Top Story with Tom Llamas - Tuesday, December 30, 2025

Episode Date: December 31, 2025

Tonight's Top Story has the latest breaking news, political headlines, news from overseas and the best NBC News reporting from across the country and around the world Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Tonight, as we come on the air, dangerous winter weather is pushing east, threatening millions, blizzard conditions, taking hold in the Great Lakes, as brutal cold and hurricane force winds pound upstate New York, delays at big airports, plus the life-threatening flood risk returning out west. We've got Bill Carrens with the timing and your New Year's Eve forecast. Also tonight, new questions after President Trump revealed the first known American strike inside Venezuela on a dot. We're speaking with a former CIA operative as questions loom about a potential covert CIA strike. Patriot star Stefan Diggs charged after allegedly attacking his private chef, what we're hearing from the wide receiver, and how a court appearance could affect his postseason. A hiker death mystery, three bodies discovered near a popular trail outside L.A., the call for help that led rescuers to them.

Dramatic body cam video capturing a chaotic police pursuit and shootout will show you how it all came to an end. Thieves drilling into a bank vault, getting away with millions, what we know about the heist and the search for the suspects. And the surprise carpool karaoke, one driver's run in with performer Donnie Osman turning into an all-out sing-along. Can you even imagine? Plus, Kennedy Center cancellations why more musicians are backing out of performances ahead of New Year's Eve. Top story starts right now. Good evening. I'm Hallie Jackson in for Tom, and we begin tonight with that brutal winter blast, millions of Americans under weather alerts from coast to coast. Hurricane force wind slamming the Great Lakes. Look at that, snapping trees and launching debris in Buffalo, New York. As we speak tonight, tens of thousands of people are still without power. That means they have no heat either, with a lot of snow pummeling the Midwest and the Northeast. Look at students at Syracuse University. They're making their way, picking their way through that needy snow. With this power. powerful storm, creating some pretty messy travel conditions. Plains in Rochester battling Mother Nature during landing. And at JFK Airport, a ground delay is now in place because of how windy

it is, adding to the more than 6,000 delays at airports across the country today, yet another day of snarled holiday travel. The full scope of this winter blast is still coming into view as we track another storm with life-threatening flood risks out west. Bill Cairns is standing by for more on that. But we start tonight with Maggie Vespah, who begins from Chicago. Tonight, millions of Americans facing an icy end to 2025. Crews racing to restore power in Buffalo after damaging winds and heavy lake-effect snow left hundreds of thousands across the Midwest and East Coast without heat. Last night, she had her coat on and the duvet and two blankets. Gusses in Buffalo topping 79 miles per hour, a 40-year record.

Farther east outside Boston winds toppling this massive tree near Stephen Mills's home. Just tree everywhere, tree on the car. Literally the whole driveway was just tree. In Rochester, planes navigating near white out conditions as nationwide flight delays yet again soar into the thousands with ground delays at major airports. It follows a fierce weekend of severe winter weather with slick roads slowing drivers across multiple states. In New Jersey, the race is on to find foster homes for dozens of dogs after part of this animal shelter collapsed under heavy snow. Meanwhile, Chicago in shock after temperatures plummeted more than 40 degrees in 12 hours Monday. Has it felt like an erratic winter? Definitely, definitely all over the place.

A wild end to a year refusing to fade away quietly. Yeah, plenty more winter to come. running us now from Chicago. I know there's flurries where you are. There's now a new warning tonight about the evening ahead, right? Yeah, Hallie, that's right. Even in winter savvy Chicago, the National Weather Service earlier today issuing a warning to drivers here in the area about this now round of snow that's falling as we speak, asking them to be careful during tonight's evening commute home, especially they said on untreated roads in the area. Also warning that we could get up to three more inches of snow by this time tomorrow.

So this is just beginning, Halley. Sure is. Maggie Vespa out in the thick of it. Thanks, Maggie. Let's bring in Bill Cairns to help us track it all down. So New Year's Eve tomorrow, you know, people are going to be out. We're at whatever city they're in, everybody's having a celebration. New York Times Square, obviously. But talk to us about what we can expect across the country.

Yeah, people just want to be able to get to their destinations and, you know, know what to wear at that destination, too. So we still have the lake effects snow. Here's that snow that Maggie's in right now. Some light snow, maybe a half inch to an inch, going to from Milwaukee to Chicago, down the lake shore, and into air. areas of northern Indiana. Everywhere in white on this map between tonight and tomorrow night has a chance for at least an inch of snow.

So that's a lot of people that have a chance for at least some slippery conditions. The worst of it, obviously, near Syracuse and the typical spots near the Great Lakes. So here's the big picture outlook. And we'll focus mostly from the Rockies to the East Coast. Everyone is looking good, but it is cold tomorrow. And at that stroke of midnight, the ball drops, three in Minneapolis, 14, Chicago. So some frigid weather. New York Times Square, right around 32 degrees.

