1 00:00:01,199 --> 00:00:11,400 It's a nine. HE IS your CPT champion. >> And of $10,000 bottle of liquor. 2 00:00:08,240 --> 00:00:11,400 >> That's our 3 00:00:11,599 --> 00:00:15,839 crazy. >> GIVE IT UP FOR NEON, EVERYBODY. 4 00:00:13,920 --> 00:00:18,960 >> Can you imagine a Muslim using the excuse that the reason they're gambling 5 00:00:17,920 --> 00:00:21,039 is because >> my dad, [music] 6 00:00:19,840 --> 00:00:23,359 >> he told me to keep gambling. >> Oh, interesting. He knows it's best for 7 00:00:22,720 --> 00:00:26,240 me, right? >> Where did you learn that your dad knows 8 00:00:25,119 --> 00:00:30,880 what's best [music] for you? >> They're obeying their father. or even 9 00:00:27,920 --> 00:00:33,680 worse, they're using the Quran to justify it. 10 00:00:31,760 --> 00:00:37,520 >> Uh the [music] Quran, it says that my So I follow the Quran 11 00:00:35,280 --> 00:00:40,399 and it says my mom and my dad uh know always listen to your parents. 12 00:00:38,800 --> 00:00:43,440 >> Now, some of you have shared with me >> cuz it's I like gambling, too. I have a 13 00:00:41,920 --> 00:00:46,480 genuine passion for it. I was 17 years old. I lost $200,000 every dime of my 14 00:00:45,360 --> 00:00:49,920 name from gambling. >> So, I've loved gambling for a while. 15 00:00:48,320 --> 00:00:54,640 Like, this is what I love. This is like I have a genuine passion for it. some of 16 00:00:51,680 --> 00:00:58,640 this information about a Muslim streamer named Neo or Neon. 17 00:00:57,280 --> 00:01:01,199 >> And it's [music] it's fun to be, bro. And I get it is controversial. You're 18 00:01:00,160 --> 00:01:04,320 you're putting the stuff on the audience, on your viewers, which isn't 19 00:01:02,800 --> 00:01:08,080 good. But at the same time, when I'm streaming, I'm saying, "Yo, don't 20 00:01:05,680 --> 00:01:12,400 gamble. Don't do this. Don't do that." >> And I never miss a good educational 21 00:01:10,159 --> 00:01:16,640 moment to try and help someone who's falling into the traps of the Shayan. 22 00:01:15,760 --> 00:01:18,560 Like, >> you can gamble on Twitch. 23 00:01:17,520 --> 00:01:21,600 >> You can gamble everywhere. >> Yeah. Gambling, bro. There's no way to 24 00:01:19,600 --> 00:01:25,040 get out. like the brother Neon and so many others. You know, gambling is 25 00:01:23,600 --> 00:01:30,000 destroying America. >> Gambling has the highest uh suicide rate 26 00:01:27,360 --> 00:01:33,520 of any addiction in the United States. Yes. Yes, it does 27 00:01:31,360 --> 00:01:43,280 >> with people like Kevin Hart. >> Straight your name at any time. 28 00:01:38,880 --> 00:01:50,880 Jamie Fox, Wayne Gretzky, LeBron James, Drake, uh Kendell Jenner, Megan the 29 00:01:46,479 --> 00:01:55,920 Stallion, and and now unfortunately this brother Neon who are on the front line 30 00:01:52,880 --> 00:02:00,000 helping to destroy America through gambling. These 31 00:01:57,759 --> 00:02:04,399 are people who are unfortunately extremely dangerous. 32 00:02:02,079 --> 00:02:07,119 >> Would you would you ever uh take a gambling deal? 33 00:02:06,719 --> 00:02:10,640 >> Yeah. Yeah. >> Like if I could reach out to my people, 34 00:02:08,560 --> 00:02:12,000 I'm like, "Yo, ship, you would love to start gambling on stream. Would you do 35 00:02:11,840 --> 00:02:15,200 it?" >> I had this idea. You got you got to hold 36 00:02:14,160 --> 00:02:19,040 for the right money. Yeah. >> For 30 days straight. Stream. 37 00:02:16,879 --> 00:02:25,120 >> Just imagine how many lives they are helping to ruin through promoting 38 00:02:20,640 --> 00:02:30,160 gambling. So, my next guest will try to give a shot at helping Neon and others 39 00:02:28,160 --> 00:02:36,720 who are struggling with this gambling addiction. 40 00:02:32,239 --> 00:02:42,239 Adnan Alisich is the author of Arizona Dream. He's a Bosnian war survivor who 41 00:02:39,920 --> 00:02:48,879 immigrated to America as a young man. Now, Adnan built a successful business 42 00:02:45,920 --> 00:02:54,800 before his gambling addiction led him to be involved in one of the most elaborate 43 00:02:51,120 --> 00:02:59,599 casino heists in US history. Something like The Ocean 11. I think that's the 44 00:02:56,800 --> 00:03:06,480 film back in the day. He ended up serving 15 and a half years out of 17 in 45 00:03:03,680 --> 00:03:13,840 nine federal prisons before rebuilding his life after incarceration 46 00:03:10,319 --> 00:03:21,200 and something amazing happened while he was in d jail and he made a promise to 47 00:03:17,680 --> 00:03:27,519 God almighty the creator Allah as he was being apprehended almost by I don't know 48 00:03:24,480 --> 00:03:32,560 how many hundred law enforcement and today He's sticking to that promise that 49 00:03:30,720 --> 00:03:38,080 he made to the creator God almighty Allah. And that's why today he spends he 50 00:03:36,080 --> 00:03:45,519 speaks openly about his gambling addiction, personal responsibility, 51 00:03:41,519 --> 00:03:51,040 uh his found faith, resilience, and finding purpose after prison. 52 00:03:48,159 --> 00:03:57,280 uh his stories has been featured by Emmy award-winning investigative journalists 53 00:03:53,360 --> 00:04:01,200 Marina Vanzella Maxim and other podcasts around the US, UK, and Europe and 54 00:03:59,040 --> 00:04:05,599 Australia. So, he's going to give it a shot to try and help people like Neon 55 00:04:03,920 --> 00:04:11,920 and others who have fallen into this trap and who have a huge responsibility. 56 00:04:09,439 --> 00:04:15,200 And it reminds me of a hadith where the prophet Muhammad peace and bless be upon 57 00:04:13,360 --> 00:04:19,519 him said, "The one who initiates something bad." I'm paraphrasing. 58 00:04:17,759 --> 00:04:24,400 If you initiate something good, you're going to have the reward of all of the 59 00:04:22,320 --> 00:04:28,080 good that comes after people start doing that good. But if you initiate something 60 00:04:25,919 --> 00:04:32,080 an evil, so if you're an influencer like Neon and others, let's say another 61 00:04:29,600 --> 00:04:37,120 person, and now you get someone addicted because you're promoting gambling, now 62 00:04:35,120 --> 00:04:41,759 all of that harm that comes from that is going to be on your back on the day of 63 00:04:39,759 --> 00:04:47,520 judgment. So very scary thing. So hopefully some good can come out of this 64 00:04:44,160 --> 00:04:53,400 for someone like him. Let's go ahead and come back with my next guest here on the 65 00:04:50,160 --> 00:04:53,400 Dean Show. 66 00:05:00,639 --> 00:05:10,000 only to protect you through your faith and faith. 