
The FBI arrests more than 30 people, including NBA figures Chauncey Billups and Terry Rozier, in two nationwide indictments exposing mafia-linked sports betting and poker-rigging schemes. President Trump hosts a White House roundtable declaring cartels the “ISIS of the Western Hemisphere” as his administration touts major drug and gang crackdowns under new counterterrorism authorities. New York Mayor Eric Adams endorses former Governor Andrew Cuomo in an attempt to stop Zohran Mamdani. Federal prosecutors indict Decarlos Brown Jr. for the killing of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska. Herald Group: Learn more at https://GuardYourCard.com Masa Chips: Get 25% off your first order | Use code MK at https://MASAChips.com/MK
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For 140 years, MultiCare has been in.
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Washington prioritizing long term solutions, partnering with.
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Local communities and expanding access to care. Together, we're building a healthier future. Learn more@ multicare.org Good morning everyone. I'm Emily Jasinsky, host of Afterparty, filling in today for Megyn Kelly. It's Friday, October 24th, 2025, and this is your AM update.
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The FBI led a coordinated takedown across 11 states to arrest over 30 individuals today responsible for this case.
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The FBI dropping two indictments relating to alleged gambling schemes involving an NBA coach player and the Mafia. The shocking details coming up.
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The cartels are the ISIS of the Western Hemisphere.
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President Trump hosts a White House roundtable discussion on the latest efforts to crack down on cartels. NYC Mayor Eric Adams teams up with an unlikely ally and Irina Zaretska's alleged killer indicted. All that and more coming up in just a moment on your AM Update.
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As President Trump is settling into his new administration, one of the top Democrats in Congress aiming to undermine the Trump agenda is Democrat Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois. And according to our sponsor, the Electronic Payments Coalition, senior Senator Durbin has a new plan, a government takeover of your credit card. Today, Americans have thousands of choices in credit cards, but they say Senator Durbin's plan will result in less competition and less security, which means more risk for your credit and your identity. You can learn more for yourself at guard your card.com and you could consider telling your senators to stop Dick Durbin's government takeover of your credit card before it's too late.
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The FBI arresting more than 30 people, including an NBA coach and player, as well as members of multiple Mafia families in a dramatic Thursday bust across two major indictments. Names you may know if you're an NBA fan. Among the busted Portland Trailblazers head coach and former player Chauncey Billups, current Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, former Cleveland Cavaliers assistant coach Damon Jones and the Bonanno, Genovese, Lucchese and Gambino crime families. One indictment relating to insider sports betting on NBA games, the other related to rigged poker matches. The details are scandalous. FBI Director Kashmutal on Thursday speaking to the scale of the operation.
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This is an illegal gambling operation and sports rigging operation that spanned the course of years. The FBI led a coordinated takedown across 11 states to arrest over 30 individuals today responsible for this case, which is very much ongoing. The charges and the arrests that were taken down across this country range from wire fraud, money laundering, extortion, robbery, illegal gambling.
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According To Director Patel, the damage is totaling in the tens of millions of dollars in fraud, theft and robbery. First, the NBA cheating indictment. According to the feds, six defendants involved in what U.S. attorney Joseph Nacella calls quote, one of the most brazen corruption schemes since online sports betting became widely legalized in the United States. Rosier and Jones allegedly passing non public information to the other co defendants.
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The non public information included when specific players would be sitting out future games or when they would pull themselves out early for purported injuries or illnesses. And in at least one instance, they got their information by threatening a current player, Porter because of his preexisting gambling debts. Defendants used this non public information to place hundreds of thousands of dollars in fraudulent bets, mostly in the form of prop bets on individual player performance. The bets were placed through online sportsbooks and also in person at casinos. The defendants then laundered their illegal winnings in various ways. The defendants profited from illegal gambling and illegal betting on various NBA games about the performance of players on, among other things, the Charlotte Hornets, the Portland Trail Blazers, the Los Angeles Lakers and the Toronto Rangers. Each defendant in the NBA basketball gambling case has been charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
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Rozier arrested in Orlando. His attorney releasing a statement reading in part quote, he Terry is not a gambler, but he is not afraid of a fight and he looks forward to winning this fight. In the other indictment, authorities alleging a multi year, multi city operation targeting so called fish victims lured in by the chance to play alongside former professional athletes known as face cards. Those face cards allegedly including Chauncey Billups and Damon Jones. Prosecutors saying what the victims didn't know is that everyone else at the table, including the dealer were in on the scheme. The fleecing victims out of tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars per game. Total profits running up to $7 million. U.S. attorney Nocella describing a sophisticated cheating operation netting 32 defendants.
