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Prigozhin in St. Petersburg; Ukraine Commits to Counteroffensive; Hot Weather Emergency in Nation's Capital; Hot Weather Affects the Oceans; Bodycam Video of Ohio K-9 Attack. Aired 9:30-10a ET

Aired July 27, 2023 - 09:30   ET

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

[09:30:00]

RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN ANCHOR: They are talking to two additional sex workers who may have come into contact with accused Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann. Meantime, the Suffolk County sheriff says that Heuermann is acclimating to life in jail. He's receiving mail and making phone calls but is not interacting with other inmates. He is charged with killing three women, and authorities believe he could be responsible for more murders.

A fiery rescue caught on camera in San Diego. Take a look at this dramatic video. A FedEx driver pulled a man from a burning car after the vehicle veered off the highway, and slammed into a guardrail. The car's driver seriously injured his leg and so he couldn't walk, as the car was engulfed in flames. So, the FedEx driver drags him to safety and stays with him until first responders arrive. The investigation - the crash is now under investigation.

And to a nail biter at the World Cup. The U.S. Women's National Team rallied to come back from an early deficit to a 1-1 tie against the Netherlands. Both teams are among the best in the world and faced each other when the U.S. took the title in 2019. Team USA now faces Portugal on Monday for a spot in the knockout stage.

Omar.

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN ANCHOR: My main question is, what were we doing tying with the Netherlands? It's a long - it's a long World Cup. We'll see what happens.

Now, shifting gears. New this morning, Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin spotted inside Russia. This is the first time the mercenary group founder has been seen in public in Russia since he led an armed mutiny against the country's military leadership last month. In this image he's alongside an African dignitary on the sidelines of the Russia Africa Summit in St. Petersburg. You can see it behind me. The same summit Vladimir Putin addressed just this morning.

CNN's Nic Robertson is following this for us.

So, Nic, how significant is this given what Prigozhin led not too long ago at this point? NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, a mutiny,

where Putin said that there were going to be severe punishments. And the punishments seemed to be that Prigozhin was going to be sent in exile to Belarus, which is where some of his mercenaries have shown up and where he was seen at dusk giving them a pep talk about a week ago.

But here he is, within a few miles of President Putin, back in Russia. We know that CIA Director Bill Burns has said that he's aware that Prigozhin is both in Belarus and he moves in and out of Russia. But here he is in a very high-profile position. And I think one of the things we can take away from this is that Prigozhin, as boss of Wagner, that has Kremlin-backed interests in some African countries, central African republic, Mozambique, Mali, Libya, Sudan, just to name but a few, is putting out a very clear public statement that he is still in business with these countries.

And this kind of backs up a message, a voice note, that he sent out to an African broadcaster just earlier this week where he said, look, Wagner is still going to do business in Africa. We're still out there. The only thing we can't do is cut across Russia's national interest, which appears to be part of a slap on the wrist from Putin for the mutiny.

But the fact that he can be in public, mixing with these dignitaries, pushing Wagner's interest perhaps speaks to the fact that Wagner and the Kremlin and Prigozhin himself are so tied together in these business interests, gold, diamond, other things, in some of these nations that they can - that Putin cannot untangle him that fast. We just don't know the limits of the constrains that have been put on Wagner, other than he is running out of some cash, according to the British ministry of defense.

JIMENEZ: Yes, Nic Robertson. It is extraordinary to see him again in Russia, amongst these dignitaries that almost a month ago you would have thought that would - he would have been on the complete opposite side of.

Nic Robertson, thank you so much, as always.

John.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, new reporting, Omar, this morning on what could be a significant development on the front lines in Ukraine. U.S. officials tell CNN the main bulk of Ukraine's forces are now in the southeast, and they're now making gradual progress. This is the region we're talking about right here. The southeastern part of the country. I want to push in to give you a better look of what we're talking about. Because the sense is that the offensive, which is now involving many more troops from the Ukrainian side, is trying to put south from roughly Zaporizhzhia here, toward maybe Molitipol (ph) or Bergansk (ph) down here.

