Lord Peter Mandelson — one of the most powerful figures in British political history — was arrested today at his London home, led out in handcuffs by plainclothes police officers. The charge: misconduct in public office for allegedly leaking sensitive government documents to Jeffrey Epstein while serving as Gordon Brown’s business secretary. Police raided his mansion near Regent’s Park and a second property in Wiltshire. Files show Mandelson shared EU bailout plans, Brown’s resignation details, and government property sales with Epstein, who allegedly sent him £56,000 in return. This comes four days after Prince Andrew was arrested on the same charge for leaking confidential information while serving as Britain’s trade envoy. “It’s massive that we’ve had Prince Andrew and now Lord Mandelson,” Zev said. “This is happening with the permission of the crown. It should terrify everyone involved in this network, especially Donald Trump.” Dean pointed out that Mandelson is reportedly ready to start telling investigators who he was working with. “Two for the UK, zero for the United States,” Dean said. “The walls are closing in — in London. The question is when it reaches Washington.” Tomorrow night, at least 10 Epstein survivors will sit in the Capitol gallery as Trump delivers the State of the Union.

5️⃣ Kash Patel Parties at the Olympics

While an armed man was breaching Mar-a-Lago and Americans were sheltering in place across Mexico, FBI Director Kash Patel was chugging beer in a locker room in Milan with the U.S. men’s Olympic hockey team after their gold medal win — the first in 46 years. Videos of Patel spraying beer went viral, drawing fierce criticism. “He spent $250,000 of taxpayer money flying to Milan so he could get shithoused with Team USA and record viral videos,” Dean said. Zev called it “a new low for the FBI director” and noted that Patel found time for political investigations and partying but not actual crises. Trump invited the team to his State of the Union — “because there is nothing this man can hang on his mantle as far as his own accomplishments that makes America great,” Dean said.

4️⃣ Binance Funneled $1.7B to Iran

The New York Times reported that internal investigators at Binance discovered $1.7 billion flowed from two accounts to Iranian entities linked to the Revolutionary Guards Corps, a designated terrorist organization. When investigators flagged the transactions, Binance fired or suspended at least four of them. Trump pardoned Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, and his family’s crypto venture World Liberty Financial has business ties with the exchange. “Nobody is doing anything about the profit-taking and theft through crypto, through Bitcoin, through digital assets,” Dean said. “Donald Trump knew that his only way to truly enrich himself and get away with it is to do it through crypto.” Zev connected the dots: “Meanwhile, Kash Patel’s partying in Milan. Nothing to investigate. No crime anywhere.”

3️⃣ Cannon Seals Smith Evidence

Judge Aileen Cannon blocked public release of Jack Smith’s classified-documents report, burying detailed evidence of Trump illegally retaining defense secrets so sensitive that senior national security officials didn’t know they existed. Cannon called Smith’s investigation “a brazen stratagem.” Dean called it judicial protection of presidential crimes: “There’s only one reason a judge would say Americans aren’t allowed to see the criminality of Donald Trump — it’s too explosive. And it’s got nothing to do with the rule of law and everything to do with her fealty to the guy who put her in that position.” Zev noted that First Amendment groups are appealing to the 11th Circuit, but the damage is done — Trump addresses Congress tomorrow with the evidence of his crimes sealed by his own judge.

2️⃣ El Mencho Killed, Mexico Burns

Mexican special forces killed “El Mencho,” leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, after U.S. intelligence helped track him through a romantic partner to a small town called Tapalpa. At least 62 people were killed in the retaliation that swept across a dozen Mexican states — highways blocked, banks and supermarkets torched, Puerto Vallarta locked down with tourists sheltering in place. Dean, whose partner had family on the ground in Puerto Vallarta, offered context: “The cartel lit buses and cars on fire and blocked intersections. The Mexican government has it in hand. Puerto Vallarta is one of the safest tourist destinations in the world.” Both hosts noted Trump’s attempt to claim credit for the operation, which Mexican President Sheinbaum firmly rejected. “All these stories are somehow connected,” Dean said. “There’s an earthquake happening in the world right now. And the people who were in power for criminal purposes are losing it,” Zev said

1️⃣ Mandelson Arrested for Epstein Leaks

Returning to the top story, Zev laid out the deeper significance. Mandelson’s arrest connects to a web that includes the Rothschild banking family, Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, and the broader Epstein intelligence operation. Mandelson was found on Deripaska’s yacht in Corfu with Nate Rothschild years ago — and now those same connections run through the Epstein files. “Peter Mandelson was pulled out of the United States because he is so guilty of working with a pedophile network,” Dean said. Zev noted that 17 or 18 countries have now launched independent Epstein investigations. “The Epstein network is being dismantled in real time — in London,” Zev said. “The question Americans should be asking: when does it reach Washington?”

Five stories, one thread. The criminals who operated in darkness are losing their grip — and tomorrow night, Epstein survivors will sit in the gallery and watch the president try to pretend none of it is connected.

The FiveStack is available as an audio podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. The FiveStack is a co-production of deanblundell.substack.com and narativ.org.

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