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Teens Captured after Fleeing Murder; Would-Be Suicide Bomber Captured in Jordan; Bush Hopes for Improved Health Communications with Asia

Aired November 14, 2005 - 13:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, HOST: Live pictures right now as we continue our ongoing coverage. New developments quickly unfolding in the search for two teenagers, Pennsylvania teenagers that has finally ended. An 18-year-old man wanted for allegedly killing his girlfriend's parents has been captured.
David Ludwig and Kara Borden taken into custody about 30 minutes ago. This is the car that they were in. Police were in a chase with them. Borden, we are told, is safe.

CNN's Allan Chernoff is in Warwick Township, Pennsylvania, the scene of the crime, with all the latest developments.

Allan, what can you tell us? Allan Chernoff, are you with us?

All right. We're having problems. Obviously, Allan is coming to us via a cell phone. So we're going to try to get that connection with him.

But we can tell you that investigators came before the mics just a few minutes ago to update us as we've been watching these live pictures of the two inside this vehicle. This is what they had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're being told by Indiana state police that they are OK. Everything is fine. They are both in custody at this point in time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: where were they going?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We do not know.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When will they be coming back here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's another thing we're working on with them to get them back here.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sir, what's your reaction to a case end like this?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are just happy for the young juvenile that they're coming back. We are saddened by the families that we want to make sure that there's some type of justice is done here, and I know that district attorney Don Totaro (ph) is going to see that that is indeed done. Thank you very much. We're going to have to get back to work.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Once again, you were just listening to investigators that briefed reporters just moments ago as we continue to follow these live pictures via our affiliate WTHR.

What we can tell you out of Belleville, Indiana, that the man wanted in a Pennsylvania double homicide and apparent abduction of a 14-year-old girl has been captured. This is the car that he was driving in after it crashed in Indiana following a police pursuit.

State police saying that David Ludwig, the 18-year-old, was apprehended after the car he was driving crashed about 20 miles west of Indianapolis following that pursuit. Also, the missing girl found in that car, 14-year-old Kara Beth Borden.

Allan Chernoff, we've been able to connect with him now via cell phone. Hopefully, we've got a good connection.

We're live now. Excellent, Allan. You are in front of the camera. Tell us what you know. You're there at the scene.

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. We're at the township where all of this did occur, of course, apprehended, the boyfriend and the girlfriend apprehended together 20 miles west of Indianapolis, as we understand it. That happened about 35 minutes ago, according to the police.

Now, this manhunt has been under way since yesterday. Well, the crime occurred yesterday a little bit after 8, and we do know, just to recap from the police, the description of this crime.

David Ludwig had gone to the home of the Bordens and had shot the father and mother of Kara Borden, Michael and Cathryn, shot them after an argument ensued. What he had done was he had brought back the daughter, 14-year-old Kara, after staying out all night with her.

The father summoned David back to the home. The argument ensued and then David, according to the police, shot the father and mother one time each to the head.

The 15-year-old daughter, the sister of Kara, as well as a 9- year-old brother, were in the home when all of this occurred. Right after David left with Kara, they ran out to neighbors, called 911. The police arrived. A little later that day yesterday they did search the home, but all they found, of course, were the bodies. And now finally uncovering -- finally catching up with David Ludwig and also with Kara Borden.

PHILLIPS: Allan, do we know what type -- do we know anything about the relationship between these two, between Ludwig and Borden? Were they acting as a team? Were they acting as a couple? Did he abduct her? Are we clear on that? CHERNOFF: Not at all. And that appears to be one of the key questions here. Of course, so many questions remaining right now.

But we do know, certainly, earlier today when the two were spotted actually at a Subway sandwich stop off of Interstate 80, Kara was seen crying, her eyes all welled up. So if for some reason she were involved in plotting any of this, clearly she's quite distraught at the outcome here.

But, again, we do not know at all whether or not she engaged in any planning, was a co-conspirator at all with David. We don't know whether she was planning anything with David Ludwig.

