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Ukrainians Snap Selfies To Celebrate Kerch Bridge Blast; Lines Stretch For Hours At Florida FEMA Disaster Recovery Center; New York City Mayor On Migrant Influx; DOJ Insists Trump Return All Classified Documents; Police: Possible Serial Killer In CA After Series Of Shootings; Iran Denies Security Forces Killed 16-Year-Old Protester. Aired 12-1p ET

Aired October 08, 2022 - 12:00   ET

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

[12:00:06]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST (on camera): Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

All right. New today, Russian officials now say traffic is moving again on a critical bridge to Crimea after a devastating explosion.

WHITFIELD (voice-over): The blast sending shockwaves across Russia, collapsing part of Europe's longest bridge.

The exact cause of the blast still unclear. Russia says a truck exploded and at least three people were killed.

A Russian Investigative Committee arrived this morning to inspect the damage. CNN's Fred Pleitgen is live for us in Kyiv with the very latest. So, of course, you know, Fred, Russia's presumption it was Ukraine, but they're not claiming responsibility. So, what's happening? How did that happen?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you're absolutely right. First of all, the Russians are just claiming that the Ukrainians were responsible. There was one official there in the Crimea region, saying that it was Ukrainian vandals, as he put it.

Was also a lot of other very high level Russian officials were also pointing the finger of blame at the Ukrainian. So far, the Ukrainians have not claimed responsibility. In fact, when senior adviser to the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, sort of hinting that he believes that might have been an inside job within the Russian security services, but absolutely unclear who exactly is behind it.

But we can see on our screens here right now that massive explosion that took place in the early morning hours. And the Russian Investigative Committee of the Russians say are is on the scene and has been working.

They say that an explosion occurred in a truck that a truck blew up, and that, that explosion then sort of caused a chain reaction because there was a train carrying fuel going past that area of the bridge at that point in time. Several fuel tanks, catching fire and blowing up as well. And that's what that big fire that we see now with that thick black smoke going out there for a very long period of time before the Russians were able to put that out.

The status right now seems to be. It's quite interesting, because you mentioned this Fredricka that the Russians are saying that traffic is somewhat moving, but obviously, very slow pace, very diminished pace. They also say that the rail traffic appears to be up and running again.

However, it's not clear whether or not any trains are actually going over that bridge right now. They just say that a train that's supposed to go across that bridge has departed its station.

In any case, it's a huge blow to Russia, not just symbolically, but of course, strategically as well. That bridge is extremely important for Russia's war in Ukraine, especially on the southern front. It's the sort of land link or rail link and traffic link into Crimea -- occupied Crimea, from the Russian mainland.

They've been faring a lot of tanks across that bridge, and other military equipment as well.

And via the rail link and also the road links. So, it's definitely a huge blow to the Russians as far as their military logistics are concerned. And that might be one of the reasons why the Russians are now so quick to try and get that rail traffic especially moving again. Because the Russian logistics for the war in Crimea very dependent on rail.

Again, the Russians now investigating all this, already pointing the finger towards the Ukrainians. But the Ukrainians so far not acknowledging that it was them. Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And then, Fred, even though there isn't that, you know, claim of responsibility, Ukrainians, many, are celebrating what happened. Describe what's been happening.

PLEITGEN: Yes. Well, you know, one of the interesting things was that only -- I would say, a couple of hours after we heard this explosion have taken place, the Ukrainian Postal Service already came out with a stamp commemorating the explosion of the Kerch bridge.

They're actually, people here in central Kyiv, who were taking selfies in front of a giant version of that stamp in front of the head postal office. And then, there was the national security adviser of Ukraine, among many other Ukrainian officials, who, essentially, put out a tweet juxtaposing Marilyn Monroe singing Happy Birthday, Mr. President in this, obviously, for Jack Kennedy at the time.

And then, the fire on the Kerch Bridge, because of course, it occurred only one day after the birthday of Vladimir Putin. So, there are some in Ukraine who are saying that this is, if you will, a negative birthday present -- belated birthday present for Vladimir Putin.

However, again, no claim of responsibility whatsoever so far.

WHITFIELD: All right, Fred Pleitgen, thank you so much. All right, let's talk more about all of this with CNN contributor Jill Dougherty. She is the former CNN Moscow bureau chief, and now an adjunct professor at Georgetown University. So good to see you, Jill.

All right. So, help folks understand how vital this bridge is, and the symbolism of this bridge as well.

