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Moussaoui Testifies; Grandson Arrested in Murder of Six Family Members

Aired April 13, 2006 - 14:30   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: We're going to go straight back to Jeanne Meserve. She's outside the courtroom there in Alexandria, Virginia.
Jeanne, you've been going in and out of the courtroom listening to Zacarias Moussaoui there at the stand. Finally asked a pretty pivotal question from the defense?

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: That's right. The question was, why do you hate America? He read a verse from the Koran, said it was duty of Muslims to be superiority, then launched into his objections to what he called the Jewish state of Palestine. Said the United States, by law, you have guaranteed the security of the Jewish state. For me, the Jewish state of Palestine is another missing star in the American flag, he said. Without America, there is no Jewish state of Palestine. He went on to say, you are the head of the snake for me. If I wanted to destroy Israel, I have to destroy you.

He was asked what else has the U.S. done? He talked about the world power situation, about economics, said the U.S. was in the driver's seat because of its superior military capability and because of various other economic policies. He said we do not exist, referring to the Muslim world, we do not exist. You have the power and you run the show, and I want the power and I will run the show, said Moussaoui. He talked about Bosnia a little bit, he talked about the United Nations. He said, you talk about justice and human rights and you suck the mind of the fool, but you don't suck my mind.

He was asked about the victims, the victims' families who have testified in this courtroom this week, very emotionally. He was asked if he had any sympathy for them. He said none whatsoever. He was asked why. He said I find it disgusting that some people would share their grief to seek the death penalty of someone else. Then he went on to say, we want to inflict pain on your country. We wish that there will be more pain. And he's still testifying now, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: You brought up such an interesting point, Jeanne, about here he is, coming out against America and that America shouldn't exist, yet he seems to enjoy a lot of Western -- parts of Western culture, doesn't it?

MESERVE: Well, he does. And he seems to be quite clever at gaming the legal system at this point in time. He's being asked questions by his defense attorney, some of them apparently submitted to them by him, questions he wanted to answer. And he spent much of today railing against his attorneys and what he perceives as mistakes in their course of action here in the courtroom, saying, of course, that he doesn't like them and doesn't want them representing him at all -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Jeanne Meserve outside the courtroom. Thanks, Jeanne

A horror scene, a multiple homicide in the heart of Amish country. Police are beginning to build a case around what they found in a home in eastern Pennsylvania, where six family members, ages five to 64, were beaten to death.

CNN's Christopher King has the latest now from the town of Leola -- Christopher.

CHRISTOPHER KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Kyra. Jesse Wise, the suspect, was taken into court just a little while ago. This is a picture of him walking into a Lancaster County, Pennsylvania courthouse. He's accuse of killing his family members, including his grandmother, two aunts and three cousins. The suspect is 21 years old. This all happened in Leola, Pennsylvania. This is 75 miles west of Philadelphia. This is the heart of the Amish country. Wise is charged with homicide.

Authorities held a press conference earlier. Here what they had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF JOHN BOWMAN, EASTER LAMPETER TWP. POLICE DEPT: There is a relationship in that the deceased, Emily Wise, would be the grandmother of the accused, and the other deceased at this point would be cousins or some type of blood relationship along those lines from what we have.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING; Now, police say the home was owned by another Jesse Wise. He's 60 years old. They say he was in New York. The family was scheduled to take a trip up to New York but that Jesse Wise, the 60- year-old, had not heard from the family since last Friday. So police say that Jesse Wise called to family friend and neighbor, John Adams. They say when police arrived at the scene, the neighbor, John Adams, was there. They say he went down into the basement, but came running back upstairs saying they're all dead.

Now, when police got to the scene, they say that they saw four bodies in the basement. Three of the bodies were wrapped up in sheets. They were all -- another body was wrapped up in a blanket and a telephone cord. Now, police recovered a hammer. They say they saw blood and bone fragments on the walls and ceilings in two upstairs bedrooms.

Now, names of the victims are Emily, age 60; Wanda, age 45; Arlene, in her 30s; Skylar, age 19 -- he's a male; Chaz, age 5, also a male; and Jesse James. Everyone in the family has had the last name Wise -- Kyra? PHILLIPS: All right, Christopher King, we'll follow up with you as you get more information.

Let's get straight to Carol Lin. She's working a number of other developing stories for us, as well. One out of Kansas and one out of Baltimore -- Carol.

CAROL LIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Let's start with the one out of Kansas, Kyra. You remember the 16-year-old girl, Kelsey Stelting, out of Independence, Kansas, who was allegedly kidnapped after struggling with her attacker and forced to run and she was chased and then allegedly thrown into a white van. For 15 hours, nobody knew where she was. There was an Amber Alert. Posters were plastered, some 7,500 pictures out and about in the community.

