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Islamic Group Demands Shooting Probe; "Boston Strong" Concert Is Tonight; Feds Investigate Apparent Ricin Letters; Ricin Attack Puts Gun Debate In Spotlight; Teen Tipster Alerts Cops; New Video Of Ariel Castro's Backyard; Cleveland Hero Becoming A Celebrity Speaker; Army Sergeant To Admit To Afghan Massacre

Aired May 30, 2013 - 10:00   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: -- in the NEWSROOM, poisoned letters, gun rights and New York's Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBER, NEW YORK: The letter was obviously referred to our anti-gun effort.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: The poisonous message, "you'll have to kill me before you take my guns." Also, doing the right thing, an Oregon teen turns in a-would be high school bomber.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The tipping point for me was when I was just worried about being in school.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And tantrum, a 2-year-old disabled boy tossed from a hair salon for crying.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She continued to pull him so I took that as we are not welcome here anymore.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Social media biting back. Now the salon is fighting to stay in business.

Plus, from local hero to paid public speaker.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I barbequed with this dude. We eat ribs and what not, listen to salsa music. I knew something was wrong when a pretty white girl ran into a black man's arms.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Charles Ramsey's words of wisdom now worth thousands of dollars. NEWSROOM starts now.

Good morning. Thank you so much for being with us. I'm Carol Costello. We begin with calls for justice from an Islamic civil rights group. It's demanding an investigation into a fatal shooting linked to the Boston terror attacks. The concerns come amid reports that Ibrahim Todashev was unarmed when he was shot and killed last week by an FBI agent.

Investigators were questioning Todashev inside his Orlando home about his ties to the bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev. We'll hear more from the group and its concerns in just a minute. But first here is CNN's John Zarrella. He walks us through the deadly confrontation in this report he filed last week.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sources tell CNN that this man knew Ibrahim Todashev knew Boston bombing suspects Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and that Todashev confessed to being quote, "directly involved in a brutal triple 2011 drug-related murder" in Waltham, Massachusetts.

A federal law enforcement official tells CNN that Todashev also implicated Tamerlan Tsarnaev in the murders, but Todashev is now dead, shot during questioning by an FBI agent and two Massachusetts state police officers in the kitchen of his Orlando apartment.

Law enforcement sources told CNN Todashev had confessed to his role in the triple murder and became violent and attacked the FBI agent. He was then shot and killed. A friend said Todashev knew the bombing suspects but that was all.

KHASUEN TARAMOV, TODASHEV'S FRIEND: He knew them back like two years ago, back in when he used to live in Boston, and he knew him. He wasn't real close friends. He happened to know him. I guess it was his fault, mistake, but he had no idea that they were up to something like that, like bombing and everything, you know what I mean?

ZARRELLA: Now dead, the Boston bomber, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, knew one of the Waltham, Massachusetts victims. The FBI is now checking to see if they can match it and Todashev's DNA to the crime scene. There were other connections between the two men.

Sources tell CNN they came from the same region of Chechnya. Todashev lived in Boston two years ago. Both men were in a mixed martial arts at a studio in Boston and on a mixed martial arts web site. Tamerlan Tsarnaev's phone number was found in Todashev's cell.

Earlier this month, Todashev was charged with aggravated battery after according to Orlando police getting in a fight over a parking space at a local mall. While it appears Todashev was a violent man, his connection to the bombing suspects may go no further than a drug murder case and friendship. John Zarrella, CNN, Orlando, Florida. (END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: All right, let's break down this case and why it's raising so many questions. Hassan Shibly is leading the call for an independent investigation. He heads the Florida Chapter of CARE, the Council On American Islamic Relation. And also joining us is Tom Fuentes, a former assistant director of the FBI now serving as a CNN law enforcement analyst. Welcome to both of you.

TOM FUENTES, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Good morning, Carol.

COSTELLO: Good morning. Thank you for being with us, Mr. Shibly. I want to start with you. The FBI says it's assembled a team to investigate the shooting. Is that not enough?

HASSAN SHIBLY, COUNCIL ON AMERICAN-ISLAMIC RELATIONS: Well, we're calling for an independent investigation because this is a system of checks and balances. I mean, the bottom line is that a man who was not convicted or even charged with any crime formally was shot and killed seven times once in the head after five hours of interrogation in his house. So that's very disturbing. It raises a lot of questions. We're not accusing the FBI agents of anything at this point. We just have unanswered questions. We are calling for an independent probe to answer those questions.

COSTELLO: We were curious about that. Is it common procedure for the FBI to question somebody they suspect of a crime in their home for that many hours?

