Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Press Conference with RCMP, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson; New Information on What U.S. Is Doing Following Canada Shooting; Interview with Canadian M.P. John McKay; Canadian Sergeant at Arms Hailed a Hero; No Current Terrorist Threats to U.S. Homeland.
Aired October 22, 2014 - 14:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Was the suspect who was killed this morning, was he one of the people identified as being radicalized?
UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: Again, this is too early to be able to determine that.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Are you going to be either speaking with or putting those 19 people under surveillance given what happened here today?
UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: Again, we basically draw all of our resources toward any threat that exists and actively investigate those individuals.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sir, you behind the camera, please. (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Did the guy have a hunting rifle or a shotgun? Did he hijack a car or walk onto the hill? Can you give us chronology of events that you do know now?
What I can tell you is at 9:52 this morning, we received a call regarding multiple calls through 911 that there was a shooting, an incident on Parliament Hill not in a position to confirm timing or that sequence of events because that's under investigation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Over there, please.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
CHARLES BORDELEAU, CHIEF, OTTAWA POLICE DEPARTMENT: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
BORDELEAU: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
BORDELEAU: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Over there.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
BORDELEAU: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
BORDELEAU: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (INAUDIBLE) --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Over there in the blue, please.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: -- did he highjack a car or did he drive onto or walk up to the building. Can you give us a chronology of events that you know now?
BORDELEAU: What I can tell you is that at 9:52 this morning, we received a call to multiple calls to 911 that there was a shooting at the national war memorial. The sequence of events subsequent to that is it's on Parliament Hill. We've not in a position to confirm the timing or that sequence of events because that is still under investigation.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Have you retrieved the weapon?
BORDELEAU: We are not going to comment on that at this point.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sir, over there, please, in the blue.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
BORDELEAU: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
BORDELEAU: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ma,am, over there, please. Over there. Go ahead.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: You say the incident took you by surprise. Can we assume the suspect is someone who wasn't known to police?
UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: No, that would be -- at this time, that would be a conclusion that would be too early to draw.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Can you clarify what you mean?
UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: Well, basically, it's our responsibility to protect the public. If we would have known that this was coming, we would have been able to disrupt it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sir, over there.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Can you tell us anything more?
UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: Not at this time.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Was the threat level raised on Parliament Hill as it was suggested in reports this week or was Parliament Hill at a normal level of secure status? Had there been recent elevation of Parliament Hill's threat level?
UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: The threat level on Parliament Hill we've been operating at the medium level for the past number of years and that's the level that we're operating at right now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sir, over there, please. Go ahead.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Do you have any idea how someone with a weapon could have gotten on Parliament Hill given the security that does exist?
UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: Again, that's too soon to be able to comment on that. We'll need to look at all of the information that we have in order to determine that and that is information we'll share at a later date.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ma'am, the blue, please. Go ahead.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Earlier, you said it's something they train for. What plans did you have in place in case something like this were to happen?
UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: Basically, what we're doing right now in order to evacuate a building and we're potentially there's a threat that exists and that's what we train for.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Can you tell us whether the suspect was a Canadian citizen?
UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: Pardon me?
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Can you tell us whether the suspect was a Canadian citizen?
UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: I can't comment on that at this time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sir, behind the camera, please. Go ahead.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Why can't you put out an advisory to say that someone could be armed and dangerous in the community? Is that not what this scenario is? Reality is there is a gunman that's loose.
BORDELEAU: We've asked the public to stay away from the downtown core. We set up a perimeter that prevents individuals from going on Parliament Hill and there's a joint operation to clear Parliament Hill to make sure that it is safe for everybody.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sir, in the green, question, please.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: So your key focus is Parliament Hill and immediate neighborhoods around Parliament Hill, is that correct?
BORDELEAU: That's correct.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Did have an idea this morning that this was a random shooting? Did have you a sense that he had a target in mind? Did you have a sense -- there were senior government officials at the time on the hill, as well as the prime minister. Was it your impression that he was up have seeking random targets or did he have a target in mind?
BORDELEAU: Again, that's way too early to determine a motive.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Last question, please.
Sir, over behind the camera.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
BORDELEAU: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
BORDELEAU: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you very much. This concludes the press conference.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: There you have it. Members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and other law enforcement officials, and the mayor of Ottawa, Jim Watson, speaking to reporters there, stressing the situation remains fluid, ongoing, and also urging everyone to appreciate that they don't have a lot of answers they can release publicly about what happened earlier today.
Paul Cruickshank, our terrorism analyst, was listening very carefully.
What stood out in your mind, Paul?
