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CNN NEWSROOM

Did Team USA Swimmers Lie About Robbery; Advances in N. Korean Weapons Program Concerns U.S.; N. Korean Diplomat Defects to S. Korea; Shakeup in Trump Campaign; Clinton Faces Question on Foundation/State Department Land Deal; Usain Bolt, Brianna Rollins Shine at Olympics; California Wild Fire Burns Out of Control; U.N. Investigating Allegations South Sudan Mission Didn't Respond During Compound Raid; Son of "El Chapo" Guzman Kidnapped; U.S. Tourists Flock to Great Britain to Take Advantage of Exchange Rate; Brownlee Brothers' Grueling Training for Olympics. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired August 18, 2016 - 02:00   ET

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


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[02:00:14] ISHA SESAY, CNN ANCHOR: This is CNN NEWSROOM, live from Los Angeles.

Ahead this hour --

(HEADLINES)

SESAY: Hello, and welcome to our viewers around the world. I'm Isha Sesay. NEWSROOM L.A. starts right now.

Two U.S. swimmers have now left the airport in Rio after Brazilian authorities questioned them over reports that they were held up at gun point in Rio. Gunnar and Jack have been ordered not to leave Brazil until they make a statement to police. Police pulled the men from their flight back to the U.S. Wednesday night. A group of four U.S. swimmers claimed they were held up by people posing as Brazilian police officers.

Now Ryan Lochte has a bit of a different story. Now he tells NBC's Matt Lauer that they were never pulled over, but were ambushed at a gas station.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATT LAUER, NEWS ANCHOR: When he talked to me tonight, he said that's when the guy pointed the gun in my direction and cocked it. And I pointedly said to him, you said before, it was placed on your forehead and cocked. He said no, that's not exactly what happened. And I think he feels it was more of a dramatic mischaracterization. I think people at home might feel that was embellishment at the time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: Senior international correspondent, Nick Paton Walsh, breaks down the story for us from Rio.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it is yet another extraordinary turn in the story of Ryan Lochte and three other American swimmers early Sunday morning. They left a nightclub and were in a taxi, forced to the side of the road by men disguised as police officers. They took their money and strangely left them with their cell phones.

A spokesperson for police said that was one of the most suspicious things in their mind because many Brazilians know the key target would be high value items like a cell phone, wallets, etcetera, but it's these items that were, in fact, seen in that CCTV video still in their possession when they arrived back home a few hours later. The judge who issued the search-and-seizure warrants said that, in her opinion, they looked unshaken by the events that supposedly just occurred. The judge went on to say she requires further time to assess whether they're responsible for a false police report.

Bear in mind, there is no direct accusation no one has done anything wrong. Mr. Lochte's lawyer is clear, he always intended to leave Brazil at the time he did, before these warrants were known about or issues. And he has cooperated with anybody who is asking him questions, will do so again, and hasn't actually been asked to give further cooperation at this stage.

But there is this overhanging issue about what happened in the small hours of that morning. The judge pointing to the inconsistencies in their accounts. Mr. Felgen, who was in the car along with Mr. Lochte, they were both questioned. They seem to not be consistent with how many of the robbers that were, in fact, armed, and whether or not they were taken by surprised. That's what everybody is talking.

But, still, we have this extraordinary move at the height of the Olympic Games to issue warrants and it would have effectively prevented, had he remained, from leaving the country. We don't know the whereabouts of Mr. Felgen at this stage. These warrants are for some of the most high-profile athletes at a team at the top of the medals table at the moment. Extraordinary circumstances, indeed. A lot of questions still about the early hours of Sunday morning.

Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, Rio de Janeiro.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SESAY: Extraordinary, indeed.

Away from the Olympics for a moment, and confirmation from North Korea, the regime has resumed its plutonium production. And North Korea tells Japan's new agency it has no plans to stop its nuclear tests. This follows an embarrassing defection by a top North Korean diplomat to South Korea.

CNN's David Molko is following the story and joins me from Seoul.