FUENTES: Well, it would depend on the circumstances. If you are talking about a very complex case, it could go on for several hours in trying to determine what happened in the Waltham murder case from a couple of years ago to what his overall relationship was with Tamerlan, their martial arts activity, the nature of their friendship. So it is possible to have an interview go on that long and, of course, the person is in his own home, but he can say, OK, I don't want to wish to talk anymore. He's not required to talk to the FBI. He is only required if he does choose to talk that he tell the truth.

COSTELLO: And Hassan, from what we understand from initial reports, the FBI said he was, he had some sort of knife and then it said he didn't. I mean, from what you understand, did this man have any sort of weapon?

SHIBLY: No, we received confirmation that he was, in fact, unarmed when he was shot seven times once in the head. The best claim they have is that there was a decorative sword in the room somewhere. My question is if they really thought that sword was a threat, why would they interrogate a suspect that they thought committed murder in four hours in a room with what they perceived to be weapon?

Again, there is no justification for ever lashing out at law enforcement. For us this is about procedure. It's not about the family or the victim of the shooting, but it's more about constitutional principles. We want to know, you know, were his rights violated during that four or five-hour interrogation? And was excessive force used? That's why we are calling on this independent investigation.

COSTELLO: Tom, at the same time this guy was a mixed martial arts expert. The FBI suspected him for playing a part in a vicious murder. Three people were nearly decapitated. So they would have the idea that he might be a violent guy in their minds, right, during the questioning?

SHIBLY: If they did, they should have charged him, brought him into the bureau. I mean, his wife, by the way, does have evidence he was with her in Atlanta during the time those murders allegedly occurred. If he committed a crime, bring him in. We have due process. We have courts. Let's use the system. Let's not take justice into our own hands.

COSTELLO: Tom, your take.

FUENTES: Well, if he was in the process of maybe agreeing to sign a confession to his involvement, you wouldn't want to interrupt that interview process and transport him to another office where he might change his mind. So the judgment of the interview, itself, how long it took, where it took place is up to the agents conducting the investigation. They would have the experience of that.

I would agree with your other guest that given the circumstances that the case should be thoroughly investigated and an independent investigation that to be trusted by the public and by the community should be conducted. The FBI automatically conducts an investigation any time an agent is involved in a shooting, particularly a shooting that results in the death of someone.

So they would send an inspection team there to couple conduct a very exhaustive investigation. I can understand where persons outside the FBI might in the think that is objective enough and would want an independent review. Certainly would be warranted. I'm sure it will be conducted not just by the Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, but, you know, possibly others as well in this matter.

COSTELLO: All right, Hassan Shibly, Tom Fuentes, thank you both so much for joining us. We appreciate it.

SHIBLY: Thank you. Our role is to make sure law enforcement is abiding by the highest standards. Thank you so much.

COSTELLO: Got you. Thank you so much, Hassan.

Tonight, a show of solidarity and a vow to be Boston strong, the megaconcert is being called "An Evening of Support and Celebration" and will help raise funds for the victims of the marathon attacks and their families. Some of Boston's most famous natives will take part including musical legends, Aerosmith, James Taylor and the comediennes Dane Cook and Stephen Bright.

A new video into CNN shows the moment a freight train carrying chemicals crashed into a truck near Baltimore. This video captured by a local business owner on Tuesday. The collision triggered an explosion and fire. The truck driver was seriously injured in the accident. Investigators are still looking into the cause of the crash.

Also this morning, there's a frightening new spike in one of America's most passionate debates, the fight over gun control. Federal investigators are ramping up their probe of what could be deadly letters sent to the New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and his anti-gun group. Two separate tests say it was ricin, a material so toxic, a mere pinpoint can kill within days.

CNN's Deborah Feyerick has been working her sources on this story. Deb, tell us more.

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, we can tell you is that if in fact, it is prove that conclusively that it is ricin, it certainly taken the gun debate to a whole new level. We can tell you that one of the anonymous letters to the mayor was sent to New York, the other to Washington, D.C., specifically the gun group that the mayor heads. That's the "Mayors Against Illegal Guns."

Police say that both letters contained threats targeting Mayor Michael Bloomberg because of his views on gun control. Authorities believed that the letters were written by the same person. They were posted from the same area and both contain what a police source is describing as an orange-pink oily material. That material initially tested negative, but then it tested positive for trace amounts of ricin.

The mayor was never in any immediate danger. He said yesterday that, in fact, he didn't feel threatened. There will always be people who are trying to do things like this. The National Bioforensic Analysis Center in Maryland should have the conclusive results back either today or by the end of the week.

Law enforcement agents we are told are right now being briefed on the status of the investigation. Police agents and officers on the Joint Terrorisms Task Force were mobilized to go and basically question people in the town from which that letter was sent -- Carol.

COSTELLO: It just seems that ricin has been popping up a lot lately. I mean, did it suddenly get easier to make?

