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Madeleine McCann's Mother Suspect; Amazing Survival Story

Aired September 07, 2007 - 10:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Hope of ever seeing his wife again. Then she turned up alive.
It is Friday, September 7th, and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

At the top this hour, a missing little girl and a shocking new development. A friend of Madeleine McCann's family says the mother has been named as a suspect. Under Portuguese law, someone named as a suspect has the right to certain legal protections not extended to a witness.

An even bigger shock may be a forensic discovery. The four-year- old's blood reportedly found in a rental car. Now according to a family friend, that car rented by Madeleine's parents more than three weeks after her disappearance.

Madeleine McCann vanished in May during a family vacation to Portugal. Her parents had left her alone with her two-year-old siblings while they went out to dinner.

The family's plight has seized international attention. Her parents met with Pope Benedict at the Vatican and have enlist of supporting celebrities. Today, Madeleine's father is expected to face police questioning.

So here is a look at the timeline of the Madeleine McCann case. May 3rd, her parents report her missing. The next day the local police are criticized for slow response. Several days later, police say they've investigated 350 suspicious incidents. They say none have generated leads in the search. One week later, police identify a suspect. But, they say, there's not enough evidence to file charges. August 10th now, Gerry and Kate McCann say they won't leave Portugal until their daughter is found. That brings us to yesterday. Madeleine's mother faces 11 hours of police questioning.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, let's take you to North Carolina now where he's accused three Duke lacrosse players of rape, but now former Durham county D.A. Mike Nifong is spending 24 hours behind bars. He showed up at the county jail, oh, about an hour ago and is serving his sentence for a contempt conviction. The judge ruled Nifong willfully made false statements about evidence provided to the defense.

Nifong resigned and was disbarred a little bit earlier this year and the lacrosse players were cleared of charges. Even declared innocent. Now the Associated Press reports the players are seeking a $30 million settlement and promises of legal reforms from Durham. HARRIS: Osama bin Laden still illusive but probable surfacing on tape soon. An Islamic Web site says bin Laden will issue a videotaped message. The web posting just days before the sixth anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks. It would be bin Laden's first videotape appearance since just before the 2004 U.S. elections.

And there's this from a new poll. For the first time since 2001, most Americans don't believe the U.S. will track down bin Laden. The CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll finds 54 percent of Americans do not think the U.S. will capture or kill bin Laden. Forty-two percent think he will be caught.

NGUYEN: Seven more U.S. troops have been killed in Iraq. The military announcing this morning that four Marines were killed during combat operations in Anbar province and to the north, three soldiers died in an explosion near their vehicle in Ninevah province. That makes 18 U.S. military deaths in Iraq this month.

HARRIS: Reports this morning the top U.S. general in Iraq may call for troops to start coming home next spring. The pullouts would depend on conditions on the ground. General David Petraeus issued a letter to those conditions today. He describes tactical momentum and U.S.-led forces taking the initiative in many areas. Still, he says, the progress has been uneven. Petraeus delivers his much-anticipated progress report to Congress on Monday.

NGUYEN: Well, a candid and slightly testy conversation all caught on tape at the Asia Pacific Summit in Australia. President Bush and South Korea President Roh Moo-hyun getting into an awkward back and forth. The topic, the Korean War. Well since it ended in a truce, not a peace treaty, the two sides technically remain at war. The South Korean leader wants to know when will it end.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRES. ROH MOO-HYUN, SOUTH KOREAN: I think I might be wrong. I think I did not hear President Bush mentioned that the declaration to end the Korean War just now. Did you say so, President Bush?

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I said that that's up to Kim Jong-il as to whether or not we're able to sign a treaty (ph) to end the Korean War. He's got to get rid of his weapons in a verifiable fashion. And we're making progress toward that goal. It's up to him.

MOO-HYUN: I believe that they are the same thing, Mr. President. If you could be a little bit clear in your message, I think (INAUDIBLE) very much (INAUDIBLE).

BUSH: I can't make it any more clear, Mr. President. We look forward to the day when we can end the Korean War. That will happen when Kim Jong-il verifiably gets rid of his weapons programs and his weapons.