David, defecting in this way from North Korea by a man of this stature and his family is no easy feat. Are we getting any insight from South Korean officials, how they managed to pull this off?

[02:04:53] DAVID MOLKO, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Isha, the South Koreans remain pretty tightlipped about this, as you can imagine. North Korea would love to know. It's not known if Thae Jong Ho and his wife walked into another embassy, if there was a third country involved in this.

What's happening right now -- and I should point out we don't though exactly when that happened, whether Mr. Thae and his family arrived in South Korea, but you can bet what is happening now, is the interrogation phase. They are going to go through so many questions, not just him, but his wife and his children, as well, asking them about what they no about various aspects of the North Korean regime, potentially, about the nuclear program.

We know Thae Yong Ho was the number two at the embassy in Britain. But being a career diplomat, being the face of North Korea, a public diplomacy figure in Britain. Nonetheless, he is still a very valuable not only political coup for South Korea, but a propaganda coup, as well. A huge embarrassment for North Korea. No response from them yet. The defection surprising. The fact that they haven't responded, Isha, that is not.

SESAY: Yeah, indeed. And, you make the valid point there that we don't know how close he actually is, was, to authorities in Pyongyang, but they really will be hoping that he does have, you know, some valuable intelligence to share.

MOLKO: Absolutely. In terms of intelligence game, this is almost as good as it gets. We don't know, though, exactly why he defected. What the South Koreas are saying, the unification ministry, if you read between the lines to basically saying he saw the light of democracy in South Korea and he wanted to and he was tired of the Kim Jong-Un regime, he was done with the North Korean system. The truth may be far different from that. You know, we have gotten clues that Kim Jong-Un has been tightening his inner circle, especially when he leads fallout favor, defector telling my colleague, Paula Hancocks, just last year that he had been executing those who had fallen out of favor. So that's a possibility that Mr. Thae was going to be called back, that he was worried about his own safety. It's possible he had been working with the South Koreans. We just don't know. We don't expect the South Koreans to say much more.

But what is certain, again, is that this is a big intelligence victory for them. It's front page news on the page of every daily paper here in Seoul -- Isha?

SESAY: I'm sure it is.

David Molko joining us from Seoul. Dave, appreciate it, my friend. Thank you.

Well, with less than three months before the U.S. presidential election, Donald Trump's campaign is moving into a new phase. He's made major changes in his campaign staff.

But, first, Barbara Starr has more on Trump's classified intelligence briefing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's the Trump Tower version of a potential White House cabinet meeting. The key optic, Donald Trump in the same position as the president, surrounded by national security heavyweights, including former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, and next to Trump, retired Lieutenant General Michael Flynn, a key adviser.

One attendee, Congressman Peter King, answering the criticism that Trump has no foreign policy experience.

REP. PETER KING, (R), NEW YORK: Well, he has as much as Barack Obama had in 2008.

STARR: Soon after, another chance to appear presidential. Trump headed to the FBI's New York office for his long-planned classified intelligence briefing from the Obama administration.

Flynn, a decades-long intelligence officer, now adamantly anti-Obama, was also there.

Even before hearing the classified information, Trump was asked if he trusts U.S. Intelligence.

DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & CEO, TRUMP ORGANIZATION: Not so much from the people that have been doing it for our country. Look what's happened over the last ten years. Look what's happened over the years. It's been catastrophic.

STARR: The plan to brief presidential candidates isn't new. But this year, it is different, says former CIA officer and briefer, David Priess.

DAVID PRIESS, FORMER CIA OFFICER & BRIEFER: On the one happened, you have a candidate who seems to say what he thinks without a filter. And on the other hand, you have somebody that the FBI director has called off publicly for being careless with classified information. We've never had a situation like this before.

STARR: The briefings include classified information on threats like ISIS, but don't include covert action details, the so-called crown jewels of intelligence.