Then, suddenly, she came back safely, and yet police were not able to corroborate critical details of her story. Well, just a short time ago, the FBI had a news conference and this is what they had to say about what happened to that girl.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFF LANZA, SPECIAL AGENT, FBI: The situation where we had a girl who could have been in very, very grave danger. And those things often end very, very badly. So we are extremely happy to have Kelsey home where she belongs with her family. And that's the bottom line in all of this, that she's home safe.

We've been told this morning by Kelsey in an extended interview with her that the story about the kidnapping was not true and none of the information she had originally told police in the 911 call was true. And based on that information, we are, of course, withdrawing all of our resources on this case and going back to our normal duties.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIN: Kyra, that is one 16-year-old who is going to be in deep trouble. Just yesterday, the police released the 911 call that she made, saying that this man with a gun had approached her from behind in her driveway. Now it turns out the whole things was a hoax.

PHILLIPS: Unbelievable. Yes, I think you're right about big, big trouble.

LIN: Yes. You bet.

PHILLIPS: All right, what's happening in Baltimore?

LIN: All right, we've been following this story about a hostage situation inside a police substation. Right now, the latest is that this suspect is now communicating with the hostage negotiators. That is a really good sign, that they've got a dialogue going.

But Kyra, just about two and a half hours ago, this police officer was bringing this drug suspect into the substation for booking. He was restrained, somehow got out of those restraints, attacked the officer, sending that officer to the hospital. We know that he is doing OK. But then the suspect runs to the back room and grabs a civilian employee. So he's got this civilian employee.

WBAL, a local affiliate, is reporting that he's got some scissors. That's the sharp object, the sharp weapon that he may be using to keep this employee hostage. But at least there's a dialogue going.

But Morgan State University, which is right next door to the substation, is in lockdown. So it's not over yet. But at least there's a conversation going. And as you know, that's a good sign they may be able to talk this guy down.

PHILLIPS: Absolutely. All right, we'll follow it. Carol Lin, thanks.

PHILLIPS: We're going to stay on that story, and we've got a lot more news for you. It keeps coming. We'll keep bringing it you. More LIVE FROM next.

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PHILLIPS: Smuggled across the border, not people, not weapons, not drugs -- puppies. A California customs agent inspecting a van crossing from Mexico noticed that a tiny paw was poking out from under the front seat. A closer look turned up more than two dozen Chihuahuas, Cocker Spaniels, Boxers and other dogs taped into the tiny space.

The oldest were 6 weeks old. Some had to be rushed to an emergency clinic and may not survive. The driver is cited on 28 counts of animal cruelty. He allegedly planned to sell the pups at a swap meet.

So how much is that doggy in the window? And how did he get there? With prices for purebred dogs in the hundreds or even thousands, a breeder black market is booming in Mexico.

CNN's Gary Tuchman reports on the animals caught in the middle of this rough trade.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On the U.S.-Mexican border, amid the smuggling of human beings and drugs ...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Get out of there. That's a good boy. Get it out of there, buddy.

TUCHMAN: ... another type of smuggling is taking place. These are sick, underage puppies, all 26 of them found stuffed in two small burlap bags in the car of a puppy smuggler. Officials say they would have been sold through want ads, on street corners in the U.S. Now, they're fighting for their lives -- too ill and too young. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Their faces don't look much bigger than hamsters.

TUCHMAN: Under California law, dogs can't be sold if they're under eight weeks old or sick. And the vets at the shelter say these dogs are no older than five weeks.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Don't go too far Meho (ph) because you're going to fall, OK?

TUCHMAN: And underage dogs like these are sold to unsuspecting families all the time for prices well under the more than $1,000 that is often paid in a pet store.

Rosie Tercero bought a poodle mix, named Cody, for her children. After paying $400 on a street corner in Rancho Cucamonga, California, she quickly noticed he was sick.

ROSIE TERCERO, DOG OWNER: And about two weeks later, he started showing worse signs of neurological disorder. And he started twitching really bad and then I took him in and the doctor said we need to put him to sleep.

TUCHMAN: Her sister, Monica Westphaln, bought two tiny dogs for her children this past November. They both died within days.

MONICA WESTPHALN, DOG OWNER: We're now in March, but it still hurts because it was two puppies.

TUCHMAN: Lieutenant Dan De Sousa is with the San Diego County Department of Animal Services.

LT. DAN DE SOUSA, SAN DIEGO COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF ANIMAL SERVICES: You know, unfortunately it's safer than selling drugs. If you get caught smuggling puppies, you're not really going to be arrested right away in the same way.

