Top Story with Tom Llamas - Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Episode Date: June 21, 2023

Rescue crews intensify their search for the missing submersible en route to the Titanic, four people are killed in a fire from a NYC bike store, infamous social media personality Andrew Tate is indicted on rape and human trafficking charges in Romania, a fishing team is disqualified from a multi-million-dollar prize because their 619-pound marlin catch was bitten by a shark, and Savannah Sellers sits down with the Olympic gymnast Laurie Hernandez — now a newly-minted UNICEF ambassador.

Tonight, the race against time to find a missing Titanic torso with five people on board. Search crews from the U.S.N. Canada scouring more than 7,600 square miles in the Atlantic Ocean to find that submersible with four tourists and a pilot. Officials estimating they have less than 40 hours of emergency oxygen left. Search crews working around the clock but battling low visibility and tough search conditions. The new details about those on board and if experts think a rescue is possible. Also tonight, Hunter Biden expected to plead guilty to tax-related misdemeanor crimes as part of a plea deal with federal prosecutors.

Republicans crying foul saying the president's son received a sweetheart deal. The response from President Biden, who repeatedly said his son did nothing wrong. Deadly e-bike blaze, at least four people killed in a fire sparked by lithium-ion batteries in a bike repair shop. Did the shop's owners ignore safety concerns from officials for years? Andrew Tate indicted the controversial internet personality

and former kickboxer now charged with human trafficking and rape in Romania. The self-proclaimed misogynist also accused of running a gang to exploit women. Plus bait and switch, a fishing team disqualified

from a North Carolina fishing tournament despite reeling in a 600-pound Marlai, the little known rule that costs them the $3.5 million prize. And raising the bar, gold medal gymnast Lori Hernandez, now taking on a new role as UNICEF ambassador, what she told me about her work in Panama and what she plans to do next. Top story starts right now. Good evening and thank you for joining us. I'm Savannah Sellers in for Tom Yamas. We begin with this urgent search for the submersible, missing deep in the Atlantic Ocean with five people on board. The 21-foot-long Titan vessel losing contact while en route to the Titanic

wreckage. Officials revealing the sub likely does not have enough oxygen to last even two more days. But even if found, reaching the passengers could prove to be an even bigger challenge. Here is the depth we are talking about. Scuba divers, they tap out at 130 feet, and Navy submarines at 3,000 feet. But the Titanic's final resting place sits more than 12,000 feet below surface. Ocean Gate, the company behind the expedition confirming its CEO, Stockton Rush, is on board and acting as the pilot. The other passengers include a Pakistani businessman and his son, a British billionaire and a French national. In a CBS news segment from last year, Rush claiming the submersible was operated by a video game controller and showing the vessel,

which has no escape hatch being bolted shut from the outside. So let's get right to NBC's Tom Costello, who leads us off tonight from Boston. The search zone is the size of Connecticut in the choppy cold waters of the North Atlantic. Today, a private company's underwater drone went into the water to help search for the missing sub roughly the size of a minivan.

On board, Hamish Harding, a billionaire who has pursued extreme adventures worldwide. British business man, Shazada Dawood and his son Suleiman, French pilot Paul Henri Nojolet, an Ocean Gate founder, CEO Stockton Rush, who talked about the risk during a recent podcast. So what I worry about most are things that will stop me from being able to get to the surface. Overhangs, fish nets, entanglement hazards. The Titanic wreckage sits at the bottom of the ocean, nearly 13,000 feet deep, where the pressure is roughly 400 times what it is at sea level. No diver could withstand it. Even a Los Angeles-class Navy sub has a maximum depth of two to three thousand feet. Tim Taylor has led dozens of sub-missions looking for World War II wrecks.