PRIESS: Donald Trump will present a challenge to a briefer, but a challenge that most briefers that I worked with back in the day would have relished. Here is a chance to try to get a message through to somebody who appears to take information differently than many other people.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:10:00] SESAY: Our thanks to Barbara Starr for that report.

With his poll numbers sagging, Trump is making aggressive moves to shake up his campaign. He has brought on Steve Bannon, of "Breitbart News" as his campaign chief executive. Bannon his known for his tough demeanor, and his appointment suggests a return to Trump's unfiltered campaign style.

Newly promoted campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, explains how she'll advise Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KELLYANNE CONWAY, DONALD TRUMP PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN MANAGER: I would tell him to stick to the issues, because this campaign will be won on the issues, and the issues that very much favor Donald Trump. "The Weekly Standard" had an article this week that showed of the last 205 polls taken about Obamacare, the Affordable Care Act, three were more favorable towards it and 202 and were unfavorable towards it. That tells you something about America's opinions towards, really, the signature legislative domestic achievement of President Obama.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: Well, Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, is unimpressed by Trump's campaign shake-up. She says Trump has shown the world who he is.

HILLARY CLINTON, (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: He can hire and fire anybody he wants from his campaign. They can make him read new words from a teleprompter.

(LAUGHTER)

But he is still the same man who insults Gold Star families, demeans women, mocks people with disabilities, and thinks he knows more about ISIS than our generals.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: Meantime, the Clinton Foundation is once again under scrutiny in connection with the State Department and the land deal.

CNN's Suzanne Malveaux has all the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(SINGING)

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hillary Clinton in Ohio battleground state today, touting her economic plan and pressuring Donald Trump again to release his tax returns.

CLINTON: Unlike everybody else who has run for president in the last four or five decades, he refuses to release his tax returns.

MALVEAUX: But now, new questions about the Clintons' foundation, whether Hillary Clinton used her influence as secretary of state, along with her husband, Bill Clinton, to help a big donor who supported both their political campaigns as well as their foundation get a coveted land deal with the State Department.

It was in 2011 when the State Department began searching for a new location for its consulate in Lagos, Nigeria. Two years later, a State Department e-mail reveals they're interested in purchasing property at Eko Atlantic, owned by the Chagoury Group, Lebanese-born businessmen brothers, Gilbert and Ronald Chagoury. It is one of a number of sites the department was looking at. Federal records show Gilbert Chagoury donated up to $5 million to the Clinton Foundation. It was in the mid '90s when President Bill Clinton rewarded Chagoury, a big Democratic dinner, with a White House dinner with meetings with high-ranking officials. Later, Bill Clinton visited the Eko Atlantic site twice, including just one month after Hillary Clinton had stepped down as secretary of state.

Weeks later, the State Department sent this later to the Chagoury firm, saying, "This letter acknowledges that the United States of America is potentially interested in acquiring an interest in such real property pending further study."

The conservative advocacy group, Citizens United, suspecting undue influence, sued, stating, "A month after Bill Clinton visits a Gilbert and Ronald Chagoury-run land project in Nigeria, the U.S. State Department wants to buy the land. Who can be so lucky? A major donor to the Clinton Foundation, that's who."

The State Department denies there was any special consideration of the land deal.

ELIZABETH TRUDEAU, U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESPERSON: The Eko Atlantic site was identified, as I said, by an independent national real estate firm in 2012.

MALVEAUX: The land deal never went through, but an editorial in the "Boston Globe" Tuesday calls on Hillary Clinton to shut down the foundation if she becomes president.

(on camera): Hillary Clinton campaign spokesman, Brian Fallon, responded with a sharply wondered statement, in part, saying, "Citizens United is a right wing group that's been attacking the Clintons since the 1990s and, once again, is trying to make something out of nothing."

He notes that Hillary Clinton had already left the administration before the State Department expressed interest, and that the deal had not gone through.

But this is not the first time the Chagoury Group has been investigated regarding their ties and influence with the Clintons.

Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:14:31] SESAY: Time for a quick break. Next on CNN NEWSROOM, another big run at the Olympics and Usain Bolt gears up for the 200 meter final. More game results, just ahead. Plus, a wildfire is raging in southern California, threatening

thousands of homes.

Stay with CNN.

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SESAY: Well, it was a big night at the Rio Olympics for many athletes. Usain Bolt is on course for a so-called triple-triple after sprinting to a win in the 100 meter semifinal. Yes, I did say sprint. Bolt had time for a laugh as he cruised through the finish line, but the competition, it wasn't far behind. The final is later Thursday.

But it was a golden night for the U.S. women's track team. Three runners led by Brianna Rollins took first, second and third in the 100 meter hurdles.

Let's bring in Christine McFarland, live in Rio, bringing us all the details live.

Christine, Usain Bolt securing his position in that final. And it was a very comfortable win.

CHRISTINE MCFARLAND, CNN WORLD SPORT CORRESPONDENT: It was, indeed, Isha. I think Usain Bolt is enjoying himself far too much at these games, cruising to victory in a time of 19.78 seconds, laughing always he did, joking with the Canadian as he crossed the line. Two of them finishing in first and second position. And I think this is some indicator that Usain Bolt could potentially break the world record later on Thursday. Remember, that's what he's been saying all along. This is the one he wants badly. He wants to break that record, which currently stands at 19.19 seconds. And I think his chances of doing that are immeasurably raised because obviously, his big rival is Justin Gatlin, who is now of the final. Shockingly, neither of them made it through. It was unusual to see Gatlin coming in, in sixth place, in that semifinal. But I'll tell you, Isha, if Bolt's win was routine, then his teammate's, Elaine Thompson, was anything but. She took gold tonight add to go her 100 meter title meaning she becomes the first woman to win both titles in one single game since 1988. And she had a spectacular run. I mean, she beat the world champion, the reigning world champion, Daphne Schippers of the Netherlands. She is going to be the face of the field for women's sport.

[02:20:54] SESAY: Very, very impressive.

Christina, a shocking upset for the volleyball team. How does this happen?

MCFARLAND: I know. We could hear the tears. Brazil missed out on two accounts tonight. Germany actually won the gold against Brazil's number two paring, meaning Brazil missed out on that fourth consecutive gold medal. They've won 12 medals in this sport since its inception in 1996. And in the bronze medal playoff, we saw a certain Kerri Walsh Jennings and April Ross go up against the Brazilian number one paring and, of course, the USA came away with the with win. So they took the bronze, Kerri Walsh Jennings coming away with her fourth medal in her fourth Olympic games. That's wraps up the Olympics for her. We were wondering is there going to be another one. She's going to be 42 in four years' time. She did say she didn't think that would be too old. So watch this space.

SESAY: I agree with her. 42 is not old at all.

Let's talk about that historic sweep with Team USA in the 100 meter hurdles. That was something, something to behold.

MCFARLAND: It really was, an Olympic first. And the first time, actually, that the USA has won three medals in one single Olympic event ever. And it came courtesy, of course, of Brianna Rollins, who took the gold. Nia Ali took the gold and Castlin took the bronze. When they were celebrating on the line together with all their flags, they said it was the exploits of Katie Ledecky and Simone Biles that inspired them to get the job done today, and they certainly did.

SESAY: Wonderful stuff and great celebrations there.

Christine McFarland, thanks to you. Thanks for joining us from Rio. Much appreciated.

MCFARLAND: Thanks, Isha.

SESAY: Let's check on the medal standings after 12 days of competition. Team USA leads the way with 30 gold and 93 medals in all. Great Britain is second with 19 gold and 50 medals. Then comes China as you see there with 54 medals. Russia with 41 and Germany in fifth place with 29 medals.

Turning away from the Olympics for just a moment, the Red Cross says the widespread flooding in Louisiana is likely the worst natural disaster to strike the U.S. since Superstorm Sandy in 2012. Right now, the death toll stands at 13. The latest victim was a 93-year-old woman who died while her neighborhood was being evacuated. Since the flooding has started more than 20,000 residents have been rescued. And more than 40,000 homes have at least some kind of flood damage. That's according to the state's governor.