Thank you, sir.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: All right. So there you have it. Well, the White House immediately downplayed that exchange saying, "there was clearly something lost in translation."

HARRIS: So let's talk about North Korea here for a moment. Holding a nuclear open house, so to speak. U.S. negotiator Christopher Hill announcing today Pyongyang is inviting a delegation of nuclear experts to tour its facilities. They will recommend ways to shut them down by the end of the year. The experts from the U.S., China and Russia are due to arrive in North Korea on Tuesday. Hill calls the move a significant step in de-nuclearizing the Korean peninsula. Had to say that slowly.

NGUYEN: Well, we do want to check in now with CNN's Rob Marciano at the weather center with a look at what is happening on this Friday.

A lot of pressure on you, Rob.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: How about this. More than a dozen people actually plan to run for governor of Louisiana this fall. New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin is not one of them. Nagin toyed with the idea. I think you're aware of that. But he says he decided against it because of family considerations and the recovery effort from Hurricane Katrina. Makes sense. Nagin says New Orleans needs strong, experienced leadership to rebuild. Thirteen candidates did file paperwork to run in the October 20th election. The heavy favorite, Republican Congressman Bobby Jindal.

NGUYEN: Do want to get you back to those shocking developments in the search for Madeleine McCann, the British girl who vanished during a family vacation in Portugal. A family spokesman says the four-year-old's mom is now named a suspect.

CNN's Paula Hancocks joins us now from Portimao with the latest on this case.

And a lot of people waking up thinking what has happened in this search for the person who was involved in this. And now all fingers are pointing at the mother. Very interesting, Paula.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Betty. Yes, Kate McCann has been inside the police station for the past four hours this Friday. Now she was here for 11 hours for questioning on Thursday, but that was as a witness. The difference now is she is a formal suspect, according to the Portuguese police. They believe that they have enough evidence, enough forensic evidence, to be able to consider her a suspect and involved, possibly in some way, in the disappearance of her four-year-old daughter Madeleine.

Now we are also expecting at some point this afternoon -- we were expect it an hour ago -- the arrival of Gerry McCann, the husband. He also is coming in to undergo some questioning. At this point we believe he will be questioned as a witness. But certainly a surprising turnaround of events.

We also know from the spokesperson for the McCann family, they were talking to us earlier, saying that part of the reason they believe that they decided to treat Kate McCann as a suspect is because they found blood in the rental car that her and Gerry McCann had rented. But, bizarrely, they had rented it 25 days after Madeleine had been declared missing.

Now also hearing from the lawyer for the family. He is telling us that she may well be charged this evening -- that's Friday evening -- and may well be held in custody until that time. And also he said that there were more blood samples found on a piece of clothing that Kate McCann had given to the police about a month ago.

So this is what the evidence that the Portuguese police have. We're hearing nothing from them themselves. This is all coming from the family and their representatives. But at this point they believe they have enough to keep her in as a suspect.

NGUYEN: OK, Paula, just so that we can clarify just a little bit in this case as these developments are coming out, the mother is a suspect now, but both the mother and the father rented this vehicle, but at this point the father has not been named a suspect.

HANCOCKS: That's right. It's not entirely clear whose name this vehicle was in, but certainly it was said to us by the spokesperson that it was rented by the McCann family by the McCanns, meaning the parents. But we know that Kate McCann was here for 11 hours yesterday for this questioning as a witness. Now Gerry McCann is supposed to be on his way for his questioning as a witness as well. And at this point we have no indications.

The spokesperson said it is possible that he also could be a suspect, but didn't really want to go into that because she just didn't know. She said at this point it's just Kate McCann who is formally a suspect. Which, for her, it could actually be a protection legally because it means that the questions that the police now ask her, she's not legally obliged to answer them. Yesterday she was legally obliged to answer for 11 hours. Today for four hours she can remain silent.

NGUYEN: All right. CNN's Paula Hancocks joining us live with the latest in this story. And, of course, we'll be following it very closely. Thank you.

HARRIS: John Corner joins us now. He is a friend to the McCanns and the godfather to their twins.