Rockets explode, submersibles implode. They crush down to themselves like a toothpaste tube. But with time ticking away, U.S. and Canadian Coast Guard ships and planes are coordinating a massive grid search, looking for any sign that the sub has come to the surface. far nothing. If the sub is intact underwater, it may have only a day and a half worth of air left. This is a very complex search, and the unified team is working around the clock to bring all available assets and expertise to bear as quickly as possible. The sub called Titan has never been certified. Among the safety concerns, the hatch can only be unbolted and opened from the outside, not the inside, and it runs using a video game controller. The Navy is now

rushing salvage equipment to the site in case the sub needs to be lifted out of the ocean. If your submersibles can find this sub, is there any way to retrieve it and save the people on board? We have a group of our nation's best experts in the unified command, and if we get to that point, those experts will be looking at what the next course of action is. But time is of the essence. Terry Vert is a former astronaut and close friend of Hamish Harding, who heard from him just before the dive. The text I got was, hey, we're headed down to Titanic today, exclamation point. The hope, all five are still alive. I would assume they're stuck on the bottom in the mud or somehow entangled in Titanic. It's a search and rescue mission. So first of all,

they have to find them. Tom Costello joins us now from the Coast Guard's Boston Command Center. Hi, Tom. So I understand tonight the Navy is rushing salvage equipment to Canada. What do we know? That's right. Air Force C-17 aircraft have already flown to Buffalo, picked up that salvage equipment, and are right now flying it onto St. John Newfoundland. That is where the ships that are moving into the zone are basing out of. But there's a big challenge. They've got to get all of that salvage equipment onto the ships, and then it takes time to get out to the site. In some cases, several days. This is the equipment they would need to lift the soap up out of the water if they can find it. And so far, they haven't had any sign of it whatsoever, no pings at all on those underwater sonar buoys. Savannah? All right. Tom Costello, we know you'll stay on this for us. Thank you so much.

And we are going to stay on this now. I'm joined by Tim Taylor, an ocean explorer and CEO of Tiburon Subsea and Ocean Technology Solution Platform. Tim, thanks for your time to night. I know you spent over 30 years in this industry. I mean, this vessel, this submersible, it's looking at less than 40 hours of oxygen at this point. And as Tom mentioned in his story, the search field, the size of Connecticut and then the ocean depth and then all these other hurdles. We just heard him describe at the end there. With that deadline, how tough is this going to be to actually find and then recover this vessel?

This is a monumental task. They're going to be left with several real hard choices. And those choices, once equipment is on location, really amount to where do they look with the small amount of time they have left? And if I was running this, I would search where they were last seen and start that search out. Getting the ROV on site, a remote-operated vehicle is probably key right now, getting that out and site and down and start the search because you're really fighting a clock here. They don't have a lot of options. Every hour it goes by, their options get less and less. Yeah.

We just heard also in this piece the potential that it's sort of tangled within the Titanic wreckage, which was, of, of course, they were headed for. How much does that potentially complicate a rescue? But then on the other hand, is it helpful to even have that as a starting point for searching? Well, if they're caught in the wreck, that's probably the best case scenario. That's why they lost power and they're caught in the wreck. They will find them. Extracting them from ROBs come with payloads or with equipment that they can manipulate arms, cutting arms, tools that can that can help solve this. Lifting the submarine off the bottom is not as hard or difficult as one may think.

If it's still intact and has, it's not imploded, it has still, it's neutrally buoyant. It floats around. It's very big. It weighs a lot, but it can be, it can be moved around and brought to the surface with the ROV. So that, again, it's survivability at that depth with no power. That means no heaters. that means close to freezing temperatures, that means, you know, and obviously a gas supply for breathing. So right now they're off the grid. We don't know where they are. You kind of just talk through a few

different things, that buoyant aspect if it hasn't imploded. What is it that would have had to have gone wrong here that would mean that they are currently untraceable but still alive? Well, a total electrical failure, maybe one where they lost all their power for some reason. If the Hall lost integrity, that pretty much is the end of gain. But if they lost a power source and lost all contact because they have no power, then they're just kind of dead in the water. They're stuck in the water. They're there where they are until someone comes and gets that.