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CONTRIBUTOR, RUSSIAN AFFAIRS (on camera): Yes, I think the symbolism is really important. You already heard Fred talking about the military significance. But you know, this is a very personal type of bridge. Because remember, before the war -- before Crimea, when Russia illegally annexed Crimea, there was no bridge people took ferries or when overland, whatever.

[12:04:58]

But this bridge was built. It cost $3.7 billion. It is huge. It's according to what I've read, the longest bridge in Europe. And it was symbolic, you could almost think of it as kind of like, you know, the wedding band between Russia and Crimea. It was connecting these two places that Putin said, you know, would be together forever, as he took over that part of Ukraine.

So, it's very important that way. It also significantly became kind of a cult symbol. And there was a moving, put together, by of all people, Margarita Simonyan, who is the head of R.T., you remember, you know, Russia's chief international propaganda network.

She put together a movie that was -- this romantic comedy about two guys working in the bridge, who fall in love with a girl and, you know. So, it entered -- it entered, you know, the Internet world.

And so, when this happened, as Fred mentioned, there is massive trolling. Now, we don't know exactly, you know, again, who did it, but the Ukrainians are massively trolling Russia.

But it's very serious. I think, beyond all of this. Because it kind of unleashes this idea that Ukraine is hitting at the heartland of Russia.

Remember, when they sank -- back in April, they sank that Russian ship, the Moskva?

WHITFIELD: Yes.

DOUGHERTY: And that -- you know, that became -- that went viral as well, or this is going viral in the same way. So, it's a big, you know, shot in the arm for the Ukrainians. And I think, a shot over the bow for the Russians to say, Russia, is somebody -- is able to strike kind of at the heartland and the significant places for President Putin.

WHITFIELD: Such all the messaging is a little confusing, however. If Ukraine is saying, you know, we're not claiming responsibility, yet a country stamp would be made available about the collapse of the bridge, I mean, coincidentally, probably not, you know, and then you'd have people taking pictures, you know, that this had happened. So, what is the danger? Why would Ukraine be so reticent about placing blame, but then it would openly celebrate the explosion of the bridge?

DOUGHERTY: Right.

Well, the result of all of this, of course, it's something that Ukraine would applaud. But I do think on a serious note, what's going to happen, and you can already see it in the reaction of some Russians, especially, like in Parliament and places like that saying, this is all out war, they just struck something that's really important to us. This is all in, "it's terrorism", and we've got to go after them, and just level the ground.

So, I think what's going to happen after this, you could have more and more retaliation, and it could very well be on the infrastructure of Ukraine. Of course, they've been doing that already. But you know, there's new fervor, I think, on the side of the Russians to get back. And this is a bad dynamic.

WHITFIELD: Yes, using this moment to kind of up the ante, new justification for what potentially is next by Putin.

All right. Jill Dougherty, thank you so much. Always great to see you. Appreciate it.

All right. Frustration is mounting in parts of Florida, as the effects of Hurricane Ian linger 10 days after it made landfall.

WHITFIELD (voice-over): Lines stretching for hours outside of FEMA Disaster Recovery Center, as folks try to get help, they so desperately need.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, held a news conference just moments ago on the progress of recovery efforts in some of the hardest hit areas.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL): Now, I think you're seeing these efforts, not just search and rescue, obviously that's been tremendous. But if you look around the debris efforts, you're seeing the debris stacked. I'm telling you, some of these other storms that debris doesn't start getting dealt with this early.

So, I think that they're on the right track here. We've been saying for days now, get those contractors out here and the remove the debris, you get the reimbursement take advantage of that.

So, I like to see all the debris removal activity. That's a good sign.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN's Nadia Romero joining us live from Fort Myers now. So, Nadia, how was that message being received there? NADIA ROMERO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Yes, debris removal is definitely happening. But unfortunately, the debris is all of people's belongings. They're left with nothing. Everything that they had either blew away or was just drenched in those nasty storm floodwaters.

So, they're starting from scratch, which is why this Disaster Recovery Center, set up by FEMA and the state of Florida is so important to people. But 100 people were lined up before the center even open and right behind me.

And so, people are still inside the building right now. There is one room about another 100 People who are waiting in line to talk to someone for FEMA.

[12:10:01]

And this is important for people who had home insurance, and maybe didn't qualify for flood insurance, or they were underinsured. They can come to FEMA for assistance.

