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Manhunt Under Way for Maine Mass Shooter; Biden Briefed on Maine Mass Shootings; Israeli Prime Minister: Ground Incursion Coming. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired October 26, 2023 - 06:00   ET

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

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

[06:00:39]

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: We begin with breaking news. I'm Poppy Harlow with Phil Mattingly in New York.

An urgent manhunt is under way right now in Maine after a mass shooting -- multiple mass shootings -- at a bowling alley and a bar in Lewiston. Law enforcement sources tell CNN this morning at least 16 people are dead.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN ANCHOR: Police say they're looking for Robert Card. He's described as armed and dangerous, a person of interest in this case.

We're told he's military trained as a firearms instructor and an Army Reserve member, who was recently committed to a mental health facility.

These are the images of the gunman inside the bowling alley. And this video we're showing you right now is of people running out of the building as police search the area with flashlights and their guns drawn.

Listen to this survivor. He says he was bowling when the gunman came in and opened fire just 15 feet behind him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just another night of bowling. And out of nowhere, he just came in, and we heard the loud pop. Thought it was a balloon and had my back turned to the door.

And as soon as I turned and saw that it was not a balloon, he was holding a weapon, I just booked it down the lane. And I slid, basically, into where the pins are and climbed up in the machine and was on top of the machines for about ten minutes until the cops got there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARLOW: So investigators say a vehicle connected to Robert Card was found. It was found near a trail head and a boat launch in a nearby town.

And take a look at this. This is video of a SWAT team with an armored truck and heavily-armed officers rushing to the area.

Hospitals in the area have been just overwhelmed. Sources tell CNN 50 to 60 people were injured in these shootings. Officers with rifles have been standing guard around the hospital in Lewiston. And ABC News spoke to a little girl and a mother who were at the bowling alley for youth night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She was grazed by a bullet while we were running.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I never thought I'd grow up and get a bullet in my leg. And it's just like -- like why? Like why do people do this?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARLOW: And that is the question this morning, posed by that little girl. Omar Jimenez is on the ground in Lewiston, Maine, and joins us now. Omar, what more are you learning?

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so right now we are just nearby the bar and grill, which is one of two mass shooting sites here. It's just past this police checkpoint behind me.

The other being that bowling alley just a few miles from here. But given the scale and the speed with which this happened, it's completely shocked this community that couldn't imagine something like this happening in their own backyard.

It's why residents across this area are being told to shelter in place, and a manhunt is very much active. And as law enforcement say, it is still very much a fluid situation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ (voice-over): A manhunt is under way after police say a gunman opened fire at a restaurant and bowling alley in Lewiston, Maine.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We got multiple victims at scene, multiple victims. I need every unit you can find.

JIMENEZ (voice-over): One witness describes people running from the bowling alley.

NICHOEL WYMAN AREL, EYEWITNESS (via phone): There was kids. That's -- like, looking back, like that was probably the hardest part seeing just families, families pouring out of there. And knowing that that -- that happened in there while they were just probably trying to have a family night.

JIMENEZ (voice-over): The Lewiston Police Department has named 40- year-old Robert Card a person of interest and warn he's armed and dangerous. COMMISSIONER MIKE SAUSCHUCK, MAINE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY: We

have laterally hundreds of police officers working around the state of Maine to investigate this case, to locate Mr. Card, who again, is a person of interest and person of interest only. And we'll continue to gather information.

JIMENEZ (voice-over): The Androscoggin County Sheriff's Office released several surveillance photos of Card holding a high-powered, assault-style rifle and warning those in the Lewiston and other nearby areas to shelter in place.

SAUSCHUCK: Card is considered armed and dangerous. If people see him, they should not approach Card or make contact with him in any way.

JIMENEZ (voice-over): Law enforcement officials tell CNN that Card is a certified firearms instructor and a member of the U.S. Army Reserve. The officials say Card suffered with mental health issues, including hearing voices. He also recently made threats to carry out a shooting at a National Guard facility in Maine.

[06:05:02]

Lewiston police, following the shootings, shared this image of a small white SUV found in nearby Lisbon, Maine. The state police confirmed to CNN the image is of the suspect's car.

The shootings have shaken this community, about 36 miles North of Portland, with Lewiston's mayor saying in a statement, "I'm heartbroken for our city and our people."

The mayor of nearby Auburn, Maine, echoed that state of shock.

MAYOR JASON LEVESQUE, AUBURN, MAINE: I mean, at this point, this is a significant amount of shock going on with people that were actually witnesses. Obviously, when I was bringing people in that were looking for their loved ones, there's fear; there's panic.

JIMENEZ (voice-over): Local officials say hospitals are overwhelmed as they handle a mass casualty event.

