A woman testified in an English court on Wednesday that Barron Trump “saved” her life after he realized she was being violently attacked and immediately called police, according to multiple reports.
Metro UK reported jurors at Snaresbrook Crown Court in London heard a dramatic emergency call in which President Donald Trump’s son told operators, “I just got a call from a girl I know. She’s getting beaten up.”
According to testimony, Barron Trump contacted authorities after FaceTiming the young woman, a friend of his, expecting a normal call but quickly realizing she was witnessing an assault in real time.
“I just saw a ceiling and could hear screaming. I could see a guy’s head on the phone, and then the camera turns to her crying and getting hit,” Trump told operators. The call was placed from the United States.
The Daily Mail identified the accused as 22-year-old Russian national Matvei Rumiantsev, who allegedly “was jealous of the American’s relationship with the woman and flew into a rage when he tried to phone her earlier that evening.”
Jurors were told Rumiantsev later went to the woman’s home and repeatedly punched her. Prosecutors also allege he kicked the woman in the stomach and used degrading language during the video call with Barron Trump, calling her a “whore” and a “slut.”
During her testimony Wednesday, the woman praised Trump for acting quickly.
“He helped save my life,” she said. “That call was like a sign from God at that moment.”
Jurors also heard an exchange between Trump — who was reportedly 18 years old at the time — and the police operator, who pressed him for details about his connection to the victim as officers were dispatched.
Here is that back-and-forth:
Operator: “Can you stop being rude and actually answer my questions. If you want to help the person, you’ll answer my questions clearly and precisely, thank you.”
Barron Trump: “I met her on social media. She’s getting really badly beat up and the call was about eight minutes ago, I don’t know what could have happened by now.”
He added a moment later, “So sorry for being rude.”
Trump reportedly told authorities it took him a few minutes to locate the correct phone number for British police. He placed the call at 2:23 a.m. London time, or 9:23 p.m. ET.
Rumiantsev is facing serious charges, including assault, two counts of rape, intentional strangulation, and perverting a court of justice, according to The Daily Mail.
New court filings reveal that the Trump administration is threatening to deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Uganda — a move his attorneys describe as coercive. Abrego, a Salvadoran man mistakenly deported to El Salvador earlier this year, declined a plea deal tied to human smuggling charges. In response, prosecutors withdrew an offer that would have allowed him to enter Costa Rica — a safe, Spanish-speaking country where he’d face no detention after serving time — and instead pursued deportation to Uganda.
His attorneys argue immigration authorities are essentially offering a forced choice: accept guilt and a path to Costa Rica, or refuse and risk being sent to Uganda, where his safety — and legal protections — are uncertain at best.
Federal prosecutors on Thursday offered Abrego Garcia the option to “live freely” with refugee or residency status in Costa Rica after serving prison time for federal human smuggling charges in exchange for a guilty plea, per his lawyers in the Saturday filings.
Abrego Garcia, who was mistakenly deported to a notorious prison in his native El Salvador, declined the offer on Friday to instead return to his family in Maryland. He had been imprisoned in a Tennessee jail.
After his return to Maryland, Abrego Garcia’s attorneys were notified later in the day that he must report to an Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) field office in Baltimore on Monday — and that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) intends to deport him to Uganda.
…
“The only thing that happened between Thursday—Costa Rica—and Friday—Uganda— was Mr. Abrego’s exercise of his legal entitlement to release under the Bail Reform Act and the Fifth Amendment…,” Abrego Garcia’s defense team wrote.
Saturday’s revelations mark a significant escalation, as Uganda recently entered into a U.S. agreement to accept third-country deportees— but explicitly excluding individuals with criminal records or unaccompanied minors. Abrego’s legal team contends that his criminal charges make such deportation both inappropriate and potentially dangerous.