PAUL CRUICKSHANK, CNN TERROR ANALYST: One thing that stood out is unclear at this point whether there was one gunman or two gunmen. Obviously, that's very important. If there was more one gunman, there could be a danger here for people in Ottawa. Not clear at this point whether one or two or multiple gunmen involved. Not clear if this is over or if there is still a danger.
BLITZER: Because they are saying they didn't want to answer those specific questions and didn't want to release details on the shooter at parliament, who himself was shot and killed, although presumably they have an identification of this individual.
They didn't want to release the name pending notification of next of kin of the Canadian soldier who was shot at the national war memorial. Let's go to Barbara Starr.
Barbara, you're getting new information about what the U.S. is now doing in light of what happened in Ottawa?
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: A significant step here in Washington, Wolf. The U.S. Army has just ordered additional security measures to be implemented specifically at the Tomb of Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery here along the banks of the Potomac River. This is place where millions of Americans visit every year. It's one of the most sacred places of hallowed ground for the U.S. military. There's a concern that threat directed at the Canadian military could come here to Washington.
The Tomb of the Unknowns is, one of the key places at Arlington National Cemetery, a place that sees four million visitors every year. So the military here in Washington now ordering additional security measures at the Tomb of the Unknowns to protect visitors, to protect that military honor guard that patrols there with such reverence and such precision every day around the clock. They are not saying what those security measures are but clearly this is a place, because of what is happening in Ottawa, they feel they have some potential, potential, vulnerability.
What I can tell you is right now the military, the U.S. military, is telling its local commanders across the country they always can increase security measures if they see a problem, if they see a threat. This is something that local commanders in the U.S. military have the authority to just go ahead and do on their own to protect their people. And here in Washington, at the very sacred Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington Cemetery, we're seeing that take place.
BLITZER: Increased security presumably because a Canadian soldier was shot and killed at Canada's national war memorial right in Ottawa, the capital of Canada. Is this being done simply out of an abundance of caution or is there any information that we know of that potentially could raise this threat at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery?
STARR: I have to tell you, Wolf, from sources I have spoken to so far, U.S. officials -- and this information could change obviously -- they are not aware of any specific threat at this point to U.S. military personnel other than the rhetoric and some of the messaging, the social messaging that has come out of is in recent weeks and months. And certainly they've been aware of that and they've told personnel that this is going on, that ISIS is doing a lot of this sort of very anti-U.S. and very anti-military messaging and propaganda on social media.
That said, I am told by the sources I've spoken to they don't see a specific time, date and place threat against the U.S. military, that they had no information that the Canadian military was going to be attacked. But, look, this is something they're watching, the threat of a lone-wolf attack. The threat of someone being self-radicalized, as we've seen break out so many times, is not something that an intelligence service may be able to readily identify. This is always now somewhat of an ongoing situation and something they're always on the lookout for.
All of that said, the precautions being taken at the Tomb of the Unknowns and other security precautions that may be put into place in the coming hours, if they are, at the moment, are out of an abundance of caution, and at the moment, of an effort to make sure that no stone is left unturned in making sure that U.S. military personnel and the people who come and go from military installations and from places like Arlington Cemetery, that everyone is sufficiently protected -- Wolf?
BLITZER: Very significant development potentially.
Thanks very much, Barbara. We'll get back to you.
Joining us on the phone, an eyewitness to the scene, what happened earlier this morning, a member of the Canadian parliament, the Honorable John McKay, is joining us.
Mr. McKay, tell us what you have learned about what happened. I assume you're getting your own briefings, right?
JOHN MCKAY, CANADIAN MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT (voice-over): You assume incorrectly because the phone lines are jammed and you're not getting much information. The main thing was just escorting us off the hill to secure our own safety.
BLITZER: What was it like? Give us a little sentiment of what it was like. You were right in the middle of what was going down.
MCKAY: Yeah. Wednesday morning is our caucus morning and so I was just going into our caucus room and I hear this pop, pop, pop. There's a lot of construction going on, on Parliament Hill. That's what I assumed it was. Then the security people came racing down the hall and ushered us out, out, out. And then we're standing around outside in the back of the parliament buildings and a construction guy said, maybe if there's people inside shooting, maybe we should be standing behind one of the monuments instead of standing out here like sitting ducks, so we proceed to stand behind one of the monuments.
And then one of the women who was with us said that she was in the Library of Parliament and that's at the end of the Hall of Honor. In order to get to the library, you have to walk along the Hall of Honor, and on either side are two main caucus rooms, government caucus room and the official opposition caucus rooms, so someone apparently was able to access Parliament Hill, access the Hall of Honor, access -- go all of the way to the library and pass the government caucus and official opposition caucus. And so at that point, things really started to sink in and you realize it's a significant incident.