Meantime, more than 1300 firefighters are battling what's called the Blue Cut Fire. Time lapse video shows it raging through hills east of L.A. that are tinder dry because of the drought. The flames erupted on Tuesday and quickly exploded across more than 13,000 on hectors. Tens of thousands of people are under evacuation orders.

Let's bring in Meteorologist Pedram Javaheri.

Pedram, what are the conditions like now?

[02:24:19] PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Arid landscape, dry conditions, and the windy weather put together essentially a tinder box is what you're seeing across parts of southern California. Want to show you some of the images. You think about what it takes to produce this explosive growth from the fires we've seen across California. It's almost akin to how you say you start a fire in the backyard when you're grilling out in the backyard. You're trying to put some wind into the fire right there, given oxygen and put fuel down to have the fire ignite. Unfortunately, Mother Nature is providing these elements across the area. The Blue Cut Fire in particular has now expanded to something that's almost the size the city of San Francisco inside of 36 hours. That's remarkable. Look at these winds, 30 to 46 kilometers per hour. But the ohm element of good news is going into this weekend, we think the temperatures will drop one or so degrees every single day as we work our way towards a Saturday and Sunday. And the humidity levels will be on the increase. You look at fire, as we know with, about 90 percent of them are humidity induced and about 10 percent are related to lightning strikes or other elements at play. I want to show you something here. In this particular area, in the Blue Cut Fire in California, we are seeing these fires making their way up to high elevation point where you have very little resistance. So the winds coming from the top of the mountain, gusty at times. They blow embers, bring them right back downstream, deposit them elsewhere. When you have this sort of scenario, the firefighters really will not be able to get the upper hand unless weather starts to cooperate. So we think you have to give this another couple of days which he could mean doubling the size of the fire before we get there. You see four of the top five fires are related and had human in cause and human induced. So it is a frightening scenario across this region of California because of how quickly this is happening and expanding.

SESAY: It is frightening. It is a very aggressive fire.

Appreciate it.

Thank you so much for that update, Pedram.

And coming up next for our viewers in Asia, it's "State of the Race" with Kate Bolduan.

The U.N. is responding to allegations that it failed to protect its compound during deadly clashes last month. The details are coming up after this quick break in a live report.

Plus, a search is under way for the kidnapped son of the world's most notorious drug lord.

Do stay with us.

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[02:30:12] ISHA SESAY, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM, live from Los Angeles. I'm Isha Sesay.

The headlines this hour --

(HEADLINES)

SESAY: Sudan's Independence Day has been marred by conflict. Last month, 150 people were reportedly killed. Now the U.N. is investigating allegations that its mission in South Sudan, known by the shorthand UNMIS, didn't respond during a gruesome raid on its compound.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The secretary-general is also concerned about allegations that UNMIS did not respond properly to prevent this and other grave cases of sexual violence committed. Due to the gravity of these incidents, related allegations and the preliminary findings by UNMIS, the secretary-general has decided to launch an independent special investigation to determine the circumstances surrounding these incidents and to evaluate the mission's overall response.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: Well, David McKenzie joins us now with more details. He joins us from Johannesburg.

David, I know you've been looking into the story. What are we hearing from witnesses about what actually happened in this attack?

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Isha, it seems like a targeted attack on this compound. This is a hotel compound less than a mile from the U.N. base in South Sudan. During that fighting that last month when there were heavy clashes throughout the capitol city. They are wore phasing accounts emerging from witnesses who say that between 80 and 100 South Sudanese troops breached the compound, went in there looting, attacking, killing at least one South Sudanese journalist in execution style and, most disturbing, perhaps, going in and targeting foreign nationals for rape. One woman saying she was pulled with several others and raped all afternoon while the pleas were coming from that hotel to the embassies, to the U.N., to the South Sudan he's forces to help. No one, according to the witnesses from the U.N., came to help in that situation. Eventually, it was, after several hours, South Sudanese troops that came in to help taking some of those people away. Then 18 hours later, private security, according to witnesses, went in to get the rest. But a lot of finger pointing now at UNMIS, the U.N. peacekeeping force in South Sudan, for not doing enough right on their doorstep -- Isha?

