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CNN International: Trump Aide Walt Nauta Facing Six Criminal Counts; Former Italian Prime Minister's Funeral Set for Wednesday; Judge Denies Bail for Utah Mom Accused of Killing Husband; U.K. Police: 3 Dead, Man Arrested in Nottingham; Denver Nuggets Win First- Ever NBA Title. Aired 4:30-5a ET
Aired June 13, 2023 - 04:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[04:30:00]
CARLOS SUAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is unclear if the Miami Police Department is going to separate supporters and protesters. The police chief said that a decision on that will depend on the number of folks that show up on Tuesday. Here now is a part of a press conference that the police chief had on Monday.
CHIEF MANUEL MORALES, MIAMI POLICE DEPARTMENT: We're bringing enough resources to handle crowd anywhere from 5,000 to 50,000. We don't expect any issues, right? So we appreciate the public itself. Everybody going out there and expressing themselves in a peaceful and civil matter.
SUAREZ: The chief of police said a decision on whether streets around the courthouse will be closed has not been made.
Carlos Suarez, CNN, Doral, Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: Donald Trump isn't the only one facing criminal charges in the classified documents investigation. His aide Walt Nauta will be arraigned later today as well. CNN's Brian Todd has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Standing by his man for now. 40-year-old Walt Nauta, former President Donald Trump's personal aide, who was indicted along with Trump in the Mar-a-Lago documents case, traveled with his boss to campaign stops in Georgia and North Carolina over the weekend. And to Miami, where they'll both face court appearances on Tuesday.
JENNIFER RODGERS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: His testimony would be important enough, because he had conversations with the former president the government does not know about now and does not have any other way to get. So, I think if he wants to, he can still cooperate.
TODD (voice-over): Walt Nauta faces 6 counts including some related to obstruction and concealment of the documents. Prosecutors say Nauta lied to investigators when they asked if he knew where Trump's boxes of documents were stored before they were found in Trump's residence at Mar-a-Lago. According to the indictment, Nauta said, quote, I wish I could tell you. I honestly just don't know.
But prosecutors say Nauta himself actually helped move about 64 boxes from a storage room at Mar-a-Lago at Trump's direction.
JOHN DEAN, FORMER NIXON WHITE HOUSE COUNSEL: As a Navy man, he must have had some sensitivity to highly classified material. But yet he certainly did the president's wishes, as according to the allegations in the indictment.
TODD (voice-over): If Nauta flips on Trump, what kind of damage could he do?
JEFFREY JACOBOVITZ, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, if he flips, he's very close to Trump. These are people close to Trump who have been with him every day almost, and probably know a lot.
TODD (voice-over): Walt Nauta, a native of Guam, is a Navy veteran who started his service to the then-president while in the White House mess hall. The indictment says he then became a White House valet to Trump. And according to the "New York Times," was often, quote, bringing him Diet Cokes, ensuring the president's suit was pressed, and carrying hairspray or hand sanitizer to meet Mr. Trump's needs.
After his service at the White House, the indictment says Nauta served Trump at Mar-a-Lago as his, quote, body man. "The Times" citing co- workers who said that Trump trusted him and liked him immensely.
On his Truth Social platform, Trump posted that Nauta is a wonderful man being indicted by Justice Department thugs, who were, quote, trying to destroy his life.
Walt Nauta now finds himself in the company of former Trump lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen and former Trump organization CFO Allen Weisselberg, people who worked directly with Trump who were targeted by prosecutors.
MICHAEL D'ANTONIO, AUTHOR, "THE TRUTH ABOUT TRUMP": Donald Trump, like most mob bosses, doesn't feel beholden to the people beneath him. So loyalty is a one-way street. And he never demonstrates loyalty to others.