Wind chill will be somewhere in the low 20s, and there may even be some flurries there in Times Square when the ball drops. And then New Year's Day, Halley, everything east of the Rockies is fine. But that's east of the Rockies. Well, if I needed an excuse to stay home, I think that would give us one, Bill. Luckily, that's not the case. You talk about then west of the Rockies because there's a pretty scary flood risk that is really threatening folks out there, right?

Yeah, it's nothing compared to the historic storm last week, where we had, you know, like a foot of rain and six feet of snow in the mountains. But this storm being the timing of New Year's Eve, in New Year's Day. He's going to leave its mark. We are going to see a lot of rain developing tomorrow around Los Angeles and all of coastal California. And then as we go throughout the day and the night, it does move inland. So it's umbrella weather, much of the state for your midnight celebrations. And then the Roseball parade on NBC, you know, it's a tradition of my house, Halley, thunderstorms and downpours near Los Angeles. It hasn't rained in the

Rose Bowl parade since 2006. And they could have downpours at the beginning of it. Then it clears out during the day. So that'll be something to watch. And we do have that chance of Some areas will get up to six inches of rain in the mountains, so we could see some isolated flash flooding or landslides, rock slides. In downtown L.A., we're expecting about two inches of rain, and even by L.A. standards, that's something, and there will be some problems on the roads because of it. Much to watch. Bill Cairns, thank you. Let's stay in Southern California, where we're following breaking news. This desperate rescue operation on a popular hiking trail turning into a recovery mission. Teams are now working to find three hikers and retrieve their bodies. They were found dead on a treacherous trail, called Devil's Backbone. Steve Patterson is in L.A. for us tonight. So, Steve, what do we know?

Yeah, this started as something of a rescue mission early yesterday morning. It is still going on, as now you mentioned, a recovery mission. Started yesterday from a call from a hiker who said his 19-year-old hiking buddy had fallen some 500 feet off of a section of Mount Baldy that is infamous, that is known to be icy and windy. It's called the devil's backbone. Air rescuers go down to that location. They try to get to that. young man. They cannot because the winds are so brutal. These are dangerous. Santa Ana Wins still hampering the operation as we speak. It is hours later. I'm talking like six, seven, eight hours before they can get back to the scene, get down to that 19-year-old. They identify who it is,

but he's dead. And they find two other hikers that are also dead. We don't know if they're related or if they're hiking together. We don't know the situation there. But obviously it is still a dangerous, desperate situation. The recovery effort, as we know, is still going on. on and they've shut down all trails on Mount Baldy until midnight, tomorrow night. And Steve, folks in and around the L.A. area, or if you've been out there, spent time there, you know Mount Baldy, it's a popular spot. I mean, it's tough. It's a really, obviously, challenging hiking spot. It is also a draw in so many ways, too. Super draw, but you have to know what you're doing. The elevation is completely different.

So the weather system is completely different. As that rescue operation was happening, the one that I mentioned on Devil's Backbone, there was another. wholly separate rescue operation happening. Luckily, a 31-year-old, an 18-year-old, were rescued taken off the mountain. But this is one of seven rescues that has happened since this weekend. The L.A. Times says there's been 100 rescues since 2020 and 14 deaths. So yes, it is popular, but you have to know what you're doing. That's right. Steve Patterson, thank you very much for that. Appreciate it. To the growing scrutiny now over that strike on Venezuelan soil, President Trump has acknowledged that the U.S. has hit Venezuela, but now

lawmakers are demanding answers that aren't so forthcoming. Our Gabe Gutierrez is traveling with the president in South Florida. Tonight, there are mounting questions about the dramatic escalation in the U.S. pressure campaign against alleged drug trafficking in Venezuela after President Trump acknowledged the first known strike inside the South American country. There was a major explosion in the dock area where they load the boats up with drugs. The CIA is declining to comment on reports it conducted a drone strike on a port facility. The president has previously said he's authorized the spy agency to take covert action in Venezuela.

Because the facility taken out by the U.S. military or is it another entity like the CIA? Who's along? Well, I don't want to say that. I know exactly who it was, but I don't want to say who it was. Separately, two eyewitnesses tell NBC News they saw an explosion and a storage hut in a region called Alta Guajita in northwestern Venezuela on December 18th. The aftermath seen here in cell phone video, shot by one of these witnesses, who added representatives of the Venezuelan government showed up the next day to inspect the damage.

It's not clear if that incident was the same strike Trump mentioned or whether it was a previously unreported explosion. All of it coming as the U.S. keeps targeting alleged drugboats at sea, the most recent strike killing two people just yesterday, according to the Pentagon. Still, any attacks on Venezuelan soil, now drawing increasing skepticism from lawmakers. They've been very clear about targeting these drug boats. We have clear information there, but threatening Venezuela itself is they've been very cryptic and very, I would say, unclear with what they're trying to do there. Gabe Gutierrez is joining us now from West Palm Beach. And Gabe, worth noting that despite the pressure on the Maduro regime, the Venezuelan leader has been pretty quiet about this U.S. strike.

