Former President Donald Trump blasted major news networks for ignoring the apparent political killing of an 18-year-old in North Dakota.
Cayler Ellingson was killed early Sunday morning in McHenry, North Dakota after Shannon Brandt, 41, allegedly admitted to using his SUV to hit Ellingson, who later died at a local hospital. According to affidavit, Brandt said Ellingson was "threatening" him and that he believed the teenager was part of a "Republican extremist group."
"Just recently, a young 18-year-old man from North Dakota … was targeted and killed, run down in cold blood with an SUV by a radical left maniac," Trump said at a rally in North Carolina Friday night. "This guy ran him down and not one mainstream media network has even mentioned this horrible crime. Think of it now. Think of it the other way. Think of it the other way. Supposing a mad person ran down somebody on the other side, it would be the biggest story you've ever seen. It's a disgrace."
LIBERAL NETWORKS AVOID NORTH DAKOTA TEEN KILLED BY MAN WHO DUBBED VICTIM A ‘REPUBLICAN EXTREMIST’
North Dakota Highway Patrol Captain Bryan Niewind told Fox News Digital on Thursday that there was "no evidence" supporting the claim Ellingson was part of an extremist group.
"There is no evidence to support the claim Brandt made about Ellingson," Niewind said.
Ellingson’s death has received sparse attention from major news networks, despite an increase in stories about rising political violence.
Site searches by Fox News on Friday evening showed that The New York Times has not run a single story about Elligson on its website. Neither has MSNBC.
The Washington Post ran a story on Thursday night about North Dakota’s attorney general condemning the death, and a story from the Associated Press on Wednesday about the incident.
CNN has also published a single story about the killing.
"You people should be ashamed of yourselves. You should be ashamed of yourself," Trump continued. "And our hearts go out to the parents and the friends. This young boy, this was a young man. Wonderful, with a great future. And I'm just telling you, just so handsome and so beautiful and so great. And he got run down by a radical left nut job here."
Fox News’ Adam Sabes contributed to this report.
