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Erin Burnett Outfront

Parents Of Bombing Suspects Coming To U.S.; Russia Alerted CIA And FBI About Tsarnaev; Tamerlan's Widow Stays Tight-Lipped; Boston Bombs Set Off By Remote

Aired April 24, 2013 - 19:00   ET

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

ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: OUTFRONT next, breaking news. According to the Russian news media, the parents of the alleged Boston bombers are coming to the United States. What do the investigators want to know?

Plus, was the U.S. warned about the alleged terrorist by the Russians twice?

And Joe Biden weighs in, calls the suspects knock off Jihadists. Are they the new threats in the war on terror? Let's go OUTFRONT.

Good evening, everyone. I'm Erin Burnett. We begin OUTFRONT tonight with breaking news. The parents of the Boston bombing suspects are headed to the United States. That's according to the Russian state news agency. We are covering this story from every angle tonight.

Standing by in Boston, Deb Feyerick on Boylston Street, ground zero for the bombings, with the very latest on the investigation. Brian Todd has new details on a mysterious man named, Misha, a man Tamerlan Tsarnaev's family and friends say had the most influence over him.

And David Mattingly following the money trail. So many want answers to this question. How did the brothers support themselves and how long did they collect welfare from the state of Massachusetts?

Erin McPike is in Rhode Island. Tamerlan Tsarnaev's wife is there. Investigators are asking how could she have not known about the bombs? And we're going to go overseas to Dagestan where Nic Robertson has the very latest on the meeting today between U.S. officials and the bomber's parents.

And Joe Johns is in Washington with new information about what Russian officials told the FBI and the CIA. Some damming details about whether our intelligence agencies may have dropped the ball.

I want to begin though with Deb Feyerick in Boston. Deb, what do we know about this visit from the parents?

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this is news that we just got, came across a couple moments ago. What we're being told is that Russian newspaper is reporting that in fact the two parents are going to be leaving their homes in Dagestan and coming to the United States. Now it's unclear exactly when, but we're hearing that it may be as early as tomorrow. This is according to the Russian news agency. And, Erin, right now no U.S. agency has confirmed that they will be traveling here.

But it's also, you know, the big question, will they be interviewed by the FBI? Will they be allowed to see their son? Right now, the Russian newspaper is saying that they agreed to cooperate in the investigation. But the question is on what terms and who is facilitating all this?

So right now what we have is a Russian newspaper reporting this, but no confirmation yet by any U.S. agencies. You can bet we've been calling around to virtually everyone. We did hear from somebody in Washington saying, no, we don't comment on the travel of private citizens -- Erin.

BURNETT: All right, Deb, that will be interesting. Of course, at least the mother had said that her sons were framed. So no doubt there is going to be some serious questions there. Deb, right behind you, I can see a memorial with a lot of flowers. You're at the sight of where the first bomb went off. What are investigators doing?

FEYERICK: You know, what is fascinating is that we have been keeping an eye on this location since the day the marathon happened. You know, the finish line is not more than 50 feet ahead of me. And what is so strange, so odd is when you look at this location this is believed to be the location where the bomb was placed.

Investigators, forensic agents removed parts and pieces of buildings, of concrete. There were other areas, all of this gathering evidence gathering information, and to think that Tamerlan Tsarnaev was in this spot leaving that backpack behind.

What's so incredible is, you know, I walked this entire route. One thing I didn't see, especially in this area were any surveillance cameras. We have so many pictures of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev at various locations, locations that I saw, I passed myself.

But there is no video, no surveillance video of his older brother dropping the particular -- dropping his device, dropping the bomb. You can see the damage that happened here to the upper windows, the glass, the force of the blast, most specifically that white flash and that enormous noise that erupted.

The stores just below you can see. That's where people ran to try to get help. And a number -- they're redoing the interiors of the stores because some people were bleeding and they were trying to get help.

Over here, small memorial, and the one thing I want to show you, this is very unique about this. Everybody is really keeping a respectful distance, Erin. And that is something that when you that two people lost their lives here and multiple others were injured, this really is a hallowed spot right now. It is still very raw and still very fresh in people's minds -- Erin. BURNETT: Deb, thank you very much, just powerful image of seeing the people keeping that distance from that spot. I want to go to Joe Johns in Washington now because we are learning -- this is perhaps a crucial detail, everyone, a big development.