BLITZER: Sounds very significant. We know, unfortunately, tragically, one Canadian soldier was shot and killed at the national war memorial just a short walk away from where you were in the parliament.
We didn't get a clear answer from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and other law enforcement authorities, the mayor of Ottawa, Jim Watson, at this news conference, whether they are still looking for a second or maybe third suspect. Do you know if they believe there are other suspects, either a suspect or other suspects, who currently could be at large in Ottawa?
MCKAY: My information is no better or no worse than what you heard on the news from the RCMP, and for me to speculate would be unwise and imprudent.
BLITZER: Are you still on lockdown?
MCKAY: Ironically, my staff are locked in my office. I wasn't in my office at the time of the incident so I was escorted off parliament. I'm actually -- for purposes of this show, I'll be described as being in an undisclosed location.
BLITZER: I got it. But parliament itself, you're not there, but those who are in the parliament are still on lockdown?
MCKAY: It's all locked down. And they are just sort of going through waves of emptying office buildings block by block so all of the surrounding office buildings around the Parliament Hill are all being emptied and people are being sent home.
BLITZER: You have no clue whether or not this incident is related to Monday's tragic incident when someone described as radicalized took a vehicle and ran over a soldier?
MCKAY: No. That would be an invitation to speculation, which I think would be unwise.
BLITZER: I want to thank you. We'll stay in close touch.
John McKay is a member of parliament from Canada. He was an eye witness to what was going on.
We'll stay in close touch with you, Mr. McKay. If you get more briefings or information, our viewers here in the United States, Canada, around the world, they will want to know.
We'll take a quick break. We'll resume our breaking news coverage right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Just got a photo of a man being hailed as a hero in this shooting. This is the sergeant at arms in the Canadian parliament, Kevin Vickers. Members of parliament tweeted their gratitude for him saying he shot a gunman just outside the caucus rooms.
CNN's Rosa Flores has more on Vickers, how he saved lives.
Tell our viewers what we've learned, Rosa.
ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Imagine this, Wolf, a chaotic scene, an active shooter, and this one man is the one that has been given the credit for stopping that threat, and he's been given the credit on Twitter, on social media, by members of parliament, people who were actually at this scene.
I want to read some of these tweets to you.
The first one from Julian Fantino (p), Canada's minister of Veteran Affairs and a member of parliament. He says, quote, "I am safe and proudly grateful to Sergeant of Arms Kevin Vickers and our special forces for selfless acts of keeping us safe."
Here' another tweet, from Craig Scott, member of parliament as well. He tweets, "M.P.s and hill staff owe our safety and lives to Sergeant at Arms Kevin Vickers, who shot an attacker just outside the M.P.'s caucus room."
And let me tell you, we've been looking into this man's background. It's no mistake he would act in this case. Not only has he been sergeant at arms since 2006, he's been with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police before that. Before that, before joining parliament as sergeant at arms, he served about 29 years with the Royal Canadian Mountain Police taking care of Her Majesty herself, her family, and being part of a lot of high-profile investigations, homicide, national crime investigations. He even has several awards being awarded to him, first of all, the Queen's Jubilee Medal, the Canada 129 Medal, and the ACNP, and that is the Royal Canadian Mountain Police long service medal.
Again, one man being given credit for stopping that threat at parliament today and his name, sergeant at arms, Kevin Vickers. As you might imagine, chaotic scene. A man with his experience acting right there and then at the right time.
BLITZER: Very, very heroic man. Kevin Vickers a hero clearly.
Rosa, thanks very much.
Jim Sciutto is with us; Julia Kayyem, our national security analyst is with us.
Jim, I know you are speaking to your sources. What are you hearing?
JIM SCIUTTO, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Barbara made the point earlier there's no specific threat to U.S. military men and women in uniform. There's no specific threat anywhere on the homeland from these kinds of groups and in fact U.S. intelligence says there's no knowledge of terror cells on U.S. soil.