John, good to talk to you.

What is your reaction to the news that Kate McCann is now a suspect in the disappearance of Maddie?

JOHN CORNER, FRIEND OF MCCANNS: Well, I'm appalled, but I'm also frustrated. You know, I've worked very, very hard with Kate and Gerry in the campaign to find our missing child and our missing Madeleine. And what we're worried about truly is that this investigation or this new line that the Portuguese police have taken is going to derail those real efforts.

You know, we were in Spain only a few weeks ago and dropping posters in different towns in Spain. And what we were amazed that is 50 percent of the people that we were approaching had never heard of Madeleine. And that's what we're up against right at street level of getting those posters out. And that advice had come to us from the U.S. The International Center for Missing and Exploited Children have been marvelous in their support and guidance and direction. They're the world experts. And they're saying to us, you know, six months in an average time. So hang on in there. Keep looking for Madeleine. And now this.

HARRIS: Well, John, I'm trying to understand here, Kate is now an official formal suspect. You believe she had nothing to do with this disappearance?

CORNER: Absolutely. Absolutely.

HARRIS: So why do you think she's a suspect? And have you heard -- you certainly are aware of the new evidence that seems to be pointing, at least the authorities, in her direction?

CORNER: Well, you know, whenever Kate and Gerry hear that there's new evidence or new technological evidence, it gives them hope because they think the Portuguese police are going to have a new breakthrough, it's going to lead us to whoever's abducted Madeleine. It's going to allow us to get her back home safely. And I think it's truly frustrating and exasperating. It's just dreadful that the mind set of the police is quite the opposite, that they're actually looking into the parents and not looking out, not doing the search, not doing the intensive work that we really need . . .

HARRIS: You would have been surprised -- John, you would have been surprised if the authorities hadn't looked at the parents, wouldn't you?

CORNER: Well, you know, Kate and Gerry were interviewed at some length in that first few days. Interviewed extensively. And that's good -- that due diligence, that's good practice. You know, all police forces do that. You look, you interview the parents, you clear them and you move on and we get out there and find Madeleine. And for us to come full circle after four months is just dreadful. It's (INAUDIBLE).

HARRIS: Well, how do you explain the apparent break-through in the case? You mentioned a break-through a moment ago. Well, there has been a break-through in the case, according to the authorities. How do you explain the blood in the rental car? A car rented more than 20 days after Maddie was reported missing? How do you explain it?

CORNER: It defies explanation, quite frankly. I have no idea. It flies in the face of common sense. I could speculate all day about that, but . . . HARRIS: Well wait a minute, John. I mean this is DNA evidence. This is DNA found in a rental car that was rented by the couple 20 days -- I'm just asking you, how do you explain it?

CORNER: It makes -- I can't explain it. It makes no sense. It makes no sense.

HARRIS: Do you or do you not . . .

CORNER: I just know that . . .

HARRIS: Do you not trust what the authorities are saying to you? Have you talked to Gerry or Kate about the new evidence?

CORNER: No, I haven't. Not about new evidence. Only about the police line of questioning last night. And, quite frankly, it makes no sense to me and I can't speculate on it. You know, it just -- it makes no sense at all.

HARRIS: So the authorities come back, let me just try this on you. The authorities come back to Kate and to Gerry because the question lingers, who leaves a three-year-old to watch two-year-old twins. Who does that?

CORNER: Well, you have to understand the situation. I think the only thing that Kate and Gerry are guilty of is a little bit of complacency. It's a very, very sleepy town. Well, it certainly was before the media . . .

HARRIS: Complacency? How about neglect?

CORNER: There has been police force (ph) . . .

HARRIS: How about neglect? How about child endangerment?

CORNER: Well, I disagree with that. I disagree with that. And if you talk to the International Center for Missing and Exploited Children, they disagree with that, too.

HARRIS: So as a general practice, it's OK with you, in your mind and the way you think for a three-year-old to be left to care for two- year-old twins?

CORNER: I'm not sure that's productive at this stage to talk about that. I mean, I've been to (INAUDIBLE). I've looked at it very carefully myself. And it literally was like sitting in your garden. That's how far away the apartment was.