And that's the big thing here, getting assets on site to do this. And assets like this are not. readily available. And as Tom said, they're not, it takes a while to plug these into a boat and mobilize this boat. They just don't throw them on and head off the dock. You have to bring winches in with lots of cable. You have to bolt it to the deck. You have to, you have to solidify that. You have to balance the weight of the boat out. So it's not listing because you just put tons of weight on the ship. The ship has to, you know, has to integrate all this telemetry gear in there and then get underway. And these ships aren't necessarily.

necessarily high-speed chips, 10, 12, 15 knots at the greatest. So from Newfoundland, that's 30 hours. That's a day. That's most of the time left that these people have, if they're there. As we've pointed out, it was in this reporting here, this submersible, it's never been certified. It also can't be open from the outside. There's been some reporting about a former pilot fired after raising safety concerns. Let's say this particular disaster at hand right now, this missing, the fact that they're missing, had not happened. But you had heard the specs on this vessel. You had heard that information I just said, everything that's available at this point. Would you have been concerned? Do these flags raise issue for you about this even doing the type

of expedition that it was on? To be honest, yes. I've known about this company for a long time. They're not cutting corners. They're experimental. They're prototype systems. They're experimental like experimental aircraft, they go out and they're cutting edge on technology. I give them that, that, but when you cross cutting-edge technology and testing of equipment with passenger carrying vessels, it gets to be a slippery slope. There are choices people make, including the passengers who chose to go on an expedition like this on a vessel that is not ABS certified or Lloyd's registered certified for carrying, paying passengers. Those are choices and everybody makes their choices

expeditionary wise. I do have questions on why as an expedition leader we always plan our exit before we plan our entry. We know our way out in risk scenarios and why they don't have an ROV on site why they don't have telemetry painters on the equipment to locate them are all questions that I'm sure will be asked by a lot more people than me and then, you know, these things will come to light over time. Tim Taylor, we appreciate your expertise on our breaking, leading story tonight. Thanks for your time. Now let's get to our other major headline tonight. Hunter Biden reaching a plea agreement with federal prosecutors investigating him for potential tax and gun crimes. The president's son now expected

to plead guilty to two counts of failure to pay his taxes. Peter Alexander has the details. Tonight, after a five-year investigation, the president's son, Hunter Biden, has reached a plea deal with federal prosecutors to plead guilty to two misdemeanor tax charges and likely avoid prison time. Prosecutors say Biden did not pay more than $100,000 in taxes on over $1.5 million in income in both 2017 and 2018. And two sources tell NBC News, the prosecutor will recommend probation, while also agreeing not to prosecute Hunter. Biden for illegally possessing a firearm, even though Biden knew he was barred from doing so because he was using drugs. Biden faced a maximum of 12 months behind bars for each tax charge and up to 10 years for owning the handgun.

I think what's fair is, you know, my client gets on with his life. Still, Republicans tonight are slamming the deal that comes just days after a special counsel's 37 count indictment against former President Trump for his handling of classified documents. Mr. Trump has pleaded not guilty. The former president tonight accusing the Biden Justice Department of giving Hunter Biden, quote, a mere traffic ticket. Our system is broken. Top Republicans argue it's evidence of a double standard.

It continues to show the two-tier system in America. If you are the president's leading political opponent, the DOJ tries to literally put you in jail and give you prison time. If you are the president's son, you get a sweetheart deal. The U.S. attorney leading the Hunter Biden investigation was appointed by former President Trump and was kept in office to avoid conflicts of interest. And Attorney General Merrick Garland has said he is not interfering in the case. Still, a career IRS agent has asked for whistleblower protection, alleging Hunter Biden

received special treatment in the investigation. These deviations from normal process, and each and every time it seemed to always benefit the subject. The investigation first focused on Hunter Biden's foreign business dealings. He's been blasted by Republicans, including for his high-paying job on the board of a Ukrainian energy company, while Vice President Biden was in charge of Ukraine policy. Hunter was pressed in 2019 whether that company would have asked him to be on its board if his last name was not Biden. I don't know. Probably not. I don't think that there's a lot of things that would have happened in my life that if my last name wasn't Biden. And tonight, House Republicans are vowing today's plea deal will not impact their ongoing investigation into Biden family finances. This is an investigation of whether or not Joe Biden is compromised because of the millions of dollars that his family has received from foreign nationals.

President Biden's repeatedly defended his son. First of all, my son's done nothing wrong. Tonight, this reaction after Hunter Biden's agreement to plead guilty. I'm very proud of my son. Peter Alexander joins us now from the White House. Peter, you mentioned in your piece that President Biden has defended his son by saying that he did nothing wrong. So how is the White House preparing to defend those comments now that his son is going to plead guilty? You know, Savannah, this topic is personal to the president and certainly those close to the president privately acknowledge that this whole issue is weighed on him for the last several months and that he worries about his son's well-being.