Our Natasha Bertrand is at the Pentagon this morning.

Natasha, what are you hearing about this? How many forces are we talking about from Ukraine? NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Well, John, we don't

know exactly how many they have actually committed from their reserve forces but this is something that the U.S. and western officials had been waiting for because the Ukrainians really could not commit these -- all of these reserve forces until they managed to make more progress in getting through those mind areas and, of course, punching through those Russian defensive lines. And the mine fields here have been a huge challenge for the Ukrainians and it has prevented them from funneling all of the troops in to the counteroffensive that they really wanted to.

[09:35:08]

So, at this point now, the U.S. sees this as a sign that the Ukrainians have found a moment of opportunity here. And they are taking advantage of that. Taking advantage of the fact that they appear to have made some progress against these really dug in Russian defensive lines and are now funneling in additional reserve forces, many of whom have been trained by NATO and the west in these very sophisticated, combined arms maneuvers, which the U.S. hopes also will lead them to rely a little bit less on artillery fire.

You'll recall that they are - they are on the verge of having serious ammunition shortages. So, U.S. officials hope that this could be the moment when the counteroffensive really starts to heat up.

And Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was asked about this during a press conference last night, and he said that the Ukrainians still have a number of options available to them.

Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LLOYD AUSTIN, DEFENSE SECRETARY: They fought hard. They've been working their way to get through the mine fields and other obstacles. But they still have a lot of combat power.

But they've been very deliberate. They've been conserving manpower and equipment. And so they still have a number of options available to them. And we can expect that they'll continue to press.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERTRAND: Now, Ukrainian officials have acknowledged that this counteroffensive has moved a little bit more slowly than they had hoped it would, but a senior Ukrainian defense official did say yesterday that the counteroffensive is gradually progressing, John.

BERMAN: Look, in talking about this openly like they are, does raise expectations at this point.

Natasha Bertrand, keep us posted. Great to hear from you.

Rahel. SOLOMON: Coming up for us, the brutal heat wave that has been scorching the western U.S. moving east. And now an emergency alert is out for the country's largest power grid. We're talking the extreme heat and storms in the forecast.

And Prince Harry gets the green light. London's high court ruling that his claims against Rupert Murdoch's U.K. tabloids can proceed. But there's a catch. And we'll tell you about it, next.

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[09:41:30]

JIMENEZ: London's high court has ruled that only some of Prince Harry's claims against Rupert Murdoch's U.K. tabloids can proceed. According to the Press Association News Agency. The judge ruled the Duke of Sussex cannot rely on his phone hacking claim in the case, but the judge will allow other allegations of unlawful information gathering, like using private investigators to be introduced.

At least five people are dead after a powerful typhoon hit the Philippines Wednesday. The region experienced widespread flooding and landslides. The storm unleashed 16 inches of rain after making landfall Wednesday with added concerns of tidal surges of nearly 10 feet. It's expected to weaken as it heads northwest.

Italy's prime minister says extreme weather is putting the country to the test, but a break in the heatwave has brought some relief to the country. Tornados, wildfires and sweltering heat have severely impacted Italy. At least four people have died from the fires and thousands forced to evacuate. Other Mediterranean countries, including Greece and Algeria, are also battling devastating fires amid scorching temperatures and fierce winds.

Rahel.

SOLOMON: And, Omar, it's right here at home too. How about this stunning headline this morning. Weather experts say that July has been the hottest month ever on record. And, of course, the month isn't over yet. Scientists say that they are almost certain that these temperatures are the warmest the planet has seen in 120,000 years. Around 150 million people are under heat alerts in more than 30 states from coast-to-coast. Yesterday, several cities saw their daily high temperature record tied or broken.