ROBERT MCCARTHY, LEWISTON, MAINE, CITY COUNCILOR: The two hospitals have called in every off-duty staff member that they could to deal with this. We are a town of about 39,000. Our hospitals are not geared to handle this kind of shooting event, and they're doing the best we can.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ (on camera): Now, Schemengees Bar and Grill restaurant is where one of the mass shootings happened, and it is past this police checkpoint where we are right now.

They have it closed off to people, as we can see some investigators with some flashlights are still poking around in the area.

But like I said earlier, this is still very much an active situation. Schools are canceled throughout the area as they try to get a handle on things and, of course, figure out why this happened --

HARLOW: Yes.

JIMENEZ: -- in the first place.

HARLOW: And Omar, obviously you've had a lot of experience covering mass shootings. What makes this one even different is that you've got this gunman on -- on the loose. So I just wonder what your experience has been on the ground so far in that community.

JIMENEZ: Well, even as you first get into town, talking to even the few that we have, one, everybody is talking about it and concerned about it.

Even when we checked into our hotel, they wouldn't open the doors for us unless we put our I.D. up against the window of -- or the window of the glass doors, essentially, to get in.

And even when the clerk came to let us in, he kind of sulked and got behind shelter little by little, and then poked his head out of the corner, and then asked us to see it. Because he didn't want to expose himself, in case we potentially had a weapon, which clearly seemed to be what he was worried about.

So -- so of course, the manhunt is still very much active. But it also is having an effect on some of the residents here who just want answers: specifically where this person could be, who law enforcement consider armed and dangerous.

HARLOW: Yes. Omar, that response makes sense, right, because they're being told to shelter in place. Thank you, Omar. We'll be back to you very soon.

MATTINGLY: Scanner audio obtained by CNN captured the chaos that ensued. I want to play part of that for you.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What do they got?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Active shooter on Mollison Way at the bowling place.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's going to be a male, black hair with a hoodie. Looked like a rifle.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to divert our units to Schemengees, Schemengees. We've got another active shooter there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know if any description has been given out for the Schemengees one, but again, a black sweatshirt, male with a black sweatshirt, last seen headed toward the treatment plant. That's all she could tell me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've got multiple victims on scene. Multiple victims. I need every unit you can find. (END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: Joining us now, CNN senior law enforcement analyst Andrew McCabe; and CNN senior law enforcement analyst Charles Ramsey. Thank you so much for joining us, guys.

Andy, I want to start with you. Based on what we know up to this point, considering his background and career, what do you think law enforcement is doing at this moment in the midst of this manhunt?

ANDREW MCCABE, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, Phil, they are, in addition to searching and running down every possible lead they can come up with, attempting to identify and establish perimeters, to section off areas that -- areas of interest where they think he might be.

They're also thinking very clearly about protecting themselves, because any law enforcement officers engaged in this -- in this search realizes that the ultimate confrontation which will take place at some point, whether it's an hour from now or five days from now, whatever that ends up being, is going to be a highly-charged, incredibly dangerous moment, when you have law enforcement facing off, essentially, with a highly trained, very skilled, heavily armed killer, a person who just killed at least 16 people that we know of.

This is, you know, you can -- I can guarantee you that those officers and those agents who are out there doing this work right now are at the absolute limit of their stress and -- and perception and intensity right now.

HARLOW: Commissioner Ramsey, look, you ran the police force in Philadelphia, so I'm wondering what your read is on the fact that the police had a presser last night around 11 p.m. They're not going to have another one, as we understand it, until 10:30 a.m.

[06:10:03]

That seems like a lot of time, when you have so many outstanding questions. Can you explain why that would be?

CHARLES RAMSEY, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, I mean, it is a lot of time, but they've also been very careful in terms of the information that they've been releasing. You could actually hear that last night.

They wouldn't verify the number of dead, for an example, or anything beyond, really, his -- his I.D.

And so I don't know whether or not that is part of it or not. Obviously, they want to only put out facts. There's always a lot of information that's floating around whenever you have something like this. Some of it is misinformation.

Earlier last night, we were reporting 22 because of a city council person. Now there -- now, it's 16. So there's a lot of information that has to be verified before they

can really get before the cameras and provide the public with information.

Right now, the best thing for people to do is shelter in place. Stay off the street.

HARLOW: Yes.

RAMSEY: Give police a call if they hear or anything at all that is suspicious.

MATTINGLY: And to that point, though, Commissioner, this is a community that is locked down at this point in time. Information would seem helpful. I think as Omar was relaying, people are scared, with good reason.

Is there an investigative reason to keep the details at a minimum at this point?

RAMSEY: Well, there's always an investigative reason. You never want to put all the information out. I mean, bad guys watch television, too. So there's always some information that you're going to hold close.

