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American Morning

Manhunt for Sniper Getting Some Serious Help

Aired October 17, 2002 - 08:05   ET

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

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


PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: The manhunt for the sniper is getting some serious help. The Pentagon has now agreed to patrol the skies over the Washington area with some secret surveillance plane. How can that help police on the ground?
Joining us from Washington, CNN security analyst J. Kelly McCann.

Welcome back.

J. KELLY MCCANN, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: Hi, Paula.

ZAHN: Let's talk a little bit about the technology that is used, these surveillance planes, the RC-7 airborne reconnaissance planes. Who will this work?

MCCANN: Well, to put it in perspective, if you remember in the late '60s, early '70s, there was a raid in Vietnam, the Sante Raid (ph), where actually the acuity of the optics were proficient enough to discern license plates of vehicles at altitude and speed, and that was 30 years ago. So that kind of gives you a rough frame of reference for just how proficient these machines are.

Obviously, they're a non-descript package so that people can't recognize, you know, what they look like and the fact that they would be there. They're deployed internationally. But the capabilities run from thermal imaging to infrared imaging to line of sight optics to intercept of communications and signals. It's a pretty full spectrum package.

ZAHN: They fly pretty low in some cases. I was reading this morning as low as 7,000 feet?

MCCANN: Absolutely. And they have a high loiter time because their job, again, is, of course, to just surveil and to get data to the operator on the ground so that he can, you know, find it actionable. So they have a significant loiter time and the coverage pattern, the way that they'll devise the flights, could easily cover the area where the sniper has been operating.

ZAHN: Yes, talk about the coverage pattern for a moment. How wide of an area can the plane survey?

MCCANN: It depends on the method of deployment, Paula. If, you know, they have to account for crew rests, they have to account for refueling. I'm sure there'd be an overlap. But in one plane's instant, the size of the length of coverage, of course, would be classified, because then you know if you saw the plane, you would know outside of that you would be safe to operate.

But suffice it to say that this operating area, 60 to 80 square miles, is well within its capabilities.

ZAHN: Without revealing too much, let's go through a scenario where the thermal imaging senses heat and you've got traffic congestion in an area. How would the plane home in on a specific target?

MCCANN: The sensors will identify anomalies. In other words, they'll look for the out of routine kind of incident, disruptions, anomalies. It could be used in thin skinned shelters to determine if a vehicle was just recently put there. In other words, if a van ran and the engine was hot, they could use thermal imaging to see if it was generating heat and know that that was not, you know, put there yesterday, for instance.

So it is the operator's job to sit there and look for anomalies than pass them to the people with arrest powers on the ground who can find it actionable and go actually, you know, investigate.

ZAHN: There are so many analysts out there that believe that this psychopath is feeding off this media coverage. And I'm just curious whether you think if he becomes aware of the fact that there's a surveillance plane up there, if it's encouragement to go elsewhere, outside of that radius that we've been focused in on so intently over the last couple of weeks.

MCCANN: You've known me for a while now and I kind of try to take the emotion out of it and look at the facts. And if I looked at it, all I could say is that we know that we've got a man who is proficient with his firearm, who is able to elude police and is pretty calculating. As far as what he'll do to play to things that we put up, I wouldn't even venture a guess. But suffice it to say, this is a problem.

ZAHN: Let's go back to the surveillance planes for a moment. You now have the ACLU very concerned that you're compromising people's civil liberties, particularly when you're talking about the military having some sort of engagement in this investigation. What kind of conflicts do you see potentially arising here?

MCCANN: A bigger conflict, Paula, if, in fact, the military was suggested to go in Iraq with the population, and that's not the case here. It is a little bit intrusive because obviously they have oversight and they have the ability to intercept communications. But whether that's in the profile or not, we wouldn't know. But that information then will be given to people with, you know, authorized arrest powers so that the police can go interact with the public.

So it's good that we have watchdog organizations to look over that, but it's not as problematic as it might be. We've been using planes like this and capability like this on the Southwest border for drug interdiction for some time.

ZAHN: Very quickly in closing, we know that investigators are wrestling now with a number of different descriptions of the suspect, in addition to a partial license plate reading of a Maryland plate. Do you think police are any closer to an arrest today? We also know that people are under surveillance at this hour. They're not necessarily being called suspects, but they are being looked at.

MCCANN: You know, people are doing the Sarajevo two step, as well. I mean I was outside this morning watching people hug the walls, look at vantage points, etc. So the ambient threat is getting to people. But I think that the police know a lot more than obviously they're letting on because everyone's walking on eggshells. You don't want to affect this guy one way or the other and create a disadvantageous situation. So I think that they're frustrated. I think that they feel a little bit helpless. But I also think that they know a lot more than we know.

