DOJ probing $2.6 billion in oil trades related to Iran war, sources say
Signage during a news conference at the Department of Justice in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, May 4, 2026. (Photographer: Daniel Heuer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — The Department of Justice is investigating a series of suspiciously timed trades in the oil market just ahead of major announcements by President Donald Trump and a top Iranian official about the war in Iran, sources told ABC News.
The DOJ, along with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, is probing at least four of these trades where traders made a total of more than $2.6 billion betting that oil prices would drop right before they did.
The DOJ and CFTC have not commented on the trades.
ABC News obtained the data of the four trades from the London Stock Exchange Group.
On March 23, 15 minutes before Trump announced that he would delay threatened attacks on Iran’s power grid, traders bet more than $500 million that oil prices would fall.
On April 7, hours ahead of a temporary ceasefire announced by Trump, traders bet $960 million that oil prices would fall.
On April 17, 20 minutes before Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi posted on social media saying that the Strait of Hormuz was open, traders bet $760 million that oil prices would fall.
On April 21, 15 minutes before Trump announced he would extend the ceasefire, traders placed a series of bets worth $430 million that oil prices would fall.
The series of oil trades was first reported by Reuters and the data from LSEG does not indicate any identities behind these trades and does not prove individuals were trading based on insider information.
Meredith Gaudreau, widow of former Columbus Blue Jackets hockey player, Johnny Gaudreau speaks with ABC News, Feb. 24, 2026. (ABC News)
(NEW YORK) — Meredith Gaudreau, the widow of professional hockey player Johnny Gaudreau, is speaking out about the emotional moment the U.S. men’s hockey team celebrated her husband and their children at the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics.
As soon as USA beat Canada 2-1 in the gold medal game on Sunday, the players brought two of Johnny Gaudreau’s kids onto the ice. Three-year-old Noa and Johnny Jr. — who turned 2 that same day — posed with their dad’s number 13 jersey as they sat in the arms of the new Olympic champions.
“They didn’t have to do that,” Meredith Gaudreau told ABC News Live on Tuesday.
“I was just very, very proud, and I’m very thankful to them for including my kids in it, and just honoring my husband the way they do,” she said. “It’s the classiest thing. They do all these really kind gestures and include our kids in everything, because I know that’s exactly what John would want.”
Meredith Gaudreau said she told her daughter, “Daddy’s friends want to take a picture with you and Johnny. … You get to do this because of daddy and they love and they miss him, too.”
“She was really excited,” she said. “… She’s started to put things together and she’s very, very proud.”
Johnny Gaudreau’s parents were also in the crowd to witness the special moment.
Johnny Gaudreau, a 31-year-old Columbus Blue Jackets star known as “Johnny Hockey,” died on Aug. 29, 2024, alongside his brother, Matthew Gaudreau, 29, a former pro hockey player.
The brothers were riding bikes in New Jersey on the eve of their sister’s wedding when they were struck by a driver suspected of being under the influence of alcohol, according to police. The suspected driver was arrested and has pleaded not guilty to charges of aggravated manslaughter, vehicular homicide, evidence tampering and leaving the scene of an accident. He’s not yet gone to trial.
“Still every day is kind of a gut punch,” Meredith Gaudreau said. “So when the guys do what they can to still include John and our kids, it just means everything to me. You know, these guys are really good people, really good friends of ours. And I just consider them really great role models.”
She added that it shows “how much they love John and all the respect they have for him. … I am really proud of John for having that type of impact.”
Meredith Gaudreau said her third baby, Carter — who was born about seven months after his father died — didn’t travel with them to the Olympics, but watched the game from home.
“He doesn’t have a passport yet cause he’s only, almost 11 months old. So I felt so bad, but he watched along and he looks pretty good wearing number 13!” she said.
Matthew Gaudreau also left behind a wife, Madeline Gaudreau, who was pregnant at the time of his death. Their son, Tripp, was born four months after the crash.
Ed Martin, former Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, departs following a meeting at the White House on January 9, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Al Drago/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — The Washington, D.C., Bar initiated disciplinary proceedings against Justice Department pardon attorney Ed Martin over allegations he improperly threatened to withhold federal funding from Georgetown University’s law school and then attempted to sideline an investigation into his conduct while serving as D.C.’s top federal prosecutor last year, according to a disciplinary petition.
