Donna Adelson Caught on Tape: Wiretaps + FBI Undercover “Bump” Revealed
True Crime Today | Daily True Crime News & Interviews
Tony Brueski
4.2 • 612 Ratings
🗓️ 2 September 2025
⏱️ 67 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this episode, we break down both.
First, the wiretaps. Donna Adelson is heard talking about buying cemetery plots, worrying that her son Charlie is “on trial for his life,” and even discussing non-extradition countries as escape options. At one point, she doesn’t hang up after Charlie leaves the line, and the recorder captures her muttering—raw, unguarded, and deeply revealing. Prosecutors say it’s not just idle talk; it’s proof of a consciousness of guilt.
Then comes the “bump.” In a bold undercover move, an FBI agent slipped Donna a note on a public street, pretending to be a former cellmate of hitman Sigfredo Garcia. The message? He knew about the murder plot and wanted $5,000 to keep quiet. From there, the pressure campaign escalated—phone calls, texts, and even contact with the family’s dental practice. The aftermath was telling: Charlie Adelson scrambled to buy concert tickets and a limo for Katherine “Katie” Magbanua and Garcia, trying to keep them close and under control.
Together, the wiretaps and the bump form a devastating narrative: this wasn’t a family blindsided by false accusations, but one already planning escapes and bracing for exposure.
Donna Adelson, now 75, stands accused of orchestrating the 2014 murder-for-hire of her former son-in-law, Florida State University law professor Dan Markel. Prosecutors argue she conspired with her son Charlie and others to eliminate Markel so her daughter and grandchildren could live freely in Miami. Charlie Adelson was convicted in 2023 and sentenced to life. Donna was arrested that same year at the Miami airport with a one-way ticket to Vietnam.
Her trial in Tallahassee is expected to continue through September 5.
Stay tuned as we unpack every detail.
Hashtags
#DonnaAdelson #DanMarkel #TrueCrime #MurderForHire #TrialCoverage #HiddenKillers #TonyBrueski #FBI #WiretapEvidence #TrueCrimeCommunity
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | This is Hidden Killers Live with Tony Bruske, Stacey Cole, and Todd Michaels. |
| 0:08.2 | In the Donna Aedelson murder for higher trial, jurors are being hit with two powerful threads of evidence. |
| 0:18.1 | Words she never thought anyone would hear. And the pressure, the FBI deliberately applied |
| 0:24.1 | to shake her family's foundation. We're going to hear a lot of that testimony. We're going to hear |
| 0:29.1 | Donna in her own words today having these conversations. Miss, I just don't know anything. I was |
| 0:36.7 | just at the come and go. That's all. |
| 0:40.3 | First, the wiretaps, Donna's own voice talking about cemetery plots, Charlie being on trial for his life, |
| 0:48.3 | even searching for countries with no extradition. That was just a vacation, remember? At one point, she thinks the call |
| 0:55.9 | was over even, but the recorder keeps rolling, capturing her raw, unfiltered thoughts. We'll hear |
| 1:01.4 | that, too. It's a kind of slip that doesn't just hint at guilty, it screams. Then there's also |
| 1:06.6 | the bump that undercover FBI agent handling, handing Donna that note on the street pretending to be a |
| 1:13.0 | former cellmate of the hitman demanding that hush money that single move set off the chain reaction |
| 1:18.9 | calls nervous text and charlie scrambling to buy concert tickets and even a limo for katherine mcbonne |
| 1:26.9 | trying to keep everyone in line, I guess. I kind of want to, how do you get a job like that where you get to be somebody undercover? Do you have to be trained in law enforcement? Or can you just be like, I'll go up and hand so-and-so a note? It's a good question for Robin. I'm going to ask him. Do you mind? Because I want to know. |
| 1:44.6 | That can be my side hustle. |
| 1:46.1 | Just don't do it like in the middle of like another conversation. |
| 1:49.4 | Hey, by the way, what? |
| 1:54.1 | No, I mean, I think it'd be a good, it'd be an interesting thing to ask because we'll be discussing it. |
| 1:59.3 | Yeah, I'm probably, I'm sure we'll be discussing this case a bit on Monday. |
| 2:05.9 | But it's, yeah, I probably just depends on the case. |
| 2:11.6 | There's plenty of people where you become, you know, you wear a wire. |
| 2:16.9 | You know, that's essentially, you know, so there's wearing a wire and there's being an undercover agent. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Tony Brueski, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Tony Brueski and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.