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They used off the shelf shuffling machines that had been secretly altered in order to read the cards in the deck, predict which player at the table had the best poker hand and relay that information to an off site operator. The off site operator sent the information via cell phone back to a co conspirator at the table. And that person at the table was known as the quarterback. The quarterback then signaled secretly the information he had received from others to others at the table and together they used that information in order to win their games and to cheat the victims. Defendants used other cheating technologies such as poker chip tray analyzers, which is a poker chip tray that secretly reads cards using a hidden camera, special contact lenses or eyeglasses that could read premarked cards, and an X ray table that could read cards face down on the table.
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Charges stemming from the operation, including wire fraud conspiracy, operation of an illegal gambling business, money laundering conspiracy, extortion conspiracy, and robbery conspiracy. Phillips arrested in Portland, Oregon, charged with money laundering and a wire fraud conspiracy. NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch describing the Mafia element of the alleged poker scheme. These operatives included capos and multiple soldiers from the Bonanno, Gambino, Lucchese, and Genovese crime families. Victims believed that they were sitting at a fair table. Instead, they were cheated out of millions. One victim in a particular in particular lost $1.8 million in total. Losses exceeded $7 million and continue to climb. And when people refused to pay, these defendants did what organized crime has always done. They used threats, they used intimidation, and they used violence. The NBA releasing a statement saying Billups and Rosier have been placed on leave from their teams. According to court filings, prosecutors are not seeking to hold Billups, Rosier, or Jones in custody while they await trial. They all face charges that carry up to 20 years in prison. Coming up, President Trump hosts top administration officials for a progress check on the effort to take down cartel networks. NYC Mayor Eric Adams endorses an old rival and Irina Zyrutska's alleged killer formally indicted.
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President Trump holding a roundtable discussion yesterday at the White House featuring top officials weighing in on the administration's fight against drug cartels on day one of the second administration. President Trump signing an executive order designating cartels and transnational gangs as foreign terrorist organizations. The move allowing greater coordination across agencies and unlocking new counterterrorism tools, including sanctions and asset freezes aimed at dismantling the crime networks inside the US and abroad. President Trump kicking off yesterday's gathering, defining the threat in no uncertain terms.
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It should now be clear to the entire world that the cartels are the ISIS of the Western hemisphere. In addition to their monstrous violence, such as cutting off heads, burning their enemies alive, and burning innocent people alive, too, by the way, the cartels control large swaths of territory. They maintain vast arsenals of weapons and soldiers, and they use extortion, murder, kidnapping to exercise political and economic control. Thank you very much, Joe Biden for allowing that to happen.
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Attorney General Pam Bondi laying out some facts and figures. More than 3,200 violent gangs and drug dealers have been taken off the streets. 91 tons of drugs have been seized as a result of this task force force. We tried to put this in perspective for you. This would be filling 4, 18 wheelers.
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All the drugs just in the last month that have been taken off the streets, 58,000 kilos of cocaine. Think about a big backyard swimming pool that would fill one and a half swimming pools. Just the powder cocaine that has been removed, saving lives this last month, thanks to all of these people around the table, 2,300 kilos of fentanyl powder and 2.1 million fentanyl pills off the streets. And as the President said more than 1,000 illegal guns. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard discussing how newly formed intel sharing operations led to the arrest of one of Mexico's most vicious criminals. I'll say the last example I'll share is probably the most insidious. Was providing intelligence to the Mexican law enforcement that led to the arrest of a CJNG cartel affiliated baby trafficker called La Diabla. Her whole money making operation was centered around luring pregnant women, performing illegal C sections, harvesting organs and selling newborn babies. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth doubling down on one of the White House's most controversial cartel fighting initiatives. Initiatives launching strikes on suspected drug boats. Yesterday, Secretary Hagseth announcing the ninth strike against a vessel, this one killing three people. These are designated terrorist organizations, foreign terrorist organizations.
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Our generation spent the better part of.
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Two decades hunting Al Qaeda, hunting isis. Well, as the President said, this is the isis. This is the Al Qaeda of the Western hemisphere.
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They intimidate, they terrorize, they extort, they.
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Poison the American people.
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The President's right. Every boat we strike is 25,000Americans whose lives are saved because of the drugs that were headed in our direction.
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So our message to these foreign terrorist organizations is we will treat you like we have treated Al Qaeda.
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We will find you, we will map your networks. We will hunt you down and we will kill you.
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Critics slamming the strikes as exceeding White House authority and denying due process rights. Colombian President Gustavo Petro recently accusing the White House of taking out a fisherman. One reporter asking about the vessels.