White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles delivers remarks during the Memorial Service for Charlie Kirk at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, Sunday, September 21, 2025.(Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok)
Britain’s new prime minister thought he had a direct line to President Donald Trump’s inner circle. Instead, he was messaging a mystery impostor.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham exchanged a handful of messages with someone posing as White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, according to a bombshell Politico report citing four officials.
Burnham eventually smelled a rat and cut off the contact. But by then, at least some of the exchange had taken place after he entered 10 Downing Street on July 20—turning an apparent digital con into a security headache spanning two governments.
One person briefed on the communications insisted that only a “few messages” were exchanged and that they were “of no significance.”
British officials were not quite relaxed enough to let the matter drop.
The British Embassy in Washington raised the incident directly with the White House, two officials told Politico. Downing Street offered only a stone wall in response to questions: “We do not comment on national security matters.”
CBS News reported that the BBC independently confirmed the exchange and said it was limited to written messages. Burnham and the impostor never spoke by phone, according to that account.
The White House also pushed back on the most alarming theory circulating in London.
“This incident had nothing to do with the Chief of Staff’s devices being hacked,” a White House official told CBS News.
That distinction matters because Wiles’ identity has already been hijacked once in a sprawling Washington impersonation scheme.
In May 2025, senators, governors, business executives and other prominent figures received texts and calls from someone claiming to be Trump’s powerful gatekeeper. Wiles told associates that her personal phone had been hacked, and CBS News reported that one or more unknown people used contacts from the device to target senior officials.
The messages came from unfamiliar numbers, and some recipients were asked to shift the conversation to Telegram. The FBI launched an investigation.
The earlier scheme grew stranger as it unfolded. As Mediaite reported, citing The Wall Street Journal, one lawmaker was asked to prepare a list of people Trump should pardon. In another case, the impersonator requested a cash transfer. Targets also noticed broken grammar and oddly formal language that did not sound like Wiles.
The fake-Wiles operation was not an isolated stunt. An impostor later used artificial intelligence to mimic Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s voice and writing style while contacting foreign ministers and American officials.
The FBI warned in December that malicious actors have been impersonating senior state, White House, Cabinet and congressional figures since at least 2023. The schemes often begin with a text, quickly jump to an encrypted app and then turn toward sensitive information, authentication codes, introductions or money, according to the bureau’s public alert.
Burnham took office less than a month ago after replacing Keir Starmer. An official government biography says he returned to Parliament in June and became Labour leader on July 16 before entering Downing Street four days later.
Who contacted him, how the impostor reached him and what the pair discussed remain unknown.
A California man allegedly filmed federal agents as they mapped out security for President Donald Trump’s visit to his Los Angeles-area golf club — then returned two days later with hollow-point ammunition in his pocket and a loaded pistol in his pickup truck, authorities said.
Jeanine John Taele, 38, of Downey, was arrested Sunday at Trump National Golf Club Los Angeles in Rancho Palos Verdes, setting off a search that authorities say uncovered an illegally modified rifle, body armor, high-capacity magazines, radio devices and notebooks filled with “concerning statements” at his home.
Jeanine John Taele, 38, of Downey, who was arrested at Trump National Golf Course Los Angeles in Rancho Palos Verdes, is charged in a federal criminal complaint with possession of an unregistered short-barreled rifle, a felony carrying a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in… pic.twitter.com/oY3ISp8n6x
— F.A. United States Attorney Bill Essayli (@USAttyEssayli) August 5, 2026
Now he is staring down cases in two court systems.
According to an affidavit filed with the federal complaint, agents were conducting a security assessment at the golf club on Friday, July 31, ahead of Trump’s Aug. 4 visit when they spotted Taele walking across the grounds.
He was wearing an earpiece, taking photographs and recording video of the agents’ security-planning work, prosecutors alleged. He eventually left in a vehicle.
But Taele allegedly returned Sunday while federal agents were still working at the club. Staff recognized him and alerted the agents, authorities said.
