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Airplane Crash in Nepal Kills at Least 68; 30 Dead, Dozens Missing After Russian Missile Strike on Apartment Building; Damar Hamlin Cheers on Teammates from Home as Bills Enter Playoffs; Five more Pages With Classified Markings Found At Biden Residence; Internet Sleuths Fill Social Media With Theories, Misinfo On Killings; Weirdest New Technologies At The Consumer Electronics Show. Aired 4-5p ET

Aired January 15, 2023 - 16:00   ET

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

[16:00:18]

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

And we begin this hour with the deadly plane crash in Nepal, the country's worst in 30 years. At least 68 people were killed when the plane crashed about 18 minutes after it took off from Nepal's capital. You can see plumes of smoke billowing from the crash site. We know 72 people were on board, including children and search efforts will resume at daylight on Monday.

Video also shows what appears to be the plane moments before it went down. The aircraft rolling on its side. You see right there in midair.

And I want to get right to CNN's Vedika Sud who is following this for us.

Vedika, any word yet on what might have caused this?

VEDIKA SUD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No word yet on that, Jim. I think the focus is still on trying to find the missing four passengers who were on that plane. Like you rightly said 68 bodies have been recovered, four are still missing. And as soon as there's daylight in Nepal, which would be another four hours from now, the rescue teams will be back on the site and they'll be looking for those four passengers.

For now the official figure stands at 68. Nepal's prime minister has ordered a probe. We're expecting a report in the next 45 days, and I think the priority after finding those four passengers, the likelihood of them surviving this accident for now looks bleaks, will be to find the voice recording box from the cockpit because that is going to be key to this probe to understand what really went wrong.

It's very important even to tell our viewers here that this Himalayan country has faced several accidents in the past, and this is essentially because most of the highest mountains are in this area. At least we have about eight of the world's 14 highest mountains in Nepal, including Mount Everest, and these air accidents usually take place due to inclement weather or because these air strips are situated in difficult to land terrains. What we're going to find out in the next few hours is whether there

are any survivors. Like I said, the chances of any survivors are bleak at this moment -- Jim.

ACOSTA: All right. Vedika Sud, thanks very much for that update. We appreciate it.

Now to Ukraine where the death toll from a Russian missile strike on a Dnipro apartment building has risen to 30. This is some incredible video coming into CNN. This new video of rescuers pulling a woman out of the wrecked building. Take a look at that right there. In all, more than 70 people were injured, including 13 children, and dozens -- we should note dozens at this hour remain unaccounted for after the attack.

Search teams have been spending the night digging through the massive piles of twisted rubble. The mayor of the city says it's unlikely any other survivors will be found. But as you just saw a moment ago, the search does continue. During his evening video address, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy issued a new appeal to Western allies for more weaponry and Russia's terror attacks on civilian targets.

Joining me now is retired brigadier general and former senior defense attache to the Russian Federation, Peter Zwack.

General, great to see you as always. We appreciate it. You know, these images are just heartbreaking to look at. We're looking at this video once again of this what appears to be a woman and a survivor being pulled out of the rubble. Just incredible work on the part of rescuers there. What more can the U.S. provide to Ukraine to stop this madness?

BRIG. GEN. PETER ZWACK (RET), U.S. ARMY: Yes, good afternoon, Jim, and friends. First of all, it's unspeakable this continues. The Russians -- the word I use is they want Ukrainians to submit, which is an old word. It's an awful word and it's punitive. And yes, they'll say they're trying to get to the power grid. As put to me recently, it's as if the Russians are now focused as much on killing people and breaking things as actually winning the war.

Yes, clearly, I think by every measure, and I will -- you know, truth in lending early on in this war, as you may remember, I was cautious about how we amp up the support, but, yes, this is the time on the ground, in the air, within Ukraine go all in with not the United States only but it's got to be NATO, coalition of the willing free- minded nations, equipment, heavy tanks now, and I think air frames from the U.S. side, the devastatingly effective ground attack aircraft, and A-10, F-16s from other European nations.