In Phoenix, for example, the city hit a new record at 118 degrees. Actual temperatures have reached 110 degrees every single day for the past 27 days. An emergency alert has also been declared for the nation's largest power grid. Now that could impact electricity for 65 million people. A lot of people impacted here.

We have team coverage. CNN's Derek Van Dam is live from south Florida. But I want to begin with CNN's Gabe Cohen. He is in Washington.

And, Gabe, there's a hot weather emergency in D.C. right now. Explain to us what that means. What more can you tell us? GABE COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rahel, you're absolutely right,

there is that hot weather emergency. And that's largely why, if you look around me, the National Mall is pretty empty this morning. We would usually expect it to be much more crowded, but that extreme weather is already coming through. If you look, it already feels more than 90 degrees out here on the National Mall, but that number is just going to go up dramatically in the coming hours.

D.C. could hit 100 degrees for the first time in seven years. And with the humidity, the real feel, the heat index is going to be closer to 110 degrees. Today, tomorrow, even into Saturday, really no relief until Sunday.

So, as you mentioned, the mayor here has declared that hot weather emergency. They have extending hours for spray parks, for swimming pools. They've also launched their cooling centers, activated them, and they're putting five public buses that they've rented out around the city to try to be colling centers, mobile cooling centers, for some of the most vulnerable people here in the district. People who are living unsheltered. Seniors, low income families that might not have access to air conditioning.

But as you look around me, if you look, many of the people that we're seeing out here today are workers. These are workers who right now you are seeing out on their breaks. People who are landscapers, construction workers. And that goes into a decision, an announcement that was made today by the Biden administration, which has asked the Department of Labor to issue the first ever hazard alert for heat.

[09:45:05]

So, what does that mean? That means that they are asking the Department of Labor to essentially take a more proactive approach to go out and do enforcement, to make sure that workers are getting enough breaks, water breaks, time in the shade, that they are not being put in danger when they ae out here in the elements because, as you can see, work doesn't stop for them. As part of that Biden administration announcement, they have also announced funding for better forecasting and for better clean water supply.

Rahel.

SOLOMON: You know, Gabe, it's an interesting point because you often hear, try to limit your time outdoors, stay inside. But for a lot of people, that is not an option.

Gabe Cohen, thank you.

I want to go now to Florida, where Derek Van Dam is, because, Derek, it's not just us here on land, it's the oceans too. Tell us how this scorching heat is impacting the oceans?

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS CERTIFIED METEOROLOGIST: Yes, that's right. The heat waves - from the heat waves on the land to the heat waves in our ocean, we are here on a follow-up story for the ecological disaster that is literally unfolding before our eyes. Namely the dying of our corral reefs, our precious corral reefs. Remember, corral act as a natural barrier from storm surge and hurricanes here in south Florida. They also provide billions of dollars to the tourism industry within the state.

Unfortunately, the Corral Restoration Foundation has found 100 percent corral mortality in some of the southern lower keys. So we are kind of bracing for impact, per se, here in the Key Biscayne region and into the Miami-Dade area as well.

Now, did you know that 90 percent of excess greenhouse warming is absorbed by the oceans, like the one you see behind me? And it was very apparent this week because water temperatures reached near global record highs. So, 101 degrees reported in the Everglades. Just incredible, incredible amounts of heat.

And, you know, it's not just the corral that is being impacted by this marine heatwave. It's also fish. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission actually reporting that some of this warm water is actually reducing the level of oxygen in the water. So they're seeing fish kills. They're also noticing that sharks are changing their behaviors. They're seeking cooler waters. It's all interconnected, right?

Well, we're on site here to determine just how much this warm water will impact the corral reef ecosystem. We're going to go diving later with some of the experts in the field and we'll report back throughout the day.

SOLOMON: Yes, Derek, that's a great point. It's sort of the direct impacts, but also the indirect impacts of this heat that we're seeing.

VAN DAM: Correct.

