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CNN Saturday Morning News
Nine-year-old Jessica Lunsford Missing in Florida; New Developments in BTK Killer Case
Aired February 26, 2005 - 09:00 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.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Two hours from now, we may learn if police have caught the BTK killer. We'll be watching it for you.
From the CNN Center in Atlanta, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING. It's February 26. Good morning, everyone. I'm Betty Nguyen.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Tony Harris. Nine a.m. here in Atlanta, 8:00 a.m. in Wichita, Kansas. Thanks for being with us.
Now, more on this and other headlines.
Police in Wichita, Kansas, are expected to reveal new developments this morning in the 30-year-old BTK serial killings case. The officers have questioned someone they call a person of interest in connection with the eight killings. BTK stands for bind, torture, and kill.
Police and other officials have scheduled a news conference for 11:00 a.m. Eastern, and CNN will be there live.
Palestinian forces have arrested two West Bank men in connection with a suicide bombing Friday at a nightclub in Tel Aviv. The arrest came after Palestinian leaders promised to hunt down those responsible. The bombing killed four people and wounded 65 others.
The doctors have asked Pope John Paul II not to speak while he's recovering from throat surgery, so an aide will read the pope's Sunday Angelus message and will bless the crowd in St. Peter's Square. The pope will follow the message from his hospital room in Rome.
NGUYEN: Here's what we've got coming up for you.
The BTK investigation, we are just under two hours away now from the latest developments in the serial killing case. We'll bring you a news conference. That's live at 11:00 Eastern.
Nine-year-old Jessica Lunsford still missing from her home in Florida. We will have the latest on that case as well.
Plus, new video of a courthouse shooting Thursday in Tyler, Texas. You have to see this. CNN's Ed Lavendera will have the dramatic pictures and the story.
HARRIS: Our top story this hour starts with three grisly words, bind, torture, kill. For years they've been part of the BTK killer's violent vocabulary. Now people in Wichita, Kansas, hope their ordeal is coming to an end.
For the latest on the investigation, we turn to CNN's Jonathan Freed live in Wichita. Jonathan, good morning.
JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Tony.
We're here at the city hall in downtown Wichita. The people of this community have been holding their breath for three decades. It was in 1974 that the first of eight murders that took place between 1974 and 1986, as far as we know at this point, eight murders attributed to the BTK strangler. He actually gave himself, suggested that nickname to police a number of years ago.
Now, Tony, it was last March, March of 2004, when the BTK strangler broke a quarter-century of silence and sent a letter to "The Wichita Eagle" newspaper here, effectively claiming responsibility for that 1986 murder. That is the most recent murder that had been unsolved in this community. That has been attributed to the BTK.
Now, just yesterday, Tony, in the city of Park City, a neighborhood about seven miles north of us here in Wichita, police yesterday conducted an operation. They searched a home and they took an individual that they were calling a person of interest into custody for questioning. There are also reports that they were waiting for some DNA tests as well.
Now, today, in just under two hours from now, a news conference here at city hall has been called by the mayor, the district attorney, the chief of police, and a number of other representatives from the Kansas law enforcement community.
The expectation is mounting that they are going to announce a major development in the case. And we are standing by and waiting for that at 10:00, Tony.
HARRIS: All right, Jonathan.
Once again, remind us again of all of the officials who are going to be there today, and then I'm going to ask you a question about that.
FREED: OK. Well, we've got the mayor, the district attorney, the chief of police, representatives of the FBI, we understand, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation is supposed to be here. Some local and state lawmakers are supposed to be here. The list goes on.
HARRIS: All right. Do you get a sense that law enforcement officials have their man?
FREED: That is the sense that people have here on the ground because I have been covering this story for the last year. And this police department has gone to great lengths, Tony, to say as little as it possibly can, even when pressed hard by the media about developments. There have been a number of communiques from the killer over the course of the last year, letters sent to the media, that kind of thing. He's been known for taunting police over the years, even made a phone call. They have his voice on tape from the 1970s after one of the murders.
So this -- the killer has not been shy. The killer has been seeking publicity. But police have been going the other way, really trying to dial it back in. So if they are holding a news conference of this magnitude, bringing out this number of people...
HARRIS: Yes.
FREED: ... that's why the expectations, Tony...
HARRIS: Yes.
CRAWFORD: ... are pegged where they are.
HARRIS: OK, Jonathan Freed following the case for us in Wichita, Kansas. Jonathan, we appreciate it. Thank you.
