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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Charleston Church Massacre: New Information; Search for Escaped Inmates Grows Cold; NASDAQ at Record High. Aired 4:30-5a ET

Aired June 19, 2015 - 04:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:30:54] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news: the man police say murdered nine people in their church behind bars this morning hours away from appearing in court. This morning, what we are learning new about the accused killer, as survivors of the massacre reveal exactly what happened in that conference room. We are live.

Welcome back to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans here in New York.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm John Berman live from Charleston, South Carolina, this morning. About 30 minutes past the hour.

And behind me is the Emanuel AME Church, Mother Emanuel, as she is known. The streets in this neighborhood have been reopened finally. The church itself is closed. And we do not know when that will reopen. It is needed here. It's a source of strength in this community, and has been for 200 years.

As for the man who caused so much pain inside of this building behind me, the 21-year-old suspect is back in Charleston right now. He's scheduled to make a court appearance here this afternoon. Police say it was Dylann Roof who opened fire inside of the Emanuel AME Church Wednesday night, killing nine people during a bible study class.

Now, he was apprehended in Shelby, North Carolina, about four hours away. He was spotted by a woman on the road. He had a gun in his possession when police took him in to custody. It is not clear whether that is the same gun used in in the church shooting.

Family members are disputing some law enforcement reports that Roof's father bought him the .45 caliber handgun for his 21st birthday. Some are suggesting perhaps he got money for his birthday. Some are suggesting perhaps he got money for his birthday, bought the gun himself.

We are getting new information about the final moments inside that bible study class where nine people were killed. Before the shooter allegedly opened fire, he sat with them, he sat in the bible study class for an hour, perhaps even praying with them.

Let's get more now from Martin Savidge.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Dylann Roof arrived back in Charleston, South Carolina, a little after 7:00 in the evening. And then by the time he was transported to county jail, it would have been 8:00. Almost 24 hours exactly from the night before in which authorities say that he walked into the Emanuel AME Church, sat down on the bible study meeting and when the bible study meeting was over, he opened fire.

As to where his conditions are now, I mean, he is in county jail most likely in isolation and also properly under suicide watch.

Later this morning or today, it is possible that then he will appear for a bond hearing. It is highly likely that bond will be granted. He'll also have a public defender. And it's likely this court appearance is going to be happening via a video link.

After that, what you have to understand, there are two investigations that are going on here. The federal that is one looking into this as a possible hate crime, and then, of course, you have the state and county one that is looking at nine murders. It is obviously a capital murder case, and could very well likely involve the death penalty.

For most people here in Charleston, the fear of a suspect on the loose is over, which allows them now -- well, to take up the main task at hand, which is grieving. And there's a lot of grief to go around -- John.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: There's so much grief to go around.

How does someone do this? How does someone hate so much?

We're learning more about the alleged shooter's past. People who know him describe him as shy and quiet, a young man who kept mostly to himself. He dropped out of high school after ninth grade.

He was arrested in February on drug charges. He was arrested again in April on a trespassing charge. He's sort of been stalking a mall, apparently.

We have pictures from Roof's Facebook page. It featured a photo of him in the woods wearing a jacket that had two patches on the jacket. They are flags of former racist regimes, the former apartheid regime of South Africa and also the former apartheid regime of Rhodesia, which is now Zimbabwe.

A friend of Roof's told ABC News how that young man felt about black people.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, ABC)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He wanted segregation.

REPORTER: What did he want to see happen? How was he going to do this?

[04:35:01] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think he wanted something big like Trayvon Martin. He wanted to make something to spark up the race war again.

REPORTER: What kind of guns did he have?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: .45 Glock.

REPORTER: .45 Glock? Did he carry it around?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In his car.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: The youngest victim in the shooting, 26-year-old Tywanza Sanders, he posted a Snapchat video from inside the bible study class moments before the attack. In the video, you could see the shooter at the far end of the table.

Family members say when the shooter began firing, Sanders, Tywanza Sanders stepped in front of his aunt, took a bullet that was intended for her. So brave. Tragically, she was also killed.

Now, Sanders did post on Instagram three hours before he was killed. He put up a quote from Jackie Robinson. That quote, "A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives." His life, it had an impact. So many leaders were lost here.

We have an interview that Sylvia Johnson gave to Anderson Cooper. One of Sylvia's relatives was killed in the shooting. A woman who survived the massacre by pretending to be dead described to her the sheer horror of what unfolded inside.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SYLVIA JOHNSON, COUSIN OF REV. CLEMENTA PINCKNEY: What I heard is after shooting a couple of rounds, her son tried to talk him in to not committing anymore acts of murder.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: A person actually tried to --

JOHNSON: Yes, he did. He sure did. He tried to talk him down. And her son and grand baby had already planned they were going to just act as though they were already killed, but the son was concerned about Reverend Clementa, and he got up, and that's when the gunman said, you know, after the young man tried to stop him from doing what he wanted to finish off he said, "No. You raped our women and you are taking over the country."

COOPER: You raped our women and are taking over the country?

JOHNSON: "You're taking over the country. I have to do what I have to do."