But this is a situation where you've got people that are really afraid and rightfully so. And so the more information you can put out, the better off you are. And certainly, you know, waiting until 10 a.m. or so.

But we'll find out when they have their press conference. Right now, of course, you've got offices that have worked overnight. There is a lot of activity taking place. They've got to be able to find some relief for some of those officers that have been out all night long.

They've got areas that they're searching. Certainly, if there's a house, you've got a car now that's been abandoned. They don't know, at least I don't -- we don't know whether or not he had a second car available to him.

This was a very well-planned event, it looks like. So they don't even know if he's still in that immediate area. At least they are not saying.

HARLOW: Andy McCabe, Charles Ramsey, please stay with us. We have a lot more to get to with you. We will continue this breaking news coverage of this urgent manhunt for the gunman responsible for last night's deadly mass shootings.

One of the scenes of the murders was Schemengees Bar and Grill. That's in Lewiston, Maine. The restaurant posted on their Facebook page overnight: "My heart is crushed. I'm at a loss for words. In a split second, your world gets turned upside-down for no good reason. We lost great people in this community. How can we make sense of this? Sending out prayers to everyone."

Back in a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:16:28]

MATTINGLY: We are continuing to follow the breaking news of the mass shooting in Maine last night.

President Biden was briefed last night on that mass shooting. He's also spoken with Maine's governor, Janet Mills, and members of Maine's congressional delegation, including senators Angus King and Susan Collins.

CNN's Priscilla Alvarez is live for us outside the White House. Priscilla, do we know anything from inside the administration in terms of what comes next as this manhunt continues?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, in those conversations, Phil, the president offered full support to Maine and any federal needs that they may have.

But an operation does kick in here at the White House when a mass shooting alert happens. And that includes the White House situation room, the National Security Council working with Justice Department and law enforcement agencies, along with the Office of Inter- Governmental Affairs to track down information and try to understand what is happening on the ground.

Oftentimes, it is the homeland security adviser who is advising the president, briefing the president as they learn more. And then advisers keep them updated throughout the day.

So that is what we are anticipating today, is that the president will continue to be briefed on what is happening as local law enforcement also tries to wrap their arms around what exactly occurred here.

But there is a lot of discussions within the White House and briefings and updates that are occurring minute by minute as local law enforcement tries to understand the situation.

HARLOW: And it's notable, Priscilla, this is just about a month after the White House, the Biden administration, established this first ever White House Office for Gun Violence. Talk about that and the big picture of any further movement on gun legislation on Capitol Hill.

ALVAREZ: Well, it speaks to the fact that this is an administration that realizes that this is commonplace. Unfortunately, mass shootings have become a reality they have to contend with.

And so this includes, for example, this office implementing the president's signature gun legislation which includes expanded background checks, as well as looking into what other actions the administration can take on this front.

Because while the president has called for stricter gun laws, there's a reality that that faces an uphill battle in Congress, where there are deep divisions over gun legislation.

And so part of this office is also looking at what other executive actions can be taken. The president has already taken two dozen of those.

But while we wait for the president's statement today, we can also expect that he will be calling for those stricter gun laws and movement in Congress to make sure this happens and avoid other tragedies like this one.

MATTINGLY: All right. Priscilla Alvarez, thank you. Keep us posted.

HARLOW: So a middle school in Auburn, Maine, is one of the reunification centers after the mass shootings last night. The mayor of Auburn spoke to our Laura Coates overnight about what he was seeing there. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LAURA COATES, CNN ANCHOR: Do you -- can you give me a sense of the ages of the people who were present at that bowling alley?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Anywhere from probably 12 to 90. And everywhere in between.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARLOW: Back with us, CNN senior law enforcement analyst Andy McCabe and senior law enforcement analyst for CNN, Charles Ramsey.

Andy, let's talk about what we -- we actually know quite a bit about -- about this -- what authorities are calling a person of interest this morning. We know that he is a certified arms instructor. We know that he is a member of the U.S. Army Reserves.

We also know that he was committed for about two weeks at a mental health facility just about a year ago. With all that information, how does that guide this hunt for him?

MCCABE: Well, you know, I think -- I think that all those facts, Poppy, put together, these are things who are directing this search, as well as the folks who are conducting the search, the law enforcement officers and agents on the ground doing it, they are thinking about each one of these factors as they're out there looking for this person.

[06:20:20]

You know, knowing that he has recently gone through -- I say recently. It sounds like it was probably in the last few months or sometime this summer, that he spent time in a facility. But in any case, recently gone through a period of mental instability, a time when he made threats to the base that he is -- in Saco, Maine, where he's assigned as a reservist.