TODD: If convicted on all or some of these charges, Walt Nauta faces significant prison time. His attorney has declined to comment to CNN about this case.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NOBILO: A newly declassified report by U.S. intelligence warns that Americans' personal data is being sold and used by U.S. and foreign spy agencies. This personal data can be anything from commercially available information. to geolocation data, phone records, and it can be easily bought online. Experts say agencies should be made to catalog what data they buy and develop guidance for protecting that data for people's privacy. One U.S. lawmaker is calling on Congress to do more on regulating private companies that collect the data and keep it out of the hands of foreign adversaries. So, back to you, Max
FOSTER: Thank you Bianca.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken says that the U.S. is seeking to learn more about the detention of Travis Leake. Leake an American citizen was detained over the weekend on alleged drug charges. Here is what Blinken said on Monday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We've been seeking to learn more about the apparent detention of Travis Leake. My number one priority as Secretary of State is the safety and security of Americans abroad and this is no exception. So we're working to gather information to understand exactly what happened and of course, we will be very focused on this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[04:35:00]
FOSTER: Leake's mother's told CNN on Sunday, she had yet to hear from U.S. government officials about her son. She said she was worried about what was going through -- what he was going through and didn't know if he has a defense attorney even.
Italy prepares to say farewell to the man who once called him the Jesus Christ of politics. The funeral plans for the late Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi just ahead.
Plus, new details on the alleged search history of a Utah mother accused of giving her husband a lethal dose of fentanyl.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NOBILO: Veteran actor Treat Williams has died after a motorcycle accident Monday in Vermont -- that is according to his agent. Williams' big screen career included an early role in the musical "Hair" in 1979. And he also starred in the gritty crime drama "Prince of the City" two years later.
FOSTER: Williams found success on television. Later in his career he starred in the CW series "Everwood" and most recently appeared in the drama "Chicago Fire." Treat Williams was 71.
Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi will be laid to rest after a state funeral on Wednesday. The 86-year-old died on Monday after a string of recent health problems.
NOBILO: Berlusconi was known as the wealthiest man in Italy before his career in politics. He was elected Prime Minister three times, the first in 1994. For more now we are joined by CNN senior international correspondent Ben Wedeman in Rome for us. Then, obviously the tributes have been pouring in, but they are quite carefully worded, which in some ways does reflect the controversial legacy that Berlusconi leaves.
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, everybody is sort of giving their own take on Berlusconi's legacy and certainly it sort of spans the spectrum. For instance, here is "il Giornale" a newspaper affiliated with Silvio Berlusconi, and he is called the last cavaliere, the last knight.
[04:40:00]
He was frequently known by the nickname of "il cavaliere."
And we have an editorial here saying he was a self-made man who changed world politics. So for many here in Italy, he was a larger- than-life figure. A man who really held out lots of promise and fundamentally changing the way this country was run.
However, it's worth pointing out that when he finally left office after about 20 years, the Italian economy had not grown at all. And the country's debt had skyrocketed. So, not much to show for all those years in politics.
Now the other end of this spectrum, Bianca, is a little different. This is "il Fatto Quotidiano." Banana Republic is how they describe Italy under Silvio Berlusconi. They go on to describe all the many scandals he mostly survived.
He had to deal with one legal case after another regarding tax evasion, business wrongdoing, sexual wrongdoing with minors and so on and so forth. And in fact, the editor of this newspaper, Marco Travaglio, basically goes an entire column on the front and an entire column on the back listing all of his most famous gaffes and lies during his long career in business and politics.
So, very much a mixed legacy as you can see from these newspapers. And almost everybody you speak to has a strong opinion about Silvio Berlusconi ranging from the very positive to the extremely negative -- Bianca.
FOSTER: A lot of people are making a note of, you know, the grand scale of this funeral. It feels like a state funeral. Is it? How have they classed it and what sort of consideration went into that do you think?
WEDEMAN: It is going to be a state funeral. It's going to be held at the Duomo, the main cathedral in Milan -- his essentially hometown. It will be -- tomorrow will be a national day of mourning. As of yesterday when the news came out, flags were flown at half-mast across the country. And his funeral will be broadcast live on all television stations in Italy that choose to broadcast it.
So, it's fairly large, but keep in mind he died yesterday and his funeral is tomorrow. So that doesn't allow a lot of time for perhaps his old colleagues, fellow statesmen to come. For instance, we don't believe Vladimir Putin is coming here even though he described himself as a dear friend of Silvio Berlusconi. So it is officially a large important state funeral. The question is how many people are actually going to come from abroad to participate and commemorate the life of Silvio Berlusconi -- Max.
FOSTER: OK, Ben, thank you very much for joining us from Rome.
