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North Korea Launches Numerous Missiles Including Some Over Japan; Explosion Disables Bridge Linking Crimea To Russia And Used By Russian Military As Supply Line For War In Ukraine; Recovery Efforts Continue In Florida In Wake Of Devastation Left By Hurricane Ian; Many Immigrants Travel To Florida To Help With Recovery Efforts; Georgia Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock Holds Rally As More Stories Surface That Republican Opponent Herschel Walker Paid For Or Urged Girlfriend's Abortions; New York City Mayor Eric Adams Declares State Of Emergency Due To Influx Of Migrants From Southern States. Aired 2- 3p ET

Aired October 08, 2022 - 14:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:00:39]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. And we begin with this breaking news. Reports of a possible ballistic missile fired from North Korea. The Japanese prime minister's office reporting the launch. Let's get right to CNN's Will Ripley who is live for us in Taipei, Taiwan. So, what do we know?

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fred. Yes, this is just something that we haven't seen. Even when Kim Jong-un was launching missiles and tensions were reaching near crisis level back in 2017, he launched 23 missiles throughout the whole year. He has already surpassed that considerably in in terms of the number of tests this year, and he has fired seven missiles just in the last two weeks. This is more than he has done since he came to power in 2011.

And it raises a question, because North Korea is not using these for propaganda. You are not seeing images with triumphant music on North Korean state media like we usually would see for a number of years about 24 hours after the launch. What that says to me and to analysts I'm speaking with is that these launches are for scientific knowledge, and, frankly, also to prove a point, some believe, that Kim Jong-un wants the world to know that his arsenal is there, that it's capable. And even at a time of global conflict, he has weapons that he feels can stand on their own.

Obviously, some people think that this is all a cry for attention. I think politics might have less to do with it in that there is a list he is going down. And for the moment, he is completely free of any trying to talk to the U.S. diplomatically. He's done with that. And he is not apparently concerned about the fact that there is a U.S. aircraft carrier in the waters near the Korean peninsula, and there have been all of these bilateral and trilateral exercises in response to his launches. He is still going forward. And of course, the big question, Fred, is

will that nuclear test, that seventh nuclear test that is believed to be ready at any time, will that be happening before this crucial political gathering in Beijing, or will they wait until sometime later in the year?

And I have given up trying to predict, Fred, because it's kind of like predicting the weather. If I say something, it ends up being wrong. We thought it was going to happen earlier this year, and they had yet to do it. COVID, probably had something to do with that as well.

WHITFIELD: I think he likes that spontaneity, and like you said, that attention, too. But nonetheless, all still very important. Will Ripley, thank you so much -- and potentially dangerous.

New today, Russian officials now say traffic is moving again on a critical bridge to Crimea after a devastating explosion. The blast sending shockwaves across Russia, collapsing part of Europe's longest bridge. Russia says a truck exploded and at least three people were killed. No one has claimed responsibility. The bridge is a critical artery for supplying Crimea with both its daily needs and supplies for Russia's military into southern Ukraine.

CNN's Fred Pleitgen is live for us in Kyiv with the very latest. Fred, what are you hearing?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Fredricka. It is absolutely unclear who is behind all of this, which is quite interesting, because a senior adviser to Ukraine's president, he came out earlier today and he suggested that possibly this might have been an inside job by Russian security services. There's no real evidence to back that up.

The Russians, of course, are pointing the finger of blame squarely at the Ukrainian side, but the Ukrainians have not acknowledged anything so far. But you are absolutely right. This is definitely a huge blow to Vladimir Putin and his military, not just symbolically but strategically as far as logistics are concerned as well. Here's what we are learning.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

PLEITGEN: A devastating blow to Vladimir Putin's war effort in Ukraine both strategically and symbolically. The Kerch Bridge that links Russia's mainland with occupied Crimea on fire and heavily damaged. Moscow's investigative committee acknowledging the severity of the attack.

SVETLANA PETRENKO, RUSSIAN INVESTIGATIVE COMMITTEE (through translator): According to preliminary information, a truck exploded on the automobile part of the Crimean bridge on the side of the Taman Peninsula in the morning today, which caused several fuel tanks to ignite on a train heading towards the Crimean Peninsula. As a result, two lanes partially collapsed.

