On this day in conspiracies

President Richard Nixon closes the gold window, ending the dollar's convertibility to gold for foreign governments. The Bretton Woods system collapses and the dollar becomes a fiat currency, removing the entire monetary rationale that had made citizens' gold a lever of national policy in 1933.

Before dawn, army units led by the plotters attack Mujib's residence and the homes of close relatives. Mujib is shot dead on the staircase of his home; his wife Fazilatunnesa, sons Kamal, Jamal, and ten-year-old Russel, two daughters-in-law, his brother Sheikh Abu Naser, and other family and staff are killed. At least eighteen people die across the raids.

At 10:16 p.m. local time, Big Ear's automated receiver records a strong, narrowband signal lasting the full 72-second window the telescope could observe any fixed point, near 1420 MHz.

A federal grand jury in the District of Columbia returns a 28-count indictment against eleven senior Scientologists, including Mary Sue Hubbard; L. Ron Hubbard is named an unindicted co-conspirator.

Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri, Khomeini's designated successor, meets the Tehran commission and, by his own later account, warns them they are committing the greatest crime of the Islamic Republic. His objections are recorded; the executions continue.

At a press conference, West Virginia officials disclose that the body was embalmed before the family was notified or a full autopsy performed. State medical examiner findings are reported as not inconsistent with suicide while not conclusively ruling out foul play.

Britain and Norway offer rescue assistance. Russian officials deflect the offers for days while insisting their own effort is adequate. President Vladimir Putin remains on holiday at a Black Sea residence, drawing sharp criticism as the story dominates world news.

Donaghy surrenders and pleads guilty in federal court in Brooklyn to two felony counts: conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to transmit wagering information across state lines. The Department of Justice announces the pleas.

Donaghy pleads guilty in Brooklyn federal court to two felony counts: conspiracy to engage in wire fraud and transmitting wagering information across state lines. He admits providing betting picks on games, including ones he refereed, using nonpublic information from his position. He is later sentenced to 15 months in prison.

NBA referee Tim Donaghy pleads guilty in a Brooklyn federal court to two felony charges tied to betting on games he officiated. The case, unrelated to the NFL, proves that a corrupt official can influence a professional game, and it becomes a permanent talking point for anyone arguing that any league's results can be steered.

Around this date, based on the state of decomposition, Gareth Williams is believed to have died in the flat at Alderney Street in Pimlico, central London, a property maintained for intelligence staff. He had last been seen and heard from more than a week before his body was found.

Cyril Ramaphosa, then an ANC national executive member and a director of a company with a substantial stake in Lonmin, sends emails describing the violence as 'dastardly criminal' acts and calling for 'concomitant action.' The emails become central to later allegations of political pressure, which Ramaphosa disputes.