COOPER: And he continued to shoot?

JOHNSON: And he shot the young man. His mother was there. And she was -- she pretended as though she was dead. She was shot and dead, but she watched her son fall and laid there and she laid there in his blood. And --

COOPER: She laid there in his blood?

JOHNSON: Yes, she did. When I got to talk to her, her entire dress was drenched in blood. She said that's my son's blood. He was a good boy. He was a good boy.

COOPER: And he passed?

JOHNSON: And he passed. Him along with one of her aunts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Nine good people lost. Nine lives.

There are so much grief here in Charleston. So much sadness. It's really felt around the country.

Churches around the country are honoring the nine victims here, the six women and three men. They all shared a love of family, a love of faith.

The Reverend Clementa Pinckney, he was the leader of the Emanuel AME church and served in the South Carolina Senate. He is being remembered as a gentle, big man with a strong voice.

Sharonda Singleton was a pastor at the church. She was a speech therapist. She was a high school track and field coach.

Cynthia Hurd worked in the Charleston public library system 31 years in the library system. She was a manager at one of its busiest branches.

DePayne Middleton-Doctor, another church minister. So many church leaders.

Susie Jackson was at bible study with her cousin Ethel Lance. Both were long-time members of Emanuel AME. Ethel was 70. Susie Jackson was 87.

Daniel Simmons was a retired pastor who attended services every Sunday, bible study every Wednesday.

Myra Thompson was teaching the bible study when the gunman opened fire.

And we told you about 26-year-old Tywanza Sanders, the youngest victim. Friends say he was committed to his church, his family and was so generous.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

A.J. HARLEY, CLOSE FRIEND OF TYWANZA SANDERS: A loving friend, family -- he really loved his family. His mom, dearly, he loved -- he talked about his mom every day that he get a chance to talk to his mom, go see his is mom all the time. Anything you asked him to do, he would do. If you just -- if you met him, you knew you had a god friend on your side, regardless of anything. He made you smile even when you didn't want to smile, happy all the time, always smiling.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: I don't know how you can hear about the nine people lost here and not just be infuriated. It's hard not to be angry.

President Obama himself said he was angered by what happened here.

[04:40:02] He had an emotional response. So many times he has spoken after mass shootings and he used the opportunity to talk about gun control.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I've had to make statements like this too many times. Communities like this have had to endure tragedies like this too many times. We don't have all the facts, but we do know that once again, innocent people were killed in part because someone who wanted to inflict harm had no trouble getting their hands on a gun.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: The Justice Department is investigating this as a hate crime. South Carolina doesn't have hate crime law.

South Carolina Senator Tim Scott tells CNN there is little doubt in his mind that race was a factor.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: There's been a lot of talk today about whether this was an act of domestic terrorism. Do you see it as an act of terrorism?

SEN. TIM SCOTT (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: I certainly see the terrorism component as it relates to just the senseless violence taken out on a group of innocent people in a place of worship.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: The senator after learning about the massacre organized a prayer service on Capitol Hill. It was attended by 100 members of Congress and staffers.

And, you know, Christine, I saw so many political leaders here yesterday. They are also involved in the church. The people in this community and Democrats, Republicans, and they were hugging each other and they were praising each other and they were coming together here. The outpouring of emotion is remarkable.

The Governor Nikki Haley broke down when she held a news conference. I was standing at the Bakari Sellers, a man who ran -- he was lieutenant governor, Democrat who ran against Nikki Haley and he got emotional when he saw the governor.

People in this town are just shaken to the core, which is understandable. There's simply no answer for what happened here.

ROMANS: I think if you are not shaken anywhere in the country, you don't have a heart, right?

Let me ask you something. The president emotional, bringing up the point how easy it is to get a gun. There's been some, I guess, discrepancies about where he got this gun. His parents, his dad bought it for him or his dad gave him the money for it. One friend who reportedly took the gun away from him because he didn't like what he was saying but had to give it back because he was on probation and was worried.

What about the origin of that gun, John?

BERMAN: There is a discrepancy as you say. There's certainly no information, no reports it was obtained illegally in any way.

ROMANS: Right.

BERMAN: But one report says it was a gift. Another report says he was given birthday money. He bought it himself. But we do know he had a gun, a legal firearm. There are reports from inside that, you know, it was a handgun, a semiautomatic weapon. He had to reload it several times. And apparently did.

ROMANS: All right. All right, John. Thanks so much. We'll get back to you soon.

Another important case we are following, two escaped killers now on the FBI's most wanted list. New information in the case, the search widens further, next.

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[04:45:51] ROMANS: Two inmates who escaped from an upstate New York prison two weeks ago are now on the FBI's most wanted list and we are learning more about the prison worker Joyce Mitchell's role in their escape and how her husband is coping with the realization now she may have been plotting with them to kill him.

We get more from CNN's Alexandra Field.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christine and John, Joyce Mitchell is accused of helping two convicted killers break out of a maximum security prison. Now, her husband's attorney is speaking out saying that Lyle Mitchell had no knowledge of the escape plan. He only learned about it after the fact from his own wife who also told him it involved a possible plot to kill him. Joyce Mitchell now is behind bars at the Clinton County jail.

