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Don't Call; Accused 'Cell Phone Bandit' Pleads Guilty; Fire Burns at New Jersey Apartment Building; Mourning the Victims of Nigerian Plane Crash

Aired December 13, 2005 - 13:35   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, let's get straight to Tony Harris. He's working a story on the so-called "cell phone bandit."
Tony, what's the latest?

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, remember that story, Kyra, a Candice Rose -- hard to forget, right, Candice Rose Martinez, 19 years old, and now she is facing life in prison. CNN has learned that a short time ago Martinez entered a guilty plea before a federal judge, pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit bank robbery and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. She was charged with four robberies in three. She was captured -- I wonder if we have that video. She was Captured by surveillance cameras talking on a cell phone. You remember this? So cool, calm, collected on the cell phone as she presented a box to a teller with a holdup note.

Well, now she is facing, as I mentioned, life in prison. She is to be sentenced on March 3rd. Her boyfriend already confessed to his role. Dave Williams has confessed to his role in all of this. He will be sentenced as well. But Martinez facing life in prison. She will be sentenced once again on March 3rd.

Turn back to you.

PHILLIPS: So did we ever figure out who she was talking to?

HARRIS: No, I don't think we did. I don't think we did.

PHILLIPS: Might have been her boyfriend.

HARRIS: Yes, it could have been.

PHILLIPS: Maybe it could have been telemarketers.

HARRIS: A heck of a prop, and it certainly gave that appearance that she was just there doing business.

PHILLIPS: All right, she was doing business all right. Got her caught in a lot trouble.

HARRIS: That's right.

PHILLIPS: Tony, thanks.

HARRIS: Sure. PHILLIPS: Well, we're talking about unwanted calls from telemarketers. You know, we all get them. Even though you're on the national Do Not Call list, sometimes it still happens, right? Well, we know the government is trying to do something about it. The Federal Trade Commission, they have now announced -- or it has now announced a record settlement with DirecTV. The satellite TV provider has agree to pay more than $5.3 million to settle charges that its telemarketers called people on the Do Not Call list.

Now if a federal judge OKs the deal, it would be the FTC's biggest civil penalty in a consumer-protection case. Federal regulators say that they want to send a clear message.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEBORAH PLATT MAJORAS, CHAIRWOMAN, FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION: To businesses, it isn't named the Do Not Call Registry for nothing. Respect consumers' wishes. Follow the "Do Not Call" rule. And to consumers, if your number is on the Do Not Call Registry and you are getting calls, we want to hear from you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, the government says that DirecTV started violating Do Not Call rules in October 2003, around the same time the national list was launched.

Let's take a closer look at the law. First of all, "do not call" means just that, do not call. The registry is aimed at keeping now from getting unwanted telemarketing calls. Telemarketers have to match their contact lists against the Do Not Call Registry every 31 days just to make sure the phone numbers are updated.

Now companies that have recently done business with households are exempt, along with charities, pollsters and people calling on behalf of politicians.

So are you going to give an online thief an early Christmas present today? You might with just the click of a mouse. Today's the last day to order a gift for Christmas online and avoid those extra shipping fees. And it's also a day that cyber-crooks have been marking on their calendar all year. Analyst predict a 50 percent spike today in hackers using stolen credit card number to buy stuff on the Internet, taking advantage of a record number of consumers scrambling for that last-minute gift.

So what can you do to protect yourself? First, know who you're dealing with. Check out unfamiliar online sellers with the Better Business Bureau. Also, get all the details. Make sure you're clear about shipping charges and privacy policies. And be suspicious if someone contacts you unexpectedly. Identity thieves send out plenty of bogus e-mails to lure you into giving up your personal info.

So as you scramble to ship out that XBox or iPod, how can you fend off those cyber-grinches looking to steal your personal info? Steve Salter, vice president of the Better Business Bureau Online has some tips. He joins us now from Washington.

All right, Steve, you heard the setup to you. Did we miss anything?

STEVE SALTER, BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU ONLINE: Well, maybe a few things.

PHILLIPS: All right, let's talk about them.

SALTER: Great. There's a lot that consumers can do to protect themselves online these days. It's really no longer the Wild West, but there are a lot of programs out there to help. You mentioned doing your homework with the Better Business Bureau. About two million company reports can be found at www.bbb.org. Companies across the United States and Canada have reports there to help give the background information on their time in business, how long they've been in business, and what their track record is. So get an idea of the company's track record for starters.

You mentioned, too, unwanted e-mails. And we all get plenty of those. Folk shows never click on the links in an e-mail to go to an online business, but rather take control of their online shopping experience by either typing in the address of the Web site themselves, or using an established search function to go find the product or the company that they want.