We've also been hearing stories of people who are finding out that their situation is only gotten worse. I want you to listen to one woman who found out today, she's a victim of identity theft. Take a listen.

SUSAN DETTOR, RESIDENT, FORT MYERS, FLORIDA: I have no income and no car. And I went into apply for FEMA, and just found out that somebody has already applied a fraudulent claim using all my information and my social security number.

So, I have to call the fraud hotline now to see what's going on. And they told me that this is becoming a big problem. That people are filing using somebody else's information.

ROMERO: Yes, it's such a terrible situation for her trying to get help, only to find out somebody had use her own information. This is something else that we're seeing here. A lot of people talking about generators safety.

They're actually handing out these carbon monoxide alarms. So many people, Fred are relying on generators for power because they still don't have electricity. But there's that safety component that you have to remember when you use those as well. Fred.

WHITFIELD: Yes. Oh, yes, indeed. A terrible situation -- dire, in fact. Nadia Romero, thank you so much.

So, people in some majority black communities of Southwest Florida say they feel left behind in the recovery efforts. They share their stories with CNN's Randi Kaye.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHARDA WILLIAMS, RESIDENT, RIVER PARK, FLORIDA: This has been how high the water got. This high. And you see is going all the way across there.

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sharda Williams rode out the storm at home with her family, in the River Park neighborhood of Naples.

WILLIAMS: Over there was not one dry spot.

KAYE: Sharda says the water from the Gordon River rose so fast and flooded her home in this historically black community. She showed me how the water came up above the fence out back and covered the dock.

In the middle of the storm, she and others waited through deep water to get to higher ground at this nearby 7-Eleven. All the while, terrified there were alligators or snakes in the water.

WILLIAMS: It was scary. (INAUDIBLE), and not knowing what must be -- with kids, it was scary. It was very scary. And I don't ever want to go through it again. Never. It's just it's heartbreaking.

KAYE: Two hours later, she says police and fire rescue picked them up at 7-Eleven and dropped them at Coastland Center Mall nearby. She said they were soaked and left without any blankets or supplies.

WILLIAMS: I would think they would have brought some type of blankets or something, you know, we all just walked through water, wind, going like crazy. There were kids and stuff.

KAYE (on camera): Do You feel like this community was sort of forgotten during the storm.

WILLIAMS: I do.

KAYE (on camera): Multiple residents here in River Park, which is right on the water, told us they didn't receive notification to evacuate their homes. But the city of Naples told us, the day before the storm, they ordered a mandatory evacuation, which included this community. Telling us, in the statement, they reached out to thousands of residents.

"The notice was sent via e-mail, Code Red, Press Release to all media outlets and neighborhoods, Fire-Rescue App, and social media."

The city says first responders did not go door to door in any neighborhood in the city of Naples.

Curtis Williams lives across the street from Sharda. His house flooded and nearly everything he owns was destroyed.

CURTIS WILLIAMS, RESIDENT, RIVER PARK, FLORIDA: Not one city employee, police or whatever, came through the neighborhood before the floodwater and said it was a mandatory evacuation. Not one.

KAYE: He says, they easily could've driven through the neighborhood with a bull horn, telling people to leave. 21-year-old Trinity Williams, Sharda's cousin, says the floodwater came up to her chest. She is furious by what she calls lack of action from officials and emergency responders.

TRINITY WILLIAMS, RESIDENT, RIVER PARK: Listen to people yelling at the 7-Eleven, people swimming through the water. And they came, they seen, and they left. They came, they seen and they left.

KAYE: The city tells us, their Fire Station One flooded during the storm and stopped responding. Also, that their first responders were trapped in areas throughout the city as waters rose quickly.

The city told us, they sent a high water rescue vehicle to this community and drove three loads of residents to higher ground at the Coastland Center Mall.

As numerous people in the area were trapped, the goal was to get everyone to safety and high ground, the statement said.

T. WILLIAMS: Excuse me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Trinity --

KAYE: And after the storm --

KAYE (on camera): Did search and rescue teams come or --

S. WILLIAMS: No. I have not seen. The fire trucks, came, now you know they were bringing food and stuff, but not as far as trying to get people out or anything. And you know, make sure homes and stuff was OK. I mean none of that.

KAYE (voice-over): Randi Kaye, CNN, Naples, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And in New York City, the mayor declares a state of emergency over the massive influx of migrants coming into the City and puts a billion dollar price tag on the crisis over time.

