Former Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig was convicted Friday on federal charges related to an illegal sports gambling case, potentially facing up to 15 years in prison, according to CBS News. The conviction, which followed a nearly two-week trial in downtown Los Angeles, stemmed from charges of obstruction of justice and making false statements to federal investigators.
Puig, 35, had initially been set to plead guilty to a single count of lying to federal authorities, but withdrew from the plea deal in November 2022, CBS News reported. He stated at the time that he "never should have agreed to plead guilty to a crime I did not commit." A Los Angeles judge later determined the deal was not binding because it was not formally entered in court.
In other news, the FBI and the Pima County Sheriff's Department are investigating a new message concerning the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of "Today" show host Savannah Guthrie, ABC News reported. Authorities are actively inspecting the information provided in the message for its authenticity, according to a social media post from the sheriff's department. Guthrie went missing last weekend, and authorities believe she was abducted from her Arizona home.
President Donald Trump said he did not see the full racist video before it was shared on his social media platform, which included a racist animation of former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama depicted with the bodies of apes, ABC News reported. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said he only saw the first part of the since-deleted video that focused on debunked claims about the 2020 election. When asked if he condemns the racist part of the video, Trump responded, "Of course I do."
Meanwhile, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced Friday that two West Virginia National Guard members, Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom and Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, who were shot in an ambush-style attack near the White House late last year, will receive the Purple Heart, Fox News reported. Hegseth called the November 26 incident "a terrible thing" and said the troops were "attacked by a radical," while speaking at a National Guard reenlistment ceremony at the Washington Monument.
Finally, the Small Business Administration (SBA) announced Friday that it suspended more than 100,000 California borrowers amid suspected fraud, with the alleged abuse totaling nearly $9 billion, according to Fox News. SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler said the agency suspended 111,620 California borrowers tied to suspected fraudulent activity across SBA pandemic-era loan programs. Those borrowers received 118,489 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) loans totaling more than $8.6 billion. Loeffler vowed that people would be jailed in Minnesota for alleged fraud.
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