Suspicions grow after Trump's 'extreme long shot' pick becomes press secretary

Questions swirled Sunday after President Donald Trump announced who his next press secretary would be.

"I am pleased to announce that Katie Zacharia will be beginning her term as Press Secretary tomorrow, Columbus Day, and will be doing an introductory News Conference on Tuesday at 9:30 A.M. from the Press Briefing Room in the White House. Katie has been with me, in spirit, from the very beginning, and will do a fantastic job!" Trump posted on Truth Social.

The move was unexpected for several reasons, with prediction market Kalshi noting that Zacharia had a less-than 1% chance of being selected, making her an "extreme long shot," CNN's Marshall Cohen reported. That didn't stop three people from placing bets under $100 that she would be picked, which raised suspicions at Kalshi about the timing and that insider trading may be involved, he added.

"This is just another example of possible insider trading," he said.

There have been multiple incidents of alleged insider trading during Trump's second administration. For instance, Cohen recalled last year when a military soldier was convicted of using classified information to trade on the capture of Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro.

A former White House teleprompter operator was also caught betting on what Trump would say in his speeches, according to reports.