Yeah, that's right, Halley. Maduro has not commented on the strike on Venezuelan soil despite holding public events yesterday and today. Instead, he is touting his own efforts to fight narco-trafficking. And, Hallie, of course, he has repeatedly said that he believes the U.S. is trying to manufacture a war in the Caribbean to try and force him from power. Halley. Gabe Gutierrez traveling with the president as he is spending his holiday at his Mar-a-Lago home. Gabe, thanks. For more on this strike, let me bring in former CIA covert operations officer and CEO of Portman Square Group, Mike Baker.

Mike, it's good to have you with us. Thanks for being here. Sure, of course. Thank you. So a couple of things here. As we heard in Gabe's reporting, the president was asked, did not directly answer the question about who carried out the strike, military chain of command, the CIA, etc. Can you help us understand why would a command be issued if it were to be the CIA for a mission like this over like conventional military assets? Well, sure. I mean, if you, using conventional military assets, you're getting very close to a declaration of war when you're talking about, you know, conducting a military strike or a, you're getting very close to a declaration of war when you're talking about, you know, conducting a military strike or, on, you know, sovereign territory and foreign nation. The CIA operates differently in terms of its requirements and authorizations. The president, obviously, as was reported in your segment,

had previously authorized covert action by the CIA, without saying at that time whether it would take place or not. That's right. And so, you know, it makes sense. Look, previous administrations, Obama administration and others have used the CIA in this matter. usually for drone strikes on terrorist targets. So in that sense, it's not unprecedented by any means, but it's a little surprising that a covert action like this

would then be announced by the president just outright without any other details. And the president, of course, as you know, I think it has that declassification power. He can declassified if he wants to. The other piece of it that's interesting here, when we've seen some of these strikes at sea in the Caribbean over the course of the last several months here

on these alleged narco-terrorist boats. The Pentagon has almost immediately, Mike, put out video. I mean, we're seeing some of it here. There's been a lot of, and this is a president who, as we know, and I've covered him for about a decade now, you know, tends to want the optics out there, right? If it relates to a strike or whatever the case may be, very much not the case for any kind of a covert CIA operation.

That's just not how the CIA works. Fair? That is fair. Yeah, and that makes sense. So that part of it holds together, right? It makes sense. again, it's unusual that, you know, it was just a few days ago during our radio interview, I believe, that the president, you know, mentioned that we had struck this dock or this facility.

Again, there's no details on what was this a warehouse. You know, they did say that there were no casualties. So you can say, look, this is a natural progression from their counter-narcotics operations, which is how this whole, you know, situation, the deployments that started, in the Caribbean, how it all started as being framed as counter-narcotics or a fight against narco-terrorism. Obviously, that's expanded, in part because, you know, President Trump posted on social media that, you know, we're not going to let up the pressure on Maduro until they return all the oil and land that Venezuela stole from the U.S. So that certainly

frames it as something other than just a narco-terrorist operation. I'm sitting here, Mike, about four blocks from Capitol Hill, right, from the Capitol. members of Congress are out, obviously, for the holiday break. But you have seen some reaction now, including from some in Congress who are critics, Democrats, for example, you know, not all, but of the president, including one, Senator Chris Murphy, who suggested this is basically an illegal war now. What is the notification process for Congress? Would say members of the Intelligence Committee be notified of a covert strike? If they asked for answers from the administration on this, do they typically get them? Help us understand that piece of it.

Sure. Well, they will be asking. There's no doubt about that. And they'll be hoping for or some sort of hot washer, post-operation briefing, and a skiff, it'll be limited numbers that will be able to attend because of the requirements and the classifications. But, look, you know, they, when it comes to being notified, you know, Congress, you know, wants to be notified on everything. And you could argue that transparency is, to the degree that you can make sense, right? Because to the degree that you can gain bipartisan support for your strategies overseas, your foreign policy, national security issues, that's a good thing. But there's a long history

of, you know, CIA covert activity that hasn't been, you know, previously announced or authorized by Congress. So they shouldn't act surprised in that sense. But they will display angst and concern, and they will be asking for clarification in details, for sure. Mike Baker, good to have you with us. Thank you very much for being on and for providing your expertise in your analysis. Let's get to some new number. is now out tonight showing flu infections spiking. The CDC reporting some seven and a half million cases so far this season with doctors warning the worst is yet to come. Our Emily Aketa reports. Inside Northwell South Shore University Hospital, the seriousness of this year's

flu season is on full display. We're seeing high fever, sore throat cough. Dr. Jennifer Goebel says flu patients are experiencing more severe symptoms for a longer period of time. with the uptick of the flu four to six weeks earlier. We're just seeing more cases, which is creating more volume. That surge in New York, driven by a mutated H3N2 variant, which some are calling a super flu, is being seen across the country. New data from the CDC today show high or very high

flu-like activity in 29 states, while pediatric deaths so far this season rose to eight, and the number of hospitalizations recorded in a single week nearly doubled. My blood pressure had dropped to 71 over 41. 51-year-old Jennifer Piscopink had never before been hospitalized for a respiratory illness until this month. If I hadn't went to the hospital, it could have became Dudley. But it's not just flu filling up beds like this.

