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CNN NEWSROOM

Killer's Friend Expected to be Charged; Paris Terror Attackers Likely Used Encrypted Apps; Republicans Look to Build Momentum from Debate; France Attack Ringleader Came Through Greek Island; Defense Secretary Admits Using Personal E-Mail; Close Look to Russian Air Base; Teen Guilty of Fatal DUI Now Missing; Aired 10-10:30a ET

Aired December 17, 2015 - 10:00   ET

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


[10:00:02] CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: In other news this morning, in Illinois a professor at an evangelical college has been suspended for quoting Pope Francis as saying Christians and Muslims sharing the same god. She's seen here in another show of support for Muslims, wearing a traditional head covering. Her suspension has stirred debate on the campus of the Wheaton College.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're here to stand in solidarity with her because she's shown so much love and support not only to us but to others in our community and in our broader city and area. And so we're here to do just that, to show our love and support for her.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is not anything against Muslims. This is just that we're saying that we do not worship the same god as Muslims. And the fact that she went on Facebook on behalf of the college and represented the student body and the staff and said that this is what we believe, that's wrong. And I think there should be consequences.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: The school says the professor's statement muddles the differences between the two religions. Officials say the suspension had nothing to do with the -- with her wearing the Muslim head covering.

The next hour of CNN NEWSROOM starts now.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

COSTELLO: And good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me.

We do begin with breaking news. We're learning more new information about that ISIS-inspired killing spree in San Bernardino, California. Sources now telling CNN federal prosecutors are expected to file charges against one of the attacker's friends, Enrique Marquez, that will happen later today. Those charges based on allegations Marquez bought two semi-automatic rifles that were later used to gun down 14 people. Now keep this in mind, this is the same friend who told authorities he

and attacker Syed Rizwan Farook were plotting a terror attack back in 2012 but never carried it out.

So let's get more from CNN justice reporter, Evan Perez. You've been breaking a lot of news this morning. What more have you learned?

EVAN PEREZ, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, we know that Enrique Marquez has been cooperating with the FBI. He's been giving interviews with the FBI for over a week now, providing a great deal of information. We know that these charges, which we were -- had been anticipating would be -- were coming, would be based on the fact that he bought or he says he bought these two AR-15 style rifles which were used in the attack. He bought them in 2011 and 2012 and then gave them to Farook.

The reason why he did that was because Farook was trying to avoid additional scrutiny from a background check. Farook already owned three firearms.

COSTELLO: Well, that's the part that I don't quite -- why did Farook fear that he couldn't buy these weapons? Because he already bought two handguns.

PEREZ: Right. He had already bought a couple of handguns. And he had passed a background check. He had a pretty clean background but he apparently thought that he might be seen suspiciously if he bought two AR-15s. It tells us a little bit perhaps about what was going on in his mind. This is a period during which they were allegedly plotting this additional attack. 2012 is when Marquez say that he had converted, decided that he was -- he and Farook were going to plot this attack, which they ended up ditching and canceling simply because there were some separate unrelated attacks.

COSTELLO: That could mean at the time that Marquez bought the guns for Farook, that they already had the plan in mind.

PEREZ: That's right.

COSTELLO: And that's why -- right?

PEREZ: That's right. That's partly what he said. He said that they had this plan in place and that they canceled it because there were these unrelated arrests of some people who are trying to travel overseas to joins al Qaeda in Riverside, California. Now we also know that he says -- he has told investigators that he and Farook built pipe bombs as sort of a hobby. And it's something that, you know, they did for many -- for years ago and he even boasted to the FBI that, you know, if he had made the pipe bombs that were found later on in Farook's home.

If he had built them, they would have gone off because you remember inside the Inland Regional Center, the place where the first attack took place in San Bernardino, they found three IEDs that were rigged together to go off by remote control. They did not work and that's one reason why authorities believe that perhaps some people's lives were saved that day.

COSTELLO: So beyond the gun charges, do we know any more charges that could be filed against Marquez?

PEREZ: We don't know. I'm told that that is the central charge, but there are other things that they're working on. We don't know what else he has told the investigators. We know that one of the things that they're working with is the fact that right after the attack, you remember he checked himself into a mental health facility. And so that's going to probably play into his defense because he now -- we now know he has a lawyer. And so now his defense will begin on how he can defend these charges.

COSTELLO: All right. Evan Perez, thanks so much.

Also first on -- also first on CNN, new information on just how those terrorists helped plan the Paris terror attacks. Investigators say the terrorists likely used hard to crack encrypted apps to hide their plotting.

CNN's Laurie Segall has more on that. Good morning, Laurie.