[12:15:04]

Plus, the Department of Justice believes Donald Trump is still hanging on to sensitive government records. Does the FBI need to pay another visit?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: New York City mayor, Eric Adams, declared a state of emergency Friday in response to the influx of asylum seekers.

WHITFIELD (voice-over): The mayor says the city has more than 61,000 people including homeless and migrants in its shelter system, and that this crisis will cost the city $1 billion this year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ERIC ADAMS (D), MAYOR OF NEW YORK CITY: Our shelter system is now operating near 100 percent capacity. And if these trends continue, we will be over 100,000 in the year to come. That's far more than the system was ever designed to handle. This is unsustainable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[12:20:02]

WHITFIELD: CNN's Polo Sandoval is live for us in New York with more details on this. Polo, tell us more about the mayor's declaration and what comes now?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): With this increased sense of urgency, Fred, what we also heard from New York City Mayor Eric Adams say yesterday that New York City's compassion when it comes to receiving these asylum seekers, that's limitless, but the resources are not.

And really all you have to do is look at these numbers. These are the very latest in terms of asylum seekers that have arrived here in New York City since its spring.

Just over 17,000. Actually, this number probably closer to 18,000 by now, but this is as of the last update and the result has been about 61,000 total people in the city shelter system.

Now, the reason why that's higher, that's because that includes not just asylum seekers, but also homeless New Yorkers. And that really speaks to the urgent need to free up space and the shelter system.

And that's why the city is considering, at least it's carrying out a couple of options here. The first of which is by, not only setting up humanitarian relief centers that are meant to be the first stop for arriving migrants as they try to figure out if migrants either want to continue with their journey, or settle into New York City to continue with their asylum proceedings.

But they're also expediting the process of setting up permanent housing for some homeless New Yorkers. The goal there would be to basically provide more wiggle room here for these asylum seekers that continue to arrive, anywhere from six to seven buses a day here in New York City, which is anywhere from 250 to 300 people, according to city officials.

And to remind viewers, they are coming -- most of them coming on their own either busing or flying themselves here, many of them about 7,700 have actually been sent out by the city of El Paso as part of its busing program, which that border city's defense has been very different compared to Governor Greg Abbott's program.

But still, nonetheless, it's all adds up to a massive strain on the city that continues to get even bigger. And what we heard yesterday, Fred, was very deliberate language coming from Eric Adams. Calling on the federal government to respond to what he described as a federal issue in two ways: Get New York City the funding assistance that it needs to continue to help these families. And also, revisit USCIS law, basically, the work authorization program that forces some of these migrants to in some cases wait up to 180 days before they are able to get legal employment.

What I've heard from migrants, Fred, before I send it back to you, is the sooner they can get jobs here in New York City, and the sooner they can pay for their own housing.

WHITFIELD: All right. Quite the undertaking.

SANDOVAL: Yes.

WHITFIELD: Polo Sandoval, thanks so much.

SANDOVAL: Thanks, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. A key Senate race in Georgia is now entering the final month of campaigning.

WHITFIELD And right now, Democrat Raphael Warnock is holding a campaign rally in Columbus, Georgia.

Warnock has had little to say about reports that his political opponent, Republican Herschel Walker, a hardline anti-abortion candidate, paid a woman to have an abortion and asked her to end a second pregnancy two years later.

Walker denies the allegations, and this week, his campaign fired its political director. CNN reporter Michael Warren joining us live now from Columbus, where the Warnock rally was taking place.

So, Michael, what more are you hearing from the senator's campaign? As he's speaking now, responding to the allegations about Walker?

MICHAEL WARREN, CNN REPORTER (on camera): Well, Fredricka, we just finished hearing from Raphael Warnock. He's still behind me talking and shaking hands with voters here in Columbus. It's the end of a three-day tour through Central and South Georgia, talking with Democratic voters about democratic policy positions and agenda items, but also hinting at his bipartisan work with certain Republican senators and colleagues on Capitol Hill, not mentioning his Republican opponent, Herschel Walker by name, simply referring to him as my opponent.

And really not touching these allegations that you just mentioned. And we should note that CNN has not independently verified those allegations. But you're right, they are having a big effect this week. It is really the talk of pretty much everyone here in Georgia across the state this week.

These allegations about his, you know, about paying for an abortion for a former girlfriend.