SESAY: The account of truly horrifying. Has the U.N. responded to the accusations of protecting not only the victims there at the compound, but more generally others, other civilians during this latest burst of violence?

MCKENZIE: Well, this report of this targeted attack, obviously, has garnered headlines around the world. But at least a hundred women or civilians were raped or sexually assaulted right near the U.N. compound during that fighting, according to the U.N. themselves. As you heard from the spokesman there, the U.N. secretary-general has ordered an independent investigation now of this particular incident. But there are a lot of calls asking, well, why did the U.N. force not do enough to protect civilians during that fighting? They told CNN that the security situation outside their compound walls was such that they couldn't move out because of that heavy fighting, and there were heavy artillery clashes between rival groups within the South Sudanese military during that time. But certainly this is not the last we've heard of the story and it comes after other claims or accusations over the years that the U.N. Peacekeepers don't do enough, either through their mandate or because of the actual situation on the ground to protect the civilians who are being hurt in these clashes -- Isha?

[02:35:17] SESAY: Very, very disturbing.

David McKenzie joining us from Johannesburg. David, thank you.

Torture, inhumane conditions and mass death in Syria's prisons. All that laid out in a new report from amnesty international which found more than 17,000 people died in custody across Syria between March 2011 and December 2015. That's about 300 deaths each month. Amnesty International found there were about 45 deaths each year in the decade leading up to the start of the civil war. Report of how detainees were scalded with hot water, faced severe beatings, electric shock and other forms of inhumane treatment.

A director of Amnesty International spoke about the conditions at with one of Syria's most notorious prisons.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PHILIP LUTHER, DIRECTOR, AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL: Overall, everything about the prison serves to destroy the detainee. The conditions -- and they are horrendous conditions -- the torture -- and there are a range of torture techniques, particularly beatings -- but also then acts of cruelty and humiliation the detainees face on a daily basis. People come out broken, if they come out at all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: Well, Syria's civil war hasn't spared the country's incident and most vulnerable. It's a heartbreaking sight as he sits quietly in an ambulance after he's pulled from a building that was bombed in Aleppo. That city has seen intense fighting between government and rebel forces. As you look at him there, there are no tears, no screaming, just that look of shock on his face. A powerful image. And it shows the human cost of a war that has left thousands and thousands of people dead.

Time for a quick break. Dramatic security camera images captured the moment the son of Mexico's most notorious drug lord is kidnapped. We'll show them to you next. Stay with us.

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[02:40:37] SESAY: Hello, everyone. New images have emerged from a restaurant where the son of a drug lord was kidnapped earlier this week. Joaquin "el Chapo" Guzman's son was abducted along with five other people.

CNN's Nick Valencia has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The surveillance images show the attack was brazen. Monday morning, around 1:00 a.m. screen shots show Alfredo Guzman sitting at a table with friends. Moments later, he's abducted by men armed with long guns. Alfredo is the son of Joaquin "el Chapo" Guzman, the infamous Mexican drug lord, currently behind bars and fighting extradition to the United States.

A senior Mexican official tells CNN, Alfredo, who is believed to be part of the new leadership of his father's cartel, was said not to be taking his role seriously. The source says, Alfredo had, quote, "been partying a lot and was caught off guard allowing for the abduction to happen."

The screen shots are only a glimpse into the kidnapping of Alfredo. They were released on a popular cartel website. How the website obtained the photos is unclear. But on Wednesday, the state attorney general said they were authentic.

UNIDENTIFIED MEXICAN OFFICIAL: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

VALENCIA: The top Mexican official in Jalisco, where the abduction occurred identified Guzman's son among the kidnapping victims after interviewing more than a dozen witnesses. Nine women, who were also at the party, were allowed to leave the restaurant.