[16:05:05]

But it can't be an American-only thing. The Russians have earned this. The Patriots are going in. That's good. It's going to take time. They will need more. Those missiles that were fired -- those cruise missiles were fired likely from Kyiv, 22 backfire bombers standoff, whether over the Black Sea or farther out or Russia or Belarus, and they fly with impunity. Ukrainians need to be able to strike back and strike out.

ACOSTA: And in Ukraine's eastern Donbas region, there's a big battle underway for the small salt mining town called Soledar. The Russians have been talking about this as if they were taking Kyiv or something. But why is this town so important to Russia? Is it because they just need a win, they just need to put score points on the scoreboard?

ZWACK: I think you put it just right. They need a win. These are dangerous type of battles. This has become a prestige battle. It's also become a prestige battle for Ukraine in a much smaller way, a much, much smaller way than were done in World War I, and the horrific Stalingrad, and a much more massive scale was to the Soviets and the Nazis. But both now are committed. It's a grind it out type of fight. And in this one place, the Russians are more in their comfort zone.

They have the Ukrainians a little bit in a -- if I may use this, a bear hug where they're close, they're tight, they're able to use artillery and all the rockets and everything else. Ukrainians are fighting tough, they're dogged, but they're forced now in a mano-and- mano fight. Ukrainians are in this window where, I think, it's pretty common knowledge they want to have a counter offensive. They have to find a way to balance this meat grinder flight, where the flower of Ukrainian youth is also being killed.

Whether it comes down to the Kherson zone, a pin access or up through (INAUDIBLE), and Melitopol or up Kherson towards -- I don't know, but the Ukrainians it think are trying to buy the time and the resources to do it while bloodying the Russian forces. Last point on what makes this fight so awful in Soledar and Bakhmut is Russians are using -- we've all heard about Wagner, you spoke about it earlier.

ACOSTA: Right.

ZWACK: These are -- a lot of them are prison inmates. They are not the best of Russian society. And so Russia can kind of turn their eye a little bit because it's not hitting the same way as killing a lot of the mainstream conscripts and all that. So they're griding it up. Ukrainians are taking a devil's toll on them but they're taking major losses, too, and that's the tragedy.

ACOSTA: And this week, General, we witnessed Vladimir Putin publicly berate an official for he says acting too slowly and completing orders for military and civilian aircraft. Let's listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRES. VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIA (through translator): Why are you fooling around?

DENIS MANTUROV, RUSSIAN MINISTER OF INDUSTRY AND TRADE (through translator): It will be ready during this quarter. Based on the funds available under the budget.

PUTIN (through translator): I want all of this to be done within a month. What quarter are you talking about? Do you not understand the circumstances we are in? Please complete this work within a month. Agreed?

MANTUROV (through translator): We will try to do our best.

PUTIN (through translator): No. Do not try to do your best. Please get it done in a month. No later.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: General, I guess there's a performative politics going on in Russia these days as well.

ZWACK: The menace in that statement is probably a lot like Stalin in 1941 during the Nazi invasion of Soviet Union and the Russians were resettling their war industries, and trying to -- and it was draconian how they got their economy back and everything else.

Putin has been invoking Mother Russia and these, you know, were fighting for our existence and survival, and using that as a bat on his advisers, his economic folks, his industries, too. We are at war, this is an existential war. Do everything that you can, all stops. And over time this will -- this will get results, but it also could continue the stress and potential fracture internally in Russia.

[16:10:10]

So yes, it's important because he's invoking almost war powers act, which he has been careful about doing it.

ACOSTA: Right.

ZWACK: We need everything, all stops, artillery, rockets, tanks, so much has been destroyed in the Russian military in the first 10 months of this awful war.

ACOSTA: Yes. It's quite a performance there. No question about it. Aim for domestic political consumption.

Brig. General Peter Zwack, thanks so much for your time. We appreciate it, as always. Good to see you, sir.

ZWACK: As always, Jim.

ACOSTA: Thanks.