[10:05:02] LAURIE SEGALL, CNN MONEY TECH CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Carol. Yes, this is the first time we're really hearing that they used these encrypted apps for the sake of plotting. You know, officials have been shy about coming out and saying it. Evan you heard from earlier has learned that this is, in fact, the case.

And we're hearing more and more about encrypted technology when it comes to, you know, how these terrorists are planning these attacks. They mentioned two specific ones. Telegram, which we've actually spoken about on the show and WhatsApp.

I want to give you a little bit of information about Telegram and this encrypted app and how it works. I've been told this is the hot new app among ISIS members. It's essentially -- they have public channels. Also two layers of encryption, not one, Carol, but two. And also group chats. Now, Carol, these group chats can have up to 200 people.

And they also have a SnapChat-like feature only adding encryption which self-destructs messages and photos. Telegram, Carol, if you remember, is where ISIS actually publicly took credit for the Paris attacks. We actually reported on this before and they've said that they've taken down a lot of these public channels where a lot of this ISIS propaganda spreads. But, you know, we're just kind of at the beginning of this because they'll take down these channels and the propaganda pops up again, Carol.

COSTELLO: Gotcha. Laurie Segall reporting live for us this morning, thank you.

Turning our attention now to the race for the White House where GOP candidates are returning to the campaign trail. Among those back on the trail are Dr. Ben Carson. He's in Iowa this morning. In the meantime, attacks are sharpening and feuds are getting more

intense among Republican rivals, especially between Senators Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz who are trading jabs over their stance on the immigration debate.

All of this as Donald Trump attempts to play nice during a sit-down with Jimmy Kimmel but he soon turned his sights on the other candidates as well.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: When you have guys like Pataki where he has zero. You have Lindsey Graham where he has zero. You have -- the people should get out. I don't even think it's good -- I don't know what they're doing. They're on the children's stage. They call it the children's stage.

JIMMY KIMMEL, HOST: Right.

TRUMP: And they're talking, they have nothing going. And at a certain point you have to get out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: CNN's Sara Murray watched the entire program. She joins us now with more.

Good morning.

SARA MURRAY, CNN POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. You know, Donald Trump he tries. He says he wants more GOP unity, he wants a Republican Party that's united but it's like he just can't help himself. Coming out swinging against a number of his rivals last night.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MURRAY (voice-over): A change in tone for Donald Trump. On "Jimmy Kimmel" overnight, a bit of self-reflection.

TRUMP: I would like to see the Republican Party come together and I've been a little bit divisive in the sense that I've been hitting people hard.

KIMMEL: A little bit, yes.

(LAUGHTER)

MURRAY: The magnanimity stopped when it came to debate rival Jeb Bush.

KIMMEL: Do you think Jeb Bush is scared of you or just scared in general?

TRUMP: I think he's scared.

MURRAY: The frontrunner continuing to call Bush low energy and too nice to be tough.

KIMMEL: Do you think he wants to run for president?

TRUMP: No.

KIMMEL: No.

TRUMP: He was a happy warrior but he's never been a happy warrior.

KIMMEL: Do you think he would kill baby Hitler?

(LAUGHTER)

TRUMP: No. He's too nice.

MURRAY: Just hours earlier on the campaign trail in Arizona, Trump was decidedly unfriendly.

TRUMP: Rand Paul, who doesn't have a chance, I mean, what's he doing? By the way, what is Rand Paul doing? I don't care anymore. We have to get the right people in. I don't care. I don't care anymore. We can't have a continuation of this stupidity, of this incompetence. We can't do it where we have Caroline Kennedy negotiating trade pacts with Japan.

MURRAY: This as Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz continue battling it out.

SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: And everyone on that stage talks tough.

MURRAY: After going head-to-head in Tuesday night's debate, the two first-term senators defending their tough talk.

SEN. TED CRUZ (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If someone launches attacks and if the attacks are false and they're knowingly false, then I'm going to tell the truth.

MURRAY: While Rubio retrains his fire on the Democrats.

RUBIO: We had a debate last night that was actually substantive. It got into the guts of some of these issues and there are some differences between the candidates. Look, I like everybody that's running for president on the Republican side. I really do. None of them are a socialists. None of them are being investigated by the FBI.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MURRAY: Now the really interesting fight that is emerging, like you pointed out, Carol, is between Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz on this immigration debate. Both of those gentlemen will be on the campaign trail today. Marco Rubio is in Iowa, Ted Cruz will be in Minnesota later. So we will see if sparks continue to fly between the two gentlemen.

COSTELLO: We will. Sara Murray, reporting live. Thank you. All right. More breaking news to tell you about this morning. French

investigators now say the ringleader of the Paris attack traveled through the Greek island of Leros and back to Paris to launch this massacre.

Paul Cruickshank is our terror analyst. He broke this news. Tell us more.