But this is not a topic. I think the White House wants to be talking about at all, even though they will be. pressed on it. In a short statement today, the White House reiterated that the President and the First Lady love their son, that they support him. As they say, he continues to rebuild his life. They added, we will have no further comment, Savannah. All right, Peter, thank you. There's also news tonight when it comes to the federal case against former President Donald Trump over his handling of classified documents. The judge in that case, setting a trial date today as the former president lays out his defense in his first interview since his arraignment. NBC's Garrett Haak has more.

The federal criminal trial of former President Trump over his handling of classified documents has tonight been set for August 14th. Judge Aileen Cannon scheduling two weeks for the case. And now the Republican presidential frontrunner previewing his defense on Fox News. I have every right to have those boxes. This is purely a Presidential Records Act. This is not a criminal thing. Mr. Trump was pressed, since he had already given some classified documents back to the National Archives, why not hand over the rest when he was subpoenaed?

I want to go through the boxes and get all my personal things out, and I was very busy, as you've sort of seen. These boxes were interspersed with all sorts of things, golf shirts, clothing, pants, shoes. There were many things. I would say much, much more, not that I know of. The indictment says the boxes stacked up in a storage room. bathroom and ballroom, also contained hundreds of classified national security documents. The Presidential Records Act requires outgoing presidents to separate out personal material before leaving office. Mr. Trump also denying the existence of a military planning document, the indictment alleges he was recorded showing to a writer and acknowledging was still classified.

They were copies of articles and magazines. There was no document there. Garrett joins us now from Washington. Hey, Garrett. So even though the trial date is set for August, we should expect that there could be a delay here, right? That's right. It almost certainly won't happen in August. For a big national security trial like this,

there are just too many other things that can go wrong, motions that can delay. Donald Trump's attorneys have to get security clearances themselves to even be able to look at the evidence against their client. So it's far more likely this trial gets pushed into the fall or maybe even into the heart of the presidential primary season. come early next year. All right, Garrett, thank you for more on both the Biden and Trump legal battles.

I want to bring in NBC News legal analysts. Danny Savalos, of course, that's who I'm bringing in here. Danny, as always, thank you for joining us. So from what we've seen in these public comments so far from the former president, what are you gathering about a defense here, and what do you think about what we're learning at this point about this strategy? Every word that Trump speaks is a word that can be used against him in court as a statement by a party opponent or an admission.

So what this tells me is that there's a divergence between Trump the person and Trump the defense team, because I can promise you Trump's defense team is begging him or they have given up trying to beg him to stop making statements. There are very few situations in which a defense attorney will be happy with his client making public statements about his pending case. I am almost certain that Trump's attorneys don't want him speaking, but Trump's going to do what Trump's going to do, makes them not that different than a lot of defendants out there who think they know best how to get in front of their own case. So Trump's theory of his defense may differ significantly from his own defense's theory of his own defense. That's a very good point. Let's take, though, something that the former president himself had set. So saying he had every right to have the boxes,

but then also saying that he wanted to go through them to find any personal items before then handing them back over. Is that right there contradictory, essentially saying I could have had them, but then actually, even though I could have them, I was going to give him back? Lots of problems with that statement. First, it's locking him in. For example, his belief that he has the right to the boxes could arguably establish, if admitted in court, that he was aware that he had them and that he had them intentionally. He may, you know, by the way, you look at that picture. It's a great picture to look at. You might say, hey, I'm the former president. I'm walking around. I see boxes. I don't know what's in them.

Boxes are something that may not have a description of what is contained in the boxes. But by making statements like I had a right to have these boxes and talking about the boxes, having knowledge about them, he's locking himself in to testimony, which he will never actually take the stand. But if he did, and even if he did, whether or not he did, that is evidence that the government can introduce against him. And it's all devastating. because with each word, he's locking himself in to more and more of a narrative. And by the way, the government can pick and choose what it wants. Trump can't turn around and introduce statements that exonerate him.

The rules don't allow that. So it's a one-way street. The government just gets to cherry-pick the worst things he says and put them into evidence. Believe me, when I tell you, I know from firsthand experience, the government is very, very good at this. Let's now switch over to the Hunter Biden case. Lots to talk to you about tonight. Lots of ground to cover. So his lawyer saying today that he has agreed to plead guilty to these two misdemeanor counts of failing to pay his taxes.