Taele then approached the agents and claimed he was employed by the State Department and assigned to a security detail at the property, according to the federal affidavit. He also acknowledged that a loaded firearm was inside his pickup in the club parking lot.
Agents called the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. When deputies arrived, they learned Taele was already wanted in connection with a robbery investigation in El Segundo, prosecutors said.
During a search, deputies allegedly found a 16-round magazine loaded with hollow-point ammunition in Taele’s pants pocket.
Inside his truck, authorities said they found a loaded 9mm pistol, another magazine packed with hollow-point rounds, binoculars and a badge bearing the words “security protection agent.”
The Search That Deepened the Mystery
The arrest quickly widened into a federal security investigation.
Detectives assigned to the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force obtained a warrant and searched Taele’s Downey home Monday because of what the Sheriff’s Department called the incident’s potential security implications.
Authorities said the search turned up an illegally modified AR-platform rifle, a 1911 .45-caliber pistol, an AR upper receiver, body armor, high-capacity magazines, bulk rifle and pistol ammunition, an earpiece and two radio signal devices.
Investigators also seized multiple notebooks containing what they described only as “concerning statements.” Officials have not disclosed what was written in them.
“We are thankful he was apprehended before the President’s visit,” First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said in announcing the federal charge. He said investigators were still working to determine Taele’s motive.
FBI Los Angeles chief Patrick Grandy said the alleged conduct raised serious red flags and left “no room for error” given the previous attempts on Trump’s life.
State Charges — And a Separate Robbery Case
Taele also faces three California weapons counts: receiving a large-capacity magazine, carrying a concealed firearm in a vehicle and possessing a short-barreled rifle or shotgun, TIME reported, citing the state complaint.
Prosecutors separately charged him with second-degree robbery over an alleged Nov. 4, 2025, incident that El Segundo police were investigating before his arrest at the golf club.
Taele pleaded not guilty Tuesday. A judge set his bail at $250,000, ordered him not to possess weapons, barred him from Trump National Golf Club and prohibited him from leaving California while the case is pending. His next state court appearance is scheduled for Aug. 26.
He was also expected to make his first appearance in federal court Wednesday on the rifle charge.
Authorities have not publicly accused Taele of plotting to attack Trump, and no motive has been announced. The Sheriff’s Department said it had identified no credible threat to the surrounding community, while the Secret Service, FBI, ATF and local investigators continued to examine the case.
The Secret Service said it investigates any conduct that could signal a threat or a directed interest in a protected person. The Trump Organization thanked local and federal authorities for their swift response.
Trump’s Tuesday evening Republican National Committee event at the golf club went forward. The president briefly addressed the arrest during an appearance on “Fox News @ Night.”
“The only thing I get a little solace from is, they say only consequential presidents,” Trump said. “And I am definitely consequential.”
The scare came two years after a gunman wounded Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and after Ryan Routh’s 2024 attempt to kill Trump at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida. Routh was sentenced to life in prison earlier this year.
The White House during construction of the State Ballroom on 2026-01-14, Washington, DC
Philadelphia’s far-left district attorney is dreaming about demolishing President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom—and keeping a piece of the wreckage as a souvenir.
Larry Krasner made the stunning remarks Tuesday during Philadelphia’s annual slavery commemoration ceremony at the President’s House site near Independence Hall.
According to video obtained by NBC10 Philadelphia, Krasner predicted that Trump’s ballroom would be destroyed within the next 10 to 15 years.
“I’m gonna have a paperweight sitting on my desk,” Krasner said, according to the Washington Examiner. “You know what that paperweight is gonna be? It’s gonna be a piece of a ballroom after we all blow it up.”
Krasner later clarified that he envisioned the destruction taking place during an “official ceremony,” with pieces of the building sold as paperweights to reimburse taxpayers.
But the clarification did little to take the edge off the extraordinary image of an elected district attorney talking publicly about blowing up part of the White House complex.
Krasner also unleashed a personal tirade against Trump during the event, calling the president a “pain in the a–” and agreeing with an audience member who described Trump as “the devil.”