[14:04:57] PLEITGEN: This CCTV video appears to show the moment of blast. A truck is seen driving on the lane leading towards Crimea when all of a sudden there's a massive explosion, though it's not clear whether it is a truck that actually blew up. Russian officials saying several people were killed in the attack.

Moscow already pointing the finger at Ukraine, but so far no claim of responsibility from Kyiv's leadership. "Crimea, the bridge, the beginning, everything illegal must be destroyed, everything stolen must be returned to Ukraine, everything occupied by Russia must be expelled," an adviser to Ukraine's president tweeted.

While Russian authorities say fuel and food supplies to Crimea are ensured, videos released on social media show long lines forming at gas stations on the peninsula just hours after the blast. The Crimean bridge is a vital supply artery for Russian forces fighting in Ukraine, but it's also a prestige project for Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin personally drove a truck across the bridge when it was opened in 2018. The attack came just a day after Putin's 70th birthday, leading Ukraine's national security adviser to tweet this video apparently mocking Russia's leader.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Happy birthday Mr. President.

PLEITGEN: Ukraine's postal service was quick to issue a stamp commemorating the bridge explosion. Residents in the capital taking selfies in front of the main post office.

SVITLANA STEPUN, POLTAVA REGION RESIDENT (through translator): We have waited for the moment the bridge burns. I think all Ukrainians waited for it. And we are very satisfied it's finally happened.

PLEITGEN: Moscow says it got the railway section of the bridge up and running again quickly, but the damage to the road section is more extensive, creating another bottleneck for Russian forces in southern Ukraine already struggling with logistics.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

PLEITGEN (on camera): Images of some of the traffic that apparently is rolling through that bridge. It certainly seems that it really is just a trickle from what you would normally have going over that Crimean bridge. It seems as though one automobile lane is open right now as opposed to four that would normally be open. And as far as that train is concerned with the rail traffic allegedly backed up, that was one test train that the Russians were able to get through there.

They say that others are going to follow, but again, also at a much slower pace than usual, and much few trains than usual, which essentially means this remains a bottleneck, and with that it also remains a big logistical problem for Vladimir Putin, whose army of course especially in the south of Ukraine is facing some huge issues on the battlefield and also facing some huge issues resupplying their forces, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Fred Pleitgen, thanks so much. All right, for more on all this now, let's bring in Simon Shuster. He

is a "TIME" magazine correspondent who has written extensive about Ukraine and President Zelenskyy, and he also had the cover story in this October issue. Simon, good to see you.

SIMON SHUSTER, "TIME" CORRESPONDENT: Good to see you.

WHITFIELD: So at this point no one has claimed responsibility for the explosion. Do you believe Ukraine is behind it?

SHUSTER: I'm not going to go so far as to assign blame, but the Ukrainians are certainly -- there seems to be a lot of high fives and backslapping about this happening. You played some of those videos and the tweets from the Ukrainian leadership. They're thrilled about this. In a conversation I had with the Ukrainian defense minister on the record about a month ago, he told me we are going to continue reaching, as he put it, the Russians in Crimea.

We're not going to stop attacking Crimea. There was before this a series of attacks and explosions on the Crimean Peninsula, as you know, occupied by Russia since 2014, attacking military bases, air strips, Russian hardware and ammunition dumps.

So the Ukrainians have shown a pretty consistent ability to strike far behind the front lines in Ukraine and to reach Russian positions and Russian forces in Crimea. And that hurts Putin. That hurts him materially in this war. It hurts his ability to wage this war. And it's a massive blow to his prestige because Crimea was the kind of jewel in his imperial crown up to this point in terms of the territories that he was able to occupy in Ukraine.

WHITFIELD: And this all comes on the heels of Volodymyr Zelenskyy warning Russia against using nuclear weapons. And President Zelenskyy ended up correcting his comments about using preventive strikes, saying it was misinterpreted, and he meant sanctions, not attacks. But then, of course, this happened. So is there anything to the timing?

SHUSTER: I think President Zelenskyy is being genuine there, and quite clever.

[14:10:00]

What he is saying about the threat of a nuclear attack coming from Putin and coming from other figures in the Russian leadership, Zelenskyy is saying, OK, we see these threats. We see that Russia has these capabilities. So Zelenskyy is saying to his allies, first and foremost President Biden, let's do something about it before we see the mushroom cloud, before we see the radiation and the fallout. Let's take preventive measures like sanctions.