HARRIS: OK. John Corner is a friend of the McCanns and, John, some tough questions to ask you, but we appreciate you stepping up to take those questions on for us.

CORNER: Yes.

HARRIS: Appreciate it. Thank you. And still to come in the NEWSROOM this morning, off and running, but did he join the race to late? A look at Fred Thompson's first day as a full-fledged presidential candidate.

THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Thelma Gutierrez in Baker City, Oregon, with the latest on the 76-year-old woman who survived in the wilderness after being lost for two weeks.

HARRIS: American cities at risk. Two years after Hurricane Katrina, almost six years after 9/11, a new report says the Department of Homeland Security still has a lot of work to do.

NGUYEN: And you have to check this out. An stunt brings an Australian comedy group international attention. Jeanne Moos reports that's just one of the pranks this group has pulled in public. So you have to see some of the others. Don't miss it right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: An elderly woman missing in the wilderness almost two weeks. Family members were planning her memorial service and then she was found alive. We have those details from CNN's Thelma Gutierrez.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): In this vast, rugged, Oregon wilderness, an amazing discovery. Seventy-six-year-old Doris Anderson, who had been missing for 13 days, found alive deep in a ravine by two officers who refused to give up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Travis (ph) said, I hear voices. And then he said -- started yelling, "we found her. We found her." And I walked just probably three or four feet a little bit further and there she was.

GUTIERREZ: Doris' husband, Herold, believes it's a miracle.

HAROLD ANDERSON, HUSBAND: My wife, I thought I'd never see again. That's why I have her pictures up close to me.

GUTIERREZ: Their ordeal began August 23rd when the couple went elk hunting. Their SUV got stuck in a creek in the mountains. They walked for several miles for help, but decided to separate when Doris couldn't go on. She would return to the vehicle where there was food and water and Harold would seek help. He was picked up by hunters late in the afternoon. But when they returned to the vehicle, Doris was nowhere to be found. The family said Harold was inconsolable.

MELVIN ANDERSON, BROTHER-IN-LAW: He was devastated. He said life would never be the same.

GUTIERREZ: A massive search went on for days, but the family thought there was little hope. And just as they were planning her memorial service, two Baker County officers found Doris Anderson. She was alert and talking. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She talked about seeing bears and so he was tired of seeing bears for sure and was ready to go home.

GUTIERREZ: She was flown to St. Elizabeth Hospital in Baker City, Oregon, where doctors are surprised at how well she's doing, considering she survived nearly two weeks in frigid temperatures without food or water.

DR. STEVE DELASHMUTT, EMERGENCY ROOM PHYSICIAN: For that age and being unprepared and being out in the cold, she's done remarkably well.

GUTIERREZ: No one more surprised than Harold, who's been married to Doris for 55 years.

Are you going to go elk hunting again like this?

H. ANDERSON: Never. Never. I'm going to spend the rest of my days with my wife.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: And Thelma Gutierrez joins us now live from Baker City, Oregon.

What a remarkable story. She survived after all this time. I mean, for many, and doctors included, they didn't think humans could do that without water for so long.

GUTIERREZ: That's right, Betty. You know, the officers said that when they stumbled upon Doris, they were shocked to find her. They were shocked to find her alive. They never even expected that. And then they said that she was talking. She was talking about her husband, her kids. She told them that she wanted to have two glasses of water and then go home and go to bed. They said that they were just so surprised. She was more concerned about them than she was about herself.

NGUYEN: What an amazing story. And so glad that she indeed is back with her family.

Thelma, thank you.

HARRIS: And still to come in the NEWSROOM this morning, a pit bull attacks. A mom makes a desperate decision to save her baby boy. The story ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Hey, Betty, time to check the New York Stock Exchange one more time. The big board there. New York City. Man, oh, man.