Coming up, less than two weeks after suffering a cardiac arrest, Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin has been cheering on his teammates from home today as they took on the Dolphins in the playoffs. We'll tell you about the remarkable recovery with the legendary Bob Costas. There he is. He's next.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:15:07] ACOSTA: Devastating news to tell you about out of Georgia. Devin Willock, the 20-year-old offensive lineman for the University of Georgia, was killed in a car crash. This happened overnight, just hours after the team celebrated its national championship with a victory parade. According to a statement from the university, three others were in the car, a staff member, Chandler LeCroy, who was also killed and two other teammates, we should mention were injured but are listed in stable condition at this hour.

Police are now investigating the fatal crash. Willock hailed from New Milford, New Jersey, and played in every game this year. In a statement the team's head coach said in part, "Devin was an outstanding young man in every way. He was always smiling, was a great teammate and a joy to coach."

And we're learning now about a heartwarming encounter that Willock had with a young fan hours before the crash. Willock ran into 7-year-old UGA fan Camden Gonzalez at a restaurant last night. Camden's grandfather posted photos of meeting, thanking Willock for making his grandson feel special. You could see Willock even let Camden try on his enormous 2021 national championship ring and Camden's grandfather says Willock seemed so full of life and just happy.

Buffalo Bills' safety Damar Hamlin cheering on his teammates from home as they take on the Dolphins in the playoffs. Shortly before kickoff, Hamlin tweeted, "My heart is with my guys as they compete today, supporting from home as I focus on my recovery. Nothing I want more than to be out there with my team."

The 24-year-old who was released from the hospital earlier this week after suffering a cardiac arrest on the field, got to hang out with the team yesterday at the Bills facility. You could see him there with a big smile.

And joining me now, CNN contributor, the legendary Bob Costas.

Bob, it's incredible just to see Damar Hamlin smiling and hanging with the guys in the locker room. What a remarkable turnaround.

BOB COSTAS, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Yes, less than two weeks ago in a nationally televised primetime game, this chilling and really horrifying scene played out where people intuitively sensed that this was different than a run-of-the-mill injury, and that his life was in jeopardy which it certainly was. So one takeaway here is how competently and quickly everybody, from the trainers, the paramedics, ultimately the doctors at the hospital that was only two miles away.

The protocols that the NFL has in place, which we discussed before, ambulance there, defibrillator there, all of those things in place. Not only did they save his life, but all indications are that he'll be able to go on and live a normal life. Whether he'll ever play football again or want to play football again is an open question.

But what this brings to mind, and we mentioned this about a week ago when I was speaking with you, Jim, as horrifying as this is, it's not an indication of the many and significant dangers of football. This is a statistical outlier more than a one-in-a-million type thing to have happened, more likely to happen rare as it is to the extent that it exists more likely to happen in projectile sports like hockey, lacrosse or baseball.

But because of the scene it brings to mind the very real ongoing dangers of football. The NFL itself has admitted that some 30 percent of those who play football for any extended period of time will suffer neurological damage of one kind or another down the line. They are statistically much more likely, football players are, to suffer Alzheimer's or dementia or all the iterations of that than their contemporaries are.

And then there's the possibility of spinal cord injuries, and just the wear and tear that this brutal game takes on people's bodies. So all of that stuff is brought to mind by this even though this isn't an example of it. What it is an example of, and something that most people are not aware of, is the following. Most NFL contracts are structured so that -- or at least many of them are, so that if a player goes on the injured list, his compensation is reduced.

And most of these contracts are one year contracts. They're not guaranteed contracts. You don't have medical coverage unless you played three years in the league, and Hamlin was in his second year in the league. And that medical coverage lasts for only five years after retirement when we know that many of the effects of playing football don't manifest themselves until well after five years.

Now Hamlin's story is such a feel-good story, as it should be. It's turned into an uplifting story in a certain sense, and all the contributions, probably now up over $10 million to the toy drive that he started, and what we learned about him as a person, all of that is very uplifting. But he is also, when we look at the fine print, an example not only of the dangers of football, not the specific incident but in a global dangers of football and the fact that football players as a group are not exactly well-protected against those dangers, and most football players, as popular as the game is, outside of the quarterbacks and a few other stars, most of these players are anonymous to the general public and when in (INAUDIBLE) they retire or are released, it's barely noted.