NGUYEN: Now, 28 years ago, police say, the BTK killer picked a Wichita woman as his next victim. Her name is Cheryl. She was single and lived with her 5-year-old son at that time.
Cheryl fled Kansas out of fear, but now she is speaking out. Here's what she told CNN's Paula Zahn last night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAULA ZAHN, HOST: Describe to our audience what it was like to go for periods where you would actually sleep in public places. That was the only place you felt safe to sleep.
CHERYL, INTENDED BTK VICTIM: Yes. For several months after the murder, I would sleep on my floor in my office during my lunch hour. I would sleep, if I had a doctor's appointment, I would sleep in the office until I saw the doctor. And then I would grab naps if people came over to visit me, I would sleep then. But I couldn't sleep at night.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: And as we have been telling you all morning long, Wichita authorities, including police, the mayor, and a whole list of people there, plan to make an announcement in the BTK case this morning. That happens at 11:00 Eastern. CNN will have live coverage.
Time now to check out some of the other international stories making news this morning.
HARRIS: And for that, let's turn things over now to Anand Naidoo at the International Desk. Anand, good morning.
ANAND NAIDOO, CNN INTERNATIONAL: Hey, buddy, good morning to you.
And up first, the latest on the suicide bomb attack in Tel Aviv. Palestinians say they have arrested two men in connection with that incident. Four people died, 65 were injured in the Friday blast. It's threatening to unravel the week-old ceasefire between the Israelis and the Palestinians. But for now, the truce is holding. There are suspicions the militant group Hezbollah may be involved in the attack. Israelis and Palestinians identified the bomber as a 22- year-old university student from a northern West Bank village.
Up next, a check on the pope. He's spending a third day in a Rome hospital after undergoing throat surgery. Latest reports say he continues to breathe by himself. No infection reported. The Vatican says he will follow Sunday's Angelus blessing from the hospital, but an aide will read the message in St. Peter's Square.
Next, an issue that is stirring tensions between Washington and Moscow. Russia is set to sign a deal to supply nuclear fuel to Iran for its reactor. The latest we have is that a last-minute snag is postponing the signing to tomorrow. Negotiations are dragging on, as one official put it. Under that deal, Russia will supply the fuel to Iran for its nuclear reactor at Bushir (ph), and then take back the spent nuclear fuel once it's been used. And that's to prevent it from being used for other reasons, like making nuclear weapons.
That it is for me. We'll keep you up to date on developments throughout the day. Stay with us. But for now, we're going back to Tony and Betty.
HARRIS: Anand, thank you.
NGUYEN: In Florida today, a 9-year-old girl is missing. Her family desperately wants her back home. And a nationwide search is under way.
For the latest now on Jessica Lunsford, we head to Homosassa, Florida, and Ferdinand Zogbaum of CNN affiliate Bay 9 News. What do you know so far?
FERDINAND ZOGBAUM, REPORTER, BAY 9 NEWS: Well, it is day number three of the search for 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford continues here in Citrus County, Florida. Now, officials here are very frustrated, because they haven't gotten that break in the case that they are after. They haven't found those clues or gotten any information to steer them towards Jessica's whereabouts.
But they are hoping to get some sort of information today.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ZOGBAUM (voice-over): The search for Jessica Lunsford rolls into another day after her father found her missing Thursday morning around 6:00 a.m. when he checked on her. The Citrus County sheriff's office, along with several other law enforcement agencies, are looking for any clues that could send them in the direction of Jessica. Sheriff's officials say so far the investigation has been very frustrating, because they haven't found anything to point them in one direction or another.
Jessica was seen last by her grandmother, who tucked her into bed Wednesday night. We did talk with Jessica's mother, Angie Bryant, who was located by the FBI, and she had this to say.
ANGIE BRYANT, MOTHER: She's my baby. I mean, I got a 5-year-old son, and I don't know if I can go on without her.
ZOGBAUM: Sheriff's officials are still not calling this an Amber Alert or an abduction.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ZOGBAUM: Now, investigators say they simply don't have enough evidence or information to call this an abduction or to even issue an Amber Alert at this point. I will tell you that a bunch of volunteers are gathering to head out and try to help out with the search. A number of volunteers showed up yesterday and teamed up with local deputies to try to find some information to help get this investigation under way.
Back to you.
NGUYEN: Very little information in this case, yet searchers are out there trying to find this little girl. Are they searching in a specific area? And if so, why that area?
ZOGBAUM: Well, so far, they've focused the search in sort of the western part of the county, western part of Citrus County, and generally around her house. There's a bunch of wooded area here. There's a number of other homes. They spent a good deal of time looking in the other homes, looking underneath other homes.