Why doesn't the west provide more military equipment, such as anti- missile systems, right, that could potentially dissuade Putin from taking that step, breaking the nuclear taboo? So I think that position has been pretty consistent from President Zelenskyy, and it's also consistent to see the Ukrainians attacking Russian positions, Russian infrastructure that is feeding into the war effort. Bridges in territory that Russia is occupying in Ukraine, including

Crimea, the Ukrainians see bridges and infrastructure like that as perfectly viable military targets. Anything that weakens the Russian war machine in Ukraine, they see that as a legitimate target, and they have consistently attacked targets like that for months now.

WHITFIELD: And today a Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said that the Ukrainian approval of this blast shows, I'm quoting now, "their terrorist nature," which is pretty striking coming from a country that's invading another country. But is that messaging really for the Russian people, almost like giving justification of what could be coming next?

SHUSTER: I think so. I think that messaging is also targeted to western leaders and western audiences. Russia is trying to say to the west, hey, you better rein in the Ukrainians because they are provoking Russia. That seems to be a clear kind of message and goal of Russia, to try to drive a wedge between Ukraine and its western allies. I think by painting Ukraine as terrorists or neo-Nazi and all these slurs that Putin has used consistently to try to smear the Ukrainians, all that is meant to separate Ukraine from its allies. That's what I read into that statement you just read.

WHITFIELD: All right, Simon Shuster, thank you so much. Good to see you.

SHUSTER: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, still ahead, 10 days after hurricane Ian struck, this is what some Florida residents who need help are dealing with -- lots of long lines. More on the frustrations building there.

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[14:16:54]

WHITFIELD: Recovery efforts continue in parts of Florida 10 days after hurricane Ian's devastating hit. More than 100 people died because of the storm. Tens of thousands remain without power. Some residents are now left with the daunting task of trying to figure out what's next.

CNN's Nadia Romero is live for us in Fort Myers where folks have been lining up to try to get some much needed help. So Nadia, what's today look like for people?

NADIA ROMERO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well, today there are still a lot of people still coming in. Not as busy as we saw on Thursday, but still a steady crowd. People just trying to get any help at all. Behind me is a library building, and earlier today we saw about 100 people lined up before they even opened their doors. The first person in line was a man who arrived at 4:00 a.m., so five hours early, just to make sure that he could talk to someone from FEMA.

You saw the blue bus here? Buses like this have been coming in and out of this recovery center picking up people from other parts of Fort Myers and bringing them here because, remember, people lost their properties and their vehicles. So transportation is so difficult. So that has been an really important part of being here today.

And we have been talking about what happened during the storm, what they lost. We spoke with one woman who said not only did she lose her job because of the storm, she lost her vehicles, but she found out she was an identity theft victim today. Someone, FEMA told her, already filed a claim under her name using her Social Security number, but using their bank account information. Despite it all, she says that she feels for others in this situation. And she said everyone here at the FEMA office has been so compassionate about what they're dealing with. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SUSAN DETTOR, FORT MYERS, FLORIDA, RESIDENT: I can't comprehend it. I'm just walking from my house here. Just the damage is like, wow. A lot of people lost everything. They have nothing. But everybody was kind and compassionate in there, and the FEMA representative was incredibly compassionate when she discovered this. And she was real helpful.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMERO: So you see so many people who have been impacted by this storm but still are thinking about others who have been worse off than them. This building behind me, this trailer that was brought out is from the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity.

This has been maybe the number two stop, Fred, for a lot of people to come to talk to the state, people who lost their businesses, people who their livelihood looking for unemployment insurance, or excuse me, assistance so they can get a paycheck coming just so they can keep their heads above water at this time. Fred?

WHITFIELD: Oh, my gosh. There's so much that they have got to manage, and all at one time. People, as you mentioned, they lost their property and their cars. People lose their I.D.s. You have no paperwork, no proof of anything. So it's just ground zero. It's a terrible place to be. Nadia Romero, thank you so much.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams has declared a state of emergency to help respond to the city's migrant crisis, some of which is being fueled by the governor of Texas bussing asylum seekers north.

