to the Trump family sparked an attack.
According to the New York Post, Matvei Rumianstev, a 22-year-old Russian citizen, is standing trial in the UK over claims that he raped and assaulted his former girlfriend in the early hours of Jan. 18 last year.
Prosecutors allege the incident unfolded after Rumianstev saw an incoming FaceTime call from Barron Trump, the youngest son of President Donald Trump, on the woman’s phone.
According to prosecutors, the call triggered a sudden and violent outburst.
The court was told Rumianstev “flew into a rage” after seeing the contact appear on the screen and later sent a message to the woman that read: “You started calling him sweetheart, I felt so unwell.”
Rumianstev has pleaded not guilty and rejected the claim that anger or jealousy drove his actions. Under questioning, however, he acknowledged some feelings of envy.
“I was jealous to some extent,” he admitted, according to testimony reported by The Guardian.
Despite that concession, Rumianstev denied being angry at the time of the alleged assault. He told the court that his decision to answer the final FaceTime call from Barron was meant to calm a situation that had already deteriorated.
“I don’t know why I did that, maybe I thought she would realize that her behavior was unreasonable, [that] she wouldn’t behave like this in front of someone else, especially Barron Trump,” Rumianstev said.
He claimed he was accustomed to seeing calls come through on his girlfriend’s phone and initially “didn’t attach much weight” to the one from Barron. Rumianstev also pushed back against the characterization that jealousy controlled his behavior.
“What I was really unhappy about was that she was frankly leading [Trump] on,” he told the court. “I am being portrayed as a jealous person who can lose his temper due to jealousy. I want to just make clear that her actions towards him were wrong and it was not fair.”
Prosecutors allege the assault occurred after the woman took the call. Barron, who witnessed the incident over FaceTime, later contacted British police.
The woman has testified that Barron’s actions during that call helped save her life.
The court heard that Barron and the woman had developed a long-distance friendship after meeting online, though it remains unclear how long they had known each other before the alleged attack.
Rumianstev continues to deny all charges as the trial proceeds.
