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Oct. 25, 2025, 4:14 PM EDTBy Daniel ArkinThe members of New York City’s notorious “Five Families” are known by many names: wise guys, goodfellas, friends of ours. At least a dozen men with alleged ties to the Mafia can now add a new moniker to the mix: defendants in a federal investigation dubbed “Operation Royal Flush.”The sprawling illegal gambling case announced by federal officials this week names 34 defendants in total — among them a dozen men the government says are members or associates of New York’s notorious Genovese, Gambino, Bonanno and Lucchese crime families. They are accused of orchestrating a high-tech poker rigging scheme that duped unsuspecting gamblers and raked in millions of dollars over six years.“This alleged scheme wreaked havoc across the nation, exploiting the notoriety of some and the wallets of others to finance the Italian crime families,” said Christopher Raia, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s New York field office.Here’s what we know about the alleged Mafia leaders, members and associates at the center of the explosive case.Ernest AielloThe U.S. government’s 22-page indictment identifies Aiello as a member of the Bonanno crime family. Prosecutors allege that organizers of a rigged game on Lexington Avenue in Manhattan were required to make payments to Aiello and his Bonanno associates.Aiello, 46, has three prior felony convictions, according to a government detention memorandum unsealed Thursday. He pleaded guilty in 2017 to promoting gambling in the first degree and was sentenced to two to four years behind bars, according to the memo. He also has prior convictions for attempted criminal possession of a loaded firearm in the third degree and attempted assault in the second degree.An attorney listed for Aiello did not immediately respond to NBC News’ request for comment. Louis Apicella, aka ‘Lou Ap’The indictment identifies Apicella as an associate of the Gambino family and a member of a “Cheating Team” that organized and participated in poker games, according to prosecutors.Apicella, 50, has no criminal history, according to the detention memo, but “the government’s investigation revealed that Apicella has access to firearms and has expressed a willingness to use violence for his own gain.”The memo cites one text message exchange in which Apicella allegedly discussed “cracking … heads open.”Apicella’s lawyer, Sabrina Shroff, declined to comment. Ammar Awawdeh, aka ‘Flapper Poker’ and ‘Flappy’The indictment identifies Awawdeh, 34, as an associate of the Gambino crime family. Prosecutors say he organized and participated in a rigged game at Washington Place in Manhattan and other locations, including the Hamptons, and was required to make payments to the mobsters backing the scheme.Awawdeh is also accused of committing gunpoint robbery in September 2023 to steal a “specific model” of rigged shuffling machine that he and other defendants wanted to use at their games.He has one prior felony conviction for laundering the proceeds of controlled substances and was sentenced to probation in 2020, according to the detention memo.Awawdeh’s attorneys, Mark Lesko and Matin Emouna, declined to comment. Matthew Daddino, aka ‘Matty’ and ‘The Wrestler’The indictment identifies Daddino, 43, as a member of the Genovese family. Prosecutors say he helped manage the Washington Place poker game in Manhattan and received “proceeds” from the rigged games.Gerard M. Marrone, an attorney for Daddino, said his client “had no criminal history whatsoever” and maintains his innocence. Comparing the case to the 1919 Black Sox scandal, he said Daddino and other Italian American defendants are “easy targets for the government” while the “real criminals are being protected.”Lee FamaThe indictment identifies Fama, 57, as a member of the Gambino family. He received a portion of the money from the games, according to prosecutors.Fama has three prior felony convictions, according to the detention memo. He pleaded guilty to distribution of marijuana in 2012 and was sentenced to six months behind bars. He was previously convicted of assault in aid of racketeering and sentenced t0 58 months in prison. He was also convicted of criminal sale of a controlled substance in the second degree.Fama’s lawyer, Marissa Sherman, declined to comment.John GalloThe indictment identifies Gallo, 53, as an associate of the Gambino family. He was an organizer of the Washington Place game and a member of a “Cheating Team” that rigged the matches, according to prosecutors. He also received proceeds from the game, the indictment says.Gallo has one prior felony conviction, according to the detention memo. In 2014, he pleaded guilty to attempted enterprise corruption, attempted criminal usury and promoting gambling in the first degree. He was sentenced to one year in prison.An attorney listed for Gallo did not immediately respond to NBC News’ request for comment.Thomas Gelardo, aka ‘Juice’The indictment identified Gelardo, 42, as an associate of the Bonanno