A lot of people are out in the local woods walking around. Choppers have been in the air. Yesterday, they actually sent out a dive team to cover some of the area bodies of waters, like ponds and lakes. But they are still pretty much concentrated in this area. I haven't heard anything of them heading out of this county or anywhere else in the state.
NGUYEN: All right, Ferdinand Zogbaum of CNN affiliate Bay 9 News, thank you for that information.
The Texas shootout caught on videotape. We have new video of Tyler police officers chasing a suspect through the streets. That's ahead.
HARRIS: And good morning, New York City. Rob Marciano coming up in just minutes with your weekend forecast.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: We have new video this morning of that shootout Thursday in Tyler, Texas. A gunman opened fire at the courthouse. And when the drama ended on a Tyler street, three people were dead.
Those are the basic facts, but there's a lot more to this story, as CNN's Ed Lavandera reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): David Arroyo is driving the red pickup truck. Tyler police officers are chasing from behind. What this footage doesn't show is how Ron Martell helped police zero in on Arroyo, making his getaway after a shooting rampage in Tyler's town square.
RON MARTELL, SHOOTING WITNESS: So I put my van in gear, was closing on him, so that I could trail him. And as we were driving past a police roadblock, they were still looking at the courthouse. And I stopped, slowed down low -- long enough, lowered my window, and I said, Guys he's in this red truck, follow me. That's your shooter right there.
LAVANDERA: A few miles later, Arroyo fires a semiautomatic machine gun at officers. Tyler police fire into the truck. Arroyo steps out, fires once more and collapses and dies.
Martell saw it all. He was driving past the Tyler courthouse as Arroyo unleashed his attack. Martell is legally allowed to carry a weapon in Texas. So he grabbed his gun and jumped into the action.
MARTELL: I'd already gotten my gun out and had charged it, put a couple of mags in my pocket. Had my door open, was getting out to go engage this person. And Mark Wilson, I found out later, came up...
LAVANDERA: Mark Wilson, another citizen legally armed with a handgun, had already reached a spot to shoot at Arroyo.
MARTELL: Mark came up, shot twice, from what I could tell.
LAVANDERA: But Arroyo was wearing a bulletproof vest and a flak jacket. Martell says he saw Wilson shoot Arroyo several times, but the gunman was unfazed.
(on camera): Mark Wilson lived in this apartment right up there overlooking the town square. Some of his friends think that when heard the gunshots, he grabbed his own gun, made his way down here. At the time, the gunman was shooting from the middle of the street. Mark ran this way, up this sidewalk, and made it up to where you see those officers. That's where he was shot and killed.
(voice-over): Arroyo's gun power was just too much. He shot Wilson several times. Wilson had run to the scene to stop the rampage, instead died helping others escape.
The gunman's ex-wife was shot and killed, his son wounded along with three law enforcement officers. Everyone here agrees, Wilson saved lives. He's honored as a hero in Tyler.
BOBBY MIMS, WILSON'S FRIEND: He's a man's man, if you know what I mean. He's not going to sit back and -- when he could do something about it, and just let it happen.
LAVANDERA: Bobby Mims and Chris Gardner are Wilson's friends. Every year, the three of them would take a guys-only adventure somewhere around the world. Wilson used to own a shooting range, where he taught others how to protect themselves. Gardener says Wilson would never have thought of himself as a hero.
CHRIS GARDNER, WILSON'S FRIEND: I think he would be quite humbled by it. I think -- I felt at times Mark didn't even realize, you know, how many people he knew and, you know -- We spent a lot of quality time together. So, miss him.
LAVANDERA: Tyler is a place known for the sweet smell of roses. But Ron Martell says behind the piney-woods curtain of this east Texas town exists a culture of people willing to do whatever it takes to stay safe.
MARTELL: In situations like this, you have a number of citizens that will take it upon themselves to protect the rest of the citizenry. And that's probably one of the things about Tyler that I really love.
LAVANDERA: The red brick streets of downtown Tyler have been reopened, but the talk is still of the terror that struck in the heart of the city.
Ed Lavandera, CNN, Tyler, Texas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: And we'll be right back with a look at your weekend forecast.
Here's a live look at New York City's Central Park with the snow on the ground.
This is CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAPT. SCOTT O'GRADY: And as soon as the missile hit, the only thing I saw was a cockpit disintegrating in front of me.
AARON BROWN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Captain Scott O'Grady spent six days struggling to survive after being shot down in Bosnia in 1995.