Lyle went to visit his wife earlier this week. His attorney said he has questions that needed answers.

PETER DUMAS, ATTORNEY FOR LYLE MITCHELL: His questions are, were you really going to -- were you really part of this plot to have me hurt? Were you really part of this escape plot? What was really going on with these two individuals and you?

I mean, like I said, he was in love with her. He had no idea that she was having these conversations with other men. He's just devastated.

FIELD: According to investigators, Joyce Mitchell and Richard Matt had a sexual relationship, something that Lyle's attorney said he never suspected.

As for the possibility of some kind of relationship between Joyce Mitchell and David Sweat -- well, that had been previously investigated after there were reports of improper interactions. At the time, Lyle's attorney said that Lyle confronted his wife Joyce who denied the allegations. Later, David Sweat approached Lyle Mitchell, according to the attorney, also denying those allegations -- Christine, John.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: All right. Alexandra, thank you for that.

Now, time for an early start on your money. Big milestone for stocks. So much for worries about coming higher interest rate and Greece not paying its bills, the super charged NASDAQ topped its peak set 15 year ago during the dotcom bubble. Industry leaders like Apple, Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Starbucks, powering the market higher.

Martha Stewart's empire nearing a takeover. It's a good thing. Shares of Martha Stewart Living jumped 26 percent on news of a potential deal with Sequential Brands, a retail licensing company. Stewart formed the publishing and housewares company back in 1997. She stepped away briefly when she was indicted on securities fraud in 2003.

The company now a fraction of what it was. It shuttered or sold its magazine and its revenue has plunged.

Breaking news this morning, the man accused of killing nine people at their Charleston church behind bars. Hear from the woman who helped police catch him, next.

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[04:52:23] BERMAN: John Berman here live this morning in Charleston, South Carolina.

You know, no fewer than four of the people who were murdered in this church behind me, Emanuel AME, no fewer than four of them were pastors, church leaders. People who loved their families, shared their faith, gunned down for no reason.

The suspect, 21-year-old Dylann Roof, he is scheduled to make a court appearance here in Charleston this afternoon. He allegedly opened fire during the bible study class at this church on Wednesday night, killing nine people.

He was apprehended 14 hour after the shooting in Shelby, North Carolina. It's about a four-hour drive from here. He had a gun in his possession at the time. But it is not clear whether that is the same gun used in the attack here.

Roof was spotted in Shelby by a florist named Debbie Dills. She recognized the shooter from seeing pictures on TV. She was running late for work and immediately grabbed the phone and dialed her boss.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TODD FRADY, DEBBIE DILLS' BOSS: When she called she said, I think this is the guy from Charleston that shot the people. She said, I'm right beside him. I told her, I said where are you at? She pulled off by then and I said, we have to call the police, I said, to notify them that it may be him.

Of course, our conversation later, you know, it may not be him and she didn't want to cause a problem for someone that it might not be them, I said but, I said it could be. So, we called the police while she was on the phone and she got back on 74 to catch up with him. He had already traveled four or five miles before she could catch up with him.

DEBBIE DILLS, FLORIST: Something inside of me said it didn't look right to me. I had seen the little tag on the front of his car and everything was just -- I even noticed the hair cut that he had from watching it on the news. So, everything inside of me said it is possible but everything inside of me didn't want to believe it either.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Listen to this -- Debbie said she had just been praying for the victims of this massacre. And she believes the fact that she spotted the alleged shooter, she believes it was divine intervention.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DILLS: He answered the prayers of those people that were praying in Charleston last night that were in those circles holding hands and praying. God heard the prayers of those people and He just used us as vessels to get His work done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Police worked here to catch this suspect nearly picture perfect, again, apprehended 14 hours after the shooting. They had the pictures from the church, the video. They had the pictures of the car, the Hyundai. They were able to trace the plates.

[04:55:03] A sister, reportedly of Dylann Roof, reported his name, and then you heard Debbie Dills right there say she had seen pictures of him on TV. The police and law enforcement thanking the media for getting the message and the pictures out there, getting the name out there because now, this alleged shooter who caused so much fear and terror -- yes, terror in this community -- he is in custody.

We'll be right back.

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BERMAN: All right. Good morning. Welcome back. I'm Christine Romans.

Let's get an early start on your money this morning. Asian shares up with a big story there. China down more 6 percent on bubble fears. European shares, though, look at that, up a little bit.

No deal on Greece's bailout program yesterday. There will be an emergency summit of EU leaders on Monday to try to avert default.

Fears about Greece aren't holding back stocks here. The super charged NASDAQ topped its intraday peak set 15 years ago, look at that, through the dotcom bubble.

McDonald's is slimming down. McDonald's plans to close more restaurants than it opens this year in the U.S. That is the first. It will close more restaurants than it opens.

The chain has seen rapid expansion for most of its history. It thrived during the recession because of its famously low prices but the chain has lost its luster with millennials, who prefer restaurants like Chipotle and Five Guys with fresh, customizable food.

All right. Fifty-nine minutes past the hour.

EARLY START continues right now.