67 00:05:05,520 --> 00:05:14,960 We are one God's name Allah and his [singing] final messengers 68 00:05:11,783 --> 00:05:18,479 [music] Muhammad peace be upon him. This is our religion [singing and music] 69 00:05:16,479 --> 00:05:23,840 Islam. This is the show. 70 00:05:21,280 --> 00:05:28,880 >> I love you. When I was ready to talk about it, I 71 00:05:25,840 --> 00:05:32,639 would talk to you. I was explaining how much respect I have for the faith of 72 00:05:30,960 --> 00:05:37,160 Islam. [music] Welcome to the [singing] 73 00:05:34,160 --> 00:05:37,160 show. 74 00:05:38,639 --> 00:05:47,120 >> Asalamaikkum. Now before I bring out my next guest, 75 00:05:42,960 --> 00:05:52,240 Adnan Alisich all the way from Bosnia who was a very successful businessman 76 00:05:49,600 --> 00:05:58,160 who's running multiple businesses but became a professional gambler. got 77 00:05:54,560 --> 00:06:03,600 addicted and then he went down a very dangerous path. He was involved in one 78 00:06:00,880 --> 00:06:07,039 of the most elaborate casino heists in US history. So, we got a lot to talk 79 00:06:05,199 --> 00:06:11,360 about with him. I'm going to bring him out, but let's get into this clip here 80 00:06:09,600 --> 00:06:16,000 with Tucker Carlson because they're talking about the subject of gambling. 81 00:06:14,639 --> 00:06:22,639 And then I'll bring out my guests and we'll get into Neon also who's a very uh 82 00:06:19,600 --> 00:06:29,039 a Muslim who's also somebody who we're going to try to send a message of help 83 00:06:25,520 --> 00:06:32,560 to from me and my guests here of gambling. I think of it as something 84 00:06:30,720 --> 00:06:36,560 takes place in a casino >> craps and 85 00:06:34,400 --> 00:06:41,199 >> blackjack and pie gal and [laughter] >> whatever. 86 00:06:37,840 --> 00:06:44,560 >> Um but suddenly it's omnipresent and I'm wondering if that's good or bad. Well, I 87 00:06:43,039 --> 00:06:47,280 think it's very bad and I'll just set the stage. I wish that we were at the 88 00:06:46,160 --> 00:06:50,880 stage where you were at, which by the way, I still think is bad for people to 89 00:06:49,440 --> 00:06:55,039 waste a lot of their money on craps, blackjack, but those people would put 90 00:06:53,199 --> 00:06:58,400 modern-day gambling companies to shame because at the very least, the house 91 00:06:56,479 --> 00:07:02,080 edge on those games is very limited. And in fact, you can win. Uh it's just 92 00:06:59,919 --> 00:07:06,160 you're very unlikely in the long run to do so. The products that are available 93 00:07:04,319 --> 00:07:09,120 today for the vast majority of Americans are effectively legalized theft, 94 00:07:07,919 --> 00:07:13,440 especially the ones that are being pushed by these gambling companies like 95 00:07:10,880 --> 00:07:18,000 FanDuel and DraftKings where their hold andor 60% of their revenue are a type of 96 00:07:16,000 --> 00:07:21,520 bet which again would put a Las Vegas casino to shame. They're called the 97 00:07:19,520 --> 00:07:27,360 single game parlay. But before I even get into all of that, let's zoom out. 98 00:07:23,759 --> 00:07:32,639 Gambling as of this year is now the most popular entertainment in America. 99 00:07:29,440 --> 00:07:34,720 America is a nation of gamblers. last uh >> it's the most popular entertainment in 100 00:07:34,240 --> 00:07:38,800 America >> by not only just the most popular of 101 00:07:36,720 --> 00:07:41,960 entertainment gambling >> how are you 102 00:07:42,720 --> 00:07:48,160 doing great alhamdulillah what about you >> good alhamdulillah how are things in 103 00:07:46,319 --> 00:07:54,000 you're in SO >> yes very nice beautiful day outside 104 00:07:51,360 --> 00:07:58,479 >> so he said America is a nation of gamblers 105 00:07:55,680 --> 00:08:03,199 and he he wishes he's telling Tucker he wishes we were at that state of just the 106 00:08:01,039 --> 00:08:09,360 blackjack and whatever the uh slot machines, but it's coming to a all new 107 00:08:06,080 --> 00:08:13,440 modern nice gambling that it's uh all the things that he's describing. What 108 00:08:10,879 --> 00:08:19,599 are your thoughts when you hear that? >> Yes. One of the things about that is 109 00:08:16,720 --> 00:08:25,199 right now everybody has basically a casino in their pockets. So, everybody 110 00:08:23,120 --> 00:08:30,000 has access to to a smartphone. All they have to do is just flip it up and they 111 00:08:27,840 --> 00:08:34,800 they have access to any kind of game. And as he was saying about sport betting 112 00:08:33,360 --> 00:08:39,279 and [clears throat] I know personally a lot of people who are addicted to it not 113 00:08:37,039 --> 00:08:45,600 only to casino gambling as he mentioned blackjacks or or or any other type of 114 00:08:42,159 --> 00:08:51,200 casino games but uh sport betting is even more addictive and uh I know 115 00:08:49,519 --> 00:08:56,959 personally a lot of a lot of person actually DM me about those issues 116 00:08:53,680 --> 00:09:01,680 because they've heard about my story and some of them are so desperate so they 117 00:08:59,120 --> 00:09:07,200 they bas Basically, they asking me if I've ever ever thought about, if I've 118 00:09:04,480 --> 00:09:13,600 ever thought about myself, you know, all of those things cuz this addiction is 119 00:09:11,120 --> 00:09:19,920 actually the worst addiction anybody could have, even worse than alcohol, 120 00:09:15,839 --> 00:09:25,839 worse than drugs. Because, and I'm speaking from personal experience, 121 00:09:22,560 --> 00:09:30,080 uh because on the outside you can function perfectly normally. Everything 122 00:09:28,320 --> 00:09:35,120 could be normal. You can be working, you can be interacting with people, but 123 00:09:32,000 --> 00:09:39,519 inside you can be raising thousands of wars. 124 00:09:37,279 --> 00:09:43,200 >> Wow. So that what led you eventually to become a professional gambler. That 125 00:09:41,600 --> 00:09:47,760 classified that right. You became you were a successful businessman. You had 126 00:09:45,120 --> 00:09:51,120 multiple businesses. You got addicted and then you became a prof professional. 127 00:09:49,600 --> 00:09:55,519 You were betting what like sometimes what 30 40 $50,000. 128 00:09:54,000 --> 00:09:58,720 You were making you you were very successful at what you were doing. But 129 00:09:56,800 --> 00:10:05,200 this the gambling addiction took over your whole life. So so so much so so so 130 00:10:02,240 --> 00:10:10,000 much so that you went and you planned a elaborate casino heist. Is that right? 131 00:10:08,000 --> 00:10:13,920 Nothing like uh some something out of what do they call it? That movie the um 132 00:10:12,160 --> 00:10:18,720 Oceans [snorts] 11. >> Yes. Well, I wouldn't call myself a 133 00:10:16,079 --> 00:10:21,600 professional gambler. I was I would I would call myself, you know, degenerate 134 00:10:20,880 --> 00:10:26,720 gambler. >> Degenerate gambler. 135 00:10:23,519 --> 00:10:30,800 >> Yes. But the thing is the thing is I had I I had a very successful business. I 136 00:10:28,720 --> 00:10:36,000 had a car dealership. I had a restaurant and I was making good money out there. 