That Russia warned not only the FBI about Tamerlan Tsarnaev, but they also then warned the CIA. And so I know you've been working this story all day. What have you learned about the information that the Russians gave to U.S. intelligence agencies?

JOE JOHNS, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Erin, the headline here is that we now have two U.S. government agencies that say they were warned about alleged Boston bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev. We already knew that the FBI was told about him and investigated him in 2011.

Tonight we learn that the CIA, the Central Intelligence Agency, got basically the same information about Tsarnaev from Russia later the same year. It's important because Tsarnaev was allowed to fly to Russia, stay there for six months and fly back to the United States in 2012.

The question being asked all over Washington right now is why federal authorities didn't start watching Tsarnaev like a hawk when he got back? The FBI says it already checked him out, interviewed him and his family, checked out his online activities, didn't plan anything derogatory.

The CIA says they nominated Tsarnaev to be put at the terror data base watch list system. You know, this included varying nations of the spelling of his name, different dates of birth, provided by the Russians -- Erin.

BURNETT: It sort of adds to this whole question, they were pushing him to be added to lists around the time he was posting those videos, how these dots weren't connected? But so many questions still out there.

What about the list though, Joe? Because, you know, my understanding is that Tamerlan Tsarnaev was already included on some other, quote/unquote "watch list." So is it clear at this point if there was a ball that dropped, who did it?

JOHNS: Yes, still a little foggy. He had already been included in the customs and border protection system earlier in the year when the FBI began this investigation. That system caught the fact that he left the country last year but he had already been cleared by the FBI and there were no grounds to do anything.

And by the time he returned, there was no red flag raised because the alert had expired. None of this, of course, really makes the government look good right now because in hindsight, having your name or having the name of a guy who allegedly blew up the Boston marathon in your files really doesn't help much if you didn't do anything about it -- Erin. BURNETT: Certainly the case especially when the Russians kept coming back again and again. We'll have more on that from the House Intelligence Committee in a moment. The conflicting information about the Tsarnaev brothers isn't only coming from the FBI and the CIA.

We're frankly getting some pre-mixed messages from the Obama administration as well. Here's how Vice President Joe Biden characterized the bombing suspects today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Two twisted, perverted, cowardly knockoff Jihadists.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: But not everyone in the administration seems to share this assessment. Jim Acosta is at the White House tonight. Jim, it was confusing today, some very mixed messages coming out.

JIM ACOSTA, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. The White House has been saying all along that it's too early to draw any conclusions in this case. The White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said earlier today we don't have all of the answers yet.

But that's not exactly what you heard from the vice president there whether he said earlier today that these two suspects were knockoff Jihadists suggesting that they were sort of amateurish.

And also from Secretary of State John Kerry who was in Belgium was meeting with the Belgian foreign minister and was asked by reporters about this case and he seemed to suggest that the older suspect, Tamerlan Tsarnaev may have learned something when he traveled to Southern Russia last year. Here's what Secretary Kerry had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KERRY, SECRETARY OF STATE: We just had a young person who went to Russia and Chechnya who blew people up in Boston. So he didn't stay where he went, but he learned something where he went and he came back with a willingness to kill people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Now the State Department did release a statement to reporters saying that the secretary was simply expressing broad concern about radicalism as they put it and not indicating any new information or conclusion in this case. And then Jay Carney was asked about the vice president's comments about these suspects being knockoff Jihadists at the briefing earlier. Here's what Jay Carney had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAY CARNEY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: There is an investigation under way. We know some things. There is a lot more to learn. That's why the investigation is taking place. (END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: So, Erin, the White House proceeding with extreme caution, obviously for political reasons in this investigation. But that's not always extending to every member of this administration -- Erin.

BURNETT: Certainly what Jay Carney saying very different from what Secretary Kerry said. Thank you so much to Jim Acosta. Well, the investigation is a global investigation and it also is happening in the Russian republic of Dagestan where the suspect's parents live.

Today, FBI officials arrived in Dagestan to speak with them. Nic Robertson is there. Nic, what do we know about these conversations between investigators and the parents and again I put in the caveat, you know, earlier the mother tried to say her sons were framed. People have questioned the father's influence on the sons. What were investigators talking to them about?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We don't know the substance of the conversations. We do know the style of the conversations. A lawyer representing the mother said that the Americans were kind and polite. Now both parents spent all day inside the FSB, the Russian Internal Security Headquarters, building in the center of the city here.