Once there, once on a company's Web site, there's plenty to look for that can help assure consumers that the company is to be trusted. Look for a privacy notice that explains what data they collect. Look especially for return policies that will tell exactly what to do in the event you get the wrong product or the wrong size, something like that.

And at this time of year, especially, look for specific information about shipping. How much will it cost? How much -- how long will it take? And how quickly can they get that product to you in time for the holidays? A good Web site should have all that information available before you buy from them.

PHILLIPS: Any alarms with regard to pay procedure? I notice that when I was doing some online shopping, I would click onto some sites that were overseas, some domestic. And there were some paying procedures that I wasn't quite familiar with. Is that a common scam?

SALTER: Well, the tips I've mentioned so far really have to do with shopping from companies in the United States and Canada. If you venture overseas, a lot of your protections are lost. But in the United States, if you pay by credit card, you're pretty well- protected. Consumers are only liable for up to a $50 charge, even if a credit card number is stolen or misused. So pay by credit card. That's important.

And also make sure that when you pay on a Web site, the connection to the site is encrypted, and there are real easy ways to find that. First, look up in the address box of the page where you're shopping, and it should start with an http. When the page is secured, make sure that there's an 's' in there. So https stands for secure payment and encrypted data that's being sent.

PHILLIPS: Let's go back to your Web site for a minute, the bbbonline. I know Sonia's (ph) got it up in the control room there. I remember as an investigative reporter, I loved the BBB because I would just click on and run certain businesses and be able to get great ideas on businesses that were, you know, corrupt and getting away with things that a lot of people didn't realize they were getting away with.

Can you do the same thing on your Web site with regard to Web sites? For example, can I click on -- put a Web site in there, and be able to read actual complaints filed by people?

SALTER: Well, there's good news and even better news there. I mentioned it's www.bbb.org. That covers all the reports by all the Better Business Bureaus across the United States and Canada, over two million companies.

PHILLIPS: Wow.

SALTER: Those are the good, the bad, and the ugly. So if you suspect something of being a scam, that's where you go. But what you're showing now is the bbbonline database. What that is, is a listing of now over 25,000 Web sites that have each been reviewed by the Better Business Bureaus in their communities who have passed a series of standards that are all in our code of online business practices.

So we'd like to think that these are the best of the best. These are companies that have all met standards for time in business, for all the policies I've mentioned, posting a return notice, posting disclosures about themselves, posting privacy notices and so forth.

So that's a resource for consumers to go look for a particular product or service. You can just do a search based on what you're looking for and come up with a list of companies around the U.S. and Canada who have met standards.

PHILLIPS: Well, Steve, finally, we've got to let you go. But one thing I did learn about the BBB Web site also, is when you do have a problem, report it and fill out a complaint, sort of a civic duty to other people. It's very easy to do that, right? And then you investigate the claim and say, yes, you're right, it was bad or it was good.

SALTER: That's right. And that takes you back, again, to the main BBB site, bbb.org. That's where we take complaints about any business in the U.S. or Canada. We will help process that complaint not only to alert others in the future to a possible risk but also to try to get it resolved.

If you didn't get something in time for a holiday or you want to get your money back because you're dissatisfied, we help to work that out between the business and the consumer.

PHILLIPS: Great stuff. Steve Salter, thank you so much. SALTER: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Straight ahead, violence down under, racially- motivated riots happening in the suburbs around Sydney. We're on that story. LIVE FROM's back after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Let's get back to Tony Harris in the news room, working more stories for us -- Tony.

HARRIS: Hey, Kyra. It's a story we've been following all day, the story of a fire -- an explosion and fire at a three-story apartment complex. This is in Bergenfield, New Jersey. We want to show you some pictures now from, some taped pictures from earlier today. But if we can, we'll mix in some live pictures as well. We're waiting for one of the helicopters who's been providing pictures for us to circle, maybe to refuel, and get back up in the air.

And we'll give you some live pictures of the scene because the fire is still burning right now. It happened at about 9:00 a.m. Eastern time. And Dennis McNerney is on the phone with us. He is the Bergen County executive. And, Dennis, thanks for taking the time to talk to us. We appreciate it.

DENNIS MCNERNEY, BERGEN COUNTY EXECUTIVE: Thank you.

HARRIS: Just to sort of orient our viewers as to where Bergenfield is, my understand is -- is it right over the George Washington Bridge from New York City, Teaneck, Englewood, and Fort Lee are communities in that area as well?

MCNERNEY: Yes, that's right. It's about four miles west of the George Washington Bridge, just north of Teaneck, New Jersey. And it's a -- the entire area is a residential area. At about 9:00, 9:30 this morning, Public Service and Electric Gas, the local utility, was out there with a contractor. They may have hit a gas line.