TUCHMAN (on camera): For the conscience-challenged puppy smuggler, the business model is irresistible. Go into Mexico and you can buy purebred puppies for as little as $20 a piece. Gamble that you successfully get across this border and then sell them in the United States for a 1,000 percent markup. That is a typical scenario.

(voice-over): We went into Tijuana, Mexico, and asked where we could buy puppies. Using hidden cameras, my photographer and I found tiny puppies being sold out of a car.

TUCHMAN (on camera): (SPEAKING IN SPANISH).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Schnauzer Mini -- Miniature Schnauzer.

TUCHMAN: Schnauzer Miniature? (SPEAKING IN SPANISH).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING IN SPANISH).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN SPANISH). (voice-over): It is not illegal to sell dogs younger than eight weeks in Mexico. But because the people selling them know their puppies could end up in California, they may not have told us the following if they knew we had a camera.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN SPANISH). Seven weeks.

TUCHMAN (on camera): Seven weeks.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Seven weeks.

TUCHMAN: This dog is seven weeks old, he says.

(voice-over): We say good-bye to these puppy peddlers and make our way to this shanty, where puppies are for sale in the yard.

Here we show the camera, and they show us puppies in a basket. They're only four weeks old -- and not much bigger than large rodents.

(on camera): (SPEAKING IN SPANISH). Do you like dogs?

(voice-over): She says she loves her dogs and wants them to be taken care of properly. But puppies like these are prime candidates to be smuggled across the border.

James Hynes is the director of the San Ysidro, California Border Crossing -- the busiest in the U.S., where they have confiscated hundreds of puppies.

JAMES HYNES, DIRECTOR, SAN YSIDRO, CALIFORNIA BORDER CROSSING: They could be in a basket with a blanket over them. They could be in baggage. They could be in the trunk. They could be, you know, they could have tape. They could be taped up. I mean, you never know what you're going to see out here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to go ahead and serve the warrant.

TUCHMAN: So in southern California, different agencies have gotten together to try to deal with the puppy smuggling problem.

With our hidden camera, we shoot a sting operation. An undercover officer with the Southeast Area Animal Control Authority answered this classified ad from a woman, alleged to have sold many underage puppies in the past. The transaction takes place and the officer signals.

That's when this Los Angeles woman gets the surprise of her life -- guns and handcuffs spring out and she's placed under arrest and charged with selling a dog that is too young and sick. She's with her small son and police try to comfort him as they count up $1,700 in her wallet.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've received previous complaints about her. We actually think she's a big fish.

TUCHMAN: Do you know why you were arrested?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, I don't. I mean, they said for selling underage dogs, but they're not.

TUCHMAN: The authorities disagree after a vet looked at the dogs that he said were full of worms.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're estimating their age to be six to seven weeks.

TUCHMAN: A search warrant allows authorities to go into her home where they say they find more underage puppies and more excess cash.

The suspect faces the possibility of one year in prison. Police say puppy smuggling is increasingly popular because small dogs are very trendy.

Monica Smith, though, says she just wanted a dog for her children to love.

(on camera): What happened to your doggy?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE CHILD: He died.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): And so have countless others, smuggled across the border by people not at all consumed about the heartache they are causing.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, Tijuana, Mexico.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: And just a reminder from LIVE FROM's large contingent of animal lovers. Million of homeless dogs, cats and other great pets can be found through animal shelters and pet rescue groups around the nation. Check out one near you.

Let's get straight back to Carol Lin still working that developing story out of Baltimore. What's new, Carol?

CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, what's new, we can show you these pictures now just coming in as you're about to see, I believe, that the SWAT teams are surrounding this police substation in Baltimore where a narcotics suspect has taken a civilian employee hostage after breaking free from a police officer and attacking that officer.

Now right now this is what we do know, that the hostage negotiating teams are in contact with the suspect who is holed up in a back room, holding this hostage. Apparently he is armed with some kind of a sharp object, according to local reports. WBAL is reporting -- or rather "The Baltimore Sun" is reporting that he's holding the hostage with a pair of scissors.

A local state college is being held in a lockdown situation because it's right next door to the substation. They don't quite know exactly what's going to happen next but at least these negotiating teams can get an idea of the suspect's mindset and, Kyra, at least that dialogue is going on now, with police obviously keeping a wary eye on the surrounding area and making sure that this suspect does not get loose.

PHILLIPS: We'll be following it. Carol Lin, thanks.

Straight ahead, entertainment news with A.J. Hammer of "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT." A.J., what's on tap?

A.J. HAMMER, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Kyra, tons of tunes to talk about today. I'm going to have the latest sounds from several musical genres. We've got a country trio that has a fantastic week to talk about. A jazz great is going home, and a legendary rock band is hitting the net. I will hit all of those notes when LIVE FROM continues.