The extent that Warnock is making it an issue, he continues to focus on what he calls an extreme position by Herschel Walker on the issue of abortion, trying to make this an issue in these last days of the race.

And, of course, you mentioned as well, CNN's reporting that Walker in the wake of these allegations, fired his political director. A lot of turmoil right now in the walker campaign, as we're less than a month from Election Day.

And watching these polls, this remains a very close race between these two in a swing state. Georgia is a swing state, and there is the possibility because of Georgia's laws that without a candidate getting 50 percent of the vote in November, there will be a runoff election in December.

[12:25:07]

That is really what's at stake at this point. And after that, it may be the control of the Senate that's at stake. So, we'll keep watching in here, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Michael Warren, thank you so much.

It used to be it was Florida, Florida, Florida that was central to, you know, the focal point in politics. And now, here we go again with Georgia, Georgia, Georgia.

All right, thank you so much, Michael.

All right, the tug of war between Donald Trump and the Justice Department continues.

WHITFIELD (voice-over): Why officials believe the former president is still holding on to some classified documents? Next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:30:04]

WHITFIELD: CNN has learned that in recent weeks the DOJ has demanded Donald Trump return any outstanding documents marked as classified, that he still might have. A source tells CNN the Justice Department is making it clear they don't believe Trump returned all the materials taken when he left the White House. CNN's Marshall Cohen Joining us now, Marshall, what more do we know about this push for more classified documents possibly?

MARSHALL COHEN, CNN REPORTER: Fred, there might be more. That's apparently what the Justice Department believes. And that's what sources tell us that the Justice Department has communicated to Donald Trump's lawyers in recent weeks, making a message very clear that they still believe that Donald Trump is obligated to return any documents with classification markings, send them back to the federal government as soon as possible. That message was delivered in recent weeks by a senior counter intelligence official at DOJ.

And it's striking, Fred, when you remember how we got here. Remember the history. This has been a two-year long tug of war between Donald Trump and the federal government over the custody of these documents in the eyes of the government, Trump shouldn't have taken anything of these materials down to Mar-a-Lago after he moved out to the White House last year. So the fact that it's now October 2022, and they are telling Trump and his team that they still think he might have classified material, that's striking.

Remember, earlier this year, Donald Trump handed over of more than a dozen boxes to the National Archives. In those boxes, there were 184 classified documents, the Justice Department launched an investigation. They got a subpoena in June, demanding the return of all classified documents. In June, Trump gave back another 38. But then again, the Justice Department came to suspect that that wasn't everything. They got a search warrant in August. We all know what happened there, Fred. They searched the premises with the court -- with the permission of a court and they found another 103 documents.

So Fred, the pattern, you can kind of start to see what's going on here. It's almost like Charlie Brown and the football. I do have to point out before I throw it back to you. Remember, this investigation is not just about potentially mishandling classified documents. There is also an obstruction element to this probe as well. And whether any of this back and forth, wasn't a deliberate effort to impede or get in the way of the investigation that could play into the obstruction angle.

WHITFIELD: And then I wonder, Marshall any suspicion about whether these additional documents are in Florida, or in one of his other properties elsewhere?

COHEN: I mean, that would -- if I was a prosecutor, I would be, you know, that would be top of mind for me. That's something I'd want to know. So far the bulk of the investigation has focused on Mar-a-Lago because that's, of course, where the search was executed earlier this year. That's where many of the boxes were taken. You know, Donald Trump lives there now. It's his primary residence, although of course, he spends time in New Jersey and Bedminster. But so far, this has been a Florida based inquiry, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, Marshall Cohen, thank you so much. Let's talk more about all of this with Michael Zeldin. He is a former federal prosecutor and the host of the podcast That Said with Michael Zeldin, good to see you, Michael. So, how now does the Justice Department know that Donald Trump still has those documents? And how will they go about proving that so that they potentially could get another search warrant?

MICHAEL ZELDIN, FORMER FEDERAL PROSECUTOR: Yes, it's possible. So what gives them pause as to whether they have everything is all of the empty files that said, this file contains classified documents, and they don't seem by their accounting to have all the documents that they believe were in those folders?

They also have other documents from other people, and they know how many copies there were of certain documents. And if they can't account for all of those copies, then they likely turn to the President and say, where is your copy? So there's a lot of ways to put together the facts to determine that they really don't have everything. Then the question becomes, how do they go about getting it? They have playing very nice with Trump. And the question is going to be since Trump has decided to play hardball, are they going to return the favor and play hardball again with search warrants for a Bedminster, New Jersey, the Manhattan office, and again at Mar-a-Lago?