There was very little information actually coming out of the building itself from the FSB. That is typical of the situation. The building itself is so secretive. You're not allowed to actually film it. But it does seem to be the case that progress has been made now hearing from the Russian state news agency that the parents are cooperating and will help investigators and will travel to the United States -- Erin.

BURNETT: And, Nic, you've also -- I know, spent a lot of time at the local mosque there, which could be very central, the one that Tamerlan's believe to have prayed at during the six months that he was there and perhaps mid-extremist is the question mark. What have you learned about what happened there?

ROBERTSON: We went to the mosque today. I certainly get the feeling from people they don't want you filming around you there. They don't journalists questions. We talked to somebody responsible at the mosque. He said, look, there are thousands of young people that attend the mosque here. How can we know if Tamerlan was present?

It seems to sort of really beg the question everyone kind of knows who he is in this city right now. Everyone is pretty much aware of him. So it really does seem surprising he will make a statement like that. Look, you can't say that people with long beards are all radical Islamists, far, far from it.

But when you compare the people attending that mosque with other mosques in the city, there were some people there who would look -- not look out of place on some of the wanted posters that are posted outside police checkpoints here for wanted jihadists. So it's a mosque that itself by its own volition by the words of the people we talked there who admit they go for pure Islam and that other mosques in the city really don't measure up. So it's an extremist venue and possibly a nexus of concern for security services, for intelligence officials -- Erin.

BURNETT: Able to figure that out and go there and see that. Thanks very much to Nic in Dagestan. Still OUTFRONT, were the Russians right? Did the United States ignore their warnings?

Plus, the very latest on the woman would was married to Tamerlan Tsarnaev. Authorities are focused in on some crucial questions like how she lived in that small apartment with him and didn't know anything.

And following the money, the Tsarnaevs have been on government assistance without a job. How was Tamerlan financing his lifestyle and the attacks, a special report.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: Tonight, CNN is learning that Russia not only tipped off the FBI about Tamerlan Tsarnaev but also the CIA after the FBI didn't seem to find anything wrong. As our Joe Johns reported, that second warning from Russia came just months after the FBI formally cleared Tsarnaev of having terrorist ties in 2011. Still, officials tell us his name automatically went into at least three federal data bases.

This new CIA development tonight is raising serious questions about what this nation's intelligence agencies did with the information and whether they missed obvious warning signs about an emerging jihadist.

Republican senator Jim Risch is OUTFRONT. He serves on the intelligence committee. Good to see you, sir, and I appreciate your taking the time. I know you've been briefed on the investigation. We've now found out that FBI was contacted by Russian intelligence. And then Russian intelligence, ostensibly frustrated that the FBI didn't find anything derogatory, contacted the CIA. The former CIA operative, Bob Baer, told us here today that Russia does not turn over its citizens to the United States unless they have something concrete. Do you know what the Russians were telling the U.S.?

SEN. JIM RISCH (R), IDAHO: I do. And I think the actual text of the communications, or at least part of them, have been reported by CNN. And it is really important to focus on the text of what was said by the Russians.

BURNETT: And the Russians -- I mean, I guess my sense when you were talking about the information you may know that is classified -- the FBI says they looked at it and didn't find anything derogatory. So --

RISCH: Well, no --

BURNETT: There was no smoking gun in there?

RISCH: I don't think that they could actually say that it wasn't derogatory. I mean, the actual text is very derogatory. The difficulty is that it's conclusory. That is, they state conclusions in there, but they don't have the factual basis for it. It was sufficient however, for the FBI obviously to open a file, to open an investigation, to interview him, to interview neighbors and his family and determine what level of risk they believe was possible. And of course, at that point, they have a number of opportunities as to what they can do, including having the person followed full-time. But they have thousands of people on the lists, and they have to triage them as to who they think are the ones that are important.

BURNETT: That's right. And that could be part of why this happened.

But let me ask you. So the FBI says, all right, we don't think there is anything here. The Russians then go to the CIA. The CIA say we want this guy added to the terror watch list, which doesn't happen, although he is in other data bases. He then goes to a location in Russia that is a hot bed for Islamic extremism, comes home and starts posting videos on the Web of a radicalizer, a radical -- a person who is known to make bombs and kill people. When you think about that, how were the dots not connected?