[14:20:00]

Yet now some migrants are heading from Florida from other parts of the country to help with the cleanup from hurricane Ian. Our Polo Sandoval has more.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There's going to be far more work than workers here for two, maybe three, maybe four years.

All you have to do is walk down the streets.

SAKET SONI, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, RESILIENCE FORCE: All you have to do is walk down these streets and look at it.

SANDOVAL: Saket Soni leads Resilience Force, a national nonprofit advocating for workers who descend on disaster-stricken communities, helping fill demand for essential cleanup and recovery jobs.

SONI: Yes, they are earning money and sending it home to their families. But the cost of doing this work is enormous. There's costs to their health, costs to their safety.

SANDOVAL: Soni says a significant chunk of that workforce are migrants. Many, though not all, are undocumented. And that's the irony here.

GOV. RON DESANTIS, (R) FLORIDA: We are not a sanctuary state.

SANDOVAL: In the wake of hurricane Ian, migrants are flocking to Florida just weeks after its governor flew willing asylum seekers from Texas to Martha's Vineyard in an effort to score political points.

DESANTIS: Unfortunately, there's a lot of folks that come across. Where do they want to end up? A lot want to come to, because everyone wants to come to Florida. And so we have worked on innovative ways to be able to protect the state of Florida from the impact of Biden's border policies.

SONI: Governor DeSantis needs these workers. He needs these immigrant workers. He is presiding over a recovery. He is also aspiring to higher office and will be evaluated on how he leads this recovery. And one thing he cannot do without is workers.

SANDOVAL: As hurricane Ian made its way through Florida, this group of Venezuelan men made the trip there from states where their immigration proceedings are playing out. Among them, Chrisman. We first met the young Venezuelan father this summer and his family, who are among the thousands of migrants who found themselves on buses to New York City from Texas after making the long and treacherous two-month, 10-country trek. When he heard there were opportunities to earn money in the cleanup effort, he spent some of the little he has to make his way back down south.

He sends video dispatches back to New York where his family waits for his return. "Just like I'm starting from zero," says Chrisman, "many of the people here are doing the same. "I came here happy to help," say Chrisman. It's impossible to know exactly how many migrants like him may be working off the books as part of relief efforts in Florida.

DeSantis changed the subject when asked by CNN specifically about laborers like Chrisman.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are Venezuela immigrants, asylum seekers in New York that are being reportedly recruited to come to the state of Florida and work on the hurricane recovery. I'm wondering what your response is to those reports and whether you would turn them away?

DESANTIS: So, first of all, our program that we did is a voluntary relocation program. SANDOVAL: Florida not the first state to see this transitory migrant

workforce after a natural disaster. Johnny (ph) Urbuto (ph) says he has offered his services throughout the country since Katrina. A Nicaraguan father who now lives in Louisiana says he doesn't do it for the money but to help bring relief to people. Johnny (ph) says that despite the politics at play on the ground, he's proud to be among the migrants helping Florida rebuild.

SONI: Look at that house and that one. This street alone is three months of work, just to get this street, this one city block back up and standing. There's enough work for immigrants and the locals.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

SANDOVAL (on camera): And you can expect migrant workers to continue to be drawn to the state of Florida with promises of weeks-long cleanup gigs. Migrant advocates here in New York City telling me, Fred, that they are actively recruiting. And of course, these offers are very difficult to pass up for the roughly 17,000 migrants that have arrived in New York City alone as asylum seekers.

That's because they have this opportunity to essentially support their families, like the gentleman you just heard from. And their work authorization requests, many of them are still stuck in this massive backlog. So you can see why many are choosing to either drive or fly to Florida to carry out this kind of work.

But it certainly comes with physical and with legal risks, Fred. And that's why nonprofits here in New York are making sure that migrants are aware that if they do take up these job opportunities, that they remember that they still have rights, even if they're working off the books.

WHITFIELD: Big risks. Twisted metal, all this debris, contaminated water, there's a lot. All right, Polo Sandoval, thanks so much.

SANDOVAL: Thanks, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Coming up, just one month away from the midterm elections, and things are heating up, particularly in the key U.S. Senate race in Georgia. That's next.

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[14:29:31]

WHITFIELD: Live pictures right now where thousands of people are marching in the nation's capital. It's just one of hundreds of demonstrations happening from coast to coast in support of reproductive rights. The nationwide women's wave day of action coming three months after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, and exactly one month before the midterm elections. And today's rally will also call attention to gender and racial justice.

