Trump says injury at rally may have been ‘set-up’

Video shows senior pushed to ground by police

HOUSTON • U.S. President Donald Trump suggested a 75-year-old man shoved to the ground by police while attending a protest for George Floyd was a left-wing “provocateur” as the Floyd family laid their son to rest in Houston.

Police in Buffalo, N.Y., had initially claimed Martin Gugino “tripped and fell,” but later launched an internal investigation after video of the incident went viral.

Trump suggested in a tweet Tuesday morning that the scene could have been a “set-up” orchestrated by anti-fascist (Antifa) activists, though he could not provide any support for the claim.

“I watched, he fell harder than was pushed. Was aiming scanner. Could be a setup?” the president wrote.

Two officers in riot gear caught in the footage pushing Gugino, a retired database worker, to the ground, where he lay heavily bleeding on the pavement, have pleaded not guilty to second-degree assault.

Their 57 fellow officers on the emergency team have resigned from the unit in solidarity with the two officers.

The conspiracy theory was first floated on One America News, a conservative channel watched by Trump.

Kelly Zarcone, a lawyer for Gugino, who is still in hospital in serious but stable condition, responded to Trump’s tweet, saying: “There is no need to go around name calling, accusing people of being things they’re not … Martin has always been a peaceful protester, I don’t know where that comes from.”

Gugino’s friends have described him as a longtime peace activist involved in anti-racism and anti-nuclear activism. John Washington told The Washington Post that he is known as someone who “always shows up” at protests in Buffalo.

“He’s been at every important protest in Buffalo in the past 10 years,” said Washington.

Trump has looked to blame Antifa, an amorphous leftist and anti-fascist movement, for the unrest in cities across America. He tweeted last week he wanted to designate the group a terrorist organization.

The development came as family and friends of Floyd gathered in his hometown of Houston, Texas, Tuesday to pay their final respects to the 46-year-old, who was killed two weeks ago by a Minneapolis police officer who knelt on his neck during his arrest.

MARTIN HAS ALWAYS BEEN A PEACEFUL PROTESTER, I DON’T KNOW WHERE THAT COMES FROM.