At least three of Guzman's children, including the eldest, have been known to U.S. and Mexican officials in the past. One, reportedly 33 years old, was reportedly arrested and imprisoned in Mexico in 2005 but released three years later because of lack of evidence. He was initially rumored to have also been kidnapped. But sources with the investigation say that has not been officially confirmed.

Their father, Joaquin "el Chapo" Guzman, at one point, was one of the most powerful criminals in the world. He was captured in January after escaping a second time from a Mexican federal prison last summer.

(on camera): A senior Mexican law enforcement official tells me that the kidnapping of "el Chapo's" son is a significant blow to the power structure of the Sinaloa Federation. With a former leader, "el Chapo," behind bars, his rivals are starting to chip away at his turf.

Nick Valencia, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SESAY: Well, Mexican law enforcement officials tell CNN "el Chapo's" rival cartel may have pulled off the kidnapping. They're called one of Mexico's most powerful and deadly drug organizations. Known as "CJNG" for short, the group rose to power in 2009, described as ruthless, even by cartel standards. They're involved in drug trafficking, extortion, kidnapping and murder. And they're blamed for the assassinations of dozens of police officers and public officials in recent years.

The New Generation group is part of a loose crime syndicate that controls a large portion of western Mexico, shown here in blue. While the cartel is based in Jalisco, they are seeking to expand their empire, sparking a bloody turf war with a rival cartel in Tijuana. New Generation's leader is Ruben Cervantes, known also as "el Mencho." Because the group is believed to be working within U.S. borders, American authorities are now offering $5 million reward for his capture.

Next on CNN NEWSROOM, searching for bargains after the Brexit. We'll take a look at how some tourists are now cashing in.

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[02:48:08] SESAY: It took months of preparations and years to build it, but the world's largest aircraft is finally airborne. The giant Airlander 10 racked up 20 minutes on its flight in London. It stretches 92 meters, about 52 meters than the biggest passenger jet. Its generous round shape has led some people to nickname it the flying bum. I'm not sure that's flattering.

It's been nearly two months since the U.K. voted to leave the European Union, a shocking move that rattled markets and weakened the pound against the dollar. Since then, American tourists flocked to the U.K. to take advantage of the exchange rate.

Our Nina Dos Santos has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NINA DOS SANTOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For the Demeschel family, visiting Britain from California, Brexit has had its benefits.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It is definitely cheaper.

DOS SANTOS (on camera): Have you found prices round because the found fell against the dollar?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It does. The prices definitely are reasonable.

DOS SANTOS (voice-over): The fall in the pound after the U.K.'s decision to leave the E.U. means their dollars now stretch further and that holiday is more affordable.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have tickets to go and see a play in London on Friday night. We are going to go see the Harry Potter tour, the studio tour on Sunday night. We're touring around London today. We're going to buy a bunch of souvenirs.

DOS SANTOS: Last year, over million Americans visited Britain, spending almost $3.4 billion, more than any other nationality. And thanks to exchange rates, the hope is more will be tempted to come.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is our first visit, but I would definitely come back as a result of that. We would like to come back again. We're thinking about either Christmas or spring for spring break.

UNIDENTIFIED BOY: Or maybe for my birthday in the summer.

[02:49:58] DOS SANTOS (on camera): Since the Brexit vote, the pound has fallen 14 percent against the dollar and that's made London landmarks like these a lot cheaper. A family of four will save $10 on their tickets to Westminster Abby where William and Kate got married. A ticket at Buckingham Palace will cost $11 cheaper.

(voice-over): That means this time booking early isn't good for the budget. Something this man, from California, is finding out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I made the mistake of booking a lot of this stuff just before the vote for Brexit. So I paid a little bit more than I could have if I had waited. But, yeah, I think it will help bring tourism.

DOS SANTOS: Keen to counter the uncertainty over the country's future, London's mayor is determined his city shows them a good time.

