Trump campaign marketing 'Not Guilty' mug shot T-shirts of ex-president to raise funds
New York (PTI): Donald Trump did not have his mug shot taken when he was arrested and arraigned at a Manhattan court, but his re-election campaign is using his indictment to raise funds by marketing T-shirts with a specially-created "Not Guilty" mug shot of the former US president.
Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection with USD 130,000 paid in hush money to adult film star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 US presidential election campaign.
Trump, 76, was arrested Tuesday and arraigned before New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan, as the global spectacle of the first criminal indictment ever of a former US President captivated audiences in America and around the world.
The former US president surrendered to the Manhattan district attorney's office on Tuesday afternoon and later appeared for his arraignment before Merchan where he entered the not guilty plea to the 34 felony counts in the indictment.
He was fingerprinted, like any other felony defendant, while he was in custody but he was not handcuffed and neither did he have his mug shot taken.
Trump and his aides are using his indictment and arraignment to bolster further support for his 2024 re-election campaign. His campaign claims to have raised more than USD 12 million since a grand jury voted to indict the former president last week.
Even though his mug shot was not taken when he was arrested, his campaign is using the opportunity provided by his arraignment to market T-shirts featuring his specially-created mug shot.
An email titled NEW ITEM: MUGSHOT" reads, "NOT GUILTY. Do you stand with President Trump, Friend? Please make a contribution of USD 47 or more to win in 2024 and we'll send you your very own "NOT GUILTY" T-Shirt for FREE.
The T-shirt shows a mug-shot of a formally dressed Trump, with the words Not Guilty' written in all caps black font.
On the mugshot letter board is written "President Donald J Trump 45-47 04 04 2023." The numbers 45-47 refer to Trump being the 45th President of the United States as well as the 47th if he is re-elected in the 2024 Presidential elections.
Joe Biden is the 46th and current president of the United States. The date '04 04 2023' refer to the historic day he was arrested and arraigned.
"Soros believes that with his hand-picked D.A. Alvin Bragg having ARRESTED President Trump for committing no crime, they can bleed our campaign dry by dragging us through witch hunt after witch hunt," the email further said, referring to billionaire philanthropist George Soros and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg who indicted Trump.
"But what better way to PROVE that our campaign will never surrender our country to the Left's tyranny than countless grassroots patriots proudly wearing their very own 'NOT GUILTY' T-Shirts," the Team Trump email said.
"Please make a contribution of USD 47 to help our campaign continue to surge at this pivotal moment in our nation's history and we'll send you your very own 'NOT GUILTY' T-Shirt for FREE," the email said.
Another email from the campaign signified the popularity of the Trump mug shot T-shirt as it stated: "Never has an item flown off the shelves of the Official Trump Store faster than our limited-edition NOT GUILTY T-Shirt"
"But never has a President of the United State been ARRESTED not for committing a crime but for putting the American people first. Because our records indicate you are one of President Trump's top supporters, we've reserved a shirt just for you until midnight tonight," the email read.
"Please make a contribution of USD 47 by 11:59 P.M. to help our campaign continue to surge at this pivotal moment in our nation's history and we'll send you your very own "NOT GUILTY" T-Shirt for FREE," the email added.
A post script adds: "The only photo certified by President Donald J. Trump."
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Jharkhand horror: Man kills live-in partner, chops body into 40 pieces
Ranchi (PTI): A 25-year-old man, who works as a butcher, allegedly strangled to death his live-in partner and chopped her body into 40 to 50 pieces in a forested area in Jharkhand’s Khunti district, police said on Wednesday.
The accused, identified as Naresh Bhengra, was arrested.
The matter came to light after around a fortnight after the killing when a stray dog was found with human body parts near Jordag village in Jariagarh police station on November 24.
Bhengra was in a live-in relationship with the deceased, a 24-year-old woman also from Khunti district, in Tamil Nadu for the past couple of years. Sometime back, he returned to Jharkhand, got married to another woman without telling his partner anything and went back to the southern state without his wife to join her.
"The brutal incident occurred on November 8 when they reached Khunti as the accused who had married another woman did not wish to take her home. Instead, he took her to a forest near his house at Jordag village in Jariagarh police station and chopped the body into pieces. The man has been arrested," Khunti Superintendent of Police Aman Kumar told PTI.
Inspector Ashok Singh who investigated the case said the man worked in a butcher shop in Tamil Nadu and was expert in slicing chicken.
“He admitted chopping the body parts of the woman into 40 to 50 pieces before leaving those in the forest for wild animals to feast on. The police recovered several parts on November 24 after a dog in the area was seen with a hand," Singh told PTI.
Singh said that the woman, who was unaware of his marriage, pressured him to return to Khunti. After reaching Ranchi, they boarded a train on November 24 and headed to the man's village.
"Under a plan, the man took her to Khunti in an autorickshaw near his home and asked her to wait. He returned with sharp weapons and strangulated her with her dupatta after raping her. He then cut the body into 40 to 50 pieces and left for his home to live with his wife," Singh said.
The woman, however, had informed her mother that she had boarded a train and would be living with her partner, the police officer said.
Following the recovery of body parts, a bag was also found in the forest with the murdered woman's belongings including her Aadhaar card. The mother of the woman was called at the spot and she identified her daughter's belongings.
"The mother suspected the man behind the crime who after being nabbed by the police admitted to chopping the woman into pieces," the official added.
The incident has sent shockwaves among people in the region, with the Shraddha Walker murder case of 2022 still fresh in their memory.
Walker was killed by her live-in partner who chopped her body into pieces before dumping them in the jungle in South Delhi’s Mehrauli.