In a two-count petition filed last week with the D.C. Court of Appeals Board of Professional Responsibility, attorneys with the D.C. Bar’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel alleged that Martin engaged in “conduct that seriously interferes with the administration of justice,” including by allegedly demanding that a judge suspend the attorney investigating his actions.
“Mr. Martin knew or should have known that, as a government official, his conduct violated the First and Fifth Amendments to the Constitution of the United States,” the disciplinary petition said.
According to the complaint, Martin – while serving as the interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia last year – threatened to withhold federal funding and freeze hirings from Georgetown University Law Center over allegations that the school was promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) measures.
After sending letters to the dean of Georgetown’s law school about DEI programming last year, Martin allegedly told the school’s interim president that their answers about DEI would “bear directly on Georgetown University’s status as a 501(c) nonprofit and its receipt of nearly $1 billion of federal tax money.”
“He demanded that Georgetown Law relinquish its free speech and religious rights in order to continue to obtain a benefit, employment opportunities for its students,” the petition said. “His demand did not provide Georgetown Law fair notice of what is allegedly prohibited because he did not define ‘DEI,’ cited no authority for his demand, and did not describe what actions, and what timetable, might satisfy his demand.”
After a retired judge reported Martin’s conduct to the Office of Disciplinary Counsel, Martin allegedly attempted to sideline the investigation by sending a letter directly to the chief judge and senior judges on the D.C. Court of Appeals, according to the complaint.
“In that letter, he stated that he would not be responding to Disciplinary Counsel’s inquiry, complained about Disciplinary Counsel’s ‘uneven behavior,’ and requested a ‘face-to-face meeting with all of you to discuss this matter and find a way forward.’ He copied the White House Counsel ‘for informational purposes because of the importance of getting this issue addressed,'” the complaint said.
The complaint alleges that Martin – after being told to not directly communicate with judges – sent another letter to the chief judge demanding that the court suspend the investigator probing his conduct and dismiss the case against him.
With the charges filed, D.C.’s Board on Professional Responsibility is expected to refer the petition to a hearing committee.
Martin’s interactions are just one among a series of controversies from his brief tenure as Washington’s top federal prosecutor from January to May 2025 before his temporary appointment to the position lapsed and he failed to gain enough support from Republican senators for his confirmation to the post.
He was then appointed to four separate senior positions in the Justice Department before sources said he was effectively demoted earlier this year after multiple other incidents where he faced admonishment from leadership for his conduct.
Martin remains in his role as pardon attorney, according to the DOJ, and has used the post to float controversial clemency recommendations to the White House while frequently citing the phrase, “No MAGA left behind.”
The ethics complaint was filed the same week that the DOJ proposed new regulations that would seek to give Attorney General Pam Bondi the authority to suspend state bar investigations, arguing the policy is necessary to combat the “weaponization” of the complaint process. It’s not immediately clear what legal basis the department would have to intervene in state-level proceedings, however.
Martin and a DOJ spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the complaint.
Georgetown Law’s then-Dean William Treanor previously responded to Martin’s letter, affirming the school’s speech protections under the First Amendment. He accused Martin of mounting “an attack on the University’s mission as a Jesuit and Catholic institution.”
Police cordon off an area close to the Islamic Center of San Diego after reports of an active shooter on Monday, May 18, 2026. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune via Getty Images)
(SAN DIEGO) — Three adult men, one of whom was a security guard, were killed in a shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego on Monday, authorities said.
The security guard appeared to play a “pivotal role” in keeping the shooting from being worse, police said at a news conference.
Both suspects, who are teenagers, are dead from apparent self-inflicted gunshot wounds, police said.
All children are safe, police said.
Photos show children being evacuated from the area.
Police said the shooting is currently being considered a hate crime since it took place at a mosque.
The Islamic Center of San Diego says it is the largest mosque in San Diego County.
“We strongly condemn this horrifying act of violence,” Tazheen Nizam, the executive director of the San Diego chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said in a statement. “Our thoughts are with everyone impacted by this attack. No one should ever fear for their safety while attending prayers or studying at an elementary school.”
In New York City, the NYPD said there’s “no known nexus to NYC or specific threats to NYC houses of worship,” but the department said it is increasing officer deployments to mosques “out of an abundance of caution.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