[16:20:13]

ACOSTA: That's exactly right. They are human beings and playing in a profession that -- I mean, this has been going on for decades. Just does not protect its players as well as it should. And I have to ask you this, as you were just saying, as rare as this is in terms of what happened to Damar Hamlin, am I asking a crazy question here in wondering whether or not there's any chance whatsoever he could be in a uniform before if the -- I mean, the Bills are in a tight game right now with the dolphins, 34-31, not that I want the viewers to switch away, any chance whatsoever we could see Hamlin back in a uniform if the Bills go all the way to the Super Bowl?

COSTAS: No, no. No chance of that. I would be willing to say that flatly. As for his football future long range, I think it would be irresponsible to speculate about that.

ACOSTA: And let me ask you this. Let's talk about tennis. I know you and I have talked about this before, the ongoing saga of Novak Djokovic. This week we will see one of the great tennis players of all-time return to the Australian Open one year after his deportation debacle. As a result, this was a saga that we all talked about a year ago, of his refusal to get the COVID vaccine. He already owns the record with nine Australian Open titles. Do you think there is any added significance this time around, or are we just saying, OK, he's back?

COSTAS: No, there's some significance. If he extends his own record and thus ups his total of grand slam victories. He's obviously one of the greatest players of all time. Did not play in the U.S. Open last year either because of restrictions on vaccinated people coming into the United States, and without going over chapter and verse, Djokovic has some rather dubious ideas about health over all.

And let's leave aside the ongoing debate about vaccines. The rules were what they were. And Australians as a group, the citizenry, were under some rather severe lockdowns, so there was significant resentment toward Djokovic for first entering the country and then he leaves, and he also hosted some sort of what turned out to be super spreader event and was less than forthcoming about that.

Now the Australian Open officials have put in effect a no booing rule, which obviously was designed to shield Djokovic. So let's say that those in attendance observe that, the way they'll show their disapproval is to cheer wildly for his opponent as the case may be.

ACOSTA: There you go.

COSTAS: Now there was a warm-up event. Yes. Yes. There was a warm-up even in Adelaide which he won, and from reports that I've read, he was rather warmly received there.

One thing we can say, we can hold multiple truths in our head at the same time. Prior to the variants, not only did the vaccine, once they were available, not only did the vaccine in the vast, vast, vast majority of cases keep you from being hospitalized or from dying, the deaths were disproportionally and overwhelmingly among the unvaccinated. But at the outset before the variants, it also made it extremely unlikely that you would be infected at all and therefore able to infect others. That was the previous reality.

ACOSTA: Right.

COSTAS: With the variants we now know that those who are vaccinated can, in fact, get COVID, but in all likelihood not going to be hospitalized and their case will be less severe than the unvaccinated. At the same time we also know, no matter how obstinate they may be about it, a young, healthy, fit person like Djokovic is very, very unlikely if they contract COVID to have a serious case of it. That we know.

ACOSTA: That we know. And Bob, I have to ask you and I know you know the answer to this, but I'm going to try to stump you anyway. How many days until pitchers and catchers report?

COSTAS: I don't know exactly how many days, but seriously, late February, like around February 20th, so a little more than a month from now the springtime game will be upon us in Arizona and in Florida, and we'll all welcome that, at least we baseball fans will.

ACOSTA: I know you are counting down the days, as am I. Bob Costas, great to see you as always.

COSTAS: Yes.

ACOSTA: We'll talk again soon, sir. Thanks so much. We appreciate it.

COSTAS: Thank you, Jim. Thank you.

ACOSTA: All right. Thanks. Thanks, Bob.