First, just tells us how serious are those, these two misdemeanor counts? What's that mean? In the spectrum of federal criminal law, these are on the low, low, low end of severity, of seriousness of federal criminal charges. Federal misdemeanors are so rare that, in my opinion, they're a rumor, they're a myth, they're a tall tale. I haven't seen many of them in my own career. I see them attached to other felonies, but misdemeanors and diversionary programs are not things. You just don't hear about them very often in federal court. You hear about them all the time in state court with crimes like DUIs or low-level crimes

that the prosecution will give you a diversionary program, which is really just a one free bite of the apple. Try to go through probation. Maybe you pay some fines. At the end of the road, we'll withdraw prosecution. In federal court, almost everything's a felony. So we're rarely talking about misdemeanors or diversionary programs. So let's also talk about what he was not charged with, these gun crimes, and what it means that he wasn't. How did we get there? Walk us through that.

This is really interesting to me because the statute under which he was charged is one that criminalizes someone who is a user of drugs, of illegal drugs, having possession of a firearm. It doesn't require a conviction. So it is a very squishy section of the statute. Other portions of the statute say, if thou art a felon, you cannot have a gun. Well, that's an easy thing to prove. We look you up in NCIC, pretty much. easy to find out whether you're a felon or not. But whether or not you're a user of illegal drugs is a lot more difficult to prove. So it could be the case that the government recognized that this might be a somewhat difficult burden to prove. Then you may have constitutional challenges with the idea that marijuana is essentially legal, but it's kind of not. And therefore, could they meet their burden? That might have factored in. But far and away, the biggest factor in

my mind that mitigated towards this very favorable deal for Biden is that it apparently happened right away. The best way to get the best deal from the federal government is race to the U.S. Attorney's Office and from the outset, say, we are willing to deal. Let's open a dialogue. Danny Savalas, as always, we very much appreciate you. We are now going to stay on what all these legal problems mean politically for the 2024 presidential election. Let's bring in our political experts. We have former RNC spokesman, Kevin Sheridan, and Democratic strategist Amisha Cross. Thank you both for joining us. Kevin. I'm going to start with you and pick up here on what we were just talking about with Hunter Biden, and get to some GOP reaction to this plea deal.

So former President Trump posting on his own true social saying things like this is a, quote, traffic ticket. Governor Ron DeSantis saying it's a sweetheart deal. We also have, so it's a slap on the wrist, all different types of reactions here. What do you make of this from Republicans who are running for president? Well, they're going to say that this is not the main event at all, that they're more interested in the Biden family, money laundering scheme, and the issues that the House Republicans are working on. So that's where they're going to try and turn it to. And they're also going to focus on the DOJ dysfunction.

And I think you've heard Rhonda Santas say he wants to tear it down, the DOJ and FBI to the studs and rebuild it. So that's where they're going to focus their fire. They don't, I know the focus is on Hunter Biden tonight, but that's really not where the Republicans are going to try to focus their fire. It's going to be on the entire Biden family and their foreign dealings. Amisha, that's exactly where I want to pick up. I bring you into this conversation. I mean, do you think President Biden needs to be concerned

that his son's dealings with the DOJ as well as what Kevin just mentioned in terms of the fire that that probably means the whole family receives from the GOP could impact him in the general reelection? No, I don't think, I think that's probably one of the least of Biden's worries for the general election. What he is concerned with, they think, is perception here. Because what we know is that the Republicans, the GOP, and conservative networks and other, you know, where they where they get their information are going to run this own loop as something that was just another slap on the wrist, an unfair justice system. But they've had a very hard time linking anything related to Hunter Biden directly to Joe Biden. That was the whole point of the release of the