WHITFIELD: So, Trump or his team somewhere along the lines possibly did didn't know about the cataloging, the intense kind of cataloging that already exists for these kinds of White House documents for them to notice these voids as you just spelled out. So then now how does the Department of Justice, what are the steps it has to take in order to try to recover or search for these documents still unaccounted for?

[12:35:24]

ZELDIN: So step one was to send another letter to say, please return everything to us. And we read in "The New York Times" and elsewhere, that the discussion among Trump lawyers about whether to be cooperative or combative, fell in favor of combative, so Trump is not cooperating. So this letter of please return doesn't seem to be likely to be successful. So then the question becomes, what do they do next?

One option is to go to the court and ask the court to ask the President, the former president, to certify on the record, that he has no additional documents so that he has a statement that's under oath, which the prosecutors if it turns out to not be true, can charge a false statements claim against him. They have reported that Trump asked his lawyers to make such a certification. And his lawyers refused, because they didn't know whether that was true.

So they could push the issue of saying to Trump, you know, I guess, put up or shut up, tell us whether you have anything or not under oath. Similarly, they could pursue a hard line and seek another search warrant if they have additional evidence that they have missing documents beyond the empty folders. I think they're going to need something more than empty folders in order to get a new search warrant.

But if they have additional information, new human sources coming forward with additional information or other ways to determine that they're missing stuff, they could go the hardest route, which would be another search warrant.

WHITFIELD: Wow. And then as you heard in our Marshall's reporting earlier, I mean, if it does turn out that Trump does have these documents, or has withheld turning over all of them, still has possession all of that, then there's the issue of obstruction. And the probe that already included some suspicions of obstruction now has widened even further, potentially, and where might that it kind of investigation go?

ZELDIN: Well, I think that Marshall is exactly right, as always, which is to say that, if in fact, Donald Trump has additional classified documents, knows that he has them and hasn't turned them over. I don't see how Justice Department cannot charge him with obstruction. They've been so lenient with him in an effort to get his cooperative behavior, which they failed to get really. And if he turns out having more documents, I think they must proceed

with an obstruction of justice charge against him, or even additionally, an espionage charge, which in this case means that he was grossly negligent in the handling of national intelligence documents and didn't properly safeguard them.

WHITFIELD: Wow. All fascinating. Michael Zeldin, thanks for being with us.

ZELDIN: Thanks, Fred.

[12:38:26]

WHITFIELD: All right, police in California are on the hunt for a killer. Up next, the one characteristic they're asking the community to zero in on.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Police in California's Central Valley said they may be looking for a serial killer as they investigate a series of shooting since last year. At least six people have been killed. The most recent killing happened last month.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF STANLEY MCFADDEN, STOCKTON, CALIFORNIA POLICE: What we do believe is that, it's mission oriented, right? This person is on a mission.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN's Camila Bernal has been following the investigation joins me live now from Los Angeles. Camila, why do police think these killings are connected to one person who's on a mission?

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Fred. Well, first of all, police are clarifying and saying look, it could be one person, it could be multiple people committing these crimes, but they say there are a couple things connecting the dots here. There is video evidence, there's ballistic evidence. And then the time of day when these crimes are being committed, it's either very early in the morning or very late at night, when someone is alone. Of course residents in Stockton hear all of this, and they're very worried.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BERNAL (voice-over): Six killings in Northern California, a number of connections in the cases and at least one possible suspect.

MCFADDEN: If you look at the video is we want our communities to pay attention to how he walks. He has an inconsistent walk about him as well. He has a very tall posture also when he walks.

BERNAL (voice-over): The man says the chief appears in some of the recent crime scenes. MCFADDEN: To go by definition, you know, absolutely. You know, we have, you know, a series of serial murders occurring in the city.

BERNAL (voice-over): But authorities can't say whether one or multiple people are involved. They do know that there's ballistic and video evidence connecting the dots and add to that that all the attacks happened during the evening or early morning hours when the victims were alone.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A lot of people are scared to come out at night.

RICHARD STOECKL, STOCKTON RESIDENT: I'm not going out by myself anymore. I told family members like, you know, when it gets dark, make sure that you're indoors.