A Utah mom accused of killing her husband before writing a children's book about grief will remain in custody pending the outcome of her trial. The judge's decision to deny bail comes as new details from the investigation emerge. CNN's Camila Bernal is following developments from Los Angeles.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Investigators revealing new and very chilling details of the searches that were made on Kouri Richins' phone. And they say that all of this happened after she gave her husband a lethal dose of fentanyl.
Some of the searches on her phone included things like, what is a lethal dose of fentanyl or can cops force you do a lie detector test or luxury prisons for the rich in America. This was just some of the evidence that was presented in court in this detention hearing. Where the prosecution put on a number of witnesses, including the detective that looked at this data from the phone. Looked at the data that was deleted. And also look at her movements on the night of Eric's death.
They also put a financial expert on the stand that was able to talk about their debt, the situation that they were in at the time, the life insurance policies, and the fact that she got about $1.3 million after Eric's death.
His sister was also on the stand delivering a victim impact statement. And she talked about their children, the three kids. And asked the judge to protect the kids saying that the judge should not allow Kouri to her spend her life insurance policy money on bail.
We also heard from her defense attorney, from Kouri's defense attorney about what they're looking to do moving forward. She acknowledged that this was a tragic situation and said that Kouri loved her husband.
[04:45:00] But also said that there was no evidence to show that Kouri did anything to Eric. She also pointed to the fact that one of their witnesses, the drug dealer, that essentially authorities say sold the drugs to Kouri, they say that her testimony has evolved as she has been speaking to detectives. Here is what her defense attorney is saying.
SKYE LAZARO, ATTORNEY FOR KOURI RICHINS: There's nothing to make the most important correlation in this, and that is that it was ever provided to Kouri, that Kouri ever requested it. There was no fentanyl or traces of fentanyl found in the home anywhere. Being bad with money does not make you a murderer. Being bad at managing your accounts, I mean, it makes you bad at math, but it doesn't make you a murderer. BERNAL: But at the end the judge sided with the prosecution denying
Kouri Richins bail and citing the evidence that was presented by the prosecution.
Camila Bernal, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NOBILO: One person died and nearly a dozen others injured after a tour boat capsized in an underground cave in New York on Monday. Officials say the boat was touring the Lockport Cave near Niagara Falls and it became unbalanced and flipped over throwing everyone into the water.
FOSTER: They say a 60-year-old man was stuck under the vessel and eventually died, and 16 others were rescued. Police say they're treating the area as a crime scene for now and an investigation is ongoing.
In the coming hours U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is set to visit Pennsylvania and to see the collapsed section of Interstate 95 in Philadelphia. A tanker truck caught fire after crashing into a wall causing part of the highway to cave in on Sunday. State officials say full repairs could take months but first they have to take down more of the roadway.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE CAROL, PHILADELPHIA TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: PennDOT contractors will work 24/7 in an effort to try and speed up the solution set. And we continue to engineer the solution set that will come after the demolition is completed. And we expect that demolition to be completed in four or five days.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NOBILO: Police say they are working to identify a body recovered from the wreckage as well. They also confirm there will be no criminal investigation into this accident.
We're learning more about how four children survived more than a month in the Colombian Amazon after a plane crash that killed their mother and two others. The oldest child, a 13-year-old girl named Leslie, is being hailed for her, quote, heroic role in caring for her siblings and keeping them alive in the jungle.
FOSTER: A member of the rescue team says the children built a small shelter and that Leslie used a soda bottle to get water from a nearby river. The children are now being treated at a hospital in Bogota. Their grandfather shared more about his resourceful granddaughter's quick thinking.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NARCISO MUCUTUY, CHILDREN'S GRANDFATHER (through translator): When she looked and saw that her mother was dead, she saw the feet of her youngest sister where the three dead were. And she pulled her out. She immediately saw her other two siblings hurt so she opened her mother's bag, took out clothes, ripped them, and wrapped them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Just amazing. Isn't it?
Now just ahead, the Denver Nuggets made franchise history on Monday winning their first ever NBA title. You will hear from the players next.
[04:50:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: Just into CNN. U.K. police have declared a serious incident in the city of Nottingham.