A key U.S. Senate race in Georgia is in the final month of campaigning. [14:30:03]

Democrat incumbent Raphael Warnock holding a rally today, and he is now responding to reports that his Republican challenger paid a woman to have an abortion and asked her to end a second pregnancy two years later. Herschel Walker has complained on a hardline anti-abortion message. He denies the allegations and his campaign just fired its political director. A short time ago CNN's Michael Warren spoke to Senator Warnock about the controversy.

MICHAEL WARREN, CNN REPORTER: Well, Fred, Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock just wrapped up a rally here in Columbus, Georgia, as he campaigns in what is one of the most closely watched Senate races of these 2022 midterms. It's a race that has been rocked by these allegations made against Warnock's Republican opponent, Herschel Walker. He has been accused in reports at "The Daily Beast" of paying for an abortion of an ex-girlfriend back in 2009.

We should note that CNN has not independently confirmed those allegations, but they are having an effect already on this race with less than a month to go until Election Day. Just a few minutes ago I asked Senator Warnock about those allegations and about Herschel Walker's denial of those allegations and the story. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. RAPHAEL WARNOCK (D-GA): It's up to Georgia voters. And it's not up to him. It's not up to me. It's up to them. We do know that my opponent has trouble with the truth. And we'll see how all this plays out. But I am focused squarely on the health care needs of my constituents, including reproductive health care.

I'm deeply concerned about what's happening with women in this state, the incredibly high rates of maternal mortality. Black women are three to four times more likely to die in childbirth as a result of childbirth. They die at high rates even when they have the insurance and the income.

It seems to me that that's something government can actually do something about. And yet there has not been enough focus on that, and it's one of the things that I want to push forward over my continuing time in the United States Senate.

(INAUDIBLE)

WARNOCK: What I believe is irrelevant because the people of Georgia will decide.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WARREN: Now, Fred, the polling of this race is close. It's showing just a couple of points separating Raphael Warnock and Herschel Walker. This is a state, of course, that went for President Joe Biden in 2020 after voting for several years for Republican presidential candidates. It's a swing state. Both parties are looking to invest a lot of money and win this seat. And a special rule in Georgia requires that candidates win 50 percent

of the vote in order to win. A lot of observers in both parties expect that this race could go to a runoff, which would happen in December. It's something we will continue to watch closely. Fred?

WHITFIELD: Michael Warren, thank you so much.

All right, hiring cooled in September, but new data shows the job market remains strong. The Labor Department says the U.S. economy added 263,000 jobs last month and the unemployment rate fell to a 50 year low. CNN chief business correspondent Christine Romans explains what the numbers mean.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Still strong job market, but showing some signs of cooling down. You can see the trend here, gradually slowing jobs growth, fewer jobs added in September than in August, and below the supercharged pace from earlier this year. The jobless rate fell to 3.5 percent, near the lowest in 50 years, and down sharply from the worst days early in the pandemic.

Hiring was broad-based, 83,000 jobs added in bars, restaurants, and hotels. Health care has now recovered all the jobs lost during the pandemic, 46,000 new jobs in business and information services, 22,000 in manufacturing. Wage growth slowed to an annual rate of five percent, slowing down from the red-hot growth earlier this year and potentially a sign the Fed's medicine is starting to work. Taken together it shows a job market still strong but moderating. And because monetary policy takes time to affect the economy, it may be just the beginning to reflect the Fed's higher rates.

WHITFIELD: Christine Romans, thank you so much.

Police in California are on the hunt for a killer. Up next, the one characteristic they're asking the community to zero in on.

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[14:38:47]

WHITFIELD: Police in California's Central Valley say there could be a serial killer in the area as they investigate a series of shootings since April of last year. At least six people have been killed. The most recent happened last month. CNN's Camila Bernal joining us live now from Los Angeles. Camila, why do police think these killings might be connected?

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Fred. So a couple of things. There is video evidence, ballistic evidence, and the crimes are happening around the same time, early morning or very late at night. And it's why authorities are telling people to be extra careful.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

BERNAL: Six killings in northern California, a number of connections in the cases, and at least one possible suspect. CHIEF STANLEY MCFADDEN, STOCKTON POLICE DEPARTMENT: 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: The man says the chief appears in some of the recent crime scenes.