Coming up, more classified documents found at President Biden's Delaware home. So what political implications might this have? We'll break it down, next.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:28:57]

ACOSTA: Growing questions today about President Biden's handling of classified documents. Just yesterday we learned five more pages with classified markings were discovered at the president's home in Delaware. This is on top of classified material found in a closet at Biden's office in Washington. In all, it's believed approximately 20 documents with classified markings have been found and President Biden now has to contend with a special counsel probe as well as Republicans who were eager to investigate him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JAMES COMER (R-KY): At the end of the day, my biggest concern isn't the classified documents, to be honest with you. My concern is how there's such a discrepancy in how former President Trump was treated by raiding Mar-a-Lago, by getting the security cameras, by taking pictures of documents on the floor, by going through Melania's closet, versus Joe Biden. They're like, OK, your personal lawyers who don't have security clearance, they can go through, they can just keep looking and keep looking, and you know, determine whatever is there. That's not equal treatment.

With respect to investigating President Trump, there have been so many investigations into President Trump.

[16:30:00]

I don't feel like we need to spend a whole lot of time investigating President Trump because the Democrats have done that for the past six years, so no one has been investigated more than Donald Trump who hasn't been investigated Joe Biden.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Joining me now is veteran Democratic strategist James Carville and former Republican Congressman Denver Riggleman. He previously served as an advisor to the January 6 Committee.

James, great to see you. Denver, you as well. James, what did you think when you heard Congress say just a few moments ago that even as chairman of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, he has no plans to look into Donald Trump's handling of documents?

JAMES CARVILLE, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Well, you don't have to worry about it, but -- because Jack Smith is looking into him, so he didn't need more. He's pretty low head about that. And the court says, there's no comparison between the facts and these two cases, but people are going to, you know, flap their doors no matter what, and let him go ahead and flap his doors. But this can be thoroughly investigated, I'm sure.

ACOSTA: Denver, what do you think?

DENVER RIGGLEMAN, FORMER U.S. REPRESENTATIVE: Well, I think you are looking at the systemic dysfunction that's going on right now when it comes to people who don't know the difference between cooperation and non-cooperation. And, you know, Jim, as, you know, I was a pretty serious congressman, and you would think that people would be looking at, you know, trying to address the problem of why, you know, classified documents keep theirs -- they keep spilling out, you know, from presidents and vice presidents, rather than, you know, screaming about, you know, that the Biden situation is the same as Trump. I think that's just ridiculous.

And again, it comes down to -- and, you know, I agree -- I agree with Mr. Carville here that Jack Smith is looking into the documents on the Trump side. But again, I don't know if it's really going to matter that there's a difference based on, you know, how far the -- how powerful the far-right MAGA ecosystem has in a way that they can spread that message.

ACOSTA: But, James, I mean, it has been difficult for the White House and how this has been coming out in sort of a drip, drip, drip fashion. It's a -- it's a dynamic that I know a lot of political operatives, such as yourself are familiar with.

If you were advising President Biden, what would you have told him about this remark he made about the documents being in the same garage as his Corvette? Let's watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And, by the way, my Corvette is in a locked garage. OK? So it's not like it's sitting out in the street.

PETER DOOCY, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: So the material was in a locked garage?

BIDEN: Yes, as well as my Corvette. But as I said earlier this week, people know I take classified documents and classified material seriously. I also said, we're cooperating fully complete with the Justice Department's review.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: James, what did you make of the Corvette remark?

CARVILLE: Well, you know, in retrospect so I probably would have said not to make that and say, what is the truth that we turned his elbow, we're cooperating fully? Everybody -- I've instructed everybody to cooperate fully with their duly appointed special counsel. And, yes, I plan on doing the same. And it but beyond that, I have nothing else to say which, of course, would be the best thing to do. And I think that they're going to clean this thing up in three or four months.

My guess is we end up -- but what about her e-mails kind of zone here? Of course, that didn't turn out to be deadly squat. I suspect neither will this.

ACOSTA: You know, yesterday, James, that we were talking with several strategists about the wisdom of having the president go out there and saying more, go into the cameras. And just getting this out there, talking about it, taking the questions. Good idea, bad idea?

CARVILLE: Well, you know, I think I would have been very narrow and say in a complete cooperation, talked to everybody else, too. We turn this information over. When I'll talk to the federal conflict. Yes, I agree with the people you're talking to.