O'GRADY: My heart started racing, and then I heard Basher one one up on the radio.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm alive, I'm alive.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Copy that, you're alive.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
BROWN: Little did he know those six days would change his life forever.
O'GRADY: I just want to have a normal life and just continue on.
BROWN: O'Grady immediately found himself thrust into the spotlight recounting his story for millions, and he continues to do so today, 10 years later. He has published two books, "Return with Honor" and "Basher Five-Two," a children's edition of his story. After 12 years serving his country, O'Grady is now pursuing a Master's at Dallas's Theological Seminary.
O'GRADY: I believe that you shouldn't be ignorant as to what you believe. You should understand why you believe it.
BROWN: Once graduated, Scott O'Grady says he wants to dedicate his life to giving back to both his community and his country.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: (UNINTELLIGIBLE), Duran Duran on a Saturday morning.
HARRIS: Ah, that's been a come-undone song.
NGUYEN: Yes, it is. And you know what? They are playing out in L.A. today. So...
HARRIS: At that mall out there, probably?
NGUYEN: Rob Marciano, how is the weather going to be? They don't need umbrellas for this, do they?
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: No, no, they'll be fine.
NGUYEN: Good.
MARCIANO: It is going to be nice and dry, temps going to be in the 60s and 70s.
NGUYEN: Nice.
MARCIANO: Looking good.
(WEATHER FORECAST)
MARCIANO: And there's still snow on the ground there in Central Park. You can see "The Gates" down there. See those little orange gates? I think they use a fancier-color term, I can't remember what it is, but there it is. And they'll be taking them down soon. Rain, I think, with this system coming into New York on Monday, may be changing briefly over to snow. But good morning, Big Apple.
NGUYEN: Then you can't call it orange, Rob. MARCIANO: What is? Saffron, or...
(CROSSTALK)
HARRIS: Well, it is orange.
NGUYEN: Saffron.
MARCIANO: Saffron.
HARRIS: Saffron.
NGUYEN: (UNINTELLIGIBLE), saffron.
MARCIANO: Yes, a thousand pardons.
HARRIS: You know, it's prison, it's prison...
NGUYEN: Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
HARRIS: ... jumpsuit orange, is what it.
NGUYEN: It kind of is, though.
MARCIANO: An orange that you're all...
NGUYEN: You're right about that.
MARCIANO: ... too familiar with, (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
(LAUGHTER)
NGUYEN: Oh-ho-ho. We won't talk about his criminal history on this show. At least not now.
(LAUGHTER)
NGUYEN: Maybe later.
HARRIS: You know what? I'm going to, I'm going to, I'm going to leave Rob, and I'm going to get into more trouble here.
NGUYEN: Yes.
HARRIS: And here's why. We'll be right back with a live preview of "DOLANS UNSCRIPTED." Ken and Daria Dolan, I want to see them. There they are. They join us next, live. Good morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Coming up at the top of the hour, "DOLANS UNSCRIPTED." A great show, you are going to love it. We love it here, we love these two, Ken and Daria Dolan, huh? How about that?
NGUYEN: Dolans are some crazy folk (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
HARRIS: Hey, got to ask you, what are you going to take on at the top of the hour?
DARIA DOLAN, HOST, "DOLANS UNSCRIPTED": Well, right off the top, more news about ID theft, Tony.
HARRIS: Oh, boy.
DARIA DOLAN: So we're going to be covering a whole new story that involves 1.2 million people.
KEN DOLAN, HOST, "DOLANS UNSCRIPTED": Also, Tony, we went to Beverly Hills, the Dolans, in Hollywood, not to see what people are going to wear on Oscar night. We did a little inside on the movie industry. Going to pass that along, stuff you haven't heard before, Tony.
DARIA DOLAN: And then the Supreme Court heard a case on eminent domain.
KEN DOLAN: They're going to steal your house.
DARIA DOLAN: The city of New London versus the Suzette Keelow (ph). And we're going to talk with one of the lead attorneys for the plaintiff. Can they steal your home for private purposes?
KEN DOLAN: Your calls and e-mail.
HARRIS: All right, Daria, do everything you can to keep him in line, all right?
(LAUGHTER)
DARIA DOLAN: I'm trying.
HARRIS: All right.
KEN DOLAN: Bye, Tony.
HARRIS: All right, take care. Good to see you.
NGUYEN: Yes, they weren't going at it this time...
HARRIS: Well, they had no time.
NGUYEN: ... but don't worry, they will be on that show. Boy, it's a great show, though.
We do want to thank you for joining us on this show.