Cases of COVID, RSV and neurovirus are also climbing right now. Can a patient be sick with multiple viruses at one time? Yes. So it is important to get tested, to know what virus you have, as well as, what the proper treatment would be as winter viruses hamper the holiday season doctors now underscoring the importance of vaccinations and sitting out of new year's eve celebrations if you're sick this is good not only for yourself but people around you emily eketa mbc bayshore new york and cities across the country getting ready to ring in the new year with law enforcement ramping up

security for these public celebrations our valerie castro is in new york tonight of course sight of one of the world's biggest parties on New Year's Eve. They're getting ready for the big ball drop in Times Square. All right, Valerie, always we see law enforcement boosting security around New Year's Eve, and that is obviously the same this year. Yeah, Hallie, this event is obviously not new for the NYPD, but it's an event that continues to grow and so do the security measures. But as in years past, the security efforts will be spread amongst several different agencies, including federal and state law enforcement agencies, as well as the local NYPD. The NYPD says thousands of officers will be deployed throughout the city and in Times Square, many in uniform,

many wearing plain clothes, some with canines by their side, others will be on horseback. Up in the sky, drones and helicopters will be, of course, keeping an eye on the crowds down below. And even in the digital space, intelligence teams will be monitoring social media for any suspicious chatter. They will also keep an eye on the city's extensive network of security cameras. Something that is new this year, there will be more officers in place to screen the crowds as they are led into those pens or those viewing areas. And something additional is that mobile teams will be in place with the crowds to do a secondary screening should they notice anything suspicious happening once the crowds are in place. NYPD's police commissioner, Jessica

Tish, says so far there are no known credible threats to the New Year's Eve celebrations in Times Square as of right now. Hally? Take us to New Orleans now, though, because we are coming up on exactly one year since that horrific car ramming attack. And obviously, an incredible focus in that city on security this year? Yeah, and you'll remember last year, or actually January 1st of this year, the attack happened just a few hours into the new year when that driver managed to navigate around barricades that were in place on Bourbon Street, and ultimately 14 people were killed. This year, there will be gates and barricades in place once again.

Right now, those are temporary measures, but the local law enforcement there says that vehicle traffic will not be allowed on Bourbon Street. In addition, the National Guard has also been deployed to New Orleans. this year to beef up the security efforts. The city's director of Homeland Security says nearly 800 law enforcement officers will be in place throughout the French Quarter and downtown. That is a mix of New Orleans police and those National Guard members. They are also asking locals and tourists alike to flag anything that they see that could be

suspicious. Hallie. Valerie Castro, thank you. Also tonight, some heartbreaking news for the Kennedy family. Tatiana Schlossberg, the granddaughter of former President Kennedy, has died at the age of 35. The journalist's death comes just about a month after she announced her rare cancer diagnosis in an essay. Tonight, a devastating death for the Kennedy family, sharing Tatiana Schlossberg has died at just 35 years old. The daughter of Caroline Kennedy and granddaughter of former

President John F. Kennedy, revealing her terminal cancer diagnosis just last month. In a heartbreaking essay, writing doctors discovered she had acute myeloid leukemia, a rare and aggressive blood cancer, when they performed testing shortly after she gave birth to her second child last year. Schlossberg, writing, I had a son whom I loved more than anything and a newborn I needed to take care of. This could not possibly be my life. She detailed her grueling treatments, including chemotherapy and clinical trials, and her fight to spend more time with her children. Quote, my first thought was that my kids, whose faces live permanent. on the inside of my eyelids wouldn't remember me. Her essay, also pointedly criticizing her

cousin, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who's cut funding critical to cancer research, calling his time on the national stage an embarrassment to me and the rest of my immediate family. Schlossberg was an environmental journalist and shared her work on today in 2019. Well, I think climate change is the biggest story in the world, and if I could help communicate about it, that that might inspire other people to get involved and work on the issue. The Kennedys, no strangers to tragedy, from the assassinations of President Kennedy and his brother, Robert, to the deaths of her uncle, JFK Jr. and his wife in a plane crash. Schlausberg, touching on the pain for her mother, writing, Now I have added a new tragedy to her life, to our family's life, and there's nothing I can do to stop it. Her cousin, Maria Shriver, today, saying she could not make sense of losing Tatiana, writing, she loved her life and she fought like hell to try to save it. Schlossberg's family tonight also writing that she will always be in our hearts. So many people around the world remembering her.

Still ahead for us tonight, Patriots star Stefan Diggs, facing charges after an alleged assault against his private chef. But we're now learning about the accusations and how he's responding. Plus, the dramatic police shootout caught on camera. We'll show you what happened after a driver peeled out of a traffic stop. And the search for stolen lobsters. How thieves got away with like $400,000 worth of seafood. That's next on Top Story. Back now with the new allegations rocking the world of pro football.