The progressive prosecutor accused Trump of embodying hatred and ignorance before turning his fury toward two of the president’s high-profile renovation projects.
“There will not be a ballroom,” Krasner declared. “There will not be a Kennedy Center renamed for a fool.”
The White House quickly fired back.
“Only people who suffer from a severe and incurable disease known as Trump Derangement Syndrome would find a problem with that,” White House spokesman Davis Ingle told Fox News Digital.
Ingle said Trump was carrying out long-overdue renovations designed to beautify and preserve the White House for future generations as the nation celebrates its 250th anniversary.
The Secret Service also took notice.
“The U.S. Secret Service investigates anything that can be perceived as a threat toward our protectees,” agency spokesman Nate Herring told Fox News Digital, while declining to discuss specific protective-intelligence matters.
Krasner’s outburst came amid an escalating fight over how American history is presented at the President’s House site, where George Washington lived while Philadelphia served as the nation’s capital.
Trump signed an executive order in March 2025 directing federal museums, parks and historical sites to eliminate what his administration considers divisive ideological narratives and instead emphasize America’s achievements and progress.
Acting under that order, the National Park Service removed interpretive panels and disabled video exhibits at the President’s House site in January. The displays focused heavily on the nine enslaved people Washington brought to the Philadelphia residence.
The city sued, and a federal judge initially ordered the displays restored. But the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals later vacated that injunction, concluding that the lower court lacked jurisdiction over several of Philadelphia’s claims.
Krasner insisted Tuesday that the slavery memorial and its educational materials would ultimately survive the Trump administration.
His ballroom prediction, however, targeted a project that is still moving rapidly toward completion.
The approximately $400 million, 90,000-square-foot addition is designed to accommodate roughly 1,000 guests and includes major security infrastructure beneath the building. Trump has argued that the facility will allow presidents to host large events without leaving the heavily protected White House grounds.
The ballroom is reportedly about 65% complete. Chief Justice John Roberts recently issued a temporary order allowing construction to continue while the Supreme Court considers the administration’s challenge to lower-court restrictions on the project.
On Monday, A man pleaded not guilty after he allegedly drove past a security checkpoint and claimed to have an explosive device at a rally for former President Donald Trump in Michigan, last week.
Steven William Nauta was arrested after police say he drove around barricades set up for Trump’s rally and told police that he had a C4 explosive, WOOD TV 8 reported. According to a court document, Nauta “held up a bottle to police and stated that it was ‘C4’ explosive and that it was the ‘real deal.’” After being told to stop by officers, Nauta allegedly “sped off” before stopping and throwing bags of fertilizer on the ground.
“When (Nauta) finally stopped, he removed bags of fertilizer from his vehicle and threw them on the ground to make it appear that they were explosives while disobeying officers’ commands,” the court document states. The 65-year-old was eventually detained by police, and the man allegedly told officers that he intended to make them believe that he had explosives. Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker said there was no active bomb in Nauta’s vehicle.
Nauta’s virtual court appearance from a jail cell was a bizarre scene as the man took his shirt off at one point and made profane hand gestures, according to WOOD TV 8. Nauta was charged with one felony count each of a false report or threat of terrorism, possession of bombs with unlawful intent, third-degree fleeing a police officer, and resulting, resisting or obstructing a police officer.
Kent County, Michigan, District Court Judge Nicholas Christensen set the man’s bond at $1 million, and Nauta replied, “Well, your honor, given my situation, I think I’m better off just staying in here. Very cruel world out there. Probably a lot better off here.”
The judge told Nauta, “It’s not lost on this court here today that your alleged actions were directed to stopping or hindering a fundamental aspect of this country’s democratic process: a political rally.”
The Michigan man’s alleged bomb threat came just two weeks after Secret Service agents apprehended an alleged suspect with a gun near Trump’s golf course. Ryan Routh pleaded not guilty in court on Monday.