137 00:10:33,519 --> 00:10:39,519 But the thing with gambling is this. You can never make as much money as you can 138 00:10:38,720 --> 00:10:42,160 gamble. >> Never make as much money as you can 139 00:10:40,880 --> 00:10:47,279 gamble. >> Yes. And I used to gamble. I used to 140 00:10:44,640 --> 00:10:53,600 gamble like $50,000 a night. And I remember on this particular night I I I 141 00:10:51,279 --> 00:10:58,079 spent, you know, a couple of hours gambling back and forth and I'm walking 142 00:10:56,399 --> 00:11:01,760 outside in the middle of the night, like 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning. I'm sitting 143 00:10:59,760 --> 00:11:07,519 in my car and I'm just thinking, I lost in the 144 00:11:04,800 --> 00:11:11,839 past couple of hours more money than some people make in a year. And you're 145 00:11:09,600 --> 00:11:17,839 just sick to your stomach. Just sick to your stomach. And that's why uh after 146 00:11:15,279 --> 00:11:21,839 doing what I was doing basically one thing led to another. I was kicked out 147 00:11:19,360 --> 00:11:25,760 of the casino. I planned this casino heist 148 00:11:23,360 --> 00:11:32,560 and obviously I did my time for it 15 and 1/2 years and you realize when Allah 149 00:11:30,399 --> 00:11:38,399 wants to help you he's going to put you in a diff difficult position. 150 00:11:35,680 --> 00:11:44,399 And I had a lot of time to think about this. Me myself, you know, and Quran and 151 00:11:42,079 --> 00:11:48,560 reading and all of those things that I was doing. All of all of those things 152 00:11:46,560 --> 00:11:53,760 basically gambling, alcohol, all of those things. And then with all the time 153 00:11:51,760 --> 00:11:58,079 I had on my hands and reading Quran and I realized, okay, this is why Allah 154 00:11:55,839 --> 00:12:04,240 tells us no alcohol. This is why Allah tells us no gambling. And you know, and 155 00:12:02,399 --> 00:12:08,959 I could I could say, you know, I'm grateful. grateful for whatever happened 156 00:12:07,120 --> 00:12:13,040 and one of the best thing that happened to me is basically those 15 and a half 157 00:12:11,600 --> 00:12:15,920 years in prison. >> Wow. Let's continue on with this Tucker 158 00:12:15,040 --> 00:12:20,000 interview. >> A nation of gamblers last uh 159 00:12:18,399 --> 00:12:22,399 >> it's the most popular entertainment in America 160 00:12:20,399 --> 00:12:26,639 >> by not only just the most popular of entertainment gambling the total amount 161 00:12:24,720 --> 00:12:31,440 that was gambled in the United States eclipsed all types of other 162 00:12:28,560 --> 00:12:37,120 entertainment revenue movies and others combined. We see the data overwhelmingly 163 00:12:34,639 --> 00:12:42,079 is depressing not only their savings rates, bankruptcy goes up, domestic 164 00:12:39,760 --> 00:12:46,000 violence goes up by nearly 10%. Especially whenever there's a home team 165 00:12:44,320 --> 00:12:50,560 loss where there's basically nothing good that has come out of it. There's a 166 00:12:48,240 --> 00:12:54,800 argument that comes from many of these states about revenue, but even the 167 00:12:52,560 --> 00:12:59,680 revenue argument honestly falls apart. Gambling has the highest uh suicide rate 168 00:12:57,040 --> 00:13:02,800 of any addiction in the United States. Yes. Yes, it does. your thoughts when 169 00:13:01,200 --> 00:13:08,399 you're hearing that? [sighs] >> Yes, I'm all familiar with that. And as 170 00:13:05,519 --> 00:13:13,200 I mentioned earlier in my DM, I see a lot of people like that. A lot of people 171 00:13:10,880 --> 00:13:16,720 they DM me and as I mentioned earlier, have you ever thought about suicide? And 172 00:13:14,800 --> 00:13:21,360 I have to talk down to them. You know, I have to talk I tell them basically, you 173 00:13:18,639 --> 00:13:26,314 know, it's you're much better off right now than, you know, thousands and maybe 174 00:13:24,800 --> 00:13:29,519 millions of people out there. And I [clears throat] tell him a story. 175 00:13:27,440 --> 00:13:32,880 Basically, I left people in prison who will never be free. At least you have 176 00:13:31,680 --> 00:13:37,279 freedom. You have a chance to pull yourself out. And they're thinking about 177 00:13:34,880 --> 00:13:42,880 themselves just because of the money, you know. And uh whatever you said is 178 00:13:40,240 --> 00:13:47,360 basically true. It is the the gambling addiction has the highest rates of 179 00:13:44,560 --> 00:13:51,839 suicide. And I've seen that myself as I said because my DM is full of those 180 00:13:48,959 --> 00:13:57,519 people. Full of those people. And and that's unfortunate. And one thing about 181 00:13:54,959 --> 00:14:03,680 gambling addiction, it's a hidden addiction. [snorts] So what what happens 182 00:14:00,560 --> 00:14:08,160 is on the outside you can function perfectly normally. Everything could be 183 00:14:06,000 --> 00:14:13,120 great. You can be taking care of your business. You can be taking care of your 184 00:14:09,680 --> 00:14:17,760 family but inside you're dying. So that's basically why it's very 185 00:14:14,639 --> 00:14:23,199 dangerous. And Allah didn't tell us for no reason directly. Just imagine this in 186 00:14:20,480 --> 00:14:28,720 in Quran directly tells us there's no gambling. That's it. 187 00:14:26,880 --> 00:14:33,839 >> That's uh interesting that you have people now who are fighting to nail to 188 00:14:31,600 --> 00:14:40,560 kind of um want to get rid of Islam but Islam solves this problem as he was 189 00:14:36,560 --> 00:14:46,079 going into all of the problems that come broken home. Um the society is basically 190 00:14:44,079 --> 00:14:51,120 where America is a nation of gamblers. So what's happening? They're they're 191 00:14:47,519 --> 00:14:56,320 ruining their their lives. It's they're functioning addicts who are, you know, 192 00:14:53,920 --> 00:15:00,639 going down a dark hole and then they become unfunctioning and then they end 193 00:14:58,320 --> 00:15:05,120 up taking the unalivms themselves and now we have this new phenomenon which 194 00:15:02,639 --> 00:15:09,279 it's accessible to the to the kids. You're creating you're you're creating a 195 00:15:07,120 --> 00:15:13,839 new generation of gamblers because as he was saying he wish it was back just 196 00:15:11,839 --> 00:15:17,760 contained to the casinos but now it's it's on your phones all over the place 197 00:15:16,000 --> 00:15:22,399 and you have celebrities like u it's very you know shameful when you see 198 00:15:20,240 --> 00:15:24,720 people who are who should be um I mean people obviously you don't want to take 199 00:15:23,440 --> 00:15:29,040 these people as role models but when you have Kevin Hart and the Jamie Foxes and 200 00:15:26,800 --> 00:15:34,160 the you know I was I was just doing some research you have you know a ton of 201 00:15:30,639 --> 00:15:40,000 these uh Drake uh who else uh I mean you have just a ton of these these people 202 00:15:36,399 --> 00:15:44,880 the here go megan Stallion you have LeBron James 203 00:15:42,320 --> 00:15:49,040 you have so many of these celebrities and unfortunately now we have uh 204 00:15:47,279 --> 00:15:53,040 streaming has become very popular you know it's in America they have streaming 205 00:15:51,120 --> 00:15:58,480 and people brought to my attention one uh Muslim they call an influencer Neo 206 00:15:55,920 --> 00:16:03,120 neo n neon something like that and they said you should address this and I 207 00:16:00,240 --> 00:16:08,399 thought what better way than someone who was uh someone who was really involved 208 00:16:05,600 --> 00:16:11,440 heavily in gambling to see what message would you give to somebody like uh Neon? 209 00:16:10,720 --> 00:16:16,800 I don't know if you've heard of him. We'll get into this clip here and go 210 00:16:13,920 --> 00:16:22,800 ahead and try to hopefully help this uh young young brother here to really um 211 00:16:20,160 --> 00:16:25,600 think harder and get out uh of this trap he's in. 212 00:16:23,199 --> 00:16:28,639 >> I have a gambling sponsorship and it's the only way to make money. 