Sometimes the less you say, the more you heard and the (inaudible) next to the Corvette or whatever. By the way, I know Congressman Riggleman, you know, knows this too, some things are more classified as a newspaper clippings. I mean, we don't even know what the level of this stuff is. But, again, my suspicion is that there's not very much here at the end of the day.

ACOSTA: And, Denver, let me ask you about newly elected Republican Congressman George Santos. He's remained defiant despite these calls for resignation. It's come to light. He's lied about just about everything under the sun, his Jewish heritage, career, education, even being a college volleyball star. Let's listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. GEORGE SANTOS (R-NY): You know, it's funny. I actually went to school on a -- on a volleyball scholarship.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You did?

SANTOS: I knew -- I did. Yes. When I was in Baruch, we were the number one volleyball team.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you graduate from Baruch? Did you graduate from there?

SANTOS: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So did I.

SANTOS: I did. I did.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So did I.

SANTOS: Oh, very cool. Great school, great institution. Very simple, but very good -- very good professors who don't show their bias which is -- which is very interesting, but that's a whole another conversation.

Look, I sacrificed both my knees and got very nice knee replacements -- knee replacements from each. That's playing volleyball. That's how serious I took the game.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[16:35:05]

ACOSTA: Denver, to be clear, Santos never even attended Baruch, could not have played on the volleyball team, therefore, wouldn't have been a star on that team. I'm not sure about the Ds [ph], but I digress. Why even lie about -- what should the Republican Conference do about this? That conference used to be a part of.

RIGGLEMAN: I will tell you, you know, you've -- I think almost the Republican Conference are afraid to talk about how ridiculous Santos is, it's almost like we've reached maximum idiocy. And he's such an example now. People that will do anything to win. And I think it just speaks to the un-seriousness, and sadly, of the GOP Conference, you know, to allow somebody to sort of run through the field like this guy does.

And, you know, for me, it's an embarrassment to our country to have somebody like that as a seated congressman. But on the other hand, there's nothing they can do about it, because he was a vote for speaker for McCarthy. He toed the line. So the sad part is, right now, if somebody who lies their way into Congress, somebody who absolutely has no integrity, somebody who can only pronounce the name of a college, right, rather than going there, as somebody who's a sitting congressman right now, and for me, it's so ridiculous. It's so ludicrous.

But again, he's going to get away with it. I think he's going to be seated for two years. I don't know if he's going to win reelection. He probably or maybe he could, depending on the district and House setup. But it's just incredible to me.

And Jim, you know, as somebody who served in Congress, somebody who's one of the only 11,000 that probably sat in there, more or less, to have him part of that, you know, August body at this point, I think is really a shame, you know, on Congress and on America too.

ACOSTA: James, as a Democrat, would you like George Santos to remain in Congress?

CARVILLE: You know, there's a lot of military strategists that tell you that a wounded enemy soldier is more valuable than a dead enemy soldier, because you have to take care of him and, you know, get him off the battlefield, et cetera.

So, I'm not sure that Democrats are not better served but let him hang around. And just every time they paint a picture of the House or anything else, he's right to -- every Republic is going to have to answer for him.

Between that, I suspect that Congressman Riggleman is right that probably not a device that they're going to get rid of him, but I would advise the Democrats to exploit his presence every day.

ACOSTA: All right. James Carville with the flag waving behind you. Looks like a nice day where you are. I appreciate you taking the time, Denver Riggleman, you as well. Thanks so much.

RIGGLEMAN: Thanks, Jim.

CARVILLE: Thank you very much.

ACOSTA: Thank you.

All right. Coming up, would-be internet sleuths run wild with theories and sometimes misinformation about the suspect now accused of murdering four University of Idaho students. Well separate the fact from fiction, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:40:50]

ACOSTA: A near miss between two passenger airliners at New York's busy JFK International Airport as both the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board looking for answers. This close call occurred Friday evening. Take a look at this. This animation shows you just how close this was to becoming a tragedy.