PAUL CRUICKSHANK, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: Good morning, Carol. Yes, a source close to the Paris investigation telling us that French authorities now firmly believe that the Paris attack ringleader Abdelhamid Abaaoud crossed through the Greek island of Leros on his way to France from Syria to organize those Paris attacks in November.

[10:10:24] They firmly believe this now. Authorities had previously disclosed that two of the stadium attackers that they haven't yet identified transported through Leros on October 3 and used fake Syrian passports to process themselves as asylum seekers so they could get back to Europe.

What's not clear yet from French investigators is whether Abdelhamid Abaaoud also posed as a refugee to try and get back into Europe, but they're investigating that possibility right now. Not clear when he came back through the Greek island of Leros, but in order for him to get back to Europe, he presumably would have had to do that illegally in some kind of fashion because he was one of the most wanted men in Europe because of his suspected role in that plot back in Belgium in January to launch a major gun and bomb attack in the country.

This is new, fresh information coming from a source close to the investigation in Paris.

COSTELLO: All right. Paul Cruickshank reporting this morning, thank you.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, Russia's high-tech air war in Syria. An exclusive look at the Kremlin's massive military operation there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:15:21] COSTELLO: Defense Secretary Ashton Carter says he never sent classified information from his iPhone but he does admit it was a mistake to use his personal e-mail account to send government messages to his staff. The Pentagon issued this statement, quote, "As a result Carter has stopped such use of his personal e-mail and further limited his use of e-mail altogether."

CNN's senior Washington Correspondent Joe Johns has more from the White House. Good morning.

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. The secretary of Defense now in the position of having to clear up the circumstances around which he used personal e-mail. He's making a number of points, including, he says, that he only did this very occasionally whenever he did, he copied those e-mails to an official account, which would be in compliance with federal regulations. Also that he never used personal e-mail for classified information. Talked a little about this on CBS News this morning. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ASHTON CARTER, DEFENSE SECRETARY: What I did that I shouldn't have been doing until a few months ago was occasionally use my iPhone to send administrative messages -- no classified information and backed up as records -- but to my immediate staff. And even that I shouldn't have been doing. And when I realized that, I stopped. But this is -- I have to hold myself to absolutely strict standards in terms of cyber security and doing things that are appropriate. I didn't in this case. It's a mistake. And it is entirely my own.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JOHNS: All of this starting with a report in the "New York Times" and a Freedom of Information request. Part of this, obviously, an issue because of Hillary Clinton's situation when she was secretary of state. She also used personal e-mail, apparently, in much greater volume. And in her case, she actually was using a personal server. Very different, apparently, from the situation with Ash Carter.

Carol, back to you.

COSTELLO: All right. Joe Johns reporting live from Washington. Thank you.

The Russian president Vladimir Putin is standing firm, vowing not to join an international effort to get rid of Syrian leader Bashar al- Assad. During an address this morning, Putin said he would never agree to let outsiders determine Syria's political future. He then called out U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry for his role in trying to oust Assad.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (Through Translator): We will never agree that somebody from wherever they may be can compel who must lead. Mr. Kerry spoke about this. Our position has not changed. It is a -- a position of principle. We consider only the Syrian people can determine who should govern them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: CNN gets rare and exclusive access to a Russian warship off the Syrian coast, imbedding with military forces as Moscow ramps up its campaign against international terrorism.

This is the hub for operations for Russia's three-month-old intervention in Syria. It is from here that Russia said it's pounding terrorists by unleashing punishing airstrikes.

CNN senior international correspondent Matthew Chance has more for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is how the Kremlin supports its Syrian allies. And battles its enemies. We gained rare access to the Syrian base at Latakia, now the military hub of Russia's air war.

(On camera): This really does feel like the center of a massive Russian military operation. The air is filled with the smell of jet fuel. And the ground shudders with the roar of those warplanes returning from their bombing missions.

(Voice-over): Russia's Defense Ministry says more than 200 targets have been struck in just 24 hours. 320 militants killed, it says, from Isis and other rebel groups fighting the Syrian government and its president, Bashar al-Assad.

(On camera): So I'm joined by General Igor Konashenkov, he is the chief military spokesman for the Russian government, the Russian Defense Ministry.

Thank you for the trip. He's escorting us here on this trip to the Latakia military base.

Let me ask you that question, that question about who you are targeting. Is it ISIS or are you supporting Assad?

[10:20:03] IGOR KONASHENKOV, SPOKESMAN FOR THE RUSSIAN DEFENSE MINISTRY (Through Translator): I can answer the question with our actions. Every day we show you how Russian aviation is fighting international terrorism, destroying their infrastructure in Syria.