Twitter files, which turned out to be a Big Nothing Burger. They have been trying to tie criminality to the president himself and attach that to a much larger scheme. And I think that that's going to fall short. It has fallen short multiple times, but it's not going to stop them from wasting taxpayer dollars on investigation after investigation because, quite frankly, the GOP feels as though the twice impeached former president who is now running away from his own legal battles is what was basically treated unfairly. And they want to do a quid pro quo and kind of force the hand of the Democrats here in terms of putting Joe Biden himself on trial. I think that we're going to see that happen irrespective to the fact that the Hunter Biden deal that came down today

was actually one that showcased the fact that these are very low-level charges. He was never going to walk away in handcuffs or suffer any elongated prison time anyway. But I think that that does not stop the GOP from still pushing this narrative, that there's a big-time crime family, and their last name is Biden. And the head of that crime family is President Biden himself. It's a lie, but it's one that they will continue to perpetuate. Kevin, we do have some new poll numbers here, new GOP poll numbers from CNN. Trump's still leading, but his margin over DeSantis is. down to 21 points instead of the 27 point lead in May from this same poll.

Now, there's other polling where his numbers have not dropped, but just as we kind of start to see some of this shakeout, this drumbeat of the latest indictment maybe starts to kind of make an impact. Do you think that this is what's happening, that the indictment is kind of chipping away at those numbers, or could this just be a blip? It could be. What I would look for is the highly credible early state polls.

Look for the very good polls in Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina, to see if there's a movement there. This is potentially good news for his rivals, that there could be some downward pressure on him. You know, we haven't seen what is going to come of the Fox News interviews that he did last night and tonight, where I think he might have helped himself in some ways politically and hurt himself very badly legally.

We'll see if the, you know, other candidates can make a case now against him, using his own words against him, because he essentially admitted that he knows what he's, did was wrong. But we'll have to see what they, you know, if they actually make that case. You know, there are some numbers in that poll that say that Republicans don't really want them to make that case. So we just have to see going forward. Kevin, you know, all the Republican primary candidates, I mean, I just read several things that they said today about Hunter Biden, again, the son of the person that is running for president

again. And of course, currently the president, going after Biden as if they are running at this point already in the general election. And these attacks on Trump for classified documents and the indictment there, fairly soft and certainly softer than what we saw in response to this today. Do you think they're missing an opportunity here to be, you know, kind of going up against the person that they're actually running against with Trump, that they're maybe going to have to attack him at some point? Yeah, it's very easy to criticize. Yeah, it's very easy to say Republican candidates going up against Donald Trump and a Republican primary should just attack him frontally. Look, that was tried in 2016 in a lot of different ways. You know, I would say it was

probably too late and too little at the time, but there's no easy way to go after Trump. You have to really be careful because there's 45% of the party that says, don't do that, we don't want that. There's another percentage of the party that says they would like to see that. They want a fighter. They definitely want a fighter. So you

have to show that you can fight, but picking your moment is really the key to that. And that's probably on a debate stage if Donald Trump gets up on a debate stage. And Amisha, quickly, I want to hear from you on this, too. Where do Democrats stand on that same question? you know, awaiting these trials and these investigations to prove exactly what we already know, and what the majority of the nation, as the polling has shown, knows about former President Donald Trump,

that he is a criminal, that he lied about the election fraud claims, and that he is someone who continues to basically try to take America down the wrong path. We're talking January 6th, we're talking E. Jean Carroll, we're talking over and over again. This is an individual who has lied to the American people. For Republicans, I think this gives them a way to not have to attack President Trump directly because they are awaiting these cases to basically nullify him as a candidate anyway so that they won't have to feel the wrath of his base. I think that for Democrats, it is preparing for whomever the next, you know, leader of the party is going to be because they don't believe that it's going to be former President Trump. I don't think that he's going

to get beyond the aisles in front of him as it relates to the criminal investigations that are currently underway. We're still talking documents case. Georgia hasn't even happened yet. And there's no way in my belief. And I think in most Democrats that he's going to be able to tuck and roll from all of these successfully. All right. Kevin and Amisha, thank you both so much for your analysis tonight. Well, still ahead tonight, the deadly e-bike fire in

New York City, flames starting in a bike store and spreading into a neighboring apartment building. At least four people killed how city officials are trying to crack down on those bikes. Plus surveillance video capturing the moment a man stole a car with a toddler inside. The urgent

search tonight for that suspect. And Wild Escape, the new video showing a bear clinging to the second floor window of a home. What happened next? Stay with us. Top stories, just getting started. We are back now with the deadly e-bike fire here in New York City. Four people are dead after a Manhattan electric bike repair shop went up in flames. Fires caused by lithium-ion bike batteries are a growing concern for city and federal regulations. regulators, with the New York Fire Department saying more than 100 have erupted so far this year. NBC's Rahima Ellis reports.