Look, the karma was bad today for the markets. Let's just face it. Let's be honest about it. Jobs report for August, 4,000 jobs lost in this economy. All right. The futures indicated that we would get off to a rocky start. Foreclosures up. OK. And this is what happens. It happens this way when you get that kind of information. The Dow down 167 points in the first hour of the trading day. The Nasdaq down 35 points. We are watching the board. We are watching the markets. Susan Lisovicz is with us throughout the morning in the CNN NEWSROOM.

NGUYEN: There's still time, though. Don't give up hope.

HARRIS: Absolutely.

NGUYEN: And in the meantime, off and running, but can he catch up with his Republican rivals? Presidential candidate Fred Thompson stumping in Iowa today. Yesterday was his first day of campaigning since officially joining the race. Thompson touts himself as a common sense conservative. He's hoping to win support from Republican voters not thrilled with their choices so far. But there is concern that Thompson's campaign is off to a late start. The other GOP candidates have been at it for months now.

OK. So you did it once, now it is time for history to repeat itself. Go to cnn.com/youtube debate and post your questions for the Republican presidential candidates. The debate, Wednesday, November 28th. Your voice will be heard only on CNN, your home for politics.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN, the most trusted name in news. Now back to the CNN NEWSROOM.

NGUYEN: Well, good morning on this Friday. And welcome back, everybody, to the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Betty Nguyen, in for Heidi Collins.

HARRIS: Welcome back, Betty.

NGUYEN: Nice to be back.

HARRIS: Hey.

NGUYEN: Always nice to be home.

HARRIS: I'm Tony Harris. Good morning, everyone.

A missing little girl topping the news this hour and a shocking new development. A friend of Madeleine McCann's family says the mother has been named as a suspect. Under Portuguese law, someone named as a suspect has the right to certain legal protections not extended to a witness.

An even bigger shock may be a forensic discovery. The four-year- old's blood reportedly found in a rental car. That according to a family friend. That car rented by Madeleine's parents more than weeks after her disappearance.

Madeleine McCann vanished in May during a family vacation in Portugal. Her parents had left her alone with her two-year-old siblings while they went out to dinner. The family's plight has seized international attention. Her parents met with Pope Benedict of the Vatican and have enlisted the support of celebrities. Today Madeline's father is

HARRIS: Her parents had left her alone with her 2-year-old siblings while they went to dinner. The family's plight has seized international attention. Her parents met with Pope Benedict at the Vatican, and have enlisted the support of celebrities. Today Madeleine's father is expected to face police questioning.

NGUYEN: Well, years after the 9/11 attacks and Hurricane Katrina, is the U.S. prepared for another national emergency? A tough new review at the Department of Homeland Security is out.

And CNN's Joe Johns reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When it comes to emergency preparedness and response, which is what you want your Homeland Security Department to be really good at, a new report indicates the feds have pretty much flunked.

SEN. MARY LANDRIEU (D), LOUISIANA: This report is sort of the definitive authority that virtually nothing much has been done, missing 18 out of 25 marks, a nation still unprepared to prevent or respond to a catastrophic disaster.

JOHNS: The Government Accountability Office, or GAO, wasn't that blunt. It called this 320-page audit a mixed report card.

DAVID WALKER, GAO COMPTROLLER GENERAL: Sometimes DHS has made progress in developing plans and programs, but they've faced difficulty in implementing them.

JOHNS: All told, the GAO said the department had to meet about 171 so-called expectations. Of those, GAO said the department only achieved 78. It did not achieve 83. That's more than about half.

(on camera): Among the more glaring problems was failure to fix financial reporting weaknesses. After all, they're spending billions of dollars of your money.

(voice-over): The only area in which the GAO said the department had made substantial progress was in maritime security. The report said the department made moderate progress in other areas, like immigration enforcement and security.

Even one of the more diplomatic Senate Republicans says after four years, it's time to get a move on.

SEN. SUSAN COLLINS (R), MAINE: The department must pick up the pace of its progress.

JOHNS: The department responded by launching into damage control, charging the GAO audit wasn't fair.

PAUL SCHNEIDER, UNDER SECRETARY FOR MANAGEMENT, DHS: The department continues to believe that they used a flawed methodology in preparing its report, which resulted in many of the assessments not fully reflecting the department's progress.