family who later became affiliated with the Genovese family. Prosecutors say he received proceeds from the illegal games.Gelardo is also accused of extorting an unnamed person to “secure the repayment of debtfrom illegal poker games” between November 2022 and September 2023.He has multiple prior felony convictions for violent crimes, including assaults and weapons possession, according to the detention memo. Gelardo was convicted of assault in the second degree in 2002 and sentenced to a year in prison. Three years later, he was convicted of assault in the second degree and given a suspended five-year sentence.Then, in 2008, he was convicted of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree and sentenced to two to four years behind bars.An attorney listed for Gelardo did not immediately respond to NBC News’ request for comment.Joseph LanniThe indictment identifies Lanni, 54, as a member and an alleged captain of the Gambino family. He also received proceeds from the illegal games, according to prosecutors.He has multiple prior felony convictions, according to the sentencing memo. He was convicted of securities fraud in 1999 and sentenced to 30 months behind bars. He was convicted of promoting gambling in the first degree in 2014 and sentenced to one year in prison.Lanni pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy related to his leadership role in the Gambino family.Frederick Sosinsky, an attorney for Lanni, said in a statement that his client has “been compliant with all of the conditions of release” from the racketeering conspiracy case to which he pleaded guilty last week. Sosinsky said the court agreed to release Lanni on similar bail conditions so he can defend himself in the new case. “Unlike most of the other individuals who are accused in this week’s indictment of fraud, extortion, robbery or money laundering, Mr. Lanni has been charged solely with somehow being involved in the operation of a gambling business — what the government itself terms a ‘straight’ poker game where none of the elaborate means of high-tech cheating is even alleged to have taken place,” Sosinsky said. “Mr. Lanni denies participation in that ‘straight’ or unfixed poker business and looks forward to his next court date.”Nicholas MinucciThe indictment identifies Minucci, 39, as an associate of the Gambino family and a member of the “Cheating Team,” according to prosecutors. Prosecutors allege he took part in a September 2023 gunpoint robbery revolving around the rigged shuffling machine.Minucci has a “criminal history,” according to the detention memo. He was convicted on various counts of robbery as a hate crime related to an incident in which he beat a Black man in the head with a baseball bat and, using the N-word, told the victim not to enter his “predominantly Italian-American” neighborhood, the memo says.He was sentenced to 25 years behind bars and released to parole supervision in 2018.An attorney listed for Minucci did not immediately respond to NBC News’ request for comment.Anthony Ruggiero Jr.The indictment identifies Ruggiero, 53, as a member of the Gambino family who received “proceeds” from the underground games. Prosecutors describe him as having a “long history of committing serious crimes — including witness tampering.”In 2008, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering and was sentenced to 84 months in prison.While serving that sentence, he was convicted of witness tampering for intimidating a potential trial witness, reportedly forming his hand into “the shape of a gun” and saying, “You know how we take care of rats, we get up-close and personal.”He received an additional 36-month sentence.Ruggiero’s attorney, James R. Froccaro, declined to comment.Seth TrustmanThe indictment identifies Trustman, 43, as an associate of the Lucchese family — the only alleged member of that clan named in the case. Trustman organized illegal games on Lexington Avenue and other locations, making payments to Aiello and Gelardo, the indictment says. He is also accused of extorting an unnamed person to collect gambling debts in 2023.Trustman has two prior felony convictions, according to the detention memo. He was sentenced to 22 months in prison in 2010 after pleading guilty to racketeering, racketeering conspiracy and two counts of illegal gambling. Nine years later, he was convicted of criminal usury and enterprise corruption, then sentenced to three years in prison.Contact information for attorneys representing Trustman was not immediately available, and NBC News could not reach them for comment. Julius Ziliani, aka ‘Jay’The indictment identifies Ziliani, 54, as a member of the Bonanno family who received a share of the games’ proceeds. Prosecutors allege he and co-defendant Gelardo extorted an individual to collect gambling debts between November 2022 and February 2023.Ziliani’s attorney, Marco A. Laracca, said his client “denies all allegations against him and looks forward to his day in court.”Daniel ArkinDaniel Arkin is a national reporter at NBC News.Sophie Comeau contributed.