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PHILLIPS: Big news in the music world. A.J. Hammer of SHOWBIZ TONIGHT has all the scoop, the tunes. He might even sing for us if we ask.

HAMMER: No singing involved here, Kyra. It's better for everybody involved. Yes, all kind of news in the music world today. First the Rascal Flatts, they may have been praying for daylight, but their prayers were answered with a No. 1 album.

(SINGING)

HAMMER: That is "What Hurts the Most," it's the trio's newest single comes from their fourth C.D. called "Me and my Gang." Fact is, they are not hurting, not at all. The disc debuted in the top spot on both the Billboard 200 and Billboard's country chart.

This is the guys best sales week ever. And it's actually the biggest debut week for any country act since Tim McGraw's "Live Like You Were Dying," which was back in September of 2004. Huge numbers, Kyra, and definitely a lot of love for the Rascal Flatts this week.

PHILLIPS: A.J., I've got to tell you, they are one of my favorites. As a matter of fact, one of their tunes, first one on the running mix on my iPod.

HAMMER: Well I know that you're a huge country music fan. You've divulged that to me before. And you'll be happy to know these guys are going to be on the road all summer as well. In fact, they're going out on the road at the end of May, they're going to be touring all throughout the summer months.

Meanwhile, we have somebody to tell you about who's going home. Jazz musician Wynton Marsalis heading home to play live in New Orleans. The trumpeter, along with Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, back to the Big Easy next week. Actually this is the first time Marsalis and his entire ensemble will have played in his native New Orleans. They're going to perform at the historic Conga Square in the Louis Armstrong Park to continue to inspire the healing process for those who were devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

Then, they're going to kick off a six-city tour before returning to New York for a New Orleans festival of jazz music at Lincoln Center. I don't know if you've ever seen this guy perform live, Kyra. Absolutely amazing, and with that orchestra backing them up, it's a real treat.

PHILLIPS: A.J., you know me, of course I've seen him play. I've met him, interviewed him, even been to events with him. I love the guy, he's fantastic.

HAMMER: Have you ever sung along with him while he played?

PHILLIPS: No. I really wish I could do that, though. But that would be pretty disastrous. Definitely not smooth sounds or classical like The Beatles.

HAMMER: Well the fab four actually in the news because finally they're joining up with this millennium and they're heading into cyberspace.

(SINGING)

HAMMER: We've got all the love we need. But it's about time these guys are doing what they're about to do. The legendary quartet preparing to sell their songs online. Yes, you'll soon be able to download John, Paul, George and Ringo into your digital music device, according to the former road manager Neil Aspinall, who is now the managing director of The Beatles label Apple Records.

They're currently in the process of remastering The Beatles collection so it can be sold online. Now if you happen to be an enthusiast of the original mixes of the songs that were pressed on to vinyl all those years ago, before the remastering process, those versions of the songs will also be available on the Internet.

And Kyra, I have a friend who actually says the digital remastered version sometimes can separate the vocals and the instrumental tracks a little too much. She prefers the old, more evenly mixed versions. Beatles fans going to be happy either way. Some people are real purists when it comes to that. Some people just like the scratchy sound of vinyl and just want to hear the records playing.

PHILLIPS: That's true, the old school feel. All right, what's coming up on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, tonight?

HAMMER: Well tonight we're going to be dealing with the Flight 93 cockpit tapes, Kyra. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT has a revealing look at the reality of what happened on 9/11 and the re-creation of the tragedy in a controversial new movie. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT has seen the film and has the chilling comparisons tonight at 7:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. on CNN "Headline Prime." First reaction to this film, I have to go see it on Monday, the Flight 93 film. I have a lot of apprehension about it, as do a lot of people. Some are saying it's just too soon. PHILLIPS: Yes -- no, A.J., a lot of people walking out. They see the trailer and they can't stomach it. It's been really controversial. We did interview though a couple family members and they thought it was really well done. But the question is, are we all ready to see something like that now?

HAMMER: Well it is a pretty intense movie. Our producer went to see it today, got back, we spoke about it. And we'll be talking about that tonight on the show. And if I wasn't forced for work to be going to see it on Monday, I might not be rushing to the theater to check it out.

PHILLIPS: Yes, no, I feel you on that one. Let me know how it is, will you?

HAMMER: Definitely will.

PHILLIPS: All right, we'll talk about it. Thanks, A.J.

HAMMER: All right, see you tomorrow.

PHILLIPS: Straight ahead, a local election but national news. New Orleans is about to choose a mayor. We're going to meet some of the candidates. There's a lot of them when LIVE FROM rolls on after a break.

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