RISCH: Yes, well, when you string that all together, it's obvious that dots were connected. But Erin, first of all, I want to be absolutely certain, I am not stating or confirming about the conversations with the CIA. We haven't got that far yet. I can confirm to you that the Russians did once in the spring send the communication to U.S. authorities and again in the fall, essentially the same information. They were asked to expand on that. They were asked for the factual basis for it. And that wasn't forthcoming. I'm sure not because they were hiding it, but for the same reasons we do things here, and that is there are thousands of people involved in these things.

BURNETT: Right. Hindsight of course is 20/20. You wonder why this person had already been looked into this much, they come back and start posting the videos and nobody notices. I mean, that is what is terrifying here.

RISCH: Clearly. Clearly. And you know, before 9/11, all of this information was stove piped. That is, it was kept within particular agencies. We have demanded that be expanded. I can tell you today it is substantially better than it was then. It's not perfect. And I think one of the things that you just underscored is that it's not perfect. Again, keeping in mind that they have to triage these people because they have thousands of them. And prior to this we had not had the experience with Chechnyan radicals that had caused us difficulties. Ours are the al Qaeda from the Arabian Peninsula.

BURNETT: All right. Well, thank you very much, sir. And obviously raising a crucial question, which is maybe the reason the FBI and the CIA didn't take this more seriously was because it was related to Chechnya and Russia, and that wasn't considered to be a high priority. They had their eye focused on al Qaeda.

OUTFRONT next, officials are asking more questions about how the wife of Tamerlan Tsarnaev could have lived with a terrorist suspect up until the bombing and even after the bombing in a very small apartment and know nothing?

And are brothers more likely to carry out an attack like this than an only child? The psychology of fraternal terror.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: The Boston bombing investigation tonight is focusing ever more tightly on Tamerlan Tsarnaev's wife, Katherine Russell, also known as Katie. Sources close to the investigation tell CNN's Gloria Borger that there are major questions tonight surrounding the woman who was closest to the suspected Boston bombers. And one of the questions is this: how is it possible, as authorities tell Gloria, that Russell did not see bombs being made in the couple's tiny home?

Erin McPike is OUTFRONT tonight in Rhode Island. And Erin, I know there are a lot of questions about the older brother's wife. We've only seen her in pictures. You've been there today. What can you tell us?

ERIN MCPIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We did go into the attorney's office today, Erin. But they're being very tight lipped. I spoke to Katie Russell's attorney on the phone a little bit ago and she's still not saying anything. She's being very quiet on behalf of her client. Will not say whether or not Katie Russell has sat down with authorities. But what I can tell you is this: the presence this morning of federal agents and of media was very heavy at the house earlier today. But it's greatly diminished now, Erin.

BURNETT: And you also had a chance, I know, to talk to some people who knew Katie. What do they tell you, Erin?

MCPIKE: Well, basically, they're saying that Katie Russell came from a great family. Everyone likes her sister. They thought Katie was very well-liked, dependable, hard-working. Talked to one of her younger sister, Anna's friends, Emily Roberts earlier today, and this is what she had to say about that. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EMILY ROBERTS, FRIEND OF BOSTON BOMBER'S WIDOW: Honestly, it was such a surprise. I -- when I heard the news. I didn't believe it at first. Just because it's, you know, especially in North Kingstown, small town. But no, especially not the Russells, never. They're such a wonderful family that I couldn't believe it. And I doubt that she knew anything about it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCPIKE: And, Erin, that's what we're getting from a lot of people in North Kingstown today. They're very surprised by this whole thing. A lot of members of the community don't like the big presence and focus on this right now.

BURNETT: All right, Erin McPike, thank you very much. Reporting from Rhode Island tonight.

Next, Tamerlan Tsarnaev had been on government assistance. Does that shock you? It shocked us. Well apparently, that's true. What changed, and how could it have affected his lifestyle before the alleged bombings?

And who is Misha? Family members say the brothers were influenced by this mysterious man at a Boston mosque. Who is he? Does he even exist?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: We start the second half of our show with other major headlines we are watching tonight.

In West, Texas, today, CNN got the first close-up look at the destruction caused by the fertilizer plant explosion. Investigators allowed our cameras to access the blast site. I just want to show you what we saw -- the scope of the devastation, hard to comprehend.

Our producer Tom Berry (ph) is on the ground and says the footprint where the fertilizer plant stood is now the size of a crater. Ninety- three feet wide, concrete chunks of the plant, some he described the size of shopping carts, are strewn hundreds of yards from the blast's location. One hundred forty homes have been destroyed and we're told authorities are still trying to figure out what caused the fire and the explosion. So far, they have ruled out natural causes like lightning.