One of the NFL's biggest stars now facing serious charges. New England Patriots wide receiver Stefan Diggs accused of trying to strangle his private chef. Morgan Chesky has his response tonight. Tonight star wide receiver Stefan Diggs is charged with felony strangulation or suffocation and misdemeanor assault. A private chef accusing the New England Patriot of attacking her on December 2nd, less than 24 hours after Diggs helped beat the Giants on Monday night football. According to the criminal complaint, the chef who lived in Diggs home initially told police, due to his fame, she was very hesitant to come forward.

She said a conversation over money Diggs owed her broke down when he smacked her across the face before Diggs tried to choke her using the crook of his elbow around her neck, and that she felt like she could have blacked out. Diggs requested a signed non-disclosure agreement before any payment, but the complaint states she refused. Today, Diggs attorney said he categorically denies these allegations, calling them unsubstantiated and uncorroborated. In the NFL, Diggs has been a perennial pro bowler and clutch player.

Dix! Catching this pass as a Viking to clinch a 2017 playoff win in what's now known as the Minneapolis Miracle. He's also in a high-profile relationship with rapper Cardi B. Tonight, the Patriots say they're aware of the accusations, stating, we support Stefan, and will continue to gather information and cooperate fully with the appropriate authorities. Morgan is joining us tonight with more on this. So let's talk, I mean, you know, you laid out the allegations there, the denial from Diggs.

What about the postseason? What does this mean for him? Yeah, Halley, there's certainly some looming questions here. Number one, we know that Stefan Diggs has a formal arraignment now set for January 23rd. That's just two days before the AFC championship game. So if the Pats make it that far, that could be a question of will he, won't he play? I should note here, Halley, that the one person who has the authority to essentially take an active player and make them inactive is NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. He could place Diggs on what's called the commissioner's exempt list.

However, at this point in time, he is still on the Pat's active roster, remains to be seen how this will be playing out, but certainly could have a big impact on the Patriot Squad as he's been a crucial member of that team and a 13-2 record so far here. Allie. Morgan, Chesky, tracking all of that for us tonight. Morgan, thank you. Still ahead for us, the racing world.

Now morning, Denny Hamlin's father after he was killed in a house fire. What we're learning about the way his son has emotionally honored him as he propelled his career on the track. Plus, a pair of pricey mandolins swiped from a music store, how the instruments ended up back in the shop, along with a handwritten note you may be surprised to see. But first, top story's top moment and the chance celebrity sighting at a post office in Utah that turned into a sing-along with the one and only Donnie Osmond. Look at this. Happy New Year, Donnie. We're just jumping. And new me. Oh, my goodness. Can you imagine, and the world was waking, any great new.

Can you imagine? My mom would freak out. Donnie went on to wish him a happy new year after that impromptu carrioke. Quite the moment. Stay with us. We've got more top story on the way. Back now with new video. dramatic police chase in Houston, a traffic stop quickly spiraling into a dangerous pursuit,

ending in a shootout between the suspect and police. George Solis has more on that video. Hey, Mr. Bassi, go ahead, step out of the car for me, police. Tonight, newly released police video of a dramatic pursuing Houston. Step out of the car. Police say the man behind the wheel. Jacques Bossi had no intention of cooperating after being pulled over during the traffic stop earlier this month. It's going to be the driver. Houston police say the 33-year-old who was wanted on a felony theft warrant

first led officers on a high-octane car chase, shooting an officers, eventually striking a patrol car. Surveillance video then captures the suspect's car, crashing into a grassy median and flipping over. Things only escalating from there as police say Bassie then continued to evade officers on foot, their body camera capturing the ensuing chaos. Hey, I've got him over here. Put the goddamn! He just shot at me. He just shot at me. Then more gunfire. He's up against the building.

He's up against the building behind the cars. What car color? He's on the white shirt. By the white shirt. This surveillance video from a parking lot capturing the exchange of gunfire as authorities say Bassie maneuvered around parked cars. At one point, on his stomach wriggling forward. He's on the ground.

He's on the ground. The group of officers begin closing in. He's fire, ceasefire, suspects now. Let's get covered behind the truck. I got eyes on suspect. One carrying a shield leads the march towards the suspect as he's taken into custody. I got him, I got him. Houston police say Bassie was struck at least one time.

Just the face, you have gods? Houston PD blurred out parts of the footage before making it public. Bassie faces two counts of attempted capital murder of a police officer and evading arrest. NBC News reached out to him but have not. heard back. George Solis is joining us now. Okay, George, what is next for the suspect after those dramatic moments you just showed? Yeah, Halley, I mean, quite the exchange of gunfire there.

So what you don't see is that that suspect was shot in the face. So he was then rushed to an area hospital there. He was in critical condition at first, in stable condition now. Because he's still in the hospital, he has not been able to go before a judge or enter any kind of plea. As we mentioned, we did try to reach out to him directly, but have not heard back. But obviously, after that exchange of gunfire, there's going to be some positive. other charges there as well. Hallie.