That said, with lone-wolf attacks, like the attack in Canada two days ago -- we're not sure of the circumstances or motivation behind this attack -- but the trouble with lone-wolf attacks is there often is no specific or credible warning. One of the reasons for that, there aren't communications to track. Not a phone call from inside the country to outside of the country necessarily. There's no entry into the country off a terror watch list because it's someone already here. And that really gets to the issue as to why U.S. intelligence, U.S. counter-terror officials are so concerned about lone-wolf attacks. And as Matt Olsen, the former director of the National Counterterrorism Center, told me yesterday, those are in his view the most likely attacks to take place on our soil. And that's precisely because they are so hard to track. That's why today you are seeing steps taken as precautions even without a credible or specific threat. One, extra police and security presence at the war memorial at Arlington National Cemetery, but you see New York police department deploy more around sites that are potential terror threats. That's what you can do in this situation because you won't know where or when, unless you are very lucky. That's why it's a major concern for U.S. intelligence and counterterror.
BLITZER: Julia Kayyem, you used to work in the Department of Homeland Security. You appreciate what's going on. If New York City starts taking greater steps, here in Washington at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery, they take precautions because of what happened at the national war memorial in Ottawa where a Canadian soldier was shot and killed earlier this morning, is it just out of an abundance of caution or that so-called chatter that we've been hearing a lot about in recent days, heightened chatter, that maybe there's something that really generates those kind of extra steps.
JULIA KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: It's a combination of both. Let's make no mistake about it, this was an act of terror. This is where the prime minister of Canada was. Everyone knew that he was there because this is a weekly meeting with all of parliament.
What we don't know now and what wasn't disclosed in the press conference is, is it affiliated with is or some other group? Is it a lone-wolf, which it may be because they're not clarifying if there was a second gunman? Or is it something that we're not thinking of right now? Former military in Canada or something else that may have just -- someone taking this opportunity. The evidence is cutting both ways. We did have an increased threat alert in Canada last Friday and then this weird car attack on Monday, and so all of the pieces are going to lead in different places.
And the whole point of getting everyone on alert is because we don't know yet. We just don't know. And I read that press conference to be that they don't know yet either. They don't know if there was a second gunman and they probably don't know the identity of the dead assailant yet.
BLITZER: But the lockdowns continue. At least now they are going room to room to room, office by office in parliament. They are looking. They may not know. But people are being told don't leave your rooms right now --
KAYYEM: You have to.
BLITZER: -- because potentially there could be a suspect at large.
KAYYEM: That's right. Remember this unfolds in real time. In Columbine, everyone thought there were eight or nine assailants. And Boston Marathon. As these unfold in real time, people hear different things and you think it's multiple gunmen, but it's actually just one or it may be more than two. So that's why you absolutely have to keep people under lock down until you get the all-clear. This is smart police work. But the press conference, if I were making any recommendations, they
should have just had the statement and no question-and-answer because everyone wants to get out ahead of this right now, and I think we just don't know. It could be a combination of either coincidence or something much more serious than that.
BLITZER: Yeah. In fairness to Royal Canadian Mounted Police, they did say the situation is fluid and ongoing, and cautioned reporters and everyone else they wouldn't be able to answer a lot of questions.
Jim Sciutto, I don't know if they couldn't answer these questions because they didn't really know or have suspicions, or they didn't want to say anything for the time being. They probably know more than they are letting on.
SCIUTTO: It's possible. I would agree Julia Kayyem that they don't know at this point the identity and that key factor is there a second shooter. It reminds me to the Boston bombing where you had that continuing warning and terror threat in Boston as they searched for the second. They didn't know how many were out there. You had a long search finding one of the brothers in the boat. It's a nervous period going forward because they may not know.
One thing that was not clear from the press conference is was there enough time between the shooting at the war memorial and the one inside the parliament building for it to be a possibility that there was one shooter or is it clear that there were two. That's a real question going forward. I'm surprised they didn't answer that.
BLITZER: I want to you standby.
Julia, you'll stand by as well.
We have an interview coming up with an eyewitness. Much more of CNN's special coverage of the shootings in Ottawa, Canada, on Parliament Hill, when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back. I'm Brooke Baldwin. You are watching CNN both here in the United States and all around the world.
We want to stay on top of this breaking coverage here out of downtown Ottawa. Let you just know this is a fluid situation and we're getting a lot of information, an active scene, multiple and deadly shooting incident in Ottawa area around the Canadian parliament.
So we can confirm for you that a soldier and one gunman have been killed. This is an ongoing situation. Police at a press conference a short time ago refusing to rule out one or more gunman may still be on the loose.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Are there still suspects out there? Is there someone on the loose that committed a crime here?
BORDELEAU: We're still investigating the active operation. We're in the process right now with the RCMP in clearing and securing the parliament building. What we're asking the community is to be -- continue to be aware and to be vigilant and to report any suspicious activity they deem serious that could impact their safety. So phone 911 or email us with information that will assist in investigation.