HARRIS: We will see you again tomorrow morning. "OPEN HOUSE" is straight ahead. But first, these stories.
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 February 26, 2005 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Two hours from now, we may learn if police have caught the BTK killer. We'll be watching it for you.
From the CNN Center in Atlanta, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING. It's February 26. Good morning, everyone. I'm Betty Nguyen.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Tony Harris. Nine a.m. here in Atlanta, 8:00 a.m. in Wichita, Kansas. Thanks for being with us.
Now, more on this and other headlines.
Police in Wichita, Kansas, are expected to reveal new developments this morning in the 30-year-old BTK serial killings case. The officers have questioned someone they call a person of interest in connection with the eight killings. BTK stands for bind, torture, and kill.
Police and other officials have scheduled a news conference for 11:00 a.m. Eastern, and CNN will be there live.
Palestinian forces have arrested two West Bank men in connection with a suicide bombing Friday at a nightclub in Tel Aviv. The arrest came after Palestinian leaders promised to hunt down those responsible. The bombing killed four people and wounded 65 others.
The doctors have asked Pope John Paul II not to speak while he's recovering from throat surgery, so an aide will read the pope's Sunday Angelus message and will bless the crowd in St. Peter's Square. The pope will follow the message from his hospital room in Rome.
NGUYEN: Here's what we've got coming up for you.
The BTK investigation, we are just under two hours away now from the latest developments in the serial killing case. We'll bring you a news conference. That's live at 11:00 Eastern.
Nine-year-old Jessica Lunsford still missing from her home in Florida. We will have the latest on that case as well.
Plus, new video of a courthouse shooting Thursday in Tyler, Texas. You have to see this. CNN's Ed Lavendera will have the dramatic pictures and the story.
HARRIS: Our top story this hour starts with three grisly words, bind, torture, kill. For years they've been part of the BTK killer's violent vocabulary. Now people in Wichita, Kansas, hope their ordeal is coming to an end.
For the latest on the investigation, we turn to CNN's Jonathan Freed live in Wichita. Jonathan, good morning.
JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Tony.
We're here at the city hall in downtown Wichita. The people of this community have been holding their breath for three decades. It was in 1974 that the first of eight murders that took place between 1974 and 1986, as far as we know at this point, eight murders attributed to the BTK strangler. He actually gave himself, suggested that nickname to police a number of years ago.
Now, Tony, it was last March, March of 2004, when the BTK strangler broke a quarter-century of silence and sent a letter to "The Wichita Eagle" newspaper here, effectively claiming responsibility for that 1986 murder. That is the most recent murder that had been unsolved in this community. That has been attributed to the BTK.
Now, just yesterday, Tony, in the city of Park City, a neighborhood about seven miles north of us here in Wichita, police yesterday conducted an operation. They searched a home and they took an individual that they were calling a person of interest into custody for questioning. There are also reports that they were waiting for some DNA tests as well.
Now, today, in just under two hours from now, a news conference here at city hall has been called by the mayor, the district attorney, the chief of police, and a number of other representatives from the Kansas law enforcement community.
The expectation is mounting that they are going to announce a major development in the case. And we are standing by and waiting for that at 10:00, Tony.
HARRIS: All right, Jonathan.
Once again, remind us again of all of the officials who are going to be there today, and then I'm going to ask you a question about that.
FREED: OK. Well, we've got the mayor, the district attorney, the chief of police, representatives of the FBI, we understand, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation is supposed to be here. Some local and state lawmakers are supposed to be here. The list goes on.
HARRIS: All right. Do you get a sense that law enforcement officials have their man?
FREED: That is the sense that people have here on the ground because I have been covering this story for the last year. And this police department has gone to great lengths, Tony, to say as little as it possibly can, even when pressed hard by the media about developments. There have been a number of communiques from the killer over the course of the last year, letters sent to the media, that kind of thing. He's been known for taunting police over the years, even made a phone call. They have his voice on tape from the 1970s after one of the murders.
So this -- the killer has not been shy. The killer has been seeking publicity. But police have been going the other way, really trying to dial it back in. So if they are holding a news conference of this magnitude, bringing out this number of people...
HARRIS: Yes.
FREED: ... that's why the expectations, Tony...
HARRIS: Yes.
CRAWFORD: ... are pegged where they are.
HARRIS: OK, Jonathan Freed following the case for us in Wichita, Kansas. Jonathan, we appreciate it. Thank you.
NGUYEN: Now, 28 years ago, police say, the BTK killer picked a Wichita woman as his next victim. Her name is Cheryl. She was single and lived with her 5-year-old son at that time.