PHILLIPS: You know, we've been kind of working behind the headlines on this story, Allan. Of course, one thing we found out and one thing that sort of took us by surprise is that both of these teens had their own web sites. One of them even kept a blog.

Do we know if they met via Internet or if they went to school together or if they knew each other or if they, indeed, just met on the Web?

ALLAN: The local reports here from local newspapers are that the two children actually were home schooled, and that they met through home schooling. So that's the relationship that we do know of. That's exactly how it all started.

And we, again, don't know the extent of their relationship. I mean, they are described as boyfriend and girlfriend but, of course, that can be a very liberally used term. So we don't really know the extent of the relationship at all.

But also, David has been described by neighbors as someone who usually wore black, that he preferred the Goth look and also some neighbors have told us the family was a little bit strange. The words of the neighbors, that one neighbor saying that they were extreme right wing. Another neighbor saying very religious.

But, again, this is just what neighbors are saying and you know, of course, when a tragedy like this does occur in an area, gossip just goes flying, so, again, we can't confirm any of the details of the relationship.

PHILLIPS: Well, Allan, you're saying that authorities told you they met through home schooling. Now, so what exactly does that mean? Is there some type of -- I mean when you're home schooled, you've got someone in the house working with you. You're not going to a regular public junior high or high school, so was it through a home schooling web site or a program? Is that clear?

CHERNOFF: Well, when people are home schooled, I mean, sometimes what parents will do is that they will bring them together, so perhaps children of several families might be home schooled together. So it appears that may be how they actually met. But, again, we haven't confirmed all the details having just arrived here.

PHILLIPS: All right. Allan Chernoff working that story for us.

The good news, they're both with police now. Once again, that situation about the 18-year-old boy, David Ludwig, taking off with his 14-year-old girlfriend, allegedly, girlfriend Kara Beth Borden. He, of course, has been -- authorities saying he killed her parents, and that's when this all happened, when they took off.

Police finally getting on their tail during a high-speed pursuit. Both now in custody, Allan Chernoff working the story. We'll bring you more information as we continue to follow it. These live pictures out of Belleville, Indiana.

Well, the other story that we're working for you and we've been working on all day is now overseas, and we're talking about the woman that blew herself up, but she didn't get away. She didn't blow herself up, rather, and didn't get away.

Now a 35-year-old Iraqi woman, Sajida Mubarak Atrous al-Rishawi, is the talk of the Middle East for this mesmerizing appearance, needless to say on Jordanian TV. Al-Rishawi showed off the explosives, she says, and her husband, equally armed, planned to set off in a wedding reception at the Radisson Hotel in Amman last Wednesday.

The husband's explosives went off, as did those of two other bombers in the other two hotels, and 57 people with killed. Al- Rishawi says that she tried to detonate her bombs, but the trigger cord failed. She happens to be the sister of a fallen aide to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, al Qaeda's point man in Iraq.

And we get more now on the intrigue and the fallout from CNN's Brent Sadler in the Jordanian capital -- Brent.

BRENT SADLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thanks, Kyra. Yes, indeed, a lot of intrigue and a lot of fascination, morbid fascination, I have to say, in the confession televised on Jordanian TV from this woman.

And now she came with her husband to the Radisson Hotel where I'm now reporting from. She was at one side of the banqueting hall when that wedding party was taking place, her husband at the other. The plan was to set themselves off more or less simultaneously.

She says her husband blew himself up first, creating death and mayhem around him. The ceiling collapsed. Guests were cut down by flying glass and steel ball bearings that were packed in the husband's bomb.

But she says her explosive device failed to detonate and she ran away, escaped with the others in those first terrifying moments after the first bomb went off.

Since she's been captured in the early hours of Sunday, this woman has obviously been under heavy interrogation by the Jordanian authorities, who want to find out what, if any network from the terrorist operation that sent her, al Qaeda in Iraq under that Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, what network remains, if any, still here inside Jordan, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Brent Sadler there live in Amman, Jordan, with the follow-up to the suicide bomber that we have been talking about that actually confessed on live television. Pretty amazing stuff.