213 00:16:26,880 --> 00:16:30,480 >> It's not the only way to make money >> for me. 214 00:16:29,440 --> 00:16:32,399 >> That's still not the only way to make money. 215 00:16:30,800 --> 00:16:35,360 >> No, it's bro, you have millions of followers. You can monetize. Yeah, 216 00:16:33,759 --> 00:16:38,639 >> it's hard. It's hard. How do I put this? This sounds so bad. I'm just asking a 217 00:16:36,480 --> 00:16:42,000 genuine question, though. You make like 30x what you would make on um gambling. 218 00:16:41,360 --> 00:16:44,880 What do you do? >> I mean, what do you do? 219 00:16:43,199 --> 00:16:48,399 >> You're sacrificing your morals or religion for money 220 00:16:46,079 --> 00:16:49,839 >> on paper. You're selling your soul on paper. 221 00:16:49,040 --> 00:16:52,720 >> What? >> What would you say to him? What would 222 00:16:50,959 --> 00:16:55,920 you say to Neon? Only way to make money. That was one of the things. 30x. 223 00:16:55,360 --> 00:16:59,920 >> How? >> I mean, thousands of ways to make money. 224 00:16:59,191 --> 00:17:04,160 [laughter] Actually 225 00:17:01,759 --> 00:17:07,600 uh that's what a lot of criminals that are left actually in prison they were 226 00:17:05,679 --> 00:17:12,160 thinking okay selling drugs is the only way to make money or or fraud or 227 00:17:10,000 --> 00:17:15,520 whatever they they were doing and I would I would keep telling him you know 228 00:17:13,760 --> 00:17:20,880 there are many ways to make money legally and Allah is the one who gives 229 00:17:18,079 --> 00:17:25,360 baraka he's the one who gives blessing and this is the thing especially with 230 00:17:23,839 --> 00:17:30,080 gambling as with crime you're going to even if 231 00:17:28,799 --> 00:17:33,600 you make that money. If you're consistent with it, in the long term, 232 00:17:31,520 --> 00:17:38,400 you're going to lose it. Same thing with crime. So, I I've seen a lot of people, 233 00:17:36,720 --> 00:17:42,240 they were gambling basically with their lives. They were selling drugs. They 234 00:17:40,000 --> 00:17:47,440 were on a roll. They didn't know what to do with the money. Buy houses, buy yaks, 235 00:17:44,400 --> 00:17:53,200 buy villas, all of that stuff. And at the end, at the very end, feds come in, 236 00:17:51,039 --> 00:17:56,177 take everything and including their freedom as well. And at the end, they 237 00:17:55,120 --> 00:17:58,640 don't have anything. >> [snorts] 238 00:17:56,320 --> 00:18:02,640 >> So what I would tell to this brother is there are thousands of ways to make 239 00:18:00,080 --> 00:18:08,480 money legally and all he had to do is just open up the Quran and tell it and 240 00:18:04,880 --> 00:18:14,400 read that specific order. It's an order from Allah that there is no gambling 241 00:18:10,880 --> 00:18:19,440 because it destroys lives. It destroys families. It destroys entire societies 242 00:18:17,200 --> 00:18:27,120 as you mentioned earlier because United States is going down. everybody. The the 243 00:18:22,960 --> 00:18:32,320 rate of degenerate gamblers out there is skyrocketing and it's is destroying 244 00:18:29,760 --> 00:18:37,360 lives, is destroying families. Those people are losing their jobs. They're 245 00:18:34,880 --> 00:18:43,200 losing their finances and and at the end they're going to be losing their lives. 246 00:18:40,880 --> 00:18:47,120 >> It's interesting where it's very clear you said open up the verbatim word of 247 00:18:44,880 --> 00:18:53,200 God Almighty, the Quran. It's clear. But when Shayan 248 00:18:49,440 --> 00:18:57,919 really starts to manipulate you and lead you, you'll see right now how someone 249 00:18:55,919 --> 00:19:01,919 like him can open up the Quran and say, "No, no, it's telling me to gamble." So 250 00:19:00,960 --> 00:19:06,640 you're going, you're like, "What are you talking about?" No, Neon thinks that the 251 00:19:04,880 --> 00:19:08,480 Quran is telling him to gamble. You say, "What kind of reasoning is that? Let's 252 00:19:07,919 --> 00:19:11,760 have a look. >> I don't make enough money doing other 253 00:19:10,400 --> 00:19:13,520 things to where I have to like I have to gamble." 254 00:19:12,080 --> 00:19:14,400 >> Do you have a financial adviser? >> My dad. 255 00:19:14,080 --> 00:19:16,400 >> Okay. [music] Okay. >> He told me to keep gambling. 256 00:19:15,520 --> 00:19:19,600 >> Oh, interesting. >> He knows it's best for me, right? 257 00:19:17,840 --> 00:19:23,520 >> Where did you learn that your dad knows what's best [music] for you? 258 00:19:20,559 --> 00:19:27,120 >> Uh, in the Quran, it says that my So, I follow the Quran and it says my mom and 259 00:19:25,200 --> 00:19:30,400 my dad uh know always listen to your parents. 260 00:19:27,600 --> 00:19:36,480 >> Unbelievable. What do you think of that? >> I mean, and that's one of the dangers 261 00:19:32,559 --> 00:19:40,640 when you when ignorant people, you know, start interpreting Quran. You 262 00:19:39,039 --> 00:19:43,919 you that's very dangerous. >> You understood you you understood what 263 00:19:42,559 --> 00:19:48,240 just happened, right? You you can hear you you saw she asked him like who's 264 00:19:46,000 --> 00:19:52,400 your adviser? My father. So he said it's a good thing to go ahead and obey your 265 00:19:50,720 --> 00:19:58,080 parents. So he's saying the Quran is saying obey my parents and my dad is 266 00:19:55,200 --> 00:20:02,880 telling me to keep gambling. [laughter] >> Yes, it's good to obey your parents but 267 00:19:59,919 --> 00:20:06,640 whatever is obedience to Allah as well. But the thing is if if it's not 268 00:20:04,320 --> 00:20:10,000 obedience to to to Allah no matter who tells you that you shouldn't Allah 269 00:20:08,480 --> 00:20:15,120 always comes first. >> Yeah. But those those people they adjust 270 00:20:12,960 --> 00:20:18,960 and especially they they are some of the most dangerous people especially if they 271 00:20:17,120 --> 00:20:23,760 have the platform if they have the influence a lot of those young people 272 00:20:21,520 --> 00:20:27,840 they're going to say okay look this guy obviously he's more knowledgeable than I 273 00:20:25,760 --> 00:20:31,760 am he's saying Quran is telling him that it's okay to gamble I'm going to go 274 00:20:29,520 --> 00:20:35,520 gamble too and that is very very dangerous 275 00:20:34,000 --> 00:20:39,200 >> so what do what do we what are we telling you want to help neon at the 276 00:20:37,360 --> 00:20:43,200 same time tell the the