Cheryl fled Kansas out of fear, but now she is speaking out. Here's what she told CNN's Paula Zahn last night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAULA ZAHN, HOST: Describe to our audience what it was like to go for periods where you would actually sleep in public places. That was the only place you felt safe to sleep.
CHERYL, INTENDED BTK VICTIM: Yes. For several months after the murder, I would sleep on my floor in my office during my lunch hour. I would sleep, if I had a doctor's appointment, I would sleep in the office until I saw the doctor. And then I would grab naps if people came over to visit me, I would sleep then. But I couldn't sleep at night.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: And as we have been telling you all morning long, Wichita authorities, including police, the mayor, and a whole list of people there, plan to make an announcement in the BTK case this morning. That happens at 11:00 Eastern. CNN will have live coverage.
Time now to check out some of the other international stories making news this morning.
HARRIS: And for that, let's turn things over now to Anand Naidoo at the International Desk. Anand, good morning.
ANAND NAIDOO, CNN INTERNATIONAL: Hey, buddy, good morning to you.
And up first, the latest on the suicide bomb attack in Tel Aviv. Palestinians say they have arrested two men in connection with that incident. Four people died, 65 were injured in the Friday blast. It's threatening to unravel the week-old ceasefire between the Israelis and the Palestinians. But for now, the truce is holding. There are suspicions the militant group Hezbollah may be involved in the attack. Israelis and Palestinians identified the bomber as a 22- year-old university student from a northern West Bank village.
Up next, a check on the pope. He's spending a third day in a Rome hospital after undergoing throat surgery. Latest reports say he continues to breathe by himself. No infection reported. The Vatican says he will follow Sunday's Angelus blessing from the hospital, but an aide will read the message in St. Peter's Square.
Next, an issue that is stirring tensions between Washington and Moscow. Russia is set to sign a deal to supply nuclear fuel to Iran for its reactor. The latest we have is that a last-minute snag is postponing the signing to tomorrow. Negotiations are dragging on, as one official put it. Under that deal, Russia will supply the fuel to Iran for its nuclear reactor at Bushir (ph), and then take back the spent nuclear fuel once it's been used. And that's to prevent it from being used for other reasons, like making nuclear weapons.
That it is for me. We'll keep you up to date on developments throughout the day. Stay with us. But for now, we're going back to Tony and Betty.
HARRIS: Anand, thank you.
NGUYEN: In Florida today, a 9-year-old girl is missing. Her family desperately wants her back home. And a nationwide search is under way.
For the latest now on Jessica Lunsford, we head to Homosassa, Florida, and Ferdinand Zogbaum of CNN affiliate Bay 9 News. What do you know so far?
FERDINAND ZOGBAUM, REPORTER, BAY 9 NEWS: Well, it is day number three of the search for 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford continues here in Citrus County, Florida. Now, officials here are very frustrated, because they haven't gotten that break in the case that they are after. They haven't found those clues or gotten any information to steer them towards Jessica's whereabouts.
But they are hoping to get some sort of information today.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ZOGBAUM (voice-over): The search for Jessica Lunsford rolls into another day after her father found her missing Thursday morning around 6:00 a.m. when he checked on her. The Citrus County sheriff's office, along with several other law enforcement agencies, are looking for any clues that could send them in the direction of Jessica. Sheriff's officials say so far the investigation has been very frustrating, because they haven't found anything to point them in one direction or another.
Jessica was seen last by her grandmother, who tucked her into bed Wednesday night. We did talk with Jessica's mother, Angie Bryant, who was located by the FBI, and she had this to say.
ANGIE BRYANT, MOTHER: She's my baby. I mean, I got a 5-year-old son, and I don't know if I can go on without her.
ZOGBAUM: Sheriff's officials are still not calling this an Amber Alert or an abduction.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ZOGBAUM: Now, investigators say they simply don't have enough evidence or information to call this an abduction or to even issue an Amber Alert at this point. I will tell you that a bunch of volunteers are gathering to head out and try to help out with the search. A number of volunteers showed up yesterday and teamed up with local deputies to try to find some information to help get this investigation under way.
Back to you.
NGUYEN: Very little information in this case, yet searchers are out there trying to find this little girl. Are they searching in a specific area? And if so, why that area?
ZOGBAUM: Well, so far, they've focused the search in sort of the western part of the county, western part of Citrus County, and generally around her house. There's a bunch of wooded area here. There's a number of other homes. They spent a good deal of time looking in the other homes, looking underneath other homes.