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October 10, 2025

Oct. 10, 2025, 12:36 PM EDTBy Scott Wong and Sahil KapurWASHINGTON — The government shutdown is entering its 10th day, with both Republicans and Democrats dug in and refusing to give any ground to their political foes.But the coming days and weeks will bring some key pressure points that could potentially end the partisan impasse.Until now, the impacts of the shutdown have been fairly muted, with Smithsonian museums shuttered and some government services interrupted. But Friday, hundreds of thousands of civilian federal workers will get their first paycheck since the shutdown began, reflecting zero pay for October. On Wednesday, service members will see the same.With air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration agents not getting paid, staffing shortages will likely grow worse, exacerbating flight delays and cancellations that have already frustrated travelers.On top of that, Democrats’ focus on health care in the shutdown fight is starting to resonate with the public, as millions of Americans on Obamacare begin to receive notices that their insurance premiums are about to go up substantially.We’d like to hear from you about how you’re experiencing the government shutdown, whether you’re a federal employee who can’t work right now or someone who is feeling the effects of shuttered services in your everyday life. Please contact us at tips@nbcuni.com or reach out to us here.Missed paychecks It’s one thing when Americans can’t access national park facilities and museums. It’s another thing when millions of American families from around the country start missing paychecks and can’t pay their bills.Friday marks the first time when civilian federal workers will miss getting some pay because of the shutdown that began Oct. 1. While they will receive a partial paycheck for work performed from Sept. 21-30, they will not receive any pay for the opening days of October.That includes Capitol Police officers, Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and Federal Emergency Management Agency workers. After some confusion created by the White House, congressional leaders in both parties said this week that federal workers will receive back pay once the shutdown ends. But that still doesn’t help families right now who have to pay their rents or mortgages and put food on the table. Once they miss getting paid, workers are likely to amp up the pressure on lawmakers and the president, who for days has been threatening mass firings of federal employees.“That tells you everything you need to know about them. We don’t share the same values,” said Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., a key member of the Democratic Caucus. “I mean, they want to punish workers.”Asked about the threat of layoffs Thursday, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., told NBC News’ “Top Story” that “there is too much inefficiency in the federal government.”“There are programs that probably should be eliminated, but we want federal employees to be protected,” he said.Speaker Johnson addresses military pay, layoffs during government shutdown11:20The two sides could feel an even greater sense of urgency Oct. 15, when the 1.3 million active duty service members will miss their first full paycheck of the shutdown. Lawmakers in both parties — especially those who represent military-heavy districts — are already feeling the heat.A bill authored by Rep. Jen Kiggans, R-Va., would ensure that troops are paid during the shutdown, and has almost 150 co-sponsors, including more than 100 Republicans. But Johnson has argued that such a bill isn’t needed because the stopgap bill the House passed Sept. 19 includes funding for troops. During a call-in show on C-SPAN on Thursday, a woman identified as Samantha from Fort Belvoir, Virginia, made a personal plea to Johnson, telling the speaker that if her active duty husband doesn’t get paid on the 15th, “my kids could die” because her family won’t be able to afford their medication.Speaking at the White House on Wednesday, Trump told reporters that Democrats are to blame for the shutdown and workers missing paychecks, but he predicted that paying the troops “probably will happen.”Johnson on Friday again insisted that the House will not vote on a standalone measure to pay the military. “The Republican Party stands for paying the troops,” he said. “The Democrats are the ones that are demonstrating over and over and over, now eight times, that they don’t want troops to be paid.”Air traffic controller shortagesTravelers this week got a glimpse of how air traffic controller and TSA employee shortages could wreak havoc on the nation’s airports.Airports from Washington and Miami to Denver and Las Vegas were snarled by flight delays as officials said they were dealing with a slight uptick in the number of air traffic controllers calling in sick. The Hollywood Burbank Airport in the Los Angeles area operated for several hours Monday with no air traffic controllers because of staffing issues.As federal airport workers miss pay for the first time in the shutdown Friday, the number of them calling in sick could increase. Delays could get worse in the coming days, further straining the nation’s air system, the economy and the patience of already frustrated travelers.#embed-20251002-shutdown-milestones iframe {width: 1px;min-width: 100%}Trump officials are paying close attention to the staffing issues. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Thursday threatened to fire “problem children” air traffic controllers if they don’t show up for work without a good reason.But lawmakers said widespread flight delays and cancellations could force Trump and the Republicans to the negotiating table that they’ve avoided during the shutdown fight. Air traffic controller shortages and the travel interruptions they caused helped end the 34-day shutdown during Trump’s first term — the longest in the nation’s history.”Of any of the factors that led President Trump in 2019 [to say] we got to solve this, it was the air traffic control issue,” Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said. Reagan National Airport in his home state experienced staffing shortages and delays this week; it’s one of three major airports in the area that members of Congress use to commute between Washington and home.Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said he’s been watching television coverage of the flight delays and long lines at airports this week. He believes Trump has been watching the same compelling visuals, and could be motivated to do a deal if things get worse. “Here’s a guy who watches TV nonstop … the visuals. People doing video of those long lines,” Blumenthal explained. “It’s a black eye for the country. … It should get them to the table.”Rising health care premiumsThe central demand by Democrats in the standoff is to extend expiring tax credits under Obamacare that have helped make premiums more affordable for families. And while the money technically expires Dec. 31, voters are starting to feel the sticker shock.This month, insurers are sending out notices of sharp premium hikes ahead of open enrollment beginning Nov. 1, now a little more than three weeks away.Democrats are betting that pressure will soften the GOP resistance to extending that money as part of a bill to reopen the government.“It’s been important to raise the issue with both our colleagues and with the American public, and also to point out the urgency of the issue,” Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., the author of a bill to permanently extend the Obamacare money, told NBC News.“A number of people thought, well, it doesn’t expire until the end of December, so it’s not an issue. And didn’t realize that insurance companies are setting rates right now. … It’s one more thing on top of the cost of food and electricity and rent and child care and all the other expenses that people are incurring,” Shaheen continued.Johnson, however, maintained that the health care funding issue can be “discussed and deliberated and contemplated and debated in October and November,” after the government reopens. But he faces a divided conference and hasn’t made any promises to hold a vote on the matter. “I support the speaker,” conservative Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., said. Moderate Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., said he backed the speaker’s strategy, as well.”A short, clean CR was always good in the past and should be good now,” Bacon told NBC News. “Most of the GOP are willing to negotiate on the tax credits as part of the appropriations process.” But far-right Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., is publicly bashing Johnson and her party for not having a plan to address the looming premium hikes that she says will harm her own family members. “When it comes to the point where families are spending anywhere from $1,500 to $2,000 a month and looking at hikes coming on their insurance premiums,” Greene said, “I think that’s unforgivable.”Scott WongScott Wong is a senior congressional reporter for NBC News. Sahil KapurSahil Kapur is a senior national political reporter for NBC News.Kyle Stewart, Melanie Zanona and Ryan Nobles contributed.