NOBILO: The say a man has been arrested after three people were found dead. And you can see it here. The area has been cordoned off and police are standing guard. They're working to get more information on this story and we'll bring you the latest as it becomes available.
FOSTER: I mean, there was a huge reaction you're hearing online. A lot of people in Nottingham saying that there is a huge incident and a lot of roads are closed off. Sort of making sense now because the police are saying that there was one incident at 4:00 a.m. where two people were found dead in the streets.
Then there's another incident in another street where a van tried to run three people over. They are being treated in hospital. Then another incident in another road where a man was found dead in Magdala Road. So the police would have heard that, reacted in a big way. And also, they used some of the infrastructure which was set up after the Manchester arena attack.
NOBILO: And they have said that they believe that all the incidents are connected and a man has been arrested, as we said.
FOSTER: Yes.
Meanwhile, Denver Nuggets now NBA champions for the first time in their 47-year history in that league. Denver's Nikola Jokic was unstoppable in their series against the Miami Heat. And he made NBA history in these playoffs. Becoming the first player to lead all players in points, rebounds and assists in a single postseason -- according to ESPN. After the game Jokic and Denver's Jamal Murray spoke about their journeys to reach this incredible moment.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIKOLA JOKIC, DENVER NUGGETS CENTER: If you want to be a success, you need a couple of years. You need to be a bad, you need to be the good, and then you need to figure -- then you need to when you are good, you need to fail. And then when you fail, you will figure it out, you know. I think experience is something is not what happens to you, it is what you will do with what happened to you. JAMAL MURRAY, DENVER NUGGETS GUARD: You know, it was just a surreal
moment and everything was hitting. Know what I'm saying? Like everything was hitting at once from the journey, to the celebration with the guys, to enjoying the moment, to looking back on the rehab, to looking back as myself as a kid. As the other viewer, you know, say looking from the crowd in or from the camera lens in, and now looking back at them. You know what I'm saying? If was -- it was a lot. I couldn't hold it in. It was just something I've been working for my whole life. I think Mike said it, Porter, you know, this is everybody -- every real hooper wants to be on this stage and playing the game.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: It is the dream come true. Isn't it?
And now stories in the spotlight. American game show host Pat Sajak announced his planned retirement from the "Wheel of Fortune" on Monday after hosting 40 years of the show's nearly 50-year run. It's got a few to go.
[04:55:00]
NOBILO: Sajak says that his 41st season, starting in September, will be his last. Sajak made the announcement on Twitter saying in part, it has been a wonderful ride, many thanks to you all. So far there's no word on who could replace him.
A new study says light to moderate alcohol consumption may reduce stress and hence lower the risk of heart disease. Researchers found individuals who had one to 14 drinks a week were less likely to have a heart attack or stroke from those who had less than one a week.
FOSTER: I can't keep quite up with these studies. Good, bad --
NOBILO: I know, but quite clearly alcohol is used as a stress reliever by the majority of people.
FOSTER: Yes. The data was adjusted for genetic, lifestyle and other risk factors. The study has been published in the journal of the "American College of Cardiology."
NOBILO: I don't drink and I am quite stressed, aren't I?
FOSTER: I do drink and you are --
NOBILO: You're very chilled. Cool as a cucumber.
FOSTER: Or maybe it just -- well, I mean there are so many factors go into it.
NOBILO: Two characters from the Pixar animated classic "Up" will return to the big screen. Widower Carl Fredricksen and his lovable dog, Dug, are to the appear in the upcoming short film "Carl's Date."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARL FREDRICKSEN: ... like me and wants to go out on a date.
Oh, I don't know how to date.
They are fun, right?
DUG: Fun is digging in the dirt and destroying your flowers
FREDRICKSEN Flowers!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: According to the film synopsis, Carl reluctantly agrees to go on a date with a lady friend despite having no idea how dating works these days. Ed Asner returns as the voice of Carl. Having recorded his part just months before his death in 2021. "Carl's Date" will hit theaters on Friday showing just before the animated Disney Pixar future "Elemental."
NOBILO: I'm going to watch that for educational purposes.
FOSTER: Say no more. Thanks for joining us here on CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Max Foster.
NOBILO: And I'm Bianca Nobilo. Our coverage of Donald Trump's arraignment continues on "CNN THIS MORNING," next.
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