There wasn't a chance at any time to evacuate the units. There are 24 units -- 24 families are now homeless, and an additional 24 families next to that have been evacuated. Also, it's 17 degrees out, so the fire departments of ten midtowns (ph) responded with mutual aid, and Bergen County -- they all assist in mutual aid.

About 150 firefighters have responded, and they seem to have the fire under control at this point. There are no reports of fatalities. But that's changing. We have five -- we don't have all the information yet, but we have five people at the local hospitals.

HARRIS: So let me sort of backtrack here. You have five people at local hospitals, no word of any fatalities yet.

MCNERNEY: That's right. They're doing -- they're trying to make sure they have everybody accounted for at this time. A command center was set up, and we're waiting for the Bergenfield Fire Department to follow through on that. The other thing is, it's holiday time, and the residents of Bergenfield and that county are really opening their doors for the people who are going through the difficult time there. And Red Cross is on -- is at the scene as well, in terms of taking care of these families in the cold.

HARRIS: Hey, Dennis, I understand that the firefighters are looking for one person who was missing and still unaccounted for, that may have been inside the building at the time. Have you heard anything on that?

MCNERNEY: There's a report that one person on the third floor -- and we don't know yet at this time. We're still waiting for the Bergenfield Fire Department.

HARRIS: OK, Dennis McNerney, Bergen County executive. Dennis, thanks for your time, appreciate it. Kyra, back to you.

PHILLIPS: All right, Tony, thank you so much.

Well, the fire's out, but the investigation into Britain's raging oil depot inferno is just beginning. Firefighters today doused the last of the 20 tanks burning at Buncefield Depot, 25 miles north of London. Investigators can now get to work to try to figure out what sparks some of these gigantic explosions. Those blasts incinerated buildings, injured dozens of people and sent smoke billowing across the region. Authorities at the point believe that that explosion was an accident.

Well, of all the tragic possibilities that life holds, the death of a child certainly ranks as one of the most painful. Just imagine, then, the level of anguish in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, as dozens of families come to the site of this weekend's plane crash. One hundred and seven victims. At least 58 were students from a Jesuit school, headed home for Christmas.

Now as distraught parents come to claim the remains of their beloved sons and daughters, CNN's Jeff Koinange bears witness.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They laid out the bodies of victims of Sosoliso Flight 1145 under a hot African sun for family members and relatives to identify and claim. Some wept uncontrollably, others quietly. And others still, just sat, seemingly numbed by the pain, from the loss of a father, mother, brother, sister, cousin, aunt or uncle. But mostly pain from the loss of a child. Dozens of them, wiped out in the blink of an eye.

Nimi Amachree says he's trying to stay strong for his devastated wife and remaining child. His daughter, Owanari (ph), had just turned 13 the day before the crash and had made the honors list in her class. She was coming home to a double celebration.

NIMI AMACHREE, DAUGHTER KILLED IN CRASH: It's -- we aren't not doing too well, actually. KOINANGE: Valentina Chigbo says she has nothing left to live for. She's just lost her only child, 15-year-old Chinehe (ph).

VALENTINA CHIGBO, DAUGHTER KILLED IN CRASH: I told somebody sometime that I can't even imagine life without my daughter. And I didn't know it would come to pass. I didn't know that one day there would be a life without her.

KOINANGE: Nonso Bajakwe still hasn't found his older brother Godwin's (ph) remains. He says he spoke to him right before he boarded the ill-fated flight and was looking forward to spending the Christmas holidays with his wife and two young daughters.

NONSO BAJAKWE, BROTHER KILLED IN CRASH: I feel very bad. I'm devastated. You can't tell the pain I feel. I'm overwhelmed with emotion, very, very bad. He was such a nice guy.

KOINANGE: Some were too overcome with grief to speak. Like the Badru (ph) sisters, seen here holding the picture of their youngest sibling, 14-year-old Take (ph). She would have turned 15 the day after Christmas.

Or 15-year-old Keshe Becuche (ph), a student athlete who had won four medals at a recent athletic championship. A mother's pain for her dead child is all too evident, as she tried to come to grips with the loss of her only daughter.

But the overall grief is slowly turning to anger in Port Harcourt, as parents, relatives and friends start to prepare for more than 100 funerals in the coming days, funerals for victims of an apparently weather-related accident that many here say could have, should have, been avoided with a little more attention to safety. There have been ten fatal air crashes involving Nigerian planes in the past decade, with a death toll approaching 500.

Jeff Koinange, CNN, Port Harcourt, Nigeria.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: And Jeff Koinange will join us from Nigeria in the next hour of LIVE FROM. We'll be back after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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