Well, there are new developments tonight in the murder trial of Dr. Kermit Gosnell who is accused of performing late term abortions. Gosnell was initially charged with eight counts of murder. But a judge threw out three of the charges on Tuesday. That surprised some.

But then in court today, Gosnell's defense attorney cross-examined the state's witnesses but did not call a single witness for the defense.

Our legal analyst Paul Callan was surprised that there was in medical expert called to defend the doctor which he says suggests a serious weakness in the doctor's case and indicates that the defense had trouble finding anyone who would defend the practices at the clinic. Closing arguments in that case will be Monday.

Well, air delays are hitting the United States more than 1,000 delays attributed in just one day to furloughs from the forced budget cuts passed by Congress. Now, many dispute whether these were necessary. But in all, nearly 50,000 FAA workers are being forced to take unpaid time off to save money.

The Obama administration said today it would be open to legislation that would give the FAA flexibility with its budget, but called that a band-aid approach. A spokeswoman for the Airlines for America tells OUTFRONT the lobbying group is trying to halt the furloughs and calls them irresponsible and unnecessary. And many are arguing that these are not required by the sequester. Well, we have an OUTFRONT investigation on whether that adds up tomorrow night.

And, finally, an update on the ricin investigation. FBI agents today searched the former martial arts studio of James Everett Dutschke in connection with the ricin-tainted letters sent to President Obama and others on Capitol Hill. Authorities are not calling Dutschke a suspect but he is connected to Paul Kevin Curtis, the Elvis impersonator who is charged but then cleared of sending the letters.

Former FBI assistant director Tom Fuentes tells OUTFRONT the FBI was erring on the side of caution by arresting Curtis, given that the ricin is so lethal, because this was unfolding amid the Boston bombings. But it is fair to say that someone tried to kill the president and is at large tonight.

It has been 629 days since the U.S. lost its top credit rating. What are we doing to get it back?

Well, stocks went up to day. The S&P 500 rising for the fourth day in a row. Apple, though, had 18 percent drop in earnings the first drop for Apple in a decade.

And now, I want to return to our continuing coverage of the Boston bombings. Tonight, we are learning more about the life of the Tsarnaev brothers and what they were living like before their alleged attack. You know, we've shown you the small apartment, but there seems to be fancy cars and a lavish lifestyle. Take a look at the photographs. It shows Tamerlan Tsarnaev looking what appears to be rather lavish lifestyle, talented boxer, some pretty fancy clothes.

But it may not have been the case. From what we can report, it appears Tsarnaev was strapped for cash, relying on welfare up until last year.

David Mattingly is OUTFRONT, and what have you learned about the finances of this family?

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Immigrant family that didn't have a lot. The father was a mechanic and the mother reportedly offered facials out of their small apartment. They did receive assistance from the state. This could have included temporary aid and food stamps.

The Tsarnaev brothers would have benefited from this when they were younger, getting government assistance through their parents. When he was older and on his own, the older brother Tamerlan along with his wife and child also received assistance. This went on until 2012 when they became ineligible. That was because they eventually made too much money to qualify -- Erin.

BURNETT: And let me ask you, David.

You know, too much money to qualify. Could any of the taxpayer finance assistance have contributed to the attacks of the Boston marathon? I mean, that's the question I suppose everyone must ask tonight.

MATTINGLY: Well, he and his family were getting assistance at a time relatives say he was becoming radicalized. We confirm with the state that the assistance stopped for Tamerlan in 2012. But they didn't need a lot of money to carry out the attack. As I learned in the recent demonstration of a pressure cooker bomb, they're not sophisticated and they're cheap. The brothers could have built the two bombs for a couple hundred dollars or even less.

BURNETT: Oh, and it's just incredible. And a lot of the other explosives they found of the similar nature were to the pressure cooker that you just describe. But is there any indication of how much money they did have at this point, David?

MATTINGLY: Well, it doesn't look like they had a lot. The oldest brother, Tamerlan, had worked delivering pizzas but more recently he was a stay at home dad, taking care of his daughter while his wife was the breadwinner. Now, according to her attorney, she was working at the 80 hours a week as a home health care aide.

Tamerlan did have a car, a 14-year-old Honda worth about $4,000. Now, the younger brother, 19-year-old Dzhokhar, it's hard to get a clear picture of. One person who knows said he like to talk big about fancy cars, soccer and girls.