You know, you -- you realize that the person who you're looking for is highly skilled, highly trained, lots of experience and also potentially in the middle of a mental health crisis in which they are not logical, or imbalanced, or not able to really make competent or effective or rational decisions, if confronted.

So all these things just take an incredibly charged and dangerous situation and make it that much tougher to deal with.

HARLOW: And Andy, just to follow that, I mean, I think everyone listening to your answer is going to say, well, what about a red flag law? Does Maine have a red flag law that would allow family or a judge to say this person shouldn't have a firearm?

Charles Ramsey, you're shaking your head. They don't. They have something called a yellow flag law, and that requires a medical official, a doctor, to sign off on taking their firearm away. Can you speak to that, Commissioner?

RAMSEY: Well, Maine doesn't have very strong gun laws right now. And certainly a red flag law -- and you're always kind of guessing whether or not that would have made a difference or not. But certainly, having something like that in place would have at least made it more likely that they could have taken some kind of action.

Earlier, I was listening to one of the programs, and they mentioned what law enforcement could do. Well, there's very little that law enforcement can do without the proper laws being in place.

And so all this stuff has to be evaluated at some point in time. Hopefully, their state legislator -- legislature will do that. Although I'm not optimistic that there will be any real changes in the gun laws.

But it just shows that, once again, that guns, especially very dangerous guns, fall into the hands of very dangerous people. And this is just one more example of that that we're dealing with now.

MATTINGLY: All right. Andrew McCabe, Charles Ramsey, stay with us. Much more to get to throughout the hour.

But right now, police are urgently searching for the gunman responsible for the deadly mass shootings in Maine last night. We've got have much more of our breaking coverage ahead.

HARLOW: Also in Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu telling Israelis in a televised address that a ground incursion into Gaza is coming soon. He did not say when. We're live in Israel, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:26:48]

HARLOW: Back to the breaking news this morning. An urgent manhunt is under way right now for the gunman behind multiple mass shootings in Maine overnight. Here is what we know right now.

The exact number killed, unclear. Law enforcement is telling CNN at least 16 people are dead. Dozens more injured in Lewiston, Maine. The shootings happened at two separate locations: a bowling alley and a restaurant.

Police have identified 40-year-old Robert Card as a person of interest. They say he's on the run and should be considered armed and dangerous.

MATTINGLY: Here's what else we know about Card. He is a certified firearms instructor and a member of the U.S. Army Reserve. Officials say Card had recently made threats to carry out a shooting at a National Guard facility in Maine. He also has reported mental health issues including hearing voices.

Maine officials say hundreds of police officers are now working across the state to locate Card. People who live in and around Lewiston are being told to shelter in place. Lewiston public schools and nearby districts have canceled classes today.

Anyone with information on the shooting or Robert Card's whereabouts has been urged to contact law enforcement.

HARLOW: So a reporter from our local affiliate, WMTW, is outside the hospital where those shooting victims were taken.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've seen a lot of law enforcement here at CMMC. We've seen some of them, frankly, almost patrolling the premises of this area with their assault-style weapons, almost as if they are guarding the White House or another government building.

We've seen that -- those law enforcement officers transport people in and out of the hospital.

Nurses that are leaving and even some families that we've seen coming in and looking distressed. And we've seen some of them waiting in the waiting room, in the emergency room. Certainly, an incredibly long night for them.

We've spoken to nurses here who have worked in the operating room throughout the night, and really, just the looks that they've given us have told the story.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARLOW: Our thanks to him. We also have our teams on the ground in Maine right now that will have updates for us throughout the morning.

MATTINGLY: We're also following another major story this morning. Earlier this morning, smoke billowing over Gaza after an airstrike, as seen from Sderot, Israel.

Israel says they conducted a targeted raid with tanks inside Northern Gaza, before withdrawing. You can see in this video published by the IDF, armored vehicles, including a bulldozer, which Israel says is part of the preparations for the next stage of combat. and these new satellite images show significant destruction across

Gaza. On the left, an image from October 10. On the right, just 11 days later.

HARLOW: Yes. You can see how much is flattened there.

This all comes as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke yesterday about his plans for a ground incursion. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): We are raining down hellfire on Hamas. We have already eliminated thousands of terrorists. And this is only the beginning.

At the same time, we are preparing for a ground incursion. I will not detail when, how or how many. Or the overall consideration that we are taking into account, Most of which are unknown to the public. And this is how it needs to be in order to safeguard the lives of our soldiers.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARLOW: Erin Burnett joins us from Jerusalem.

Erin, there was a big set of movements on the ground overnight, and I'm wondering how significant was, especially in the context of what we just heard the prime minister say.

ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: Very significant.

[06:30:00]