The Republican nominee said on Monday that he has requested more Secret Service agents, but alleged that Democrats are “not giving us the proper number of people within Secret Service that are necessary for Security.”
“We need more Secret Service, and we need them NOW,” Trump wrote. “It is ELECTION INTERFERENCE that we have to turn away thousands of people from arenas and venues because it is not being provided to us.”
On Thanksgiving Day, three House Democrats reported receiving bomb threats prompting law enforcement to investigate the concerning trend.
In each case, Reps. Jahana Hayes (D-CT), Jim Himes (D-CT), and John Larson (D-CT) reported they were threatened with explosives early in the morning. After police got involved, each was deemed safe and the threats did not appear to be credible.
This morning, I was notified of a bomb threat targeting my home where I was celebrating Thanksgiving with my family. Thankfully, after a swift and thorough response from the United States Capitol Police, the Greenwich Police Department, and the Stamford Police Department, no evidence of a bomb was found. Mary, Emma, Linley, and I extend our utmost gratitude to our local law enforcement officers for their immediate action to ensure our safety. There is no place for political violence in this country, and I hope that we may all continue through the holiday season with peace and civility.
At 7:47am I was notified by Chief Edward Stephens of the Wolcott Police Department that they received a threatening email stating a pipe bomb had been placed in the mailbox at my home. State police, U.S. Capitol Police, and the Sergeant at Arms were immediately notified. The Wolcott Police Department and State Police responded and no bomb or explosive materials were discovered and the scene was cleared.
At this time the investigation is ongoing. I thank law enforcement for their swift attention to this matter, their actions demonstrate there is no place in our country for political violence. On this Thanksgiving, I am grateful for my family and loved ones. I plan to spend the day with them and hope you all do the same. May you have a safe and happy Thanksgiving.
Larson said in a statement he was visited early Thursday at his home by officers in East Hartford.
“The police determined no bomb was present at the property and the Larson family is safe,” the congressman said. “I would like to thank the East Hartford Police Department for their swift and professional response in ensuring the safety of my family. I am grateful that my colleagues in the Connecticut Congressional Delegation, who received similar threats, are also safe. Thanks again to law enforcement at every level, from local, to state, to federal.”
The trio of threats comes days after incoming White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt reported that multiple Trump Cabinet nominees have also received death threats.
Nearly a dozen of President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees and other appointees tapped for the incoming administration were targeted Tuesday night with “violent, unAmerican threats to their lives and those who live with them,” prompting a “swift” law enforcement response.
The “attacks ranged from bomb threats to ‘swatting,’” according to Karoline Leavitt.
“[Tuesday] night and this morning, several of President Trump’s Cabinet nominees and administration appointees were targeted in violent, unAmerican threats to their lives and those who live with them,” she told Fox News Digital on Wednesday. “In response, law enforcement acted quickly to ensure the safety of those who were targeted. President Trump and the entire Transition team are grateful for their swift action.”
President Donald Trump said Monday that he would direct the Department of Justice to pursue the death penalty against those responsible for kidnapping Nancy Guthrie if the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie is found dead.
In a brief phone interview with the New York Post, Trump made clear that the consequences would be “very, very severe — the most severe” if the abductors harm her. When asked directly whether the Justice Department would seek capital punishment in the case, the president responded, “The most, yeah — that’s true.”
Guthrie was last seen on the night of Jan. 31 at her home outside Tucson, Arizona. She was reported missing the following day, and investigators believe she was taken against her will in what authorities are treating as a kidnapping.
The FBI is offering a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to her location and/or the arrest and conviction of those involved. Surveillance images captured by Guthrie’s doorbell camera show a suspect described as a man standing between 5-foot-9 and 5-foot-10 with an average build. In footage released last week, the individual is seen wearing dark gloves, sweatpants, and a jacket, and carrying a black 25-liter Ozark Trail Hiker Pack backpack.