George Solis, thank you very much for your reporting. Now to Top Stories News Feed and an update on the case of that missing 19-year-old woman in Texas. The Bexar County Sheriff's Department is confirming tonight that a body has been found just a few hundred yards from Camila Olmos' home. Officials say it's too early to identify the body formally or the manner of death, but they say the clothing did match her description, the description of what she'd been wearing. Police also say they found a gun near the body as well as what they called indicators of self-harm. almost has been missing since Christmas Eve. And Brown University announcing new public safety measures

after that mass shooting this month that left two students dead and nine others heard. School officials say they're putting in place more security cameras with blue light phone systems. They're adding more panic buttons across campus and ramping up safety training. That's expected to be in place ahead of the start of the spring semester.

And the FBI is now working to claw back some $400,000 worth of lobsters, the seafood, apparently taken from a Massachusetts its warehouse. The freight company's president says he thinks somebody was impersonating the real driver of this lobster truck who was supposed to be taken him to Costco stores out in Illinois and Minnesota. He claims that this theft could be linked to organized crime. And some breaking news tonight, actor Isaiah Whitlock Jr. has died. His manager announcing the news online describing Whitlock, who I'm sure you recognize here from the wire from Veep as a brilliant actor,

an even better person. Whitlock, of course, played Clay Davis on the wire. He was also in Goodfellas. He was 71 years old. Also, tonight, the racing community is rallying around NASCAR star Denny Hamlin, whose father was killed in a house fire for Hamlin. His dad was, in many ways, the driving force behind his success. And he honored him on the track just months ago. Here's Sam Brock. Hours after flames tore through this North Carolina home, killing Dennis Hamlin and critically injuring his wife, Mary Lou Sunday evening. Investigators.

now digging into what caused the fire. Championship bound indeed. Thank you. He's emotional. Their NASCAR driver's son, Denny, a racing star. We all know you earned that one for your dad. Hamlin fighting tears after claiming his 60th career victory in October, honoring his father, who was already ill.

I appreciate all of you so much. It's okay. Yeah, just, obviously, once they say hi to my dad. Tonight, a portrait emerging of the immense sacrifices the couple made, the three-time Daytona 500 winner, opening up about his family struggles to finance his career, including mortgaging multiple homes. It's every credit card that comes to the mail. Okay, well, we'll use it. NASCAR describing Hamlin, sitting on his father's lap to watch televised races as a child, as Dennis discovered the youngster's aptitude for the sport,

beginning with go-carts. I am more proud of the young man he turned out to me than I ever would be the race car driver. Hamlin, a father himself writing on Facebook in 2019, I'm lucky to have you and mom to help me learn how to be the best dad I can be. Thank you, and I love you. In a sports still reeling from the tragic plane crash that killed driver Greg Biffel and his family less than two weeks ago, he's emotional. Hearts hurting all over again.

Sam Brock is joining us now. And Sam, it is just a gut punch of a story here. Denny Hamlin, you know, you talk about the sacrifices his dad has made over the years for him and for their family, too. It was so striking to hear Danny Hamlin talking about this earlier, Halley, just the idea that his family almost went broke twice, almost lost their home multiple times, maxed out countless credit cards. It really does speak to the idea how far would you go just to help your loved one, your child,

pursue their dreams. Dennis Hamlin had a trailer and hitch business that was just enough money to bring, basically, subsidence to be able to pay the family bills. What it could not do, though, is run a racing car team. So they crafted one out of one of the bays in their shop. And Denny Hamlin talked about the fact that when he was in high school, Halley. He worked 40 hours a week as a senior in high school to help bring in money. He knew the choice was either. He was going to do that and make it as a race car driver or work in that trailer and hitch shop forever. and the whole family effort had to come together to make it happen. Pretty incredible.

It is, and so many people are thinking about them tonight. Sam Brock, thanks. Also tonight, for some 22 million people, the new year will mean new and higher prices for their health insurance after Congress did not extend subsidies for the Affordable Care Act. Our Chief Capitol Hill correspondent Ryan Nobles explains the impact. This is having on families coast to coast. Joseph DiArmo is self-employed in his early 60s

and recently diagnosed with diabetes. A lot more things are on my mind about health care than, say, a year ago. He buys his health insurance through the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. His premium costs are going up 15 percent in the new year. It's a lot bigger than my car payment. It's between my car payment and rent. And it's getting closer and closer to the rent. He is among the more than 20 million Americans whose health insurance costs are going up because

Congress failed to come up with a plan to extend or reform premium subsidies tied to Obamacare that expire at the end of the year. A Kaiser Family Foundation study found that a family of four making $40,000 or less will see their premiums go up more than $800 a year for their ACA plan. Families making over $90,000 will see their cost jump close to $4,000. Republican Congressman Mike Kennedy from Utah is a physician. He believes the impact of the premium hikes is overblown and argues that the Affordable Care Act is in need of a major overhaul.