ZAHN: I hope so. I guess we're all praying they know a lot more at this hour.

J. Kelly McCann, thank you very much for your insights, as always.

MCCANN: Thanks, Paula.

ZAHN: Let's go back to Bill now.

Bill, I know that you have been down there for over 48 hours now and you've heard a little bit of what J. Kelly McCann just commented on. Any overview?

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, a couple of things hit me. It's really interesting when you drive around in the day time here, Paula, how often you see a white van or a white truck pulled over to the side of the road and a couple of police cars around it. It draws a crowd quickly. But, again, it's a common sight around this area. The other thing that's kind of interesting, I think, what they're talking about, that aircraft you guys were just discussing, apparently one of the reasons why they chose this aircraft is because it looks so much like a civilian aircraft. In other words, if it's flying at low altitudes, not many people would notice that, you know, that's a military aircraft right there. They may associate it more with a more common plane that's flying in the sky.

A couple of things we're picking up on here, Paula, I just wanted to pass along to you. This hot line manned by about 75 agents 24 hours a day, on Tuesday, the day after that woman was shot and killed on Monday night, they received 15,000 calls in one day. That's the volume that came in on Tuesday. To date, they're saying, at midnight at Tuesday anyway, almost 70,000 calls. A lot of information and a lot of tips to try and sift through.

The education, Paula, continues, too, the education of the public. Police again yesterday coming out and essentially giving tips and advice to people on what they should be looking out for as they, again, try and track this person down. They say try and be a good witness and they give a couple of tips here. We'll read them off for you. Look toward the sound if, indeed, you hear a gunshot. It might be a very difficult thing to do. You know, that sound reverberates there and trying to narrow down has been one of the difficult things for eyewitnesses on the scene.

They talk about noting people and the vehicles, memorize what you see, don't share it with others so it does not skew your view or opinion. And they also say write it down. If you don't have a piece of paper, they say scribble it on your hand.

They are trying everything right now, Paula, as they continue to pull out all the stops here in the D.C. area.

More in a moment.

ZAHN: Yes, it's just chilling to think about all that.

HEMMER: That's right.

ZAHN: Thanks, Bill.

HEMMER: Sure.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired October 17, 2002 - 08:05   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: The manhunt for the sniper is getting some serious help. The Pentagon has now agreed to patrol the skies over the Washington area with some secret surveillance plane. How can that help police on the ground?
Joining us from Washington, CNN security analyst J. Kelly McCann.

Welcome back.

J. KELLY MCCANN, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: Hi, Paula.

ZAHN: Let's talk a little bit about the technology that is used, these surveillance planes, the RC-7 airborne reconnaissance planes. Who will this work?

MCCANN: Well, to put it in perspective, if you remember in the late '60s, early '70s, there was a raid in Vietnam, the Sante Raid (ph), where actually the acuity of the optics were proficient enough to discern license plates of vehicles at altitude and speed, and that was 30 years ago. So that kind of gives you a rough frame of reference for just how proficient these machines are.

Obviously, they're a non-descript package so that people can't recognize, you know, what they look like and the fact that they would be there. They're deployed internationally. But the capabilities run from thermal imaging to infrared imaging to line of sight optics to intercept of communications and signals. It's a pretty full spectrum package.

ZAHN: They fly pretty low in some cases. I was reading this morning as low as 7,000 feet?

MCCANN: Absolutely. And they have a high loiter time because their job, again, is, of course, to just surveil and to get data to the operator on the ground so that he can, you know, find it actionable. So they have a significant loiter time and the coverage pattern, the way that they'll devise the flights, could easily cover the area where the sniper has been operating.

ZAHN: Yes, talk about the coverage pattern for a moment. How wide of an area can the plane survey?

MCCANN: It depends on the method of deployment, Paula. If, you know, they have to account for crew rests, they have to account for refueling. I'm sure there'd be an overlap. But in one plane's instant, the size of the length of coverage, of course, would be classified, because then you know if you saw the plane, you would know outside of that you would be safe to operate.

But suffice it to say that this operating area, 60 to 80 square miles, is well within its capabilities.

ZAHN: Without revealing too much, let's go through a scenario where the thermal imaging senses heat and you've got traffic congestion in an area. How would the plane home in on a specific target?