JOHNS: But as it turns out, there just happens to be a former auditor on the Senate's Homeland Security Committee, and she says the department is howling because the GAO is "Keeping them Honest."

SEN. CLAIRE MCCASKILL (D), MISSOURI: In my experience, the very best audits are the ones where the recipient of the audit screams the loudest.

JOHNS: Claire McCaskill used to be the auditor for the state of Missouri. She says the problem isn't the grading system, it's the failures GAO found.

MCCASKILL: The words that are in the audit, and I've read every page of them, it's a very large audit. They're strong and substantial indictments of some of the things that are going on at the Department of Homeland Security.

JOHNS: Another Republican Senator said it's going to take a workaholic to fix the place.

SEN. GEORGE VOINOVICH (R), OHIO: I'm just telling you, unless we can get somebody over there that's going to work on this, as I mentioned, from early in the morning till late at night, this is not going to be done, and five years from now some Senator will be talking to you about the fact that the department is still screwed up.

JOHNS: As predictions go, this one doesn't sound too farfetched.

Joe Johns, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: And coming up, survivors of a brutal civil war, now about to hold historic run-off elections. I'm just back from Africa. And you'll Find out why the democratic processes in Sierra Leone really matter. Stay tuned.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Betty's back from Africa, covering really some life- changing stories, particularly in Sierra Leone. Great to have you back.

NGUYEN: Thanks. This was a really important assignment, an amazing trip. I spent a week in Sierra Leone, the world's second poorest country, and covering its historic presidential elections. And you need to keep in mind that cover is still recovering from one the most brutal civil wars in recent history. Thousands had their hands hacked off by rebels, but that didn't stop them from casting ballots. And tomorrow they'll have to do it all over again in the country's first Democratic run-off election.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN (voice-over): The votes have already been counted once. During the election in August, thousands stood in long lines, many in the rain, just to make their mark on this new era of democracy.

Among the first in line were amputees like Saa Tadawali (ph), who lost a limb during Sierra Leone's bloody civil war.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There will be a total change in this country.

CHETRY: But first there must be a runoff election to see who will lead the small West African nation, which suffered for so long.

Between 1991 and 2002, Sierra Leone was in one of the most brutal civil wars in recent history. Rebels stormed Ahaji Dakar's (ph) village and hacked off this man's arms.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They aid, put your hands here. They placed my hands and my hands were cut off.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He wants to see justice served. And Stephen Rapp is in charge of making that happen. He's the prosecutor for the United Nations War Crimes Tribunal. It's his job to go after those who bear the greatest responsibility for the war.

STEPHEN RAPP, SPECIAL COURT PROSECUTOR: This is of enormous significance to the people of Sierra Leone. If you talk to people about what happened in this country, I mean the wounds and injuries are still there.

NGUYEN: Several militia leaders have already been convicted, but many blame former Liberian President Charles Taylor for most of the war's atrocities. He's on trial at the Hague in the Netherlands, accused of using Sierra Leone's vast diamond wealth to fuel the war and line his pockets.

(on camera): Convicting Charles Taylor of war crimes won't make up for the hundreds of thousands who were murdered, maimed or raped in Sierra Leone, but it will send a message to the rest of the world.

(voice-over): And that's why Rapp has turned the Taylor case into something very personal.

RAPP: Holding someone like this responsible is certainly a great mission of my life, and I think it is an important part of what's happened to the justice system in the world in the last few years, that leaders in the past would escape justice, would have been allowed to stay in exile. That's no longer possible, and it's because of what's being done in the Charles Taylor case that I think people will have a better chance in the world -- in the future to live in peace. NGUYEN: But here in Sierra Leone that peace often depends on this country's politics. The test now is to see if this fledgling democracy can elect a new president who's equipped to mend this wore- torn nation.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: That's great.

Now you mentioned that there was still work to do for this democracy, specifically a runoff election, this weekend?

NGUYEN: It's this weekend on Saturday.

HARRIS: And real concerns about turnout.

NGUYEN: There is a lot of concern about turnout and about possible violence as well.