But in reality, he was a student at the University of Massachusetts in Dartmouth. The school won't tell us if he was getting financial aid. The school says tuition and fees and everything runs about $21,000 a year, and about two-thirds of the students there are getting some kind of assistance.

The one extravagance we found out about almost everyone we talked to who knows Dzhokhar says he likes to smoke marijuana a lot, where he got the money for this and for school, we really don't know. He was known to drive a Honda Civic that is as old as he is, but that car is actually registered to his father and worth maybe about $2,000.

And something that happened that may say a lot about the brothers and their welfare, or rather the lack of it. Their last act before getting caught in a gun fight with police was to take $800 out of an ATM using a stolen card suggesting, Erin, that they needed the cash.

BURNETT: I guess that perhaps speaks more than anything else.

Thank you very much, David Mattingly, with some new detail on something a lot of you have been repeatedly asking us about on Twitter. Where did they get the money?

The other question out there tonight who is the mysterious man who may have convinced Tamerlan Tsarnaev to become a radical jihadist? According to relatives, they say there is a man of Armenian dissent identified only as Misha who began a close relationship with Tsarnaev back in 2009.

Our Brian Todd is in Boston tonight trying to track down who Misha is and learn more about this mystery man.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Family members describe a mysterious man who say had a mesmerizing influence on Tamerlan Tsarnaev. They only know him as Misha. They say they don't know his full name. Here's how the suspect's uncle described the man and his influence on the older brother in an interview with CNN.

RUSLAN TSARNI, SUSPECTS' UNCLE: There is a person that converts into Islam from Armenian dissent. I said this personally that he took his brain. He'd just brainwashed him completely. Tamerlan is off now. There's no obedience and respect to his own father. That concerns me big time, unbelievably.

TODD: More pieces fit together in a telephone interview Wolf Blitzer did with the ex-brother-in-law of the two suspects. Elmirza Khozhgov said he met Misha twice, was introduced to him by Tamerlan. Khozhgov didn't witness Misha actually turning Tamerlan into a radical Islamist --

ELMIRZA KHOZHGOV, SUSPECTS' FORMER BROTHER-IN-LAW: He surely did have influence and did teach him things that would make Tamerlan, you know, go away from the people and go more into the religion. And maybe that's possible that he suggested to him some radical ideas.

TODD: Khozhgov said Tamerlan Tsarnaev had told him he'd quit boxing and listening to mainstream music because Misha taught him that in Islam, it's not good to do those things. Asked if he suspected that Misha was connected to any terrorist groups --

KHOZHGOV: I didn't suspect either him or Tamerlan being connected to terror groups or having terrorist ideas. But I know that they had a lot of conversations about just, you know, Islam and how Islam is being attacked from the outside from the Western countries and how Islam is under pressure.

TODD: Asked when Tamerlan became a more devout Muslim, the ex- brother-in-law and uncle said they noticed it four years ago. We searched for Misha using the Internet, a search database and social media, cross referencing his name with descriptions of them. One name did come up. We scoured matching addresses in the Boston area, phone numbers and e-mails. We couldn't find him so we're not mentioning his name.

Has Misha ever been connected with the Islamic Society of Boston, the mosque the two suspects attended?

I put that question to a mosque spokesman, Yusufi Vali.

(on camera): Is there such a person in this congregation? And do you that I could be anything to that?

YUSUFI VALI, ISLAMIC SOCIETY OF BOSTON: Not to our knowledge. Not to our knowledge. No.

TODD (on camera): And another mosque official told me, quote, "We are looking for him, too." They say they want to find Misha as much as anyone else right now.

Brian Todd, CNN, Boston.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BURNETT: All right. Now, if Tamerlan Tsarnaev was influenced to become a radical jihadist, he may have shared those thoughts and views with his younger brother Dzhokhar, perhaps influencing him much as he was influenced by someone like maybe Misha.

OUTFRONT tonight, Steven Hassan. He's an expert in mind control, author of "Freedom of Mind: Helping Loved Ones Leave Controlling People, Cults and Beliefs".

I know, sir, that you have been in a cult yourself. So, you've experienced this sort of control for lack of a better word. But, you know, we just heard Brian Todd report, Tamerlan Tsarnaev became religious and observant according to relatives, and we don't know if this is true. Bu after he met this man supposedly named Misha.

How does this one person and one meeting influence someone to the point where they're convinced to detonate a bomb, put a bomb down next to an 8-year-old boy that they know is going to die?