Muslim parents and others as Christians, whoever are, 277 00:20:40,960 --> 00:20:47,120 you know, God-fearing who want to raise their kids, right? I mean, because he 278 00:20:44,799 --> 00:20:52,000 has a an audience of a lot of young people. Let's put put him in a box here 279 00:20:50,320 --> 00:20:57,200 over here on the side where you don't want to really, you know, until we've 280 00:20:53,840 --> 00:21:01,039 help until he gets his act together. You don't really want to be uh opening up 281 00:20:59,200 --> 00:21:05,120 yourself or your children to be watching someone like that because of these 282 00:21:03,039 --> 00:21:11,360 dangerous things uh that can happen. Like he's gambling, promoting gambling 283 00:21:07,840 --> 00:21:14,880 and now you have followers and those followers are probably going to do what 284 00:21:13,520 --> 00:21:18,960 monkey see monkey do and they're going to end up following uh someone like him 285 00:21:17,120 --> 00:21:22,240 blindly into gambling which is going to lead down like that destructive path 286 00:21:20,559 --> 00:21:25,440 that you are in. So what do you tell Neon first? What what would you tell 287 00:21:24,080 --> 00:21:29,200 Neon if you try really trying to help him? You got his attention. and he's 288 00:21:26,720 --> 00:21:36,080 watching now. What would you tell Neon? >> Well, the most important thing is first 289 00:21:32,799 --> 00:21:43,440 we should do what Allah tala ordered us to do. And I Quran is clear. If you 290 00:21:40,159 --> 00:21:48,960 cannot understand that Allah tells us directly there is no gambling, there's 291 00:21:45,520 --> 00:21:55,039 no alcohol in that specific verse. So I would highly advise him to consult a 292 00:21:52,080 --> 00:21:59,280 scholar, respected scholar if he knows I mean there are a lot of them out there 293 00:21:56,799 --> 00:22:05,039 the one who is obviously respected and who knows about our 294 00:22:02,559 --> 00:22:10,880 obviously he's a he's influential person and he's not going to have too much 295 00:22:07,200 --> 00:22:18,400 trouble finding one and just wholeheartedly ask him what is what does 296 00:22:14,640 --> 00:22:24,720 Allah tell us tell us about gambling Is it prohibited or not? And why? And 297 00:22:22,159 --> 00:22:28,240 any scholar, any scholar in the world is going to tell him, "No, Allah tells us 298 00:22:26,320 --> 00:22:31,200 directly in the in the Quran, there's no gambling." 299 00:22:29,440 --> 00:22:37,120 >> And all of the there there are going to be many reasons for this. And as I said, 300 00:22:34,480 --> 00:22:40,880 I am the perfect reason why 301 00:22:38,799 --> 00:22:48,320 there should be no gambling. Perfect reason. I lost everything. I lost I lost 302 00:22:44,799 --> 00:22:53,919 everything financially. I lost people uh who cared and loved loved me. And at the 303 00:22:51,360 --> 00:22:58,880 end, I lost 15 and a half years of my freedom because of the gambling. If I 304 00:22:56,559 --> 00:23:02,559 wasn't gambling, obviously I wouldn't lose all the money. If I didn't lose all 305 00:23:00,960 --> 00:23:07,039 the money, I wouldn't be so desperate to plan and organize this casino heist. And 306 00:23:05,360 --> 00:23:12,080 if I didn't do this casino heist, I wouldn't end up 15 and a half years in 307 00:23:08,640 --> 00:23:16,400 prison. So uh [snorts] even though we might be thinking something is bad for 308 00:23:14,240 --> 00:23:21,440 you but it's actually good for you. So in my case prison was the best thing 309 00:23:18,880 --> 00:23:25,646 that happened to me but in for a lot of people prison would make a lot of people 310 00:23:23,520 --> 00:23:27,840 even worse. [snorts] 311 00:23:25,679 --> 00:23:32,240 >> Were you practicing at that time when you were a successful businessman or you 312 00:23:29,919 --> 00:23:37,440 away from Islam? No, I I was Muslim by name. As you 313 00:23:35,360 --> 00:23:41,440 probably know, a lot of Bosnians, you know, a lot of Basians, they have Muslim 314 00:23:39,840 --> 00:23:45,840 names, but they are basically doing everything everything that's that we are 315 00:23:43,760 --> 00:23:50,720 not supposed to be doing. And same thing like one thing about that you know once 316 00:23:48,880 --> 00:23:56,320 you especially once you immigrate to United States we take on the culture 317 00:23:53,360 --> 00:24:03,679 American culture and it's h it's going to be much much harder to preserve Islam 318 00:24:00,080 --> 00:24:08,000 over there than in a Muslim country and uh I was doing out there unfortunately 319 00:24:06,400 --> 00:24:14,960 all the things I wasn't supposed to be doing gambling alcohol all of those 320 00:24:12,080 --> 00:24:21,200 kinds of things and once Allah wants to help you. And this on in 321 00:24:17,360 --> 00:24:26,640 my particular case my particular case at the very bottom at the very very 322 00:24:23,840 --> 00:24:30,960 bottom I was basically this is basically my when I've seen the miracle of Allah 323 00:24:28,880 --> 00:24:35,360 first first hand I've never seen basically miracle of Allah before this 324 00:24:33,440 --> 00:24:40,720 and as I as I mentioned earlier I was doing before Allah gave me everything he 325 00:24:38,799 --> 00:24:46,080 gave me business he gave me influence he gave me money he gave me everything and 326 00:24:42,880 --> 00:24:50,000 I could not remember one single time that I said alhamdulillah, alhamdulillah 327 00:24:48,400 --> 00:24:55,200 for this business, alhamdulillah for this, alhamdulillah for all this money, 328 00:24:52,080 --> 00:25:02,080 one single time. And at this particular moment when I realize when I really 329 00:24:58,400 --> 00:25:09,200 realize there's there's no help but with Allah basically, I was surrounded in a 330 00:25:05,279 --> 00:25:14,880 building with over 300 police officers in a bathroom. They they were about to 331 00:25:11,600 --> 00:25:20,320 storm the building and shoot me right after this casino ice. And at the very 332 00:25:17,600 --> 00:25:25,679 moment, at this very bottom, I just turned a lie and I wholeheartedly, this 333 00:25:22,960 --> 00:25:31,200 is why I said, "Allah, if you get me out of this situation 334 00:25:28,559 --> 00:25:35,440 right now, and this situation is basically impossible to get out." 335 00:25:33,600 --> 00:25:40,000 Impossible. Just think about you're locked inside a building, small 336 00:25:37,760 --> 00:25:44,799 building, 300 police officers around you. I was reading that in FBI reports 337 00:25:42,080 --> 00:25:50,480 later on. 300 police officers around, there's no way for me to escape. No way. 338 00:25:48,080 --> 00:25:56,799 And I'm asking basically Allah for a miracle. I told him, Allah, if you get 339 00:25:54,000 --> 00:26:02,080 me out of this situation, I promise you. I promise you I will be doing all of 340 00:25:58,720 --> 00:26:06,640 those things that you ordered us to do. and I promise you I'll abstain from all 341 00:26:03,919 --> 00:26:10,320 of those things that you prohibited us to do. And guess what happened? 