I want to make sure that those people have excellent access to high-quality health care, which I and people like me as doctors have been delivering for many years in the Obamacare process. So there's a way to make this happen. But moderate Republicans and Democrats believe a short-term extension of the subsidies is necessary while they negotiate long-term reform of the health care system. This is what the people want. The number one issue in America is affordability, and affordability of health insurance is right there at the very top.

isn't counting on it. He's prepared to absorb the new costs with the hope he doesn't get sick. I refer to it as the don't get sick health plan. So basically stay healthy. And thankfully, you know, despite my conditions, I'm pretty healthy. Even though the subsidies will be gone to start the new year, the Kaiser Family Foundation believes that if Congress can find a deal to extend the subsidies at any point this year, it will still benefit millions of Americans. Hallie? Ryan Nobles, thank you. Coming up, new drama at the Kennedy Center with more. More shows canceled after President Trump's name was added to the building.

We're tracking the fallout. Plus, yet another huge heist in Europe. This one added a German bank. Hal Feeves made off with millions next. We are back now with the growing fallout involving the Kennedy Center. And President Trump's push to leave his mark on that cultural institution. You've got more artists now pulling out of scheduled events, including the Cookers, they're a jazz band. They were set to perform a couple of concerts on New Year's Eve, but they've now joined

growing list of artists backing out. That latest wave coming after the Trump-appointed board voted unanimously to rename the center the Donald J. Trump and the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, as you see there. The president's name added to the building earlier this month. I want to bring in our White House correspondent Yamish Al-Sindor, who's joining us now. Okay, Yamish, this has been a thing that has been building for a bit now. Let's start with the latest and the cookers, this jazz group. What are they saying about this decision to back out? Interestingly, this group, the Cookers, they're not saying in particular that this is tied to the name change of the building, but they're essentially saying that the atmosphere has

been one that they don't want to perform. I want to read to you part of their statement. They say jazz was born from struggle and from a relentness in census on freedom, freedom of thought, of expression, and of the full human voice. Some of us have been making this music for many decades, and that history still shapes us. They go on to say our hope is that this moment will leave space for reflection, not resentment. So, again, not specifically saying that the president's actions are what's causing them to cancel these concerts, but essentially hinting at that, Halley.

And, Amish, it's not just the cookers, right? I mean, you look at, I think there's a run of Hamilton, for example, that ended up getting 86th, basically, by them. And when you look at the bigger picture, the Kennedy Center has typically and traditionally, as you well know, having lived and covered D.C. for so long, been pretty nonpartisan. That's right. Even though President Trump, if you ask him, he would say that the Kennedy Center was sort of biased against conservatives. But for the most part, people have said that this is a nonpartisan performing art center that welcomed all sorts of performances. But the president essentially

was saying that the building was getting too liberal and was too welcoming, essentially, to performances and people that he didn't agree with. And now we've seen this fallout. We've seen ticket sales go down. We've seen people canceling performances. We've also seen people just simply uncomfortable with the building. And let's remember that this renaming really is the renaming of a memorial. This isn't just sort of the Capitol arena, which is where sports teams play. This is a memorial that was dedicated to John F. Kennedy, Jr., someone who, of course, was killed while serving our country, murdered while serving our country. So the Kennedy family has been very outspoken, very angry about this. And you now see these artists that are either hinting or

full on saying that they don't want to be in the space because of President Trump. And what about some of the stuff that's happened with the website, the newly renamed for the newly renamed Center? Well, Holly, of course, it's a little bit of of a troll here. This South Park, this former South Park writer, because the president had been talking and hinting at the idea that he might rename the Performing Arts Center, this person actually purchased both TrumpKennedycenter.org and TrumpKennedycenter.com. So there's literally a comedian that owns these websites, so they can't change the name of the website right now, at least not into those two. And then if we can show people the home page of

TrumpKennedycenter.org, if you look up there, there's the red, and there's all this, And it maybe kind of looks like a regular website. But when you scroll down, the website says the next events at the Trump Kennedy Center are to ring in the New Year with a performance by the, quote, Epstein dancers. That, of course, being a reference to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who, of course, has had a lot of controversy that President has been tied to him just as a friend. He has not been charged with any wrongdoing. He has been accused of any wrongdoing. But the fact that the Epstein files are something that's mentioned on this website really is just trolling President Trump. So it really is in some ways a reminder that as this was all building, there were people that were very much against this that were making their own kind of moves, Hallie.

Yamiche, thank you very much for that reporting. Appreciate that. Let's get you now to Top Story's Global Watch, starting with chaos at some of the biggest train stations in Europe after a huge power outage. Eurostar, the high-speed rail service, says the Channel Tunnel, known as the Channel, had some real power problems. That's the train line that connects the UK and continental Europe. He had a lot of passengers left stranded during one of the busiest travel weeks of the year there. Service has now picked back up partially, but the company says you've got to expect some lingering delays. And the French government has granted citizenship to actor George Clooney and his wife Amal Clooney, along with our eight-year-old twins. The couple purchased an estate in France a few years back.