As Brent was talking there and updating us overseas on that story, I was getting more information out of Indiana and the 14-year- old girl that was finally captured and the 18-year-old, David Ludwig, that was apprehended indeed after a police pursuit.

Live pictures here. That was actually the car they were driving in, these live pictures coming to us via our affiliate, WTHR.

They are in police custody. As you know, Ludwig is wanted in the shooting deaths of Borden's parents. That happened yesterday. They've been on the lam since then. Now they're both in police custody. We'll bring you more information right after the break.

ANNOUNCER: You're watching LIVE FROM on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Live pictures now of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice getting ready to step up and make a few comments there outside the Radisson Hotel, as you know, where one of those suicide bombers exploded just a few days ago.

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECRETARY OF STATE: ... the American people to say to the people of Jordan that we stand with them, as they have stood with us in times of need and in times of sorrow.

I want to offer condolences to the families of those who were lost here and in the other sites. I want also to offer our thoughts and our prayers for the recovery of those who have been injured and, of course, for the people of Jordan to note that this underscores our common struggle against terrorism, against people who would kill innocents who were here trying to carry on normal lives or, in the case of this wedding hall, to celebrate what is one of the happiest days in anyone's life.

There is no justification for the wanton killing of innocents, and we stand in solidarity with the people of Jordan, the people around the world who have suffered similar tragedies, and we will stand firm.

I was just with his majesty, the king of Jordan, and we have all been inspired by the determination and the conviction of the people of Jordan. We will all stand until terrorism is defeated and until those who simply want to live a normal life and to live in peace can return to the days when this sort of tragedy, this sort of outrage does not happen.

Thank you very much and, again, solidarity and our condolences to the people of Jordan and to all who have suffered loss. PHILLIPS: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice just outside the Radisson hotel in Amman, Jordan. You'll remember the Radisson was one of the U.S. hotels that -- where one of those suicide bombers, of course, attacked innocent civilians just a couple -- or a few days ago.

Condoleezza Rice there, offering condolences to all the families affected by these terrorist attacks and once again pointing out that everyone stands together in the fight against terrorism until terrorism is defeated.

We'll continue to check in with Brent Sadler as the Condoleezza -- the secretary of state continues her trip there to the region, meeting with those affected by those terrorist attacks and also following the protests that are continuing outside those halls -- hotels, protests calling for whoever is responsible to be held accountable for those attacks.

Now, back here in the United States, in custody, a Pennsylvania teenager charged with abducting his girlfriend and killing her parents is finally behind bars. Eighteen-year-old David Ludwig and 14-year- old Kara Borden were taken into custody following a police chase in Indiana. You saw it all unfold here live on CNN, and we're told that Borden is safe and unharmed now.

CNN's Allan Chernoff joins us with the very latest once again from there.

Anything new, Allan?

CHERNOFF: Well, Kyra, it all happened about 45 minutes ago. We do understand there was a police chase. The car actually crashed, the car that David Ludwig was driving. And now as you said, Ludwig and his apparent girlfriend, Kara Borden, under arrest and in police custody.

Actually, I should correct David Ludwig under arrest. Kara Borden in police custody right now and apparently safe. She, only 14 years old, David Ludwig, 18 years old and all of this after some terrible events right here in this township.

Yesterday morning, Sunday morning, after staying out all night together, Mr. Ludwig dropped off Kara at her home. Her parents summoned Mr. Ludwig back to the home, then confronted him about keeping their daughter out all night. An argument ensued and, according to the police, Mr. Ludwig then shot the father in the head with one bullet and then shot the mother in the head, also with one bullet.

The sister -- the sister, 15-year-old Caitlin, actually saw the father being shot and then hid in the bathroom while the mother was shot. After Mr. Ludwig left the home with Kara, and we're not certain as to whether or not he took her out at gunpoint, but he did call for her and they left in the VW, in the Jetta vehicle.

And afterward, the sister and a 9-year-old brother ran out to neighbors. They called police and the police, of course, searched the home, just found the bodies. And we've had the manhunt ongoing since then and now finally resolved with David Ludwig in custody.