342 00:26:09,398 --> 00:26:15,840 [clears throat] Allah let me escape. Imagine this. Allah 343 00:26:14,000 --> 00:26:18,799 let me escape from this building from none of those police officers to see. 344 00:26:18,400 --> 00:26:21,679 >> Wow. >> Imagine. 345 00:26:20,533 --> 00:26:26,400 [snorts] >> How did you later get caught though? 346 00:26:24,480 --> 00:26:31,840 >> Later on, basic I had stitches in my case. That's what happened. They tracked 347 00:26:28,640 --> 00:26:36,320 me through him and I was I was arrested later on at my house. 348 00:26:33,600 --> 00:26:42,799 >> Mhm. What made you now go from being a degenerate gambler or successful 349 00:26:38,559 --> 00:26:46,960 businessman then addictive gambler? Um full-time gambling? Like how often were 350 00:26:44,640 --> 00:26:51,600 you gambling? Once a once a week, once a month, every day? How long were you were 351 00:26:49,120 --> 00:26:56,640 you at the casinos? Were you at the at the um the machines? Like how often were 352 00:26:54,159 --> 00:26:59,520 you gambling? I was gambling basically on an everyday basis. 353 00:26:57,919 --> 00:27:03,760 >> Every day. >> Every [clears throat] day. And the thing 354 00:27:00,720 --> 00:27:07,679 is, you know, with me, I wasn't like living from paycheck to paycheck. So, a 355 00:27:05,919 --> 00:27:11,760 lot of a lot of people out there, they are living from paycheck to paycheck. 356 00:27:09,440 --> 00:27:16,240 They're basically waiting on Friday to for their paycheck to hit the bank and 357 00:27:14,320 --> 00:27:20,000 then they go to the to the casino. If they lack out, then they have more funds 358 00:27:18,159 --> 00:27:25,120 to play. If they lose, that's it. They're going to be waiting for the next 359 00:27:21,360 --> 00:27:30,720 week. But with me, I had a business and especially it was a cash flow business. 360 00:27:27,039 --> 00:27:35,679 So I would sell a car, take for example $10,000, go to the casino, I would 361 00:27:32,640 --> 00:27:40,880 gamble it away again, come back, hustle, work, sell a car. So basically for me, 362 00:27:38,240 --> 00:27:45,200 it was an everyday everyday occurrence. Every day on an everyday basis, I was 363 00:27:43,120 --> 00:27:49,039 going to casino sometimes even two, three times a day. 364 00:27:46,960 --> 00:27:53,279 >> Did you know that? I mean, the house always win. You cannot win. Did you know 365 00:27:51,919 --> 00:27:58,080 that? >> Yes. Yes. But let me tell you this. When 366 00:27:55,840 --> 00:28:00,080 you mentioned when you mentioned earlier about Shayan 367 00:27:59,279 --> 00:28:06,399 >> Yeah. >> and everything else many times and I had 368 00:28:04,399 --> 00:28:12,320 a long time especially after I was learning about Islam. I read in in in in 369 00:28:09,600 --> 00:28:16,720 in prison if you want to improve yourself there's no better place to be 370 00:28:14,640 --> 00:28:20,960 because you have time you have access to books you have all of that. And I was 371 00:28:19,200 --> 00:28:24,559 fortunate enough to be around the right people, right Muslim, right Muslim 372 00:28:22,720 --> 00:28:27,600 brothers who were also teaching me about Islam. 373 00:28:25,760 --> 00:28:30,640 >> So when you when you mentioned you 374 00:28:28,960 --> 00:28:34,399 mentioned earlier about Shayan and how Shayan plays plays with you. I had a lot 375 00:28:33,440 --> 00:28:40,720 of time in prison [clears throat] to reflect on that and why as you as you as 376 00:28:38,399 --> 00:28:46,880 you mentioned earlier that obviously yes casinos have the edge but this is where 377 00:28:43,919 --> 00:28:52,720 you know this comes into play. If you are always losing, nobody be nobody will 378 00:28:50,320 --> 00:28:58,240 be going to casino. So sometime you obviously you're going to win. You're 379 00:28:54,320 --> 00:29:03,440 going to win. And many times many times I remember many times I'm coming back 380 00:29:00,799 --> 00:29:09,440 from the office dead tired. All day at the office hustling, working trying to 381 00:29:05,600 --> 00:29:15,360 to pay the bills, get the money, and I'm dead tired. And I'm I just want to go 382 00:29:12,159 --> 00:29:19,200 home. Just want to go home, sleep. And that [clears throat] voice, that voice 383 00:29:16,799 --> 00:29:25,279 inside the head, the Karine, everybody, each and single one of us has a Karen 384 00:29:22,240 --> 00:29:30,240 Ajen with us. And that Kharen, obviously his job is to whisper all of those evil 385 00:29:27,600 --> 00:29:34,320 and deceptive thoughts. And he starts whispering. 386 00:29:32,240 --> 00:29:39,200 Let's go. Let's go. You remember that night when you when you walked in with 387 00:29:36,480 --> 00:29:45,120 500 and walked out with 20,000? This is it. Let's go. Let's go again. That's it. 388 00:29:42,880 --> 00:29:49,200 So this is the thing. And that that that really happens. Sometimes you're going 389 00:29:46,559 --> 00:29:53,760 to really walk in with 500 and walk out with 20 grand. Yes, that's it. But there 390 00:29:52,559 --> 00:29:57,995 are many nights when you're going to walk in with 10,000 and and leave with 391 00:29:56,240 --> 00:30:02,399 nothing. [laughter] And now what made you make 392 00:29:59,600 --> 00:30:08,960 the jump now from gambling to planning this heist? How did that all come up? 393 00:30:06,240 --> 00:30:11,760 Well, what happened is I 394 00:30:10,000 --> 00:30:15,760 >> that's like some some might say that's like an extreme jump [laughter] 395 00:30:13,919 --> 00:30:23,279 to say the least. >> Yes, it is. But what happened with me is 396 00:30:20,000 --> 00:30:28,080 it was a combination of desperation, vengeance 397 00:30:25,039 --> 00:30:32,480 and uh and basically losing everything. So on this part what everything put what 398 00:30:30,399 --> 00:30:38,640 put everything into motion is on one particular night and just I want to to 399 00:30:36,480 --> 00:30:42,720 repeat on this particular casino I was out there every single day sometimes 400 00:30:40,960 --> 00:30:48,960 couple of times a day everybody knew me out there everybody and I wasn't I 401 00:30:45,600 --> 00:30:54,720 wasn't loud I wasn't belligerent if I win I'm quiet if I lose I'm quiet you 402 00:30:51,440 --> 00:31:00,240 know I don't make any any noise anything on this particular 403 00:30:56,720 --> 00:31:05,039 night I was on unbelievable roll. You know any gambler will tell you sometimes 404 00:31:02,640 --> 00:31:10,960 there are those nights when you simply you cannot lose. You cannot lose and I 405 00:31:09,279 --> 00:31:15,279 was winning left and right and all of a sudden there was a security 406 00:31:14,399 --> 00:31:20,480 and [clears throat] I mean this security has seen me many 407 00:31:17,279 --> 00:31:25,360 times before many many times before. He goes behind me and said, "Sir, I need to 408 00:31:22,080 --> 00:31:29,279 see your ID." And I turn around and I said like, and I continue playing and 409 00:31:27,279 --> 00:31:31,520 I'm like, "Why do you want to see my ID right now?" 410 00:31:29,840 --> 00:31:36,640 >> Never asked it before. >> No, no, I was over I was going to this 411 00:31:33,760 --> 00:31:40,960 particular casino for over a year. >> Never asked you for your ID. You start 412 00:31:38,320 --> 00:31:46,720 winning. Let me see your ID. >> Yes. And I turn around and I'm like and 413 00:31:44,640 --> 00:31:50,656 I continue playing and I'm like, why do you need to see my ID? I mean, I'm I'm 414 00:31:48,559 --> 00:31:54,640 this is not my first time over here. [snorts] And sir, you got to be 21 years 415 00:31:52,720 --> 00:31:58,080 blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. And just to get I had my ID on me just to 416 00:31:56,640 --> 00:32:02,559 get rid of him. I told him, I don't have an ID. And I continue playing. 