SADIQ KHAN, LONDON MAYOR: What's really important is that the world knows London is open. We're open for visitors, we're open for talent, we're open for invasion, we're open for business. We'll carry on being the best place in the world to come for a holiday.

DOS SANTOS: Which means for trans-Atlantic tourists, sterling's slump may end up being Brexit's silver lining.

Nina Dos Santos, CNN Money, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SESAY: All right. So Britain's Mo Farah almost took another tumble in Rio in Wednesday's 5,000 meter heat. He managed to keep his composure and finished b third. Farah fell on Saturday during the 10,000 meter, but managed to get up and finish and win gold.

So we're hearing from Shaunae Miller, the Olympic runner from the Bahamas, who dove head first over the finish line to win a medal on Monday.

Miller talked to our own Don Riddell about the backlash that followed her dramatic win.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHAUNAE MILLER, OLYMPIC RUNNER: Well, what really happened was, you know, we had a race that we were going into the race with. I think we executed it extremely well. And, you know, I ran the entire way around and by the time I got to about 40 more meters to go, my legs just started getting ready heavy and, you know, after a while, I couldn't feel them any more and, you know, I had lost all feeling to my legs. The next thing I know I started falling and I was like, I have to at least pass the line and, you know, the next thing I ended up hitting the ground so hard and, you know, it turned out in my favorite, so -- DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT ANCHOR: How long did it take you to

realize that you had actually won the race?

MILLER: It was a few seconds afterwards. Everything went quiet for a little while. I heard my mom scream. And when I heard her screaming, I was like, OK, I had to have won the race. So I looked back at the scoreboard and I saw it. But it was such an amazing feeling for me.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SESAY: Now, is it sibling rivalry or brotherly love? Later Thursday, two brothers competed against each other in the men's triathlon. Alistair Brownlee won gold in 2012 and his little brother, Johnny, won bronze.

Take a look at their grueling training regime.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALISTAIR BROWNLEE, OLYMPIC RUNNER: I think "obsession" describes Johnny.

JOHNNY BROWNLEE, OLYMPIC RUNNER: I think "determined" describes aster.

My name is Johnny Brownlee. I won bronze at the London 2012 Olympic Games.

ALISTAIR BROWNLEE: My name is Alistair Brownlee. I'm the current champion.

Triathlon is a sport where you do three sports, obviously. You swim first, then bike and then you run.

JOHNNY BROWNLEE: We just want to win and there's only one person that can win. But when we actually start the race, I've got a feeling that it's kind of us as a team against everyone else.

ALISTAIR BROWNLEE: We're both furthering our aim jointly. But it's not like one sacrifices.

We're very, very competitive and we both want to win. But we know that, you know, we'll help each other through the bike and parts of the run. That's the best chance for getting an end result. But once it comes down to the last part, all bets are off and we're just racing to win, basically.

On average, we train for 35 hours a week. During a race, we have at least two and a half hours in calories. We were the first brothers to be on the podium since 1908.

JOHNNY BROWNLEE: London 2012 was an incredible experience. We want to race in front of our home crowd. It was the best I've ever run. So much can go wrong. So to get two people on the podium, it was really great.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:55:08] SESAY: My goodness. Grueling, a little hellish by the sounds of that regimen. We wish them the best.

German twins who ran the women's marathon are in hot water for crossing the finish line while holding hands. They spontaneously joined hands at the end of the marathon, finishing in the 81st and 82nd place, but a German sports official said the twins were competing a fun run and not an Olympic race and they were in the for the public bliss 2i. Quote, "Every athlete in the Olympics should be motivated to demonstrate his or her best performance and aim for the best possible result." In a Facebook result, the twins said they hadn't finished add high as they hoped, but they tried their best. Well, they look happy.

You're watching CNN NEWSROOM, live from Los Angeles. I'm Isha Sesay.

The news continues next with Rosemary Church.

[03:00:10] ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Trouble in Brazil.

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