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But we know everything about them. We know where they're coming from, who they're coming with, generally who's in the boat. But when you see five engines on a boat going about 65 miles an hour, loaded up with white powder in silver cases, generally speaking, that's not a good sign. They're not going fishing. Right. And likewise, generally, you don't see fishing in submarines either, sir.
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New York Mayor Eric Adams endorsing former Democrat and independent mayoral candidate former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to succeed him. Adams dropping out of the race last month after trailing far behind Cuomo and current frontrunner Democrat nominee Zoran Mamdani. Adams soft launching the endorsement on Wednesday night, appearing courtside with Cuomo at the Knicks season opener on Thursday. Adams officially throwing his support behind Cuomo.
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Am I angry that I'm not the one taking down Joran, the socialists and the communists? You're darn right I am. But you know what? The city means more to me than anything. And it is time for us to as a family to come together. I'm fighting for the family of New York. That's why I'm here today, to endorse Andrew Cuomo to be part of this fight. And I'm going to give it my all these next few days to make sure that black and brown communities specifically who have believed there's nothing at stake in this election, for them it is. While you criticize Andrew and you called him names, you know what? And he called me names. But you know what? Now it's time to fight for the family. And I'm a fight for the family with Andrew Cuomo as the next mayor of the city of New York.
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The mayor planning to campaign for Cuomo in neighborhoods where Adams is most popular. Cuomo's poll numbers climbing by 10 points following Adams exit from the race. But the disgraced former governor still trailing by double digits. A new poll by AARP and Gotham Polling and Analytics finding Mamdani at 43%, Cuomo at 29% and Republican Curtis Sliwa at 19%. If Sliwa were to drop out, the gap closes significantly with Mamdani at 44.6% and Cuomo at 40.7%. Sliwa says he will not drop out under any circumstance. Election day is November 4th. Irina Zyrutska's alleged killer, Decarlos Brown Jr. Formally indicted Wednesday by a federal grand jury. Brown charged with violence against a railroad carrier and mass transportation system resulting in death. According to the indictment, Brown acted with, quote, reckless disregard for human life. He is eligible for the death penalty. This charge is in addition to a state charge of first degree murder. Brown was due back in court yesterday for a hearing to determine death penalty eligibility on the state charge, but it was postponed until April 2026 for reasons that are not yet clear. The stabbing death of the 23 year old Ukrainian refugee occurring on August 22nd on a Charlotte light rail. Brown ran afoul of the law many times before, including a 2013 conviction for larceny and breaking and entering and a 2015 conviction for robbery with a dangerous weapon. The defendant now held in custody without bail pending further proceedings. Earlier this month, North Carolina Governor Josh Stein signing Arena's Law, a sweeping criminal justice reform measure, tightening bail rules for violent offenders and mandating mental health evaluations for certain offenders, among other provisions. That'll do it. For your AM update, I'm Emily Jasinsky, host of afterparty. Megan is back on Monday. Catch the Megyn Kelly show today live on SiriusXM triumph channel 111@noonies on YouTube.com MeganKelly and on all podcast platforms. With Plan B Emergency contraception, we're in control of our future. It's backup birth control you take after unprotected sex that helps prevent pregnancy before it starts.
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Host: Emily Jashinsky (filling in for Megyn Kelly)
Date: October 24, 2025
Podcast Theme:
A fast-paced morning update covering the day’s top political, legal, and cultural news stories, featuring honest analysis and notable soundbites. This episode focuses on the FBI's massive NBA-and-mafia gambling bust, President Trump’s cartel crackdown roundtable, NYC mayoral drama with Eric Adams endorsing Andrew Cuomo, and updates on the Irina Zyrutska murder case.
[03:33] FBI Director Kashmutal:
“They got their information by threatening a current player... used this non-public information to place hundreds of thousands of dollars in fraudulent bets.”
[05:27] U.S. Attorney Nocella:
“The quarterback then signaled secretly the information... to others at the table and together they used that information in order to win their games and to cheat the victims.”
[10:29] President Trump:
“The cartels are the ISIS of the Western hemisphere.”
[13:31] Pete Hegseth:
“We will hunt you down and we will kill you.”
[14:48] Eric Adams:
“Now it’s time to fight for the family. And I’m a fight for the family with Andrew Cuomo as the next mayor of the city of New York.”
The tone is brisk, urgent, and direct. Facts are conveyed unflinchingly, echoing the Megyn Kelly Show’s emphasis on “no BS, no agenda.” Notable speakers’ quotes are delivered verbatim, capturing the intensity of law enforcement and political rhetoric.
This episode delivers a whirlwind tour through extraordinary national scandals and local political drama, highlighting a new peak in sports corruption, tough-on-crime government action, and a shifting New York political landscape. With hard-hitting original quotes and timely updates, the AM Update sets the table for more detailed analysis to come.