The Daily Populous Monday April 6th, 2026 morning edition
Authored by nbcnews.com and submitted by AudibleNod

Prediction market platform Polymarket issued an apology for allowing users to place bets on the fate of American pilots aboard a U.S. fighter jet downed over Iran.

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A two-seater F-15E Strike Eagle was shot down on Friday, according to a U.S. official. One crew member was rescued, but the other remains missing.

In a since-deleted market, users were able to wager on when the pilots might be rescued, with the majority predicting a Saturday rescue.

“US confirms pilots rescued by...?” the market read.

Rep. Seth Moulton, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran who served in Iraq, slammed the market in a post on X, noting that bets were being placed as a dangerous search and rescue operation was ongoing in Iran.

"They could be your neighbor, a friend, a family member," the Democrat from Massachusetts wrote. "And people are betting on whether or not they’ll be saved."

In a reply to Moulton's X post, Polymarket apologized and said it took the market down.

"We took this market down immediately as it does not meet our integrity standards," the company wrote. "It should not have been posted, and we are investigating how this slipped through our internal safeguards."

Moulton replied to Polymarket’s apology, saying the company’s “integrity standards are severely lacking” and pointing to other war-related bets still active on the platform.

"Taking down this particular bet after I called it out can only be the first step, @Polymarket," he wrote. "There are still 219 war bets active on your platform. Remove these immediately."

Prediction market platforms, where users can place bets on everything from wars and elections to pop culture and sporting events, have recently come under congressional scrutiny as their popularity has soared.

Last month, lawmakers introduced a Senate bill that would ban prediction markets from accepting or listing transactions related to sports events and casino-style games.

In recent weeks, Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., has also pledged to introduce legislation to ban bets tied to government actions, citing wagers made on the ongoing war.

Capital_Historian685 on April 5th, 2026 at 19:00 UTC »

Yeah, right. Apologized all the way to the bank.

Rbtmd78 on April 5th, 2026 at 19:00 UTC »

Pretending they actually have standards

Wheres_my_wank_sock on April 5th, 2026 at 18:58 UTC »

Creating an entire new generation of degenerate gamblers.