FEYERICK: No. It's one of those things that is very -- that it's sort of readily available because it's made from ordinary caster beans and so there are different compounds of lethality of how dangerous this is. It's extremely difficult to weaponize so that you get the maximum dosage to do the maximum damage.

But what we are told is that at least three police officers who were exposed to one of the letters here in New York that they did become symptomatic within 24 hours. Then those symptoms went away. It was sort of an intestinal problem that they were experiencing, but again, all clear went away -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Deborah Feyerick reporting live from New York City.

So we want to talk about how all of these factors into one of the most controversial and polarising topic in the nation and that would be the gun debate. With us now from New York is Jett Nugent, an NRA member and older brother of another Nugent, gun rights activist, Ted Nugent. There he is.

He is probably showing off a pair of semi automatic rifles. Of course, there's one big difference between the two brothers. Jeff, you say you support some gun control like background checks. You are not in any fight with your brother. You are actually able to sit down and have a civil conversation?

JEFF NUGENT, ADVISORY BOARD MEMBER, EVOLVE: We have civil conversations regularly and I posted a "Washington Post" op-ed piece two weeks ago, which we had a tremendous response from. And of course, they highlighted it by Jeffrey Nugent being in strong disagreement with his brother, Ted, which I am on the subject of background checks that frankly, I don't do well in a politically correct environment.

So to be very direct, I am furious. I am furious that we have these 10,000 pound elephants in every living room in the country and that there is a lot of talk about gun control and about reducing the levels of violence, but it's all talk. I think that my focus right now is to try to make something happen and to stop the mindless debate.

COSTELLO: Make it clear for us, Jeff, what do you want to see happen?

NUGENT: What I'd like to see happen is really two things. That I have joined an organization by the name of Evolve and what we are all about is to represent the majority of Americans and it's just come out again in a poll this morning that in excess of 80 percent of Americans are in strong support of enhanced background checks.

Now, it boggles my mind how our elected officials and the NRA are not paying attention to the majority of the people that they represent. I don't get it. I had a great conversation with Senator Manchin from West Virginia yesterday and I have studied his bill that he partnered with Senator Toomey.

I have compared that with the Grassley-Cruz amendment and there are differences between the two, some minor, some more than minor, but the point is they both were DOA when they made it to the floor of the Senate. That's unconscionable. So right now, a lot of people talking. A lot of organizations are developing to try to get something done.

COSTELLO: Well, I know that one of the things Mayor Bloomberg is doing through his gun control group is he is targeting Democrats who voted against background checks in ads, online and on television. Do you think that sort of thing is effective?

NUGENT: Well, I do, but it's not limited to Democrats. I think there are -- there's a core group of rational balanced Republicans as well as Democrats who understand that there is a common ground and, frankly, back to this 10,000-pound elephant, I've always believed that you eat an elephant a bite at a time.

And enhancing these background checks are one of the best ways to make a short-term improvement by filling in the holes that exist in the current background check process and that for whatever reason, nobody wants to make a change. And I just don't get it. So we're pulling together a -- an expanded group of people and I know that change can be made.

I was in the early days of the partnership for drug-free America and they changed a culture about drug abuse in this country that no longer made drug use as cool as it was. It wasn't 100 percent effective and no one is going to be 100 effective.

COSTELLO: And I have to ask you this because I can hear some in our audience who are in favor of more gun control. You know, we are split over this issue, right? We are still split saying that your brother has a big part in nothing getting done in Washington because he belongs to the NRA. He's on its board.

NUGENT: Well, he is. He is a very articulate spokesman for the rights that are guaranteed by the second amendment and they have developed Ted in particular has developed a black and white definition of what that means. Now, I don't want to get into a direct comparison of me and my brother. He's my closest friend and we've had recent talks that tell me that we're closer in our opinions and recommended actions than we are further apart.

One of the big differences, frankly, Carol, is the priorities. There are significant issues with the judicial system that there are felons. In fact, there was a recent one in California, I understand, in the last couple of days. He was let out of prison.

Within 12 hours, he broke into a home, killed the mother and father, I believe killed the grandparents as well, sexually assaulted a three- year-old daughter in front of the other children in the house at the time.

That was within 12 hours of being let out of prison. He had a previous conviction of violence using a gun. Now, I think that the people that let him out, including Governor Jerry Brown should go to prison in light of what they let this individual do.

COSTELLO: Well, I wish I knew more about the case so I can question you, but I don't know about that case. I will be honest with our viewers, I don't know.

NUGENT: But those cases are all over. They happen every day.

COSTELLO: I understand. Thank you so much, Jeff Nugent, for joining us this morning. We appreciate it.

NUGENT: Good, thank you for having me.