417 00:32:00,799 --> 00:32:09,360 And he stood over there for a couple of more minutes and he disappeared. 418 00:32:06,159 --> 00:32:14,000 A few minutes later, every single security officer was behind 419 00:32:11,519 --> 00:32:17,360 me and there was a casino manager in a in a suit. They started pulling out 420 00:32:15,919 --> 00:32:21,679 those chairs. I was playing all by myself at the blackjack table. They 421 00:32:19,519 --> 00:32:26,399 started pulling out those chairs and this security manager said, "Sir, you 422 00:32:23,840 --> 00:32:31,519 got to leave right now." And I turn around and I'm like, and the thing, this 423 00:32:28,799 --> 00:32:37,679 is the thing. Every single person in casino was staring at me. Everybody I 424 00:32:35,679 --> 00:32:42,320 for nothing [clears throat] basically. I didn't do absolutely nothing. And they 425 00:32:40,480 --> 00:32:47,039 ordered the blackjack dealer to stop dealing. And I'm just sitting over there 426 00:32:44,320 --> 00:32:53,039 sitting you know embarrassed and you know I don't know what what to do what 427 00:32:48,559 --> 00:32:57,600 to say and everybody's staring at me and somebody I felt a hand on my shoulder 428 00:32:55,840 --> 00:33:03,279 and what I did I just jumped up and pushed pushed this security guy and he I 429 00:33:01,360 --> 00:33:08,240 didn't even hit him. He just tripped on one of those chairs and fell down and 430 00:33:06,000 --> 00:33:12,080 everybody started to jump on me. I just lifted my hands told him leave me I'm 431 00:33:09,760 --> 00:33:16,240 going to go I'm leaving. So, I scooped up my chips 432 00:33:14,000 --> 00:33:22,240 and I proceeded to the cage, the place where you cast out those chips 433 00:33:19,200 --> 00:33:26,943 and as I'm walking over there, every single security officers is trailing 434 00:33:24,480 --> 00:33:31,600 behind me. They're escorting me out and [clears throat] everybody in casino 435 00:33:28,559 --> 00:33:36,559 again is staring at me. Everybody. So, I just cast out those ships and again they 436 00:33:34,000 --> 00:33:42,000 just escorted me out. [snorts] I stepped outside and I I'll never forget this. 437 00:33:40,080 --> 00:33:47,440 stepped outside and this casino manager is standing at the door and he said, "If 438 00:33:44,720 --> 00:33:51,279 you ever come back over here again, you're going to be arrested for 439 00:33:48,720 --> 00:33:58,480 trespassing." And I just turned around and like, 440 00:33:53,279 --> 00:34:02,880 "Okay." And 6 months later, I was back. >> That's the the elaborate heist now. 441 00:34:01,200 --> 00:34:07,440 That's why you were back. >> Yes. I came back to Robert. 442 00:34:05,120 --> 00:34:14,720 >> Wow. [gasps] Uh so then you end up in prison 15 years 443 00:34:12,240 --> 00:34:19,119 you served 15 and a half. >> Yes I was sentenced to 17 and a half and 444 00:34:17,440 --> 00:34:24,320 because of the good times and everything else I got uh I served the 15 and a half 445 00:34:22,960 --> 00:34:29,440 altogether. >> And at what point now did you start 446 00:34:27,040 --> 00:34:34,399 reflecting thinking asking the important questions purpose of life? Why am I 447 00:34:31,839 --> 00:34:38,079 here? uh looking at the different religions you got a lot of man-made 448 00:34:36,399 --> 00:34:41,919 religions you have to go through until you really feel feel like you know 449 00:34:40,079 --> 00:34:46,720 comparing it to Islam you see like you know because Islam is from the creator 450 00:34:44,159 --> 00:34:50,639 you have so much evidence and proof uh makes sense the pure monotheism you know 451 00:34:49,040 --> 00:34:54,639 all the different signs that are in the Quran you know it cannot come from a 452 00:34:52,560 --> 00:34:58,320 human being so at what point did were you like okay you start because some 453 00:34:56,079 --> 00:35:04,560 people go to to prison they become educated on how to be uh better 454 00:35:00,960 --> 00:35:08,560 criminals So how long into your term did things start to take a change and then 455 00:35:06,079 --> 00:35:13,599 did you decide that okay I'm going to now u change my life and Islam was that 456 00:35:11,680 --> 00:35:15,839 catalyst that brought you to where you are today? 457 00:35:15,674 --> 00:35:19,839 >> [snorts] >> Yes. And that's that's a great question. 458 00:35:18,160 --> 00:35:23,040 Basically for me it was basically from the f very first day 459 00:35:21,040 --> 00:35:27,359 >> first day >> because I told you earlier 460 00:35:25,499 --> 00:35:31,920 [clears throat] and I'm this kind of person if I tell you something I'm going 461 00:35:29,760 --> 00:35:34,880 to do everything to keep my promise. >> So it was the promise you made to Allah 462 00:35:34,160 --> 00:35:38,720 to the creator. >> Yes. 463 00:35:35,280 --> 00:35:45,280 >> I got because I've seen it firsthand. I mean just think about it wholeheartedly 464 00:35:41,520 --> 00:35:50,800 and I've learned this myself. You can be and and this is actually what Islam is 465 00:35:47,920 --> 00:35:57,520 teaching us. You can be doing thousands of things. Thousands of things 466 00:35:54,800 --> 00:36:04,560 that based evil and deceptive things. You can be drinking, stealing, gambling, 467 00:36:01,680 --> 00:36:08,640 all of those things that Allah tells us not to do. You can be doing all of those 468 00:36:07,040 --> 00:36:15,359 things. You can forget Allah. You can be doing everything. But you can do simply 469 00:36:11,599 --> 00:36:21,359 just repent once and ask for Allah's help and right away and I know I've seen 470 00:36:19,119 --> 00:36:26,640 this first time. Right away Allah is going to be there for you right there. 