MCFADDEN: To go by definition, absolutely we have a series of serial murders occurring in the city.

[14:40:01]

BERNAL: But authorities can't say whether one or multiple people are involved. They do know that there is 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.

LKEYLAH BEASLEY, STOCKTON RESIDENT: A lot of people are scared to come out at night.

RICHARD STOECKL, STOCKTON RESIDENT: I am not going out by myself anymore. I told family members when it gets dark, make sure that you are indoors.

BERNAL: And while the police chief tried to reassure the public of their work during a public safety community town hall, he is also warning people.

MCFADDEN: You have to be out, be with someone. Be in a lighted area.

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

MCFADDEN: We believe that perhaps 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 persons to take.

BERNAL: In total, seven people have been shot. One survived. And now police offering a $125,000 reward.

BEASLEY: I believe they will catch the person. They just have to figure out who the person is.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

BERNAL: Now, the guy on the video, he is not seen committing a crime, but he is around those crime scenes. So that's why authorities are saying watch that video, look how he walks, and see if you can identify him, because it could help solve these cases. Fred?

WHITFIELD: Trying to connect the dots. All right, Camila Bernal, thanks so much.

Let's bring in former FBI senior profiler Mary Ellen O'Toole. She is now director of the forensic science program at George Mason University. So good to see you.

MARY ELLEN O'TOOLE, FORMER FBI SENIOR PROFILER: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: So some of the clues, I guess they have, based on what Camila was saying, was through surveillance video and really studying the gait of this person who happened to be near these crime scenes. They're not necessarily saying he's the suspect, but somebody of interest. What are your thoughts?

O'TOOLE: Well, I think that's a good idea. I think what I heard from the chief is they at least considered the possibility that during the daytime this offender is out in the areas where he plans to return at night and is casing to see where cameras are or where people might be located. So I think to consider looking at those cameras and flooding the area is really important.

And then I think having a forensic expert look at the gait, how the individual walks, I think that's very important because if you have someone who has the ability to do that, they can at least discern, is it a male, is it a female? Is it somebody with a disability so when they're not out committing murders they still walk with a certain gait or certain limp. So I think that sounds very good to me.

WHITFIELD: Yes, there may be real key distinctions and they just want people to pay attention to everything, don't overlook anything. So Stockton's police chief also said that there is ballistic evidence connecting the attacks, but then didn't elaborate further. So what might that mean?

O'TOOLE: Well, I go back to the Night Stalker case in San Francisco many years ago, and when police were looking for that offender, the mayor at the time had given out a description on the weapon, on the gun. And that gun was never used again. So they are being careful to say obviously they are being connected ballistically, but they don't want to go so far as to give the type of weapon, because they don't want to run the risk that the offender could get rid of their weapon. And really the more focus we put on that weapon anyway, it's a possibility that they could get rid of it nonetheless.

WHITFIELD: So I mentioned the connecting of the dots a lot of the investigators want to do. So while they are distinctive things, like the characteristics of someone walking, there are also, I guess, some commonplace things. And one of the commonplace items is the time of day, the suspicion that it's happening either very early or very late. And another distinction, the victims are alone. Help people understand that kind of criteria and how to place value on those things.

O'TOOLE: It's a good question, and in the FBI and the BAU where we work serial murder cases, the first thing we would look at in a case is the victimology. Through the victims we can learn more about the offender. And in this case, these victims are random. They're not chosen because of their age or because of their background or their race. They are chosen randomly. But they are also chosen because it's late at night and they're alone and they're vulnerable.

[14:45:01] So those to me look like the criteria. And it happens to be a range of age in these victims. So that variation from scene to scene tells us that it's more of a random choice, and the selection, again, is based on availability, being alone, and being vulnerable. So I think those are the criteria the offender is using, actually.

WHITFIELD: And to catch somebody like this, is it really a wait and see what the next move is, what the next mistake is, or is it based on all those clues we had earlier, all-out real search for those commonalities again?

O'TOOLE: I do believe that it's an all-out search. And what I think is when you have a crime, five crimes, seven crimes that are committed outside, this offender cannot go back and make up for the mistakes he made in prior cases. So when you commit a crime outdoors, you run the risk of people seeing you or having been caught on a camera.