COSTELLO: He made a name for himself helping three Cleveland women escape ten years of captivity armed with a quick wit and one liners, Charles Ramsey has a new job. We'll tell you about it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COSTELLO: A 17-year-old student is being hailed as a hero after he alerted police to classmate Grant Acords alleged plan to blow up their West Albany High School in Oregon. In his first interview, Truman Templeton spoke with CNN affiliate KATU about the moment he knew he had to call 911.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMAN TEMPLETON, ALERTED POLICE TO ALLEGED BOMB PLOT: A tipping point for me was when I was worried of being in school. I thought at that point, OK, this school is supposed to be a safe, secure environment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Templeton also said that Acord had taken other students into his bedroom to actually take a look at those homemade bombs and show off his copy of the Anarchist Cookbook. Grant Acord appeared in court on Tuesday. He has not yet entered a plea.

Two and a half weeks after the rescue of three kidnapped women, we are getting a new look inside the backyard of the Cleveland home where they were held captive for more than a decade, actually for just about a decade.

This video shot yesterday. You can see more junk piled up behind the home of Ariel Castro, the suspect, spools of barbed wire and children's toys remain. And the windows are boarded up. Castro remains in jail facing multiple charges of kidnapping and rape.

Charles Ramsey, the Cleveland dishwasher who helped Amanda Berry escape that home is now a professional speaker. We found out exclusively that Ramsey just agreed on a deal with Bruce Merrin Celebrity Speakers and Entertainment Bureau, in short, if you want to hear about Ramsey's heroics, you'll now have to pay for the privilege.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO (voice-over): Charles Ramsey, you know, the former Cleveland dishwasher who saved Amanda Berry and launched a thousand unintentional one-liners.

CHARLES RAMSEY: I barbecued with this dude. We eat ribs and what not, listen to salsa music. I knew something was wrong when a little pretty white girl ran into a black man's arms. My father would have whooped the hell out of me if he had found out that I have cowered out. It's about having cohones.

COSTELLO: Ramsey that Ramsey who was already getting free McDonald's hamburgers for a year will now hit the speaker's circuit to share his story for $10,000 a pop. He just signed with Bruce Merrin Celebrity Speakers and Entertainment Bureau in Las Vegas.

BRUCE MERRIN, CELEBRITY SPEAKERS AND ENTERTAINMENT BUREAU: He is so charismatic. I adore him. His charisma just shines through. I think he has a very touching and emotional message. He had the courage and the motivation to go and help somebody out when they were in a disastrous situation. I admire and respect that.

COSTELLO: Ramsey told us through his attorney and a friend he wants to take ownership of his own name. Ever since he rescued Berry, Ramsey has become a cash cow for everyone but himself. YouTube has dozens of Ramsey videos online complete with advertisements. There are Ramsey action figures for sale online at $19.95 apiece. A Taiwanese company was selling a cheesy video game depicting a McDonalds eating Ramsey throwing hamburgers at the alleged kidnapper.

And a consortium of North East Ohio restaurants was selling Ramsey burgers. Ramsey says, I never told these people they could use my name for this. But as motivational speaker, Ramsey will use his own name. Yes, to make money, but to inspire, too, and perhaps raise money for Amanda, Gina and Michelle as well.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: This whole thing has been a blessing and a curse for Ramsey. He's had to hire a lawyer to protect his name and image. As you know, that costs money, but until Ramsey starts this new gig, he remains unemployed.

A U.S. Army sergeant is ready to admit he shot and killed 16 villagers in Afghanistan. Coming up in the NEWSROOM, we'll tell you why his lawyers said he'd do it. It has something to do with steroids and alcohol.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: A U.S. Army soldier will plead guilty to going on a shooting spree that left 16 Afghan villagers dead. Staff Sergeant Robert Bails, you remember him? He hopes to avoid the death penalty by admitting to last year's massacre, which also wounded six Afghans. Let's bring in CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr. You know, it's interesting and sad about this case is what Bails attorney is bringing up as to why the sergeant might have committed these crimes.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's right, Carol. His defense attorney is going to mount what he hopes will be a very strong case for why Bails may have gone on this murderous rampage. The attorney, John Brown, is telling us that he will continue to pursue the angle that Bails was suffering from post-traumatic stress, a traumatic brain injury and that, indeed, on the base he was on there was alcohol and some steroid-type drugs, which Bails had access to and, in fact, took.

All of this together made him what the attorney says is a broken man and that he went out and committed these crimes, perhaps really the worst atrocity of the Afghan war for U.S. participation. It's going to be a very interesting legal argument. You know, does traumatic brain injury, does post-traumatic stress and alcohol and drugs lead to this type of rampage?

The military traditionally has not accepted stress, combat stress as a causal single reason for being excused, if I will, from committing a crime. So it will be interesting to see if the attorney can convince them, what is at stake here? The death penalty will be taken off the table if the attorney can convince them Bails will get life in prison with the possibility of parole.