The FAA says the crew of a departing Delta flight with 151 people on board, a board at its takeoff stopping within 1,000 feet of American Airlines jet that was taxiing on the same runway. Now listen to the tower audio.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Delta 1943, cancel takeoff clearance. Delta 1943, cancel takeoff clearance.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. They're in a -- the Delta 1943.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Scary stuff. Luckily, no one was hurt in the incident. Another near miss to tell you about in Malibu where a man credits a phone call from his girlfriend was saving his life. She called ask him to go back into the house, so he left the car and then a giant boulder came tumbling down a hillside and crushed it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She said, hey, check the bag I left in house, I went inside. And that's when the noises start coming from the front of house just loud booms and crashing. I felt like goosebumps because if it wasn't for that call, hey, can you check on my bag? I probably wouldn't be here or somebody else could have died.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Wow. Take a look at this video. Dramatic photos show his Prius with the roof caved in by the four-foot boulder. And this is just one of many rockslides caused by the storms hitting California right now.

And now to a dramatic rescue in Southern California. Rescue crews braved the rain winds and high surf to get to a driver of an SUV that went over a cliff along San Diego's Coast Boulevard. The vehicle was suspended along the rocks of the cliffs and crews use ropes to secure the SUV then brought it in using a massive crane and pulley system to airlift the driver out. The entire operation took about 90 minutes.

The man accused of murdering four University of Idaho students won't be back in court until June, but police continue to seek information about Bryan Kohberger's past. This case has sparked online speculation and sometimes misinformation about the suspect. And CNN's Gary Tuchman has more.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Police and prosecutors are being required to stay quiet outside the courtroom about the University of Idaho murder case. But on the internet, there is no such prohibition.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have uncovered what we believe are some old writings of Bryan Kohberger.

TUCHMAN: And most of it on TikTok, Facebook, and other places is speculation and hypothesizing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The evening following the murders, Kohberger's phone was pinged in Johnson, Idaho, which is three hours away from Moscow and conveniently next to a national forest.

TUCHMAN: How prevalent is internet sleuthing? Consider this. This Facebook group, University of Idaho Murders Case Discussion has more than 225,000 followers. And this is just one of many groups discussing and hypothesizing about this case online.

Prior to the arrest of Brian Kohberger, a user who goes by Pappa Rodger was a prolific contributor on the site, with many creepy and insensitive posts and what turned out to be incorrect speculation such as the white Elantra is a red herring, but he also declared of the evidence released the murder weapon has been consistent as a fixed blade knife. This leads me to believe they found the sheath.

[16:45:13]

The fact that he got the detail correct about the sheath, despite getting so much else wrong is one of several reasons many on social media think Pappa Rodger was Kohberger. This person saying, I really think Pappa Rodger was BK, Kohberger's initials. And this person, OK, this Pappa Rodger stuff is wild. How would anyone besides him know some of this? Very unsettling.

There is no indication Facebook or the police believe Pappa Rodger, who is no longer in the group, is Kohberger.

Then there is this video taken at an Idaho prayer vigil for the four murder victims prior to Kohberger's arrest, with many people hypothesizing online.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People think that the Idaho murderer attended his victim's vigil.

TUCHMAN: This person commenting, Bryan Kohberger, spotted. Prayer Vigil, Moscow, Idaho.

And this person, sure looks like the psycho, but a T.V. crew from the news magazine, Inside Edition, was at the vigil and has videotaped the man close up. It's definitely not Kohberger. We are not showing his face to protect his identity.

And then there is this.

ASHLEY GALLARD, TIKTOK PERSONALITY: A lot of people have been asking who is Rebecca Scofield?

TUCHMAN: A woman who calls herself AshleySolvesMysteries has posted scores of videos on TikTok accusing a University of Idaho professor of participating in the killings. Never mind the police said the professor was never a suspect. The TikToker whose real name is, Ashley Gallard, posted this video about two weeks before Kohlberger's arrest.

GALLARD: We need to dig deeper into her personality so we can understand her beliefs and who she is so that we can further understand her motives for the murders.