You have a video or cell phone, that could also be identified. So I think they are saturating all those areas, and eventually he will be identified because, again, he's made mistakes, and he can't undo them now. And they will exploit those mistakes for sure.

WHITFIELD: Yes, and throughout terrorizing a whole lot of people. Mary Ellen O'Toole.

O'TOOLE: Terrorizing, yes.

WHITFIELD: Yes, OK. Thank you so much.

Coming up, how one detective in Seattle is helping youth in the community by teaching them to play chess. That's straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:50:58]

WHITFIELD: A Seattle detective is going beyond the call of duty by using chess to change the lives of young people. She uses the game to show kids in her community they can achieve more than they ever dreamed. Here's CNN's Natasha Chen.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

DENISE BOULDIN, "DETECTIVE COOKIE": How you guys doing?

NATASHA CHEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Denise Bouldin goes by Detective Cookie.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't judge me, but I don't know how to play chess.

BOULDIN: That's OK. I can teach you.

CHEN: Known for her weekly chess club.

BOULDIN: I want you to act, not react.

CHEN: And for bringing sunshine to the Seattle rain.

BOULDIN: I love to dance.

CHEN: The former model and "Soul Train" dancer grew up on the south side of Chicago and saw how police harassed her brothers.

BOULDIN: They would make them get on the ground, search them, and then they just leave, no explanation.

CHEN: But she also remembers a kind officer at school.

BOULDIN: We could come to him and talk to him just about anything.

CHEN: She has now modeled his community spirit and trust, rising to the rank of detective, serving Seattle police's youth outreach program.

BOULDIN: You are --

CROWD: Welcome here.

CHEN: She mainly works the Rainier Beach neighborhood, designated in 2010 as the country's most diverse zip code, based on U.S. census data. She plays with kids, helps them find jobs, pays for groceries, gives out her cellphone number.

BOULDIN: Someone would text me and say this is the name of the person who did it.

CHEN: Yet her boldest move, starting a chess club in 2006. When neighborhood children first asked her, she couldn't really play.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Actually, I beat you in a chess game.

BOULDIN: I put restrictions on myself. I said that I wasn't smart enough to play check.

CHEN: But she quickly learned.

BOULDIN: Life is like chess. If you're not careful what you're doing, it is going to catch up with you. There's going to be consequences.

CHEN: Chess wasn't an easy sell to all children.

BOULDIN: One kid raises his hand, he said I don't play chess because chess is for smart people. Another kid raised his hand, I don't play chess because chess is for white people.

CHEN: But she showed them how to think beyond stark black and white terms.

BOULDIN: You can threaten me with this, but then I'm going to take the threat away. There is a better move for you.

CHEN: Jabril Hassen joined her chess club when he was a teen.

JABRIL HASSEN, PROFESSOR, BELLEVUE COLLEGE: I had behavior problems, so my parents had to take me on it of school.

CHEN: But Detective Cookie set him on a path to college.

HASSEN: She really changed my life.

CHEN: He studied criminology because of her and is now a professor at Bellevue College in Seattle University.

If Detective Cookie were a chess piece, which one would she be?

HASSEN: Detective Cookie for me is the queen on the chessboard because she has a vested interest in the protection of community. She just happened to be a police officer. She's actually like a teacher. She's actual like a social worker.

(APPLAUSE)

CHEN: So revered, a chess park has n ow opened in her name.

BOULDIN: It's a dream come true.

Everybody plays chess every day. No matter what you're doing, you've got to make a move. You've got to make a decision.

CHEN: Natasha Chen, CNN, Seattle.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

WHITFIELD: Oh, my gosh, she is amazing with her moves to success for everybody.

All right, thanks so much for joining me today. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. The CNN NEWSROOM continues with Jim Acosta after this.

But first, don't miss an all new season of "Stanley Tucci, Searching for Italy." Here's a sneak peek.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

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

STANLEY TUCCI: I have never seen anything quite like it. There you go, dad. It's your family home.

It's like a million different flavors.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are they as good as mine?

TUCCI: I am not answering that question.

Man, incredible.

Amazing.

Wow, wow, wow. The food is amazing.

Look at that.

[14:55:01]

Come on, that is -- amazing.

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

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

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN HOST: You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jim Acosta in Washington.