An FBI Violent Crimes Task Force undercover officer described the April 21, 2016 covert recording operation at the Matsuri sushi restaurant in Miami, where he sat adjacent to Harvey Adelson at the sushi bar with a hidden audio-video device that captured a conversation between Charlie and Harvey Adelson. State's Exhibit 112 was admitted without objection. On cross, defense counsel identified three windows not captured by the recording — the pre-restaurant conversation, whispered exchanges during the meal, and a post-meal parking lot conversation — and drew out details of Charlie Adelson's April 2022 arrest, including that he surrendered peacefully and that an officer became entangled in a barbed wire fence on the property.

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Proceedings

Direct Special Agent Undercover #3 (Matsuri) - Direct Line 1

Cross Special Agent Undercover #3 (Matsuri) - Cross Line 40

Direct Special Agent Undercover #3 (Matsuri) Georgia Cappleman

1 5:48:11

MS. CAPPLEMAN: What about back in 2016?

2 5:48:16

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): I worked for the City of Plantation Police Department.

3 5:48:19

MS. CAPPLEMAN: As part of your duties there, were you called upon to participate in a surveillance operation involving this defendant, Charles Adelson?

4 5:48:27

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): Yes, as a member of the FBI Violent Crimes Task Force, Miami division, I was.

5 5:48:31

MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay, and was the surveillance that you conducted of Mr. Adelson related to a wiretap that was ongoing at that time?

6 5:48:39

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): Yes, there was current electronic surveillance of Mr. Adelson at the time.

7 5:48:43

MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right, what were you asked to do?

8 5:48:46

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): Conduct physical and electronic surveillance of Charles Adelson.

9 5:48:49

MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right, and a part of that involved going to the Matsuri restaurant?

10 5:48:53

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): Yes.

11 5:48:54

MS. CAPPLEMAN: Is that a sushi restaurant in Miami?

12 5:48:56

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): Yes, it is.

13 5:48:57

MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay, and what were you supposed to do once you got into the restaurant?

14 5:49:01

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): I had a covert electronic surveillance audio and video recording device and attempt to record Charles Adelson and his father, Harvey.

15 5:49:11

MS. CAPPLEMAN: And do you see Charles Adelson in the courtroom here today?

16 5:49:15

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): I do.

17 5:49:16

MS. CAPPLEMAN: Could you point him out and describe what he's wearing?

18 5:49:17

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): He's sitting at the defense table wearing a blue blazer and a blue shirt and a blue tie.

19 5:49:28

MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right. And is this on April 21st, 2016?

20 5:49:31

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): Yes, it is.

21 5:49:32

MS. CAPPLEMAN: Okay, what equipment were you using for this operation?

22 5:49:35

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): It was a recording device that recorded audio and video.

23 5:49:39

MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right, can you describe the setup at the restaurant and where you were located in relation to Mr. Adelson?

24 5:49:46

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): Harvey and Charles Adelson were sitting at the sushi bar. I took a position directly next to Harvey.

25 5:49:52

MS. CAPPLEMAN: Were you able to hear the conversation that they were having?

26 5:49:55

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): No. No.

27 5:49:56

MS. CAPPLEMAN: Was the recorder closer to them than you were?

28 5:49:59

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): It was right between myself and Harvey Adelson.

29 5:50:05

MS. CAPPLEMAN: Have you had an opportunity to review the recording that's captured on State's Exhibit 12?

30 5:50:11

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): Yes.

31 5:50:12

MS. CAPPLEMAN: And is that a fair and accurate recording of the interception you made there at the Matsuri restaurant on the date in question?

32 5:50:19

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): Yes, it is.

33 5:50:20

MS. CAPPLEMAN: All right. And it's video and audio, is that right?

34 5:50:22

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): That's correct.

35 5:50:23

MS. CAPPLEMAN: Let the record reflect the witness has initialed this exhibit, and I will, at this time, move it into evidence as State's Exhibit 112.

36 5:50:32

JUDGE EVERETT: Any objection?

37 5:50:33

MR. RASHBAUM: No objection.

38 5:50:34

JUDGE EVERETT: State's 112 is admitted.