STEVE HASSAN, MIND CONTROL EXPERT: I really think that it was probably more than a single meeting, and essentially from my work of 36 years with people in different cult groups, it's an incremental indoctrination beginning with discussing the person's past, maybe showing them some propaganda videos and making them feel guilty perhaps that they're not doing more with their life and not caring enough about God. If he was drinking or someone was using marijuana, maybe he would feel guilty about that.

And a step-by-step indoctrination process into a very black and white us versus them, good versus evil, simplistic world and a radical personality change.

BURNETT: Which obviously -- you know, that happened with Tamerlan. How did Tamerlan then do that to his younger brother Dzhokhar who you just heard David Mattingly report even up until the end was a very avid user of marijuana, a kid who partied? I mean, a kid who did not give up all those things like music and dancing and drinking like his brother did.

HASSAN: Right. So I'm hoping that all of the facts will come out and I'm sure the widow has the best source of information in terms of that process. I really am not sure.

But I can tell you over the years I work with people who have been hypnotized. I worked with people who have been sleep deprived. Their diet was manipulated and such. So it's entirely possible that the radical change and behavior with Dzhokhar happened very recently.

But I don't know. I also was reading reports that he followed his older brother around like a puppy. If that's the case, then perhaps his brother was trying to convert his younger brother all along. I'm not sure yet.

BURNETT: Right. Another part of this that plays into it -- I mean I'm curious what you think about this with your experience. Chechen culture is very well known for incredibly tight family bonds. And the former brother-in-law that you just heard Brian Todd refer to talked a little bit about those bonds and what it might mean for Dzhokhar and his older brother Tamerlan. Here he is.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

KHOZHGOV: I believe he was just maybe obeying him because he is older, he's the older brother. And, yes, I know that they all love Tamerlan. They all admired him. His younger sisters and the brothers and Dzhokhar really thought Tamerlan as the role model. And I believe that he didn't question much.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

BURNETT: Now, you know, there have been reports that Tamerlan may have physically abused one of his sisters. Obviously there was an assault case by his wife against him. What's his role of senior male when his father went home, his role with senior male here with the family in the United States be enough to convince his younger brother to go along with him?

HASSAN: I doubt that, that that would be enough in and of itself. But I guess I'd like to comment on a very famous social psychology experiment by Stanley Milgram who did a phony shock machine. He took people and within an hour individuals were electrocuting others just because somebody ordered them to.

BURNETT: You know, it's funny, you said that, I had remembered that. I remember that now from psychology. I was shocking. It's such a shocking thing. Good point you raise.

HASSAN: Exactly. We're hard wired as human beings to obey legitimate authority figures. And what we need, you know, in terms of rebelling against undue influence and mind control is critical thinking and reality testing and having other people to bounce ideas over.

If his brother said keep everything secret, I'm trusting you, and the younger brother complied, it would be much more easy for him to do further indoctrinations or extremism, I think.

BURNETT: All right. Thank you very much, Steve. Appreciate your time tonight.

OUTFRONT next, we're going to travel across the world to the Caucasus where our Nick Paton Walsh has dug up some -- I mean, this is actually really incredible what you're going to see -- making bombs. Tamerlan Tsarnaev, how he could have learned how to make a bomb like the one used in the marathon attack? Nick found a way and he's only been there a few days.

And later, an awesome display of respect and appreciation.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: I want to check in with Anderson Cooper with a look at what's coming up in just a few minutes on "A.C. 360." Hey, Anderson.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, Erin, yes, we're a few -- about a block or so away from where the blast first went off. We have late breaking news on a number of fronts ahead on "360".

Investigators are scrambling to piece together how the bombers went from immigrants to killers. A number of reporters are working their sources on the brothers' training. Parents are reportedly flying to the U.S. tomorrow. There is also the search for shadowy figure who may have radicalized the older brother. A lot we still are trying to find out.

And we have a new information on the American woman, Katy Russell who married and had I child with the deceased older brother.

We'll also talk with a different set of brothers, Paul and J.P. Nordin (ph), victims of the bombing. They each suffered burns and shrapnel wounds and each lost a leg. We're going to speak with their mom Liz Nordin (ph) about what it's like as she shuttles between two different hospitals trying to care for them, where they are recovering. Those stories and a whole lot more in the top of the hour, Erin.

BURNETT: All right, Anderson. We'll see you in just a few moments.