A lot of people are out in the local woods walking around. Choppers have been in the air. Yesterday, they actually sent out a dive team to cover some of the area bodies of waters, like ponds and lakes. But they are still pretty much concentrated in this area. I haven't heard anything of them heading out of this county or anywhere else in the state.
NGUYEN: All right, Ferdinand Zogbaum of CNN affiliate Bay 9 News, thank you for that information.
The Texas shootout caught on videotape. We have new video of Tyler police officers chasing a suspect through the streets. That's ahead.
HARRIS: And good morning, New York City. Rob Marciano coming up in just minutes with your weekend forecast.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: We have new video this morning of that shootout Thursday in Tyler, Texas. A gunman opened fire at the courthouse. And when the drama ended on a Tyler street, three people were dead.
Those are the basic facts, but there's a lot more to this story, as CNN's Ed Lavandera reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): David Arroyo is driving the red pickup truck. Tyler police officers are chasing from behind. What this footage doesn't show is how Ron Martell helped police zero in on Arroyo, making his getaway after a shooting rampage in Tyler's town square.
RON MARTELL, SHOOTING WITNESS: So I put my van in gear, was closing on him, so that I could trail him. And as we were driving past a police roadblock, they were still looking at the courthouse. And I stopped, slowed down low -- long enough, lowered my window, and I said, Guys he's in this red truck, follow me. That's your shooter right there.
LAVANDERA: A few miles later, Arroyo fires a semiautomatic machine gun at officers. Tyler police fire into the truck. Arroyo steps out, fires once more and collapses and dies.
Martell saw it all. He was driving past the Tyler courthouse as Arroyo unleashed his attack. Martell is legally allowed to carry a weapon in Texas. So he grabbed his gun and jumped into the action.
MARTELL: I'd already gotten my gun out and had charged it, put a couple of mags in my pocket. Had my door open, was getting out to go engage this person. And Mark Wilson, I found out later, came up...
LAVANDERA: Mark Wilson, another citizen legally armed with a handgun, had already reached a spot to shoot at Arroyo.
MARTELL: Mark came up, shot twice, from what I could tell.
LAVANDERA: But Arroyo was wearing a bulletproof vest and a flak jacket. Martell says he saw Wilson shoot Arroyo several times, but the gunman was unfazed.
(on camera): Mark Wilson lived in this apartment right up there overlooking the town square. Some of his friends think that when heard the gunshots, he grabbed his own gun, made his way down here. At the time, the gunman was shooting from the middle of the street. Mark ran this way, up this sidewalk, and made it up to where you see those officers. That's where he was shot and killed.
(voice-over): Arroyo's gun power was just too much. He shot Wilson several times. Wilson had run to the scene to stop the rampage, instead died helping others escape.
The gunman's ex-wife was shot and killed, his son wounded along with three law enforcement officers. Everyone here agrees, Wilson saved lives. He's honored as a hero in Tyler.
BOBBY MIMS, WILSON'S FRIEND: He's a man's man, if you know what I mean. He's not going to sit back and -- when he could do something about it, and just let it happen.
LAVANDERA: Bobby Mims and Chris Gardner are Wilson's friends. Every year, the three of them would take a guys-only adventure somewhere around the world. Wilson used to own a shooting range, where he taught others how to protect themselves. Gardener says Wilson would never have thought of himself as a hero.
CHRIS GARDNER, WILSON'S FRIEND: I think he would be quite humbled by it. I think -- I felt at times Mark didn't even realize, you know, how many people he knew and, you know -- We spent a lot of quality time together. So, miss him.
LAVANDERA: Tyler is a place known for the sweet smell of roses. But Ron Martell says behind the piney-woods curtain of this east Texas town exists a culture of people willing to do whatever it takes to stay safe.
MARTELL: In situations like this, you have a number of citizens that will take it upon themselves to protect the rest of the citizenry. And that's probably one of the things about Tyler that I really love.
LAVANDERA: The red brick streets of downtown Tyler have been reopened, but the talk is still of the terror that struck in the heart of the city.
Ed Lavandera, CNN, Tyler, Texas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: And we'll be right back with a look at your weekend forecast.
Here's a live look at New York City's Central Park with the snow on the ground.
This is CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAPT. SCOTT O'GRADY: And as soon as the missile hit, the only thing I saw was a cockpit disintegrating in front of me.
AARON BROWN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Captain Scott O'Grady spent six days struggling to survive after being shot down in Bosnia in 1995.
O'GRADY: My heart started racing, and then I heard Basher one one up on the radio.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm alive, I'm alive.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Copy that, you're alive.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
BROWN: Little did he know those six days would change his life forever.
