Atlanta, Georgia – June 25, 2024:
Former US President Donald Trump’s campaign team has asserted that Trump was “tortured” during his surrender at the Fulton County Jail in Georgia last August, where his mugshot was taken. This claim was part of a new fundraising pitch released by Trump’s camp on Monday.
“I want you to remember what they did to me. They tortured me in the Fulton County Jail, and TOOK MY MUGSHOT. So guess what?” the pitch reads. “I put it on a mug for the WHOLE WORLD TO SEE!”
Trump’s team is capitalizing on this event by offering supporters the chance to purchase “limited edition” coffee cups and T-shirts featuring the former president’s mugshot from his booking.
Trump made history as the first former US president to have a mugshot taken and be booked in jail for a criminal case, which occurred as part of an investigation into alleged 2020 election tampering in Georgia. Initially facing 13 counts, the number of charges has since been reduced to 10. The booking process, which included the mugshot, took just over 20 minutes.
Following his booking, Trump’s fundraising apparatus quickly mobilized, raising an impressive $4.18 million in the 24 hours that followed. This surge was fueled by the sale of T-shirts and other memorabilia featuring the mugshot. Last month, Trump’s campaign set a new record, raising an astonishing $53 million in a 24-hour period after his conviction in the Manhattan “hush money” case.
The fundraising email states: “I want you to remember what they did to me. They tortured me in the Fulton County Jail, and TOOK MY MUGSHOT. So guess what?” It continues, describing their response as putting the image “on a mug for the WHOLE WORLD TO SEE,” accompanied by a photo of the mug. The campaign is offering these items for a donation of $47 to support Trump’s 2024 election efforts.
In February, a report from WinRed, the Republicans’ online fundraising platform, confirmed that Trump raised $4.2 million the day after his mugshot was released.
Trump still faces sentencing in the Manhattan business fraud case, where he was convicted on 34 counts of falsifying documents. Additionally, he is under indictment for allegedly mishandling classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida.