They've apparently been living there mostly ever since. In an interview with Esquire, Clooney says he was concerned about raising kids in L.A. in the culture of Hollywood. It's not clear whether Clooney plans to keep his American citizenship. And a heist straight out of a movie, Thieves in Germany, making off with millions of dollars after drilling their way into a bank vault. Here's Danielle Hamamchen. Tonight, German police searching for suspects after an elaborate bank heist. This photo of the vault showing the aftermath, layers of thick concrete missing from the wall, along with prized possessions of the customers who believed nowhere else could be safer.

Anger outside the bank as they shouted, let us in, locked out of their safe deposit boxes at Spakase Bank. The thieves using the quiet holiday period to break in made off with at least $11 million worth of money and valuables, according to police. This man's had a safe deposit box here for 25 years, inside his box, his retirement savings. The bank saying that the vast majority of the 3,200 boxes were broken into.

Police say witnesses reported seeing several men on Saturday night carrying large bags in the stairwell of an adjacent parking garage. A fire alarm was triggered, but when police arrived at the scene, they found no evidence of damage. The break-in only discovered Monday morning. I have a lot of money and jewelry from my children and my wife, said this man. We're now standing here without any information. The bank saying in a statement, this was the work of professionals, adding they're now working with the insurance company to determine how claims can be handled.

Danielle Hamamjan, NBC News. Danielle Hamamgen, thank you. Back here at home to a thief now facing the music. Surveillance video capturing the moment a man in New Jersey stole a couple of musical instruments worth thousands of dollars each. But in the spirit of the season, it seems that that thief might have. have had a change of heart, returning those instruments the day after Christmas. Adam Harding from our NBC, New York station, has the details on the surprising note he left behind. They're always strumming away at Lark Street Music and Teanex.

But leading up to the holidays, workers here were singing the blues, all because of a pricey theft that hit all the wrong notes. That was quite a week. know, the week that was. Store surveillance cameras capturing it all. Watch as the brazen thief grabs a mandolin off the wall, then he stuffs it in his coat pocket. A few seconds go by, he's looking around, then he does it again before walking off.

And I like especially when he took one, let's check and see if I'm looking right. I'll take the other one. I got two big pockets. It's easy for owner Bernard Levine to laugh about it now, but there's nothing funny about what. what was stolen. Each instrument valued at roughly four grand. I posted it on our Facebook page, and I also addressed it to seven or eight friends who are

dealers. So he did what any business would do. He posted the video to social media asking for help. It spread, I think because the video was so vivid. And after just a few days online, those same cameras capturing the moment the mandolins were quietly. returned. Some guy opens the door up front stoops down and leaves. I walked over there and wow, there are the two shopping bags with the guitar, with the mandolin neck sticking out. And so I went outside and he's sort of trotting down the street. And I'm going, wait, I mean, I should talk to him. So I started running after him. And then he started running faster. And he started looking backwards to see if... Levine tried catching up to the guy, but by then,

it was too late, so he called police. And this fell off. It was in the bag. One of the mandolins was slightly damaged, but what has everyone talking is the note left in the bag. And it said, I've been drunk. Merry Christmas. You're a good man. I thought, well, if I was in that position, that's probably what I would do if I wanted to try to get out of a bad situation, try to make amends. says the guy also gifted him some chocolate, perhaps as a way of saying sorry. The police say, it doesn't matter that he returned it. The crime was still committed. I'm Adam Harding News 4, New York.

And an update on a story we brought you as our top moment last night, the 104 years young World War II veteran, remember who wowed the crowd with his rendition of the national anthem at the Islanders game in New York. We spoke with the decorated sergeant. about what the moment meant to him and why he plays every day. And here to perform our national anthem. For one song on one night in New York. Dominic Critelli. The heated rivalry between the islanders and the Rangers was put on ice.

That's Dominic Critelli on the saxophone. 104 years old, a decorated Army staff sergeant, who survived World War II's Battle of the Bulge. He's been playing the sax since he was 13. But this performance was personal. I lost a lot of friends. I feel that I'm doing this for them.

At his home here on Long Island, he practices an hour every day. a daily rehearsal to honor the brothers in arms who never came back at the arena his mission was simple stay sharp and paid tribute to the country he loves i mean is there any better song to play than the star span of ban on when chance of u.s.a rang through the rafters kirtelli says he was so focused he didn't even hear it oh my god i missed that i missed that i missed that He nailed every beat before giving the crowd one last salute, a tribute to a century of life hitting all the right notes.

When we come back, a very special message from Tom and a look at the team that puts Top Story together behind the scenes every night. Stay with us. Before we go tonight, we wanted to say thank you for watching us each and every night here on Top Story. The team behind Top Story has worked so hard to bring you the latest breaking news, the most important investigations, and those stories that simply inspire all of us. All of that, plus we have a lot of fun putting together binge-worthy every Friday night for you. So we wanted to say Merry Christmas, happy holidays, and we will see you in the new year. On behalf of me and everyone here at NBC News, thank you and have a great year.

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