39 5:50:34

MS. CAPPLEMAN: No further questions.

Cross Special Agent Undercover #3 (Matsuri) Dan Rashbaum

40 5:50:40

MR. RASHBAUM: Cross-examination.

41 5:50:57

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): Good afternoon.

42 5:50:59

MR. RASHBAUM: Back in 2016, you didn't really like sushi, did you?

43 5:51:03

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): Not that much.

44 5:51:06

MR. RASHBAUM: You didn't see them enter the restaurant, right?

45 5:51:09

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): No.

46 5:51:10

MR. RASHBAUM: No. And you didn't see them talk outside the restaurant before they entered the restaurant, right?

47 5:51:18

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): No.

48 5:51:19

MR. RASHBAUM: There's no recording of that, to your knowledge, correct?

49 5:51:22

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): That's correct.

50 5:51:23

MR. RASHBAUM: Now, during the conversation, do you recall some whispering happening?

51 5:51:29

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): Yes.

52 5:51:30

MR. RASHBAUM: And you couldn't hear what was whispered, right?

53 5:51:43

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): That's correct.

54 5:51:43

MR. RASHBAUM: When they left the restaurant, could you see them talking in the parking lot?

55 5:51:43

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): Yes.

56 5:51:43

MR. RASHBAUM: But there's no recording of what they were saying in the parking lot, right?

57 5:51:43

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): That's correct.

58 5:51:43

MR. RASHBAUM: You participated in the arrest of Charlie Adelson as well, right?

59 5:51:53

SPECIAL AGENT UNDERCOVER #3 (MATSURI): That's correct.

60 5:51:54

MR. RASHBAUM: And that occurred in April of 2022?

61 5:51:57

AUDIO RECORDING: Yes.

62 5:51:59

MR. RASHBAUM: And the arrest happened at around 6 a.m. in the morning?

63 5:52:02

AUDIO RECORDING: Yes.

64 5:52:04

MR. RASHBAUM: And during that arrest, one of the officers got caught in a barbed wire fence, right?

65 5:52:10

AUDIO RECORDING: Yes.

66 5:52:11

MR. RASHBAUM: That was behind Mr. Adelson's house, right?

67 5:52:15

AUDIO RECORDING: Yes, on the side of his house, I believe.

68 5:52:18

MR. RASHBAUM: Okay. Also, during that arrest, there were a lot of security cameras, right?

69 5:52:23

AUDIO RECORDING: Not that I'm aware of.

70 5:52:26

MR. RASHBAUM: Okay. When Charlie Adelson was arrested, he surrendered peacefully?

71 5:52:30

AUDIO RECORDING: Yes.

72 5:52:31

MR. RASHBAUM: And he consented to allow the agents to come in the house?

73 5:52:37

AUDIO RECORDING: I wasn't aware of that.

74 5:52:39

MR. RASHBAUM: Fair enough.

75 5:52:42

MR. RASHBAUM: May I have one moment, Your Honor?

76 5:52:42

OFF RECORD: No further questions.

77 5:52:50

JUDGE EVERETT: Redirect examination.

78 5:52:51

MS. CAPPLEMAN: No questions, Judge.

79 5:52:53

JUDGE EVERETT: You may step down.

Insights

Direct Special Agent Undercover #3 (Matsuri)

Undercover agent authenticates the Matsuri covert recording of Charlie and Harvey Adelson; State's Exhibit 112 admitted without objection.

Case Significance

Brief foundational direct establishing authentication and chain of custody for the Matsuri covert recording (State's 112); no contested issues arose.

State's Exhibit 112 (Matsuri audio-video recording) admitted without defense objection

Highlights

Evidence

State's Exhibit 112 — the Matsuri covert audio-video recording of Charlie and Harvey Adelson at the sushi bar — admitted without defense objection.

People Mentioned

Harvey Adelson

Locations Mentioned

Matsuri

Evidence Mentioned

State's 112

Deep Analysis

Evidentiary Or Procedural Notes

Exhibit Admitted Without Objection

State's 112 (Matsuri covert audio-video recording) was moved into evidence without defense objection, clearing the way for the jury to view the recording of Charlie and Harvey Adelson at the sushi bar.