MCCANN: The sensors will identify anomalies. In other words, they'll look for the out of routine kind of incident, disruptions, anomalies. It could be used in thin skinned shelters to determine if a vehicle was just recently put there. In other words, if a van ran and the engine was hot, they could use thermal imaging to see if it was generating heat and know that that was not, you know, put there yesterday, for instance.

So it is the operator's job to sit there and look for anomalies than pass them to the people with arrest powers on the ground who can find it actionable and go actually, you know, investigate.

ZAHN: There are so many analysts out there that believe that this psychopath is feeding off this media coverage. And I'm just curious whether you think if he becomes aware of the fact that there's a surveillance plane up there, if it's encouragement to go elsewhere, outside of that radius that we've been focused in on so intently over the last couple of weeks.

MCCANN: You've known me for a while now and I kind of try to take the emotion out of it and look at the facts. And if I looked at it, all I could say is that we know that we've got a man who is proficient with his firearm, who is able to elude police and is pretty calculating. As far as what he'll do to play to things that we put up, I wouldn't even venture a guess. But suffice it to say, this is a problem.

ZAHN: Let's go back to the surveillance planes for a moment. You now have the ACLU very concerned that you're compromising people's civil liberties, particularly when you're talking about the military having some sort of engagement in this investigation. What kind of conflicts do you see potentially arising here?

MCCANN: A bigger conflict, Paula, if, in fact, the military was suggested to go in Iraq with the population, and that's not the case here. It is a little bit intrusive because obviously they have oversight and they have the ability to intercept communications. But whether that's in the profile or not, we wouldn't know. But that information then will be given to people with, you know, authorized arrest powers so that the police can go interact with the public.

So it's good that we have watchdog organizations to look over that, but it's not as problematic as it might be. We've been using planes like this and capability like this on the Southwest border for drug interdiction for some time.

ZAHN: Very quickly in closing, we know that investigators are wrestling now with a number of different descriptions of the suspect, in addition to a partial license plate reading of a Maryland plate. Do you think police are any closer to an arrest today? We also know that people are under surveillance at this hour. They're not necessarily being called suspects, but they are being looked at.

MCCANN: You know, people are doing the Sarajevo two step, as well. I mean I was outside this morning watching people hug the walls, look at vantage points, etc. So the ambient threat is getting to people. But I think that the police know a lot more than obviously they're letting on because everyone's walking on eggshells. You don't want to affect this guy one way or the other and create a disadvantageous situation. So I think that they're frustrated. I think that they feel a little bit helpless. But I also think that they know a lot more than we know.

ZAHN: I hope so. I guess we're all praying they know a lot more at this hour.

J. Kelly McCann, thank you very much for your insights, as always.

MCCANN: Thanks, Paula.

ZAHN: Let's go back to Bill now.

Bill, I know that you have been down there for over 48 hours now and you've heard a little bit of what J. Kelly McCann just commented on. Any overview?

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, a couple of things hit me. It's really interesting when you drive around in the day time here, Paula, how often you see a white van or a white truck pulled over to the side of the road and a couple of police cars around it. It draws a crowd quickly. But, again, it's a common sight around this area. The other thing that's kind of interesting, I think, what they're talking about, that aircraft you guys were just discussing, apparently one of the reasons why they chose this aircraft is because it looks so much like a civilian aircraft. In other words, if it's flying at low altitudes, not many people would notice that, you know, that's a military aircraft right there. They may associate it more with a more common plane that's flying in the sky.

A couple of things we're picking up on here, Paula, I just wanted to pass along to you. This hot line manned by about 75 agents 24 hours a day, on Tuesday, the day after that woman was shot and killed on Monday night, they received 15,000 calls in one day. That's the volume that came in on Tuesday. To date, they're saying, at midnight at Tuesday anyway, almost 70,000 calls. A lot of information and a lot of tips to try and sift through.

The education, Paula, continues, too, the education of the public. Police again yesterday coming out and essentially giving tips and advice to people on what they should be looking out for as they, again, try and track this person down. They say try and be a good witness and they give a couple of tips here. We'll read them off for you. Look toward the sound if, indeed, you hear a gunshot. It might be a very difficult thing to do. You know, that sound reverberates there and trying to narrow down has been one of the difficult things for eyewitnesses on the scene.

They talk about noting people and the vehicles, memorize what you see, don't share it with others so it does not skew your view or opinion. And they also say write it down. If you don't have a piece of paper, they say scribble it on your hand.

They are trying everything right now, Paula, as they continue to pull out all the stops here in the D.C. area.

More in a moment.

ZAHN: Yes, it's just chilling to think about all that.

HEMMER: That's right.

ZAHN: Thanks, Bill.

HEMMER: Sure.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com