And let me tell you about the first time around, 75 percent voter turnout. That is phenomenal, especially for a country that's just come off of the civil war. This time around there's confusion, Tony, because a lot of people think, well, why do I have to go back to the polls? Why do I have to vote again? All of this is very new to them. This, again, is a fledgling democracy there, and so there's concern about whether they'll end up at the polls, if they will indeed come out and place their vote.

Also there's concern about violence, because again there's frustration, we've already done this once, and the opposition candidate had about 41 percent of this vote, and so they're thinking, why didn't he just go ahead win this election. And so, again, there's a lot of education that needs to be done, but most importantly folks need to get to the polls.

HARRIS: But democracy at work, and that is the best news for Sierra Leone right now.

Let's broaden this out a little bit. Talk to us about your experience, Betty, in Africa, first time.

NGUYEN: First time on the continent, and it was simply amazing, especially in Sierra Leone.

HARRIS: You said it felt a bit spiritual to you.

NGUYEN: It did. And if you look at these children you can see why. Sierra Leone, again, is the second poorest country in the world. These people have been through atrocities. They have seen the worst, and they're still living it. It has a 70 percent unemployment rate. People are so impoverished in that country, yet they are still so very hopeful. And I think, you know, seeing them really entrusts their future into a Democratic system is something that really brought smiles to my face, and it also made you believe that, you know what, this country has to work, it needs to work; the people are depending on it. HARRIS: That's great. More of your reporting this weekend?

NGUYEN: Absolutely. We've got a Reporter's Notebook. We're going to take you behind the scenes to show you how we put all of that together, and some of the conditions that we had to endure to bring it straight to you, right here on CNN.

HARRIS: Stretch it out. Let's get a little "CNN SATURDAY MORNING" and "CNN SUNDAY MORNING," not all in one shot. Let's spread it over the weekend. Can we do that? Can we do that?

NGUYEN: I've got plenty to come this weekend, don't you worry.

HARRIS: Great to see you, Betty.

NGUYEN: Good to be back.

HARRIS: Great reporting, too.

NGUYEN: Thank you

HARRIS: Hey, I want to show you some pictures in to CNN just a short time ago. We've been telling you about the stunning news this morning, Katie McCann named a formal suspect in the disappearance of her daughter. There's her husband, Gerry McCann. We also mentioned that he would be showing up at the police station for questioning, and there he is arriving today for questioning. Again, his wife, Kate McCann, now a formal suspect. Is he now being asked to provide information about his wife? Just an incredible series of events transpiring there in Portugal right now.

We will continue to follow developments in this story and get you an update on the story at the top of the hour right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BUSINESS HEADLINES)

HARRIS: Rescuers compare it to searching for a needle in a hay stack. Now that haystack just got a lot bigger. The search area for missing aviator Steve Fossett expands to 10,000 square miles. That's about the size of Massachusetts. Fossett disappeared Monday shortly after takeoff in a single-engine plane. Rescuers are hoping the famous adventurer is using his long-proven survival skills to stay alive.

NGUYEN: Many of you know that voice, and he's striking a chord of hope at a school marred by tragedy. An emotional concert at Virginia Tech, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Hey Betty, you're back from Africa ...

NGUYEN: Yes. HARRIS: ...fresh and rested, right?

NGUYEN: So far.

HARRIS: Back in the right time zone and everything?

NGUYEN: Although I am working with you today, that's made me a little tired.

HARRIS: Well, there you go, there's always a liability there.

You know, we're podcasting later today.

NGUYEN: Oh absolutely.

HARRIS: Yes, we are. And what we're doing a little differently since you were here last, since you're gallivanting around the world, we're adding different stories on the podcast now so that folks at home get something a little bit different -- it's all about being different -- than what we give them every day 9:00 until noon here in the CNN NEWSROOM. So what we do is we derive (ph) some different stories, some a little lighthearted.

You can go to CNN.com and download the CNN NEWSROOM daily podcast. It's available to you 24/7 on your iPod. And the next thing we're doing is we were thinking of adding music.

NGUYEN: Are you going to be singing?

HARRIS: Kind of songs in the key of life is what we're thinking.