TUCHMAN: We reached out to Gallard, she did not respond. But Professor Rebecca Scofield has responded. Her attorney filing a defamation lawsuit against Gallard. The lawyer Wendy Olson saying, "The statements made about Professor Scofield are false, plain and simple. What's even worse is that these untrue statements create safety issues for the professor and her family. They also further compound the trauma that the families of the victims are experiencing. Professor Scofield twice sent cease and desist letters to Ms. Gallard, but Ms. Gallard has continued to make false statements, knowing they are false. Thus, this lawsuit became necessary to protect Professor Scofield's safety and her reputation. The next court hearing in this case is scheduled for June. Expect the social media discussions to continue.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, Moscow, Idaho.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: Witness the rise and fall of a polarizing political figure on tonight's brand-new episode of "Giuliani: What happened to America's Mayor?" Trump's former personal attorney experiences the dark side of great access without the guardrails.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFIN, FORMER WHITE HOUSE DIRECTOR OF STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS: He was spending a lot of time in the West Wing. He was somebody who was constantly on call for the former president to reach out to. And I think this kind of brought back together this on again, off again, long-standing bromance between the two of these tough of a certain era in New York men.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He has this direct access without any of that responsibility or any of the accountability.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: As a skilled professional who figured out how to climb his way up in the legal world and then up in the political world that he figured, OK. Now I'm in the Trump world. What do I need to do to succeed in this world? And in this world, loyalty is 100 percent, obedience is 100 percent. And he just decided, well, this is the world I'm going to be in and I'm just going to do this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: "Giuliani: What Happened to America's Mayor?" airs tonight at 9:00 right here on CNN.

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[16:50:08]

ACOSTA: So, what do you do after pulling off one of the biggest comebacks in NFL playoff history? You eat waffles, of course. That's what Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback, Trevor Lawrence, seemingly had in mind dropping into a Waffle House Saturday night, following his team's big win. Over the L.A. chargers.

Lawrence led the Jaguars to an improbable come-from-behind victory after trailing 27 to nothing at one point in the game. A last second field goals sealed their 31 to 30 win. I hope you got those pecan waffles are the best.

From a drone to freak out burglars to a printer for your eyebrows, CNN's Jeanne Moos has highlights from the Consumer Electronics Show.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's the Consumer Electronics Show, but please, no, no more e-pets. No more loony robotic pets like Luna.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go grab it.

MOOS: We'd rather grab the Ring Always Home Camera.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, it's a camera that flies.

MOOS: They demonstrated it at the show. The drone will fly around your house. Uh-oh. Left the faucet running. It's expected to sell for about 250 bucks but won't be widely available till next year. Good to freak out would-be burgers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, that's not good. Not to mention the dog.

Seeing you in this might also scare the pooch. Mutalk lets you mute yourself. Say while gaming so you're less of a disturbance.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

MOOS: And then there's the Skyted Silent mask, wear it when you don't want people around you to hear you.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This must remain confidential.

MOOS: It's made of acoustic absorbing materials.

If you find your own bodily functions absorbing, a French-health tech company is developing U-Scan, attach it inside the toilet bowl. Let it analyze your stream of health data.

[16:55:08]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You have to excuse me. I'm going to go test it.

MOOS: The senior editor of Endgadget, Daniel Cooper, was number one tester at the show. It's the next best thing to urinalysis delivered in minutes to an app on your phone.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. I have optimal water balance. I hope my mother is proud.

MOOS: Even makeup has gone high tech from L'Oreal smart lipstick applicator designed for beauty lovers with limited arm or hand mobility, to brown magic that lets you swipe a printer over your brows that uses cosmetic grade ink to shape them.

Or maybe you prefer being nibbled. This Japanese stuffed animal made its return to the Electronic Show.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nibble, nibble, chomp, chomp.

MOOS: It offers two dozen nibbling patterns. It's finger licking good. Good for nothing. Jeanne Moos, CNN --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A gentle bite for a tender delight.

MOOS: -- New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: The problem is it's just more stuff to charge. We have too much of that these days.

I will leave you with a live picture right now, sunset here in Washington, D.C. You don't have to plug that in.

That's the news. Reporting from Washington, I'm Jim Acosta. See you back here next Saturday at 3:00 P.M. Eastern. Pamela Brown takes over the CNN NEWSROOM live after a quick break. Have a great week, everybody.

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