PHILLIPS: Allan Chernoff there on the scene in Warwick Township, Pennsylvania, actually where the scene of the crime had taken place, but as you can see, we're bringing you live pictures throughout the morning of actually an affiliate in Indiana that captured the end of the high-speed pursuit, finally getting a stop -- getting Ludwig to stop the car and getting both Ludwig, as you can see here, in police custody and also 14-year-old Kara Borden finally in a safe place. Police obviously talking to them both right now.

Mike Brooks on the phone with us now, as you know, Mike Brooks, former law enforcement, former counterterrorism with the FBI, joins us now just to talk about what's next in this investigation.

And, Mike, still a lot of questions about these two. Evidently they were home schooled together. They both had their own web sites. One of them had their own blog. And not quite sure if they really were a couple or not, if Kara was fearful for her life, and, of course, you've seen where it has brought us to this point.

MIKE BROOKS, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, Kyra, you're right. There's a lot of questions remain unanswered. And one of the big questions is what exactly was the involvement of Kara Beth Borden with this Ludwig fellow? You know, was this planned?

We heard a short clip from the press conference back in Pennsylvania, where we heard the district attorney say that he was going to be charged with two counts of premeditated murder, which would say to me from my law enforcement experience is there is enough apparently, maybe from interviewing Caitlin Borden, who was there and saw this terrible tragedy unfold, that possibly from that interview that they could then have been able to determine this was premeditated.

And the question remains, the big question is, you know, what involvement did Kara have in this? Were they a couple? Did they plan this out? We see here from earlier footage the red car after -- against the tree after the chase where they were both captured outside of Belleville, Indiana. But that's the big question, Kyra, what exactly was her role?

PHILLIPS: And two things to point out. A lot of people saw the videotape -- actually I think we're looking at it here where she's in the police car and she's in handcuffs. And that doesn't necessarily mean she's guilty of anything, but they do that purposely because they want to make sure she's not a threat and in case she tries to get away or has a weapon of some sort, correct?

And then also they separate them so they can immediately get both sides of the story without the two of them influencing each other?

BROOKS: That's exactly right. They will go ahead. Investigators will keep them separated. We notice that she was in one car. We saw that Ludwig was in that red car that we saw drive away from the scene a few moments ago.

And they'll go ahead and advise both of them of their rights, just in case she was involved in this crime. But, you know, they'll go ahead and interview both of them, find out what their stories are, conflicting stories they had, if they do, or if their stories are the same.

And then they'll go back and kind of see exactly how that fits in with the story of the -- of her sister, Caitlin, who was there at the house and witnessed the shooting and then hid in the bathroom after her father was shot.

PHILLIPS: Now, would they...

BROOKS: And do this and then they'll also take a look -- there's also a possibility, Kyra, that they could charge him also with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution, which is actually a federal charge, usually has a holding charge, but he also could be charged with that.

PHILLIPS: I think we lost Mike, Mike Brooks there via cell phone, of course. He's one of our law enforcement analysts, helping us to put the pieces of the puzzle together as we continue to follow this developing story.

Police, of course, finally have David Ludwig, 18-year-old, in custody after they say he shot the parents of Kara Borden, the 14- year-old you see there on the screen. That videotape you're looking at from just moments ago when a police pursuit took place, the cars crashing and, of course, police getting both of them in custody. We'll stay on that story.

Meanwhile, sort of switching gears to a much different subject, behold the power of kraut? That's right. Coming up, why is the stinkiest condiment you can add to a hot dog becoming a hot commodity in the anti-bird flu arsenal? We're going to dish that up next on LIVE FROM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: And live here in B Control, could the same food that made you run screaming from the high school lunch room be the key to vanquishing bird flu?

Well, Korean scientists say that sauerkraut, yes sauerkraut, shows virus-fighting potential. These findings echo a study from earlier this year in which ailing chickens were given a kimchee, a spicy cabbage dish popular in Korean cuisine, and 11 of 13 infected birds showed improvement. The common threads here seem to be cabbage and the process of fermentation, both key elements in kimchee and kraut.