SOLOMON: Derek Van Dam, we'll let you get to that story. Thanks for being with us.

John.

BERMAN: Yes, water temperatures of 100 degrees, just stunning.

A stalemate in the Senate as one Republican lawmaker is keeping hundreds of military confirmations on hold. But a new development may be to find a solution.

And, you didn't comply, so you got the dog. Newly obtained body camera footage shows the moments after an officer released a police dog on an unarmed black man.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:51:58]

JIMENEZ: We're getting a new look this morning at the Ohio police officer who released the police K-9 on an unarmed black driver. Newly obtained body camera footage shows the handler, Circleville Police Officer Ryan Speakman, pacing back and forth as troopers administer first aid to Jadarrius Rose after the attack. A warning, that this footage may be upsetting to some viewers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I gave you three warnings, did I not?

Did - did I not say - listen, did I not say, final warning, you're (INAUDIBLE) at all? Yes or no.

No, you didn't comply, so we got the dog.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's a justifiable bite.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JIMENEZ: And, of course, things escalate from there. The Circleville Police Department Officer Speakman has since been fired from the department after a review of the incident.

So we're going to bring in CNN correspondent Polo Sandoval, who has the latest on this reporting.

Polo, good to see you, one, but what more are you learning about this officer being fired?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Omar, good morning to you.

So I obtained this brand-new body camera video that's going to further show you the chaos that unfolded on that Ohio highway earlier this month after a Circleville, Ohio, police officer arrived on scene. Now this video is actually going to - the video that we'll show you in a few moments, this is actually coming from the Pickaway County Sheriff's Office who was assisting after that pursuit came to a conclusion.

But first let's bring up that statement that was released by Circleville PD just yesterday announcing the termination of their officer, Ryan Speakman. The department, in their statement, which you can read for yourself, but in short, basically saying that this review board determined that the K-9 policy was followed. However, that Speakman's actions, quote, did not meet the standards and expectations of their police officers.

So, we've cued up this video that we're about to show you. And what you'll see here is Ohio State Troopers holding the driver of this big rig, Jadarrius Rose, at gunpoint. Then you will see Circleville Police arrive on scene. And that's when things really begin to unravel.

A warning again, the video is difficult to watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come to me! You don't want bit!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're going to get the (EXPLETIVE DELETED) dog (INAUDIBLE). Get on the ground or you get bit!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Watch your field of fire. Go less lethal.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stand down or you're going to get bit!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why - why you all pointing -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Estrada (ph). Less lethal.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Final (INAUDIBLE) or you get bit.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just watch the dogs, y'all.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All right. All right. Hold on. Hold on. Hold on.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, don't -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do not, do not, do not, do not!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Down!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No!

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, no, no, no, no, no, no!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get the dog off of him!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: And by then it is simply too late. That K-9 officer had been essentially unleashed here. And it wasn't until about 42 seconds later that Speakman is able to pry off his dog off of Rose's arm.

K-9 (ph) has reached out to Speakman's attorney for comment, Omar. We should, however, mention that the law enforcement union that's representing him did immediately file a grievance saying that he was terminated without cause.

[09:55:03]

But this is really just the brighter scope - the wider scope of things here, Omar. This is also a major learning opportunity. Even Ohio's governor is saying that the smaller departments require more training. Circle -- we should mention, though, that Circleville PD maintains that that K-9 involved in the incident, its training was up to speed.

JIMENEZ: Yes. Polo, a crucial video from that other angle that you obtained there. It really gives some - some good insight into what happened there. Polo Sandoval, thank you so much.

John.

BERMAN: All right, happening now, the grand jury in the January 6th investigation into Donald Trump is meeting today. We've spotted jurors and prosecutors. Could this mean they are nearing a vote on an indictment. We have the very latest from the courthouse.

And new reporting on what's happening this morning between Hunter Biden's lawyers and federal prosecutors after a judge put Biden's plea deal on hold.

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