NGUYEN: Whoo!

HARRIS: So that's later today.

NGUYEN: I'm scared of that.

But stay tuned, folks, because it might just happen.

HARRIS: Yes.

NGUYEN: In the meantime, an Australian comedian dressed up as Osama bin Laden breaches security to get close to world leaders. Not the first time the Sydney comedy troupe has embarrassed public officials.

And CNN's Jeanne Moos reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): See if you can pick out the fake motorcade at the APEC summit. Is it this one or this one, or this one? The guy who finally jumped out was the giveaway.

DAVID CAMPBELL, POLICE MINISTER: I don't see a funny side to what's happened today. I don't see a funny side at all. MOOS: But this guy did. There were three vehicles, one flying the Canadian flag escorted by two motorbikes and make-believe security agents jogging alongside. No wonder they got past a couple of checkpoints.

ASST. COMM. DAVE OWEN, APEC SECURITY COMMANDER: No, I'm not embarrassed at all.

MOOS: It wasn't until a comedian dressed up like Osama bin Laden jumped out within yards of the hotel where President Bush was staying that security caught on.

OWEN: What I am is I'm very angry that such a stunt like this would be pulled.

MOOS (on camera): The prank was the work of an award-winning Australian TV comedy troupe called the Chaser. They've even chased Hillary Clinton.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hillary, I'd like to apply to be your intern. I know had you a bit of trouble with him in the past.

MOOS (voice-over): The cast has been specializing in security pranks, dressing up at an airport like the plastic bags passengers need for carry-on items, buying a ticket for a passenger named Al Kyder, who then gets paged.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Al Kyder.

MOOS: The show sent out a fake security guard to see how far the public would let him go.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Step around, please. This is a secure area. Thank you. OK, ma'am, I'm afraid you have to go back up.

MOOS: When challenged by a real security man.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can I see your ID? Yes, I'm sorry, I outrank you, I'm afraid.

MOOS: The real one then asks, can I know what's going on?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, I'm afraid it's classified, sir.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not a problem.

MOOS: Not a problem, he says. But similar stunts have been. Take the time a British comedian dressed up like Osama bin Laden in a dress, and managed to get into Windsor Castle for Prince William's 21st birthday dress-up party. He ended up kissing the prince on both cheeks.

Back in Australia, the Chaser cast doesn't always do security pranks. The show sent the supposedly gay teletubby Tinky-Winky into a gay bar.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: I have a handbag!

MOOS: They sent a supposedly blind guy out driving a taxi.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Turn your steering wheel left.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The left?

MOOS: And sent a guy with a stocking over his head into stores.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi, there. I noticed a DVD ...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What the hell is that?

MOOS: Sometimes people get mad.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ...what's really ...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Security!

MOOS: Crashing a summit dressed up like Osama bin Laden will get you arrested. Dressing up with a stocking over your head makes folks run for their lives.

Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ...I just wanted to get some noodles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Say now, that last was not really funny.

NGUYEN: No!

HARRIS: I mean, walking in with a stocking over your head. Poor people.

NGUYEN: I'd run, too.

HARRIS: That's insane.

All right, still to come in the CNN NEWSROOM this morning, a little girl missing. Her mother reportedly named a suspect. A family's anguish now deeper than ever.

NGUYEN: And a young mother tries to save her baby from a vicious pit bull.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm being attacked and I'm just looking for a place to put my son because he would have killed him in a second.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: And the baby was placed in a trash can for safety while the mom gets bitten again and again. We have that story in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: OK, we're at the top of the hour. Welcome back, everyone, to the CNN NEWSROOM.

But take a look at this, this is interesting. Kate McCann leaving the police station this morning, or this afternoon certainly in Portugal local time there. There was some question as to whether or not she would be held, as you no doubt know at this point. She is, by all reports, a formal suspect, a formal suspect in the disappearance of her daughter Maddie.

And just a short time ago, we saw her husband, Gerry, walk in through that same door to face some questioning as well. So, an interesting set of developments right now. There are the pictures from a short time ago of Gerry McCann walking in to face the authorities there in Portugal and answer some questions.

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