Witness Role And Importance

Witness Role And Importance

Undercover officer who conducted the April 21, 2016 Matsuri restaurant surveillance, serving as the foundation witness to authenticate State's Exhibit 112 — the covert audio-video recording of Charlie and Harvey Adelson. Testimony was brief and uncontested; the agent's function was authentication and chain-of-custody rather than substantive observation of the conversation itself.

Cross Special Agent Undercover #3 (Matsuri)

Brief defense cross establishing three unrecorded gaps around the Matsuri surveillance — before entry, whispered exchanges, and parking lot — and that Charlie Adelson surrendered peacefully at his 2022 arrest.

Case Significance

Short cross with limited evidentiary impact; chiefly establishes recording incompleteness and offers a cooperative-character note for Charlie Adelson.

Three recording gaps highlighted but none directly contradict any admitted exhibit
Peaceful surrender is a character point with minimal legal weight at this stage
Prosecution waived redirect, signaling no perceived damage

Highlights

“Back in 2016, you didn't really like sushi, did you?”

— Dan RashbaumMemorable cross-examination opener that humanizes the surveillance operation and signals the defense's intent to probe the undercover's situational awareness and limitations at the scene.Testimony

Defense methodically establishes three unrecorded windows around the Matsuri recording: no capture of any conversation before the men entered the restaurant, whispering during the meal the agent acknowledged occurred, and a parking lot conversation the agent personally observed after they left.

“When Charlie Adelson was arrested, he surrendered peacefully?”

— Dan RashbaumDefense plants a cooperative-character note: Charlie's non-resistant arrest at 6 a.m. works against any inference of consciousness of guilt.Testimony

Defense elicits that Charlie Adelson surrendered peacefully at his 6 a.m. April 2022 arrest; the agent was unaware of security cameras and could not confirm whether Charlie consented to agents entering his home.

People Mentioned

Charlie Adelson

Deep Analysis

Attorney Strategy

Recording-completeness attack

Rashbaum methodically identified three temporal gaps the Matsuri recording does not cover — before entry, whispered portions, after exit — implying that whatever the jury cannot hear may matter as much as what it can.

Favorable arrest narrative

Rashbaum pivoted to the 2022 arrest to portray Charlie as cooperative and non-threatening, offering a character counterweight to the prosecution's conspiracy narrative.

Notable Admissions

Three unrecorded windows around the Matsuri conversation

The agent confirmed no recording captured the Adelsons' conversation before entering the restaurant, any whispered exchanges during the meal, or their conversation observed in the parking lot afterward — three gaps the defense can argue contained discussion the jury cannot hear.

Witness Role And Importance

Witness Role And Importance

The undercover agent placed and operated the covert recording device at the Matsuri sushi bar in April 2016, capturing the conversation between Charlie and Harvey Adelson admitted as State's Exhibit 112. In cross, the witness serves primarily to establish the outer limits of that recording — three windows of conversation it did not capture — and to authenticate details of Charlie's 2022 arrest.

Summary

A Plantation Police Department officer serving on the FBI Violent Crimes Task Force testified about his role in a covert surveillance operation at the Matsuri sushi restaurant in Miami on April 21, 2016. He sat directly beside Harvey Adelson at the sushi bar with a concealed audio-video recording device positioned between himself and Harvey. The agent acknowledged he could not personally hear the conversation between Charlie and Harvey Adelson, but the device captured it. Following in-court identification of the defendant and authentication of the recording, State's Exhibit 112 was admitted without objection. On cross-examination, Dan Rashbaum identified three gaps in the recording's coverage: any conversation between Charlie and Harvey Adelson that occurred before they entered the restaurant, portions of the exchange that were whispered at the table, and a conversation the agent personally observed between the two men in the parking lot after leaving. None of those windows were captured on the recording device. Rashbaum then turned to the circumstances of Charlie Adelson's April 2022 arrest, eliciting that Charlie surrendered peacefully at approximately 6 a.m., that one of the agents became caught in a barbed wire fence on the side of the property, and that the undercover agent was not aware whether security cameras were present or whether Charlie had consented to agents entering the house. The prosecution waived redirect, and the witness was excused.

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