December 1, 2025

Nov. 29, 2025, 10:07 PM EST / Updated Nov. 30, 2025, 5:57 PM ESTBy Courtney Kube, Gordon Lubold and Raquel Coronell UribeBoth the House and the Senate have started inquiries into a reported second strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean in September that killed the survivors of an initial strike.The Defense Department conducted a second strike on a boat the Trump administration says was carrying drugs from Venezuela after the first strike on the boat failed to kill all of its occupants, one U.S. official and a source familiar with the Pentagon’s actions that day told NBC News. The first of the two strikes conducted on Sept. 2 left at least two survivors, the officials said. The second strike killed the remaining survivors, according to the officials. The boat was carrying 11 people, the Pentagon said at the time. Both strikes that day were the first of several known U.S. strikes on vessels in the Caribbean Sea that the administration alleges carry drugs to the U.S. Since then, the Pentagon has conducted more than 20 strikes on vessels it says were transporting drugs from Venezuela, killing more than 80 people. The Washington Post was the first to report about the second strike in the Sept. 2 boat attack. The Post reported that the second strike was ordered by the Joint Special Operations commander overseeing the strike who was complying with a previous order from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to “kill everybody.”NBC News has not confirmed that detail. The second strike is significant as some legal experts say that if it was ordered to kill people who would be otherwise incapacitated, it amounts to a war crime. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., said Sunday on CNN that if the reporting on the second strike is true, “it seems to” constitute a war crime. “If what has been reported is accurate, I’ve got serious concerns about anybody in that, you know, chain of command stepping over a line that they should never step over,” Kelly said. “We are not Russia. We’re not Iraq. We hold ourselves to a very high standard of professionalism.” Uproar after lawmakers urge troops to defy illegal orders04:23Speaking to reporters Sunday, President Donald Trump said he didn’t know anything about the reported second strike, adding that Hegseth “said he did not say that, and I believe him 100%.”Asked whether he thought it would be legal if a second strike had taken place to kill those wounded in the first, Trump said, “I don’t know that that happened. And Pete said he did not want that — he didn’t even know what people were talking about. “We’ll look into it. But no, I wouldn’t have wanted that. Not a second strike. The first strike was very lethal. It was fine, and if there were two people around, but Pete said that didn’t happen. I have great confidence,” he added.“Pete said he did not order the death of those two men,” Trump said.The top Republican and Democrat on the GOP-led Senate Armed Services Committee said in a statement Friday that the committee was aware of recent reports.“The Committee has directed inquiries to the [Department of Defense], and we will be conducting vigorous oversight to determine the facts related to these circumstances,” Sens. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Jack Reed, D-R.I., said in the statement.The Republican-led House Armed Services Committee followed suit Saturday, with Reps. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., and Adam Smith, D-Wash., saying in a joint statement that the House committee is “committed to providing rigorous oversight of the Department of Defense’s military operations in the Caribbean.”“We take seriously the reports of follow-on strikes on boats alleged to be ferrying narcotics in the SOUTHCOM region and are taking bipartisan action to gather a full accounting of the operation in question,” Rogers and Smith wrote.Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell told the Post in a statement that “this entire narrative is completely false.” He told the newspaper that the “ongoing operations to dismantle narcoterrorism and to protect the Homeland from deadly drugs have been a resounding success.”Hegseth posted Friday evening on X that the strikes were intended to be “lethal, kinetic strikes.”“The declared intent is to stop lethal drugs, destroy narco-boats, and kill the narco-terrorists who are poisoning the American people. Every trafficker we kill is affiliated with a Designated Terrorist Organization,” he wrote.“Our current operations in the Caribbean are lawful under both U.S. and international law, with all actions in compliance with the law of armed conflict — and approved by the best military and civilian lawyers, up and down the chain of command,” he added.The Trump administration is ratcheting up pressure on Venezuela. Trump is weighing military action against the country following nearly two dozen known U.S. strikes on vessels in the region, which have killed at least 82 people. Trump said Saturday morning that Venezuela’s airspace should be considered “closed.”The strikes have raised concerns in Congress about a lack of information from administration officials. Trump last month indicated that his administration will not seek congressional approval for targeting drug traffickers, saying, “I think we’re just gonna kill people that are bringing drugs into our country.”“We’re going to kill them. They’re going to be, like, dead,” Trump added.Courtney KubeCourtney Kube is a correspondent covering national security and the military for the NBC News Investigative Unit.Gordon LuboldGordon Lubold is a national security reporter for NBC News.Raquel Coronell UribeRaquel Coronell Uribe is a breaking news reporter. Brennan Leach and Kyle Stewart contributed.