The case has drawn national attention, not only because of the victim’s age but also because of her daughter’s public profile. Savannah Guthrie has been a longtime journalist and co-anchor of NBC’s “Today” show.
President Trump personally reached out to Savannah Guthrie on Feb. 4 to offer support and underscore the federal government’s commitment to resolving the case. He later stated that he directed “ALL Federal Law Enforcement to be at the family’s, and Local Law Enforcement’s, complete disposal, IMMEDIATELY. We are deploying all resources to get her mother home safely.”
On Friday, Trump said he believes “progress has been made” in the investigation.
Savannah Guthrie released a video Sunday urging anyone with information to come forward, saying, “it is never too late to do the right thing, and we are here.”
As the investigation continues, federal and local authorities remain engaged in what the president has described as a full-scale effort to bring Nancy Guthrie home safely and hold those responsible accountable.
The United States Department of Justice, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Former Trump Attorney General Bill Barr encouraged prosecutors to drop pending charges against President-elect Trump.
“The American people have rendered their verdict on President Trump, and decisively chosen him to lead the country for the next four years,” Barr said in an interview with Fox News, after the White House race was called for Trump.
“They did that with full knowledge of the claims against him by prosecutors around the country and I think Attorney General Garland and the state prosecutors should respect the people’s decision and dismiss the cases against President Trump now,” he added.
Trump was convicted in New York on 34 felony charges related to his hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels and still faces indictments in three other trials. His actions to block the peaceful transfer of power after his 2020 loss sparked federal charges as well as a case in Georgia, while the former president also faced federal counts for retaining classified documents at his Florida estate, before the case was indefinitely postponed by the judge.
Trump is set to face sentencing in the New York case later this month but has also sought to toss the case after the Supreme Court ruled that former presidents retain broad immunity after leaving office.
The Justice Department (DOJ) under a second Trump administration, is widely expected to move to drop both federal cases against the president-elect.
The Florida case was dismissed by U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon on technical grounds involving Smith’s appointment.
The GOP presidential nominee has pledged to fire special counsel Jack Smith, who is overseeing the election interference cases, “within two seconds.”
“He’ll be one of the first things addressed,” Trump said last month.
Barr added that Smith and the DOJ should drop the cases before Trump even takes office.
“Further maneuvering on these cases in the weeks ahead would serve no legitimate purpose and only distract the country and the incoming administration from the task at hand,” he said.
“The public interest now demands that the country unite and focus on the challenges we face at home and abroad. Attorney General Garland and all the state prosecutors should do the right thing and help the country move forward by dismissing the cases,” the former attorney general added.
Ted Eytan from Washington, DC, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Things were heated on Capitol Hill this week…
Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) was caught in a run-in outside the Capitol on Thursday with a protester who challenged him over his stance on Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza.
The Republican reportedly shoved the man, who he later claimed had intentionally “bumped” into him after being approached near the Longworth House Office Building, according to Politico.
The incident occurred shortly after lawmakers wrapped up their final votes of the week.
Burchett’s spokesperson Will Garrett defended the congressman’s reaction in a comment to Politico, saying the protester had crossed a line.
“Everyone has a right to their opinion, and they can say all of the filthy stuff they want. But they don’t have the right to bump the congressman,” Burchett spokesperson Will Garrett said in a statement to The Hill.
Capitol Police briefly detained and questioned the protester, though the department has not commented publicly.
Burchett, meanwhile, dismissed the confrontation with characteristic bite, telling reporters the activist “had bad breath.”
Last year, Burchett introduced a resolution to reject the United Nations’s decision to place the Israeli military on a list of child’s rights abusers.
“Israel is our greatest ally in the Middle East and their leadership tries to protect life. Hamas, on the other hand, hides behind innocent civilians like a bunch of cowards. We need to make it clear to the United Nations that the United States completely supports Israel’s efforts to wipe these terrorists off the map,” Burchett said at the time.