471 00:36:23,599 --> 00:36:32,400 So for me it was basically I in when I got in prison I didn't even know how to 472 00:36:28,800 --> 00:36:36,880 pray. I didn't know how to pray. So uh I knew I knew we had to fast. So I was 473 00:36:35,440 --> 00:36:41,520 fasting the way you're supposed to be fasting. And when, as I said, when Allah 474 00:36:39,520 --> 00:36:44,720 wants to help you, he's going to send the right people your way. And you know, 475 00:36:43,680 --> 00:36:48,240 they're going to teach you. They're going to educate you. And that was 476 00:36:45,920 --> 00:36:52,720 basically my my my process throughout those 15 years. I've read a lot of 477 00:36:50,160 --> 00:36:56,160 books. I met a lot of good people, good brothers, and I've learned a lot about 478 00:36:55,119 --> 00:37:01,760 Islam. >> Mhm. You're [snorts] an incredible 479 00:36:58,240 --> 00:37:07,040 example how somebody who lost their way, but with Allah, the creator's mercy, he 480 00:37:05,359 --> 00:37:11,920 brought you back to the way. So, this could be a great example of somebody who 481 00:37:08,800 --> 00:37:15,520 can relate to addiction just like this uh brother and so many like Neon and so 482 00:37:13,920 --> 00:37:20,960 many others are addicted and they can hopefully benefit from your story and 483 00:37:18,400 --> 00:37:24,560 journey to not give up and to see that it's just a dead end at the end. If if 484 00:37:22,880 --> 00:37:29,040 somebody's going on a path is a dead end and you've been there, you've done that. 485 00:37:26,400 --> 00:37:33,839 Hopefully from uh your experiences they can take a lesson and that it's not too 486 00:37:31,359 --> 00:37:39,119 late that now would you ever trade it for anything to go back? Definitely not. 487 00:37:36,720 --> 00:37:44,079 I mean, when I when I when somebody asked me if there's any 488 00:37:42,160 --> 00:37:49,839 uh if I would ever do anything differently, absolutely not. If if I 489 00:37:46,960 --> 00:37:55,760 never gambled, I would never obviously commit this casino heist and I would 490 00:37:52,720 --> 00:38:03,440 never end up in prison and I would never learn about Islam. And the thing is I 491 00:38:00,480 --> 00:38:08,960 would never never I don't think myself but I would never be as close to Allah 492 00:38:06,320 --> 00:38:13,760 than I am right now because out there there's a [snorts] lot of distractions. 493 00:38:11,040 --> 00:38:19,280 You have families, you have jobs, you have uh bills, you have obligations. And 494 00:38:17,440 --> 00:38:23,839 Allah put me in that position where it was only me and Allah. That's it. Here 495 00:38:21,920 --> 00:38:30,800 if if you really want to help yourself here, this is it. And that was basically 496 00:38:26,640 --> 00:38:35,760 my case. I was over there uh I tried to to to learn as much about Islam as 497 00:38:33,520 --> 00:38:39,760 possible and and this is it on the outside. I could tell you this and many 498 00:38:38,000 --> 00:38:44,880 times even you know Shayan is going to you know Shayan is playing with you one 499 00:38:42,400 --> 00:38:48,640 of those those hard moments he's going to he's going to be whispering what if 500 00:38:46,640 --> 00:38:55,359 what if what if and that's that those are the whispers of Shayan. And I knew 501 00:38:51,920 --> 00:39:01,520 even if many people asking because uh there was only one our heist was so 502 00:38:58,079 --> 00:39:08,240 elaborate but only one little detail didn't work on it. That's why why didn't 503 00:39:03,280 --> 00:39:12,400 they go through basically that's why and one of the things is uh Shayan as I 504 00:39:11,280 --> 00:39:16,720 mentioned Shayan is going to be whispering to you what if what if this 505 00:39:14,160 --> 00:39:21,119 manhole cover open and you jumped into the tunnel and you escaped and with all 506 00:39:18,800 --> 00:39:26,320 the all the all that money what you would be basically living the life of 507 00:39:22,640 --> 00:39:30,000 your life but you know what many times I was thinking about that even if I 508 00:39:28,079 --> 00:39:34,720 succeeded in this if I took all of that money I know what would happen I I would 509 00:39:32,320 --> 00:39:39,520 still gamble it. In 2 or 3 years, I would gamble everything and then most 510 00:39:37,520 --> 00:39:43,760 likely I would plan another bigger, bolder, more dangerous casino heist 511 00:39:41,920 --> 00:39:49,839 where maybe somebody would get hurt or even killed. And same thing, you know, 512 00:39:47,440 --> 00:39:53,839 so this is the best outcome, the best way. And that's why I say that the 513 00:39:51,599 --> 00:39:58,400 spending 15 and 1/2 years in prison was the best thing that could happen to you. 514 00:39:55,599 --> 00:40:02,640 And that's why Allah tells us tells us directly in the Quran, you might be 515 00:40:00,320 --> 00:40:06,640 thinking something is bad for you, but it is actually good for you. 516 00:40:04,960 --> 00:40:10,320 >> Let's close it up. Uh whatever what other advice can you give? We want good 517 00:40:08,720 --> 00:40:14,079 for the brother, for the neons, for neon, for the other people out there who 518 00:40:12,160 --> 00:40:18,079 are struggling. Let's close it up. What uh last piece of advice uh would you 519 00:40:16,480 --> 00:40:24,480 like to give them? >> Yes. First and foremost, brother, 520 00:40:20,880 --> 00:40:29,359 consult with good scholars. Ask him. Any respectable scholar is going to tell you 521 00:40:27,200 --> 00:40:33,119 whom Allah tells us directly. Our creator tells us directly there's no 522 00:40:31,200 --> 00:40:36,960 gambling. Open up the Quran. It's basically black and white. It's he tells 523 00:40:35,440 --> 00:40:41,760 us there's no alcohol. There's no gambling. I mean it's a direct order. 524 00:40:39,520 --> 00:40:47,760 That's it. So that's one thing. Second thing is this. 525 00:40:44,800 --> 00:40:53,040 All those people like Neon, they're looking for for a strategy. They're 526 00:40:51,040 --> 00:40:58,240 looking for a way to make money, easy money, they are looking for a way to 527 00:40:55,760 --> 00:41:04,400 beat the house. And after losing everything, 528 00:41:01,599 --> 00:41:08,000 after losing everything financially, after losing all of those people who 529 00:41:06,000 --> 00:41:13,839 loved and cared about me, and at the end, after losing my freedom, I finally 530 00:41:11,839 --> 00:41:19,160 figured it out. [clears throat] I found a way how to beat the house. Don't 531 00:41:16,160 --> 00:41:19,160 gamble. 532 00:41:19,280 --> 00:41:26,880 >> That's it. Simple just don't gamble. Thank you Adna. Thank you very much for 533 00:41:25,119 --> 00:41:30,079 sharing that with us. >> Indeed. Thank you very much for having 534 00:41:28,240 --> 00:41:36,480 me. >> Inshallah we uh can meet uh in person in 535 00:41:33,839 --> 00:41:41,040 Bosnia sometime and do this get more of your story and inshallah. Thank you. 536 00:41:40,720 --> 00:41:45,240 >> Yes. >> All right. Thank you. 537 00:41:45,520 --> 00:41:50,480 You can't take it with you when you go. Or you can't take this with you when you 538 00:41:48,720 --> 00:41:53,680 go. And you can't take this with you when you go. Brothers and sisters, we're 539 00:41:52,240 --> 00:41:56,880 all going to depart from this life. And all of our material possessions to our 540 00:41:55,520 --> 00:42:00,240 money will stay behind. But your reoccurring investment in the dean 541 00:41:58,400 --> 00:42:03,680 center will continue to grow even when you leave this life. So go ahead and 542 00:42:01,839 --> 00:42:07,520 make that reoccurring investment in a masid and mega dawa center that will 543 00:42:05,520 --> 00:42:10,880 benefit you in this life and in the next. Click the link below. Donate right 544 00:42:09,040 --> 00:42:14,279 now. May God Almighty Allah reward all of you. 545 00:42:12,259 --> 00:42:14,279 >> [music]