CHANCE (voice-over): On our tour of the base, we were shown how Russia carefully arms its bombers with high-tech precision weaponry. We also saw unguided or dumb bombs being loaded.

Human rights groups accused Russia of killing civilians from the air, a charge the Kremlin strenuously denies.

(On camera): Right. Well, there's another plane coming in now, just touching down. It's an SU-24. That's going to be very noisy. But it's just carried out an airstrike somewhere in Syria against rebel targets, either ISIS or some other opposition group.

(Voice-over): Russia says it's stopping ISIS in its attacks, striking their assets and shrinking the territory they and other rebel groups control. And after more than 4,000 sorties over Syria, this Kremlin air war shows no sign of winding down.

Matthew Chance, CNN, at the Latakia air base in western Syria.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Fascinating.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, terrorists planning attacks in the dark corners of the Internet. So how can investigators crack the code?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:25:31] COSTELLO: An arrest warrant has been issued for a Texas teenager who received probation and national attention after killing four people in a drunk driving accident.

Remember Ethan Couch? Well, he and his mother are both missing. They're presumed to have gone into hiding. At his trial a witness partly blamed Couch's wealthy parents for spoiling their son, saying the teenager suffered from affluenza. Critics scoffed and said it was a mistake to let Couch avoid jail.

Here's Jason Allen of our affiliate KTVT.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASON ALLEN, KTVT REPORTER: Two years into a 10-year probation sentence, the justice system can't find Ethan Couch.

SHERIFF DEAN ANDERSON, TARRANT COUNTY: I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so.

ALLEN: Tarrant County Sheriff Dean Anderson put investigators on the case this morning. What they've turned up so far he said indicates Couch and whoever is with him had a long head start.

ANDERSON: We all know the family has plenty of money and I think this was planned. And I believe that they planned to get away and I believe they're going to run far and try to hide. I just don't think -- I'll be happy to be wrong if he's hiding somewhere locally.

ALLEN: The disappearance came after the appearance of a video this month that appeared to show Couch at a party.

NICOLE KNOX, DALLAS ATTORNEY: It's not clear on its face that the video in and of itself is a violation of probation.

ALLEN: Dallas attorney Nicole Knox told us she's defended clients before after social media posts appear to be probation violations. Prosecutors would have had to prove when the video was taken for it to be trouble. But no matter where Couch is now she said simply not being in contact with his probation officer is a serious problem for his future.

KNOX: It is by far the easiest way to comply but at the same time the easiest way to violate your terms.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Our thanks to Jason Allen of KTVT.

Prosecutors had asked for a 20-year sentence in the fatal crash. The judge instead opted for probation and long-term mental health treatment. At the time of his conviction prosecutors said the kid, Couch, could face up to 10 years of incarceration if he violated probation.

We'll keep you posted.

And good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me. New this morning in the wake of terrorist attacks in San Bernardino and Paris. Disney is adding metal detectors in an effort to beef up security at their parks. The security changes at Disney, Disney World and Disneyland will also include discontinuing the sale of toy guns, toy blasters and squirt guns. Guests over the age of 14 years old will not be allowed to wear costumes into the parks. Universal Studios and SeaWorld have also added metal detectors.

In just a few hours, President Obama will deliver a statement aimed at soothing Americans' concerns about terror attacks here in the United States. And that sentiment will follow a rare visit by the president to the National Counterterrorism Center in McLean, Virginia. Also tomorrow the president will fly to Southern California to meet with the victims of the San Bernardino massacre.

We're also learning about -- more information about the Paris terror attacks. Sources now revealing to CNN investigators have found evidence that suggest the attackers likely used encrypted apps like WhatsApp and Telegram to hide their brutal plot. Those apps used something called end-to-end encryption which protects users' privacy. Sources warn what the attackers said may never be known because these encryptions are so hard to crack.

Officials also say new evidence reveal the attackers tried to cover their tracks by changing cell phone SIM cards.

With me now to talk about all of this, CNN national security analyst Peter Bergen. He's the author of the "United States of Jihad: Investigating American Homegrown Terrorists." I'm also joined by Martin Boes. He's a senior principle security consultant at TrustedSec, an organization that provides clients with information security services and protection. He also describes himself as a good hacker.

That was a mouthful. But thank you both for joining me. I appreciate it this morning.

So, Peter, I'm going to start with you. So the significance of what was found out that these Paris attackers were using encryption devices to hide their communications.

PETER BERGEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, I think the very -- one of the most significant things, Carol, is Telegram, which is one of the applications they were using is based in Berlin. So this causes a big problem for the United States, which is there's a big debate as you know, Carol, about whether or not tech companies can be forced by the government to provide some kind of backdoor into encrypted communications. Those tech companies don't want to do that and the FBI of course is very keen for that to happen.

(END)