BERNAL (voice-over): And while the police chief tried to reassure the public of their work during a public safety community town hall, he's also warning people.

MCFADDEN: When you have to be out, be with someone, be in a lighted area.

BERNAL (voice-over): The killings are believed to have begun in April of 2021 with the most recent reported late last month.

[12:45:06]

MCFADDEN: We believe that perhaps, you know, that this individual or individuals may be looking for the area during daylight to anticipate where cameras may be, and what would be the best approach for this person or person to take.

BERNAL (voice-over): In total, seven people have been shot, one survived. And now police offering a $125,000 reward.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I believe they'll catch the person that has had to figure out who the person is.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERNAL: Now authorities say this man on the video he has not seen committing any crimes. He's seen near the crime scenes and it's why authorities say watch the video again, see how he walks, see if you can identify him, the reward continues to increase. But again, authorities saying, look, just don't go out when you're alone and just be very careful. Fred?

WHITFIELD: I know a lot of folks are pretty shaken up just as described by that young woman. Camila Bernal, thank you so much.

All right, thousands of Iranian women are standing up to demand their rights and some are losing their lives by doing so. We'll bring you one of their stories next.

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[12:50:49]

WHITFIELD: Authorities in Iran deny that security forces killed a 16- year-old girl during protests last month claiming she died after jumping from the roof of a house. But Amnesty International insists she was fatally beaten by authorities while denouncing the death of another Iranian woman. CNN's Jomana Karadsheh reports.

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JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With a cheerful Salam or Hello, Sarina Esmailzadeh welcomed people into what she called my whole universe. The video diaries of a 16-year-old, she could be any teenage girl anywhere in the world. Goofing around, dancing, singing, just having fun. But this isn't anywhere in the world. This is the Islamic Republic of Iran, where life's expressions are anything but free.

SARINA ESMAILZADEH, BEATEN TO DEATH BY IRANIAN SECURITY FORCES: (Speaking in Foreign Language).

KARADSHEH (voice-over): Three months after that video, Sarina joined the thousands of Iranian women and girls rising up for their liberties demanding their rights. Sarina was forever silenced on September 23rd. Amnesty International says based on information it has, security forces beat her, striking her on the head with batons severely beating her to death.

Iranian judicial authorities denied she was killed. They say Sarina died by suicide jumping from the roof of her grandmother's home. Their claim just days after they said another 16-year-old protester Nika Shakarami, who was found dead in Tehran also died after falling from a building. Arrests have been made in the investigation of her death.

Family members of both girls have appeared on Iranian state media repeating the government's claim. The U.N. Human Rights Office told CNN they received reports authorities forced Shakarami's family to give the interview. Amnesty International says families of victims are being intimidated and harassed into silence. This comes three weeks after the death of Mahsa Jina Amini while in the custody of the so called morality police.

On Friday, the government's forensic report blamed the death of the 22-year-old on an underlying medical condition after the operation of a brain tumor as a child. Amini's family repeatedly denied those claims. They say she was healthy. It was police brutality that killed her. They say doctors told them she suffered trauma to the head.

Anger over Amini's death sparked a women's uprising like no other in Iran. Too many lives already lost in this battle for freedom for change.

ESMAILZADEH: (Speaking in Foreign Language).

KARADSHEH (voice-over): Too many young lives ended too soon.

Jomana Karadsheh, CNN, Istanbul. (END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And iconic and sacred statues on Chile's Easter Island suffer irreparable damage after a wildfire triggered by a recent volcano ripped through the area this week, according to officials. The famous stone carved statue known as Moai were created by a Polynesian tribe more than 500 years ago. The islands Rapa Nui National Park featuring 386 statues is closed to tourists while conservationists investigate the loss.

We've got so much more straight ahead in the next hour. But first, the new season of Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy premieres tomorrow night at 9:00 right here on CNN. And here's a preview.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stanley Tucci is back in Italy. And there are more surprises to be found.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've never seen anything quite like it.

STANLEY TUCCI, AMERICAN ACTOR: Oh, there you go, dad. It's your family home.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I mean, as good as mine.

TUCCI: I'm not answering that question.

[12:55:02]

Oh man, I'm proud of it.

Amazing.

Wow, wow, wow.

The food is amazing. Look at that.

Wow, come on.

That is amazing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy new season premieres tomorrow at 9:00 on CNN.

TUCCI: You can stop filming. We're just going to eat.

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