Well, investigators are still trying to piece together exactly why the Boston bombers turn to terror. But a key piece of the puzzle could lie halfway around the world in the Russian republic of Dagestan. Nick Paton Walsh is there and he has dug up some incredible clues of who may have influenced Tamerlan Tsarnaev on his visit there last year.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is Dagestani militant Abu Dujana in a video one of the alleged Boston bombers Tamerlan Tsarnaev posted on his YouTube Channel. Russian special forces killed Abu Dujana in a shootout last December in Dagestan and we don't know if they ever met Tsarnaev.

But Dagestani police have revealed to CNN the small time militant ran training camps for bomb-making that foreigners came to. Police gave us images of Abu Dujana's group training in the woods.

This one explains how to mix and prepare home-made explosives almost anywhere. And the group's pictures suggest they learned to use a mobile phone as a detonator. The local police chief who helped hunt him down Abu Dujana says the militant trained foreigners.

ASKHABALI SAUERBEKOV, POLICE CHIEF, KIZIL-YURT (through translator): We do not have audio or visual confirmation but we do have information confirming that Abu Dujana met with foreigners.

They are Dagestanis who have taken citizenship elsewhere and come here to meet in the historical motherland whose roots are here.

WALSH: And could that have included Americans?

SAUERBEKOV: It's entirely possible but I know there were Arabs and Turks among them. But whether there were Americans, I don't know.

WALSH (on camera): The police told us that Abu Dujana was often observed coming here to the heart of Makhachkala, to this Salifist Islamic mosque behind me which itself denies any links to extremism. It is possible, though, that Tamerlan Tsarnaev last year also prayed here.

SAUERBEKOV: Of course, the (INAUDIBLE) mosque is their mosque, where all the Wahhabists go. Our technological work gives us operational information that Abu Dujana went there, met people, and agitated. Not once but many times.

WALSH: There are reports that Dujana was observed at the mosque and he was observed meeting Tsarnaev. Do you know this?

SAUERBEKOV: I really can't answer this. For different reasons, I can't answer. You understand me?

WALSH (voice-over): Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, Makhachkala.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BURENTT: We have breaking news right now. We are learning the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, Congressman Dutch Ruppersberger, just told reporters a crucial detail. He says a control device similar to one used for a toy car was used to set off the bombs at the Boston marathon.

So a remote control like you would use for one of the cars you give to your Christmas. His staff emphasized this was not a remote for a garage door but very specifically something used to control a toy car.

That's the latest we have right now, as every single piece of information is so crucial.

Well, today was a day for remembering. Boylston Street reopening, but also remembering a life lost. Remembering police officer Sean Collier.

Thousands turned out at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology today to honor the memory of the 27-year-old campus police officer who was known to love his job and was driven to help others. Investigators say Sean Collier was killed Thursday night by the suspended marathon bombers as he was sitting in his control car. His younger brother remembered Sean as someone who loved country music and he said somebody born to be a police officer.

Vice President Biden was there and called Collier a remarkable son, a remarkable brother and tried to console the family.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSEPH BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The moment will come when that thing that triggers the memory of Sean that moment, when there is a song or season or holiday or passing a little league field or whatever it is. You'll know it's going to be OK, when the first instinct is you get a smile to your lips before you get a tear to your eyes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: Hundreds of police officers gathered to remember their fallen brother, and many in the crowd wore badges that said Collier strong in honor of him. The memorial also included a performance from Boston native, James Taylor, who played with the MIT symphony orchestra.

Nothing will fill the void left by Sean Collier's death in his friends and family's lives, but his brother said that today was the right tribute.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROB ROGERS, SEAN'S BROTHER: Are you kidding me? He would love this. He had sirens, flashing lights, formations, people saluting. Bagpipes. Taps. The American flag. He would have loved it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: He would have loved it. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: The Federal Reserve announced the new $100 bill is going into circulation in October. This new $100 bill is really technologically advanced. It's got a blue 3D security ribbon and a Liberty Bell that changes color when you tilt it. This is aimed at slowing counter fitters who love to counterfeit this bill and so pretty successfully.

Many Americans don't really use $100 bills. It's hard to break them. But it's a different story abroad. The number tonight is 65. Tat's the percentage of $100 bills in circulation held outside the United States, according to a Federal Reserve study. Hmm, I wonder how many use for nefarious purposes.

"ANDERSON COOPER 360" starts right now.