Cabbage has been already been touted in several anti-cancer studies, but news of potential effectiveness against a bird pandemic has sent sales of sauerkraut soaring here in the U.S. Well, Bird flu is one of the big topics on the table at the upcoming APEC summit and what the world is doing to prepare for a possible pandemic. One of President Bush's key missions on this trip will be to push for prompt and complete information sharing or information sharing -- or information sharing, rather, on possible outbreaks.

But CNN's Andrea Koppel says that that may be a challenge when it comes to some of the countries in that region.

Andrea, what's -- what are they saying at the White House?

ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, what they're saying at the White House and pretty much throughout Washington, even over Health and Human Services, where Mike Leavitt actually went to Southeast Asia recently, is that they understand that there are a lot of cultural barriers and sort of institutionalized ways of doing business that make it very difficult to try to both get the message out about the importance of -- of alerting not just the government where the disease was -- happens to pop up but also other countries in the region and other countries around the world.

One of them quite simply is the fact that a lot of these farmers are subsistence farmers. This is not Perdue or Tyson's chicken farms that we're talking about. These are mom and pop operations where, if you tell them that because one of their chickens or ducks or one of the other poultry that they farm has the H5-N1 virus, they have to kill all, basically, their livelihood.

And the other reason is, for some of these countries, especially like Thailand, Cambodia, China, tourism is a big thing. And when word gets out that you've got H5-N1 in your country, that doesn't exactly make people want to run to their -- their travel agents to get tickets to fly there.

PHILLIPS: And now the information sharing between Asian countries and the U.S., I mean, how do you think that's going? I mean, do you think this is the main reason for why now the president is coming out and talking about this so much, is because there hasn't really been talked about -- I mean, you and I were talking about when you used to live in China this wasn't even an issue. And now all of a sudden we can't stop talking about it all across the world.

KOPPEL: Absolutely. And it's really country by country. Some countries are better than others. In fact, just today --and this may be because of the renewed awareness that's really happened since the president brought this forward at the United Nations General Assembly in September -- but in China today, there was a news report that said they thought perhaps there might be one person who has come down with H5-N1.

Now, this would be the first person who has been confirmed to have a case of the Asian influenza in China. They've had lots of cases of livestock, birds and other poultry coming down with it, but they haven't had -- now so they've gotten the word out there immediately. This is exactly what the Bush administration is trying to get sort of institutionalized throughout the world, so that they can go immediately in and sort of commando-style contain the disease within the livestock so that it isn't spread to human beings.

PHILLIPS: I'm just curious, Andrea, and, again, it goes back to the fact that, you know, you covered this area. You lived there. Do they have those open air -- or the open markets with...

KOPPEL: Oh, yes.

PHILLIPS: ... with the live chickens, like, because that's the talk in Vietnam and other countries, why there is a problem and why the contamination starts to spread.

KOPPEL: Absolutely. And in fact, in many of these countries in China, they have your livestock -- your poultry and livestock would be living side by side right next -- within cities.

And so, in fact, that's one of the things the Chinese have done recently is to cut down on and basically close down some of these open air markets, some of the places where you could buy the birds and move them back out into the countryside.

PHILLIPS: I'm glad you're reporting from the White House today, Andrea Koppel.

KOPPEL: Thanks.

PHILLIPS: And you're not in China at this moment. Andrea, thank you so much.

Well, the good news: starting tomorrow, Medicare recipients can start choosing something that they've never had before. They can actually get prescription drug coverage through Medicare.

Now, the bad news is there are so many choices, it could take until the May deadline to just figure out which plan is the best. We want to hear your questions, if you're trying to figure out your plan or score some points helping Mom and Dad through the Medicare maze, so e-mail us at LiveFrom@CNN.com, because in the 2 p.m. hour of LIVE FROM, consumer health care expert Dr. Todd Cooperman is going to help us answer your questions.

LIVE FROM has the news you need. We're back right after this.

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