November 14, 2025

Nov. 14, 2025, 9:39 AM ESTBy Rebecca CohenBryan Kohberger, the man convicted of killing four University of Idaho students in 2022, must pay for the urns for two of the slain students as a part of restitution, a judge ruled.Kohberger killed four students — Madison Mogen, 21; Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Ethan Chapin, 20 — at an off-campus house on Nov. 13, 2022. He took a plea deal over the summer and was sentenced to four consecutive life sentences for four counts of first-degree murder and 10 years in prison for a burglary charge.From top left, Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Ethan Chapin and Xana Kernodle.On Thursday, the anniversary of the slayings, an Ada County judge said Kohberger would be financially responsible for the urns for two of his victims — Goncalves and Mogen. The total of the two urns is $3075.58. Additionally, Kohberger has also been ordered to pay $251,227.50 in criminal fines and fees, a civil judgment of $20,000 to each family, and $31,964.67 in restitution orders to the families of Kernodle and Chapin. A public defender listed for Kohberger did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the ruling.The ruling follows the already agreed-upon restitution that Kohberger would pay to the families of his victims, and after his defense team argued he should not be responsible for the urns because Kohberger will be in prison for the rest of his life and therefore does not have an opportunity to earn more money to cover extra expenses. District Judge Steven Hippler wrote that the cost of the urns is considered a funeral expense, something Kohberger had already agreed to pay for under the plea agreement. He also said that the additional cost for the urn “represents minimal additional burden on Defendant’s financial obligations in connection with this case” and that Kohberger has already received enough donations to cover the agreed-upon restitution. Hippler added that he believes Kohberger will receive more donations over the course of his life that can cover the cost of the urns, and that he can also get a job in prison to earn more funds. Also on Thursday, the third anniversary of the students’ deaths, tributes poured in remembering them. The University of Idaho posted a slideshow of photos on Instagram that appeared to show a campus memorial dedicated to the four students. “Forever in our hearts,” the school wrote in the post’s caption. Idaho Gov. Brad Little wrote on X that the students’ slayings “shook our state to its core.” “Idahoans continue to offer our love and support to the families and many, many loved ones of these four beautiful souls,” Little added. Rebecca CohenRebecca Cohen is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Digital.

September 25, 2025

California jewelry store targeted in smash-and-grab

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