O'GRADY: I just want to have a normal life and just continue on.
BROWN: O'Grady immediately found himself thrust into the spotlight recounting his story for millions, and he continues to do so today, 10 years later. He has published two books, "Return with Honor" and "Basher Five-Two," a children's edition of his story. After 12 years serving his country, O'Grady is now pursuing a Master's at Dallas's Theological Seminary.
O'GRADY: I believe that you shouldn't be ignorant as to what you believe. You should understand why you believe it.
BROWN: Once graduated, Scott O'Grady says he wants to dedicate his life to giving back to both his community and his country.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: (UNINTELLIGIBLE), Duran Duran on a Saturday morning.
HARRIS: Ah, that's been a come-undone song.
NGUYEN: Yes, it is. And you know what? They are playing out in L.A. today. So...
HARRIS: At that mall out there, probably?
NGUYEN: Rob Marciano, how is the weather going to be? They don't need umbrellas for this, do they?
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: No, no, they'll be fine.
NGUYEN: Good.
MARCIANO: It is going to be nice and dry, temps going to be in the 60s and 70s.
NGUYEN: Nice.
MARCIANO: Looking good.
(WEATHER FORECAST)
MARCIANO: And there's still snow on the ground there in Central Park. You can see "The Gates" down there. See those little orange gates? I think they use a fancier-color term, I can't remember what it is, but there it is. And they'll be taking them down soon. Rain, I think, with this system coming into New York on Monday, may be changing briefly over to snow. But good morning, Big Apple.
NGUYEN: Then you can't call it orange, Rob. MARCIANO: What is? Saffron, or...
(CROSSTALK)
HARRIS: Well, it is orange.
NGUYEN: Saffron.
MARCIANO: Saffron.
HARRIS: Saffron.
NGUYEN: (UNINTELLIGIBLE), saffron.
MARCIANO: Yes, a thousand pardons.
HARRIS: You know, it's prison, it's prison...
NGUYEN: Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
HARRIS: ... jumpsuit orange, is what it.
NGUYEN: It kind of is, though.
MARCIANO: An orange that you're all...
NGUYEN: You're right about that.
MARCIANO: ... too familiar with, (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
(LAUGHTER)
NGUYEN: Oh-ho-ho. We won't talk about his criminal history on this show. At least not now.
(LAUGHTER)
NGUYEN: Maybe later.
HARRIS: You know what? I'm going to, I'm going to, I'm going to leave Rob, and I'm going to get into more trouble here.
NGUYEN: Yes.
HARRIS: And here's why. We'll be right back with a live preview of "DOLANS UNSCRIPTED." Ken and Daria Dolan, I want to see them. There they are. They join us next, live. Good morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Coming up at the top of the hour, "DOLANS UNSCRIPTED." A great show, you are going to love it. We love it here, we love these two, Ken and Daria Dolan, huh? How about that?
NGUYEN: Dolans are some crazy folk (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
HARRIS: Hey, got to ask you, what are you going to take on at the top of the hour?
DARIA DOLAN, HOST, "DOLANS UNSCRIPTED": Well, right off the top, more news about ID theft, Tony.
HARRIS: Oh, boy.
DARIA DOLAN: So we're going to be covering a whole new story that involves 1.2 million people.
KEN DOLAN, HOST, "DOLANS UNSCRIPTED": Also, Tony, we went to Beverly Hills, the Dolans, in Hollywood, not to see what people are going to wear on Oscar night. We did a little inside on the movie industry. Going to pass that along, stuff you haven't heard before, Tony.
DARIA DOLAN: And then the Supreme Court heard a case on eminent domain.
KEN DOLAN: They're going to steal your house.
DARIA DOLAN: The city of New London versus the Suzette Keelow (ph). And we're going to talk with one of the lead attorneys for the plaintiff. Can they steal your home for private purposes?
KEN DOLAN: Your calls and e-mail.
HARRIS: All right, Daria, do everything you can to keep him in line, all right?
(LAUGHTER)
DARIA DOLAN: I'm trying.
HARRIS: All right.
KEN DOLAN: Bye, Tony.
HARRIS: All right, take care. Good to see you.
NGUYEN: Yes, they weren't going at it this time...
HARRIS: Well, they had no time.
NGUYEN: ... but don't worry, they will be on that show. Boy, it's a great show, though.
We do want to thank you for joining us on this show.
HARRIS: We will see you again tomorrow morning. "OPEN HOUSE" is straight ahead. But first, these stories.
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