An intersection in New York City's Chinatown filled with this twisted heap of burned e-bikes. Officials say this is how a deadly fire got out of control last night. It is very clear that this was caused by lithium-ion batteries and e-bikes. First responders say the blaze erupted shortly after midnight inside this e-bike repair. shop. Someone came in screaming, hey, there's a fire next door, fire right next door. I step out, I see the e-bike store. It's on fire. More than 100 New York City firefighters responding to the blaze, which they say was an accident. The store's owner telling NBC New York, he was not in the shop at the time of the fire. But the sheer volume of fire is incredibly dangerous. FDNY officials say

four people, two men and two women, died in this fire, with two others in critical condition. E-bikes and scooter fires now numbering 108 and linked to 13 deaths in New York City so far this year, according to fire officials. Terrible tragedy here today. In April, two kids, the youngsters just seven years old, were killed in another battery fire in Queens. So we got here very quickly, and if this was not a... E-Bike fire, most likely we would have been able to put this fire out without incident. Surveillance video from February showing just how quickly these lithium-ion fires can spread. They're not just regular fires. They are basically explosions. The batteries are risk anywhere,

but especially in high-density cities like New York, as the number of e-bike deliveries surges. New York City trying to toughen regulations recently. Even releasing this PSA, warning the public about the dangers of batteries without safety certifications, damaged or knockoff batteries, and saying never charge them overnight while sleeping. Something that's simple as seeing recreational can be extremely dangerous and can take the lives of innocent people. And Rahima Ellis joins us now in studio. Thank you so much for being here tonight. So I know New York City enacted new rules to try to kind of deal with this,

but now I understand that federal regulators are also looking into these e-bikes. Is that right? Absolutely. The Federal Consumer Protection Safety Board, Safety Commission, is planning a meeting next month. They want to bring parties together and talk about what they can do because this is not just an issue for New York City. On the commission's website, they have a note that says in a two-year period,

they've gotten over 208 reports of battery fatalities. that have led to at least 19 deaths. So that tells us that, again, it's not just New York City, but it's everywhere. But something that people can do with Already Say is if you're looking for a replacement battery, look for the UL logo on the bikes, the batteries, and the charging equipment. Nobody's saying that this is foolproof, but it certainly will help. Yeah, definitely good to at least try. Absolutely.

You've got to try because it's happening in too many places. And in apartment buildings, like the ones that we have here in New York, people don't have an opportunity to charge their bikes outside. And the other thing is, so many people are charging their bikes while they're sleeping. The thing that they say to try and prevent this is do not charge those bikes when you're sleeping or while you're away from home. The problem in New York City, so many people who are using them are delivery workers. And they go home to sleep, but they also have to charge their bikes. So it kind of works out of sync, if you will, with the nature of the world.

that so many people are doing. But still, these are some safety tips that people can put into practice, which might be life-saving. Really good tips, Rahma. Thank you so much. Now to the latest in the legal saga of Andrew Tate, the online personality infamous for his controversial views on women. He was arrested in Romania in December, and today authorities announced multiple charges against him, including human trafficking. Ali Aruzi has the latest. Tonight, disgraced influencer, Andrew Tate. facing trial in Romania after being indicted on charges of rape, human trafficking, and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women.

Because when you're sitting between two girls, it's really hot. Tate, his brother and two other suspects have been under house arrest after a police investigation and raid that led to their arrest in December. Romania's organized crime agency saying in a statement Tuesday that it would send four people to court, two British American dual nationals and two Romanians. Tate and his brother Tristan were not explicitly named by authorities, but a spokesman for the brothers confirmed their indictment to NBC News, saying in part, while this news is undoubtedly predictable, we embrace the opportunity it presents to demonstrate their innocence

and vindicate their reputation. Authorities also say they asked to confiscate multiple homes, luxury cars and watches, and about half a million dollars in Bitcoin from the defendants. Every single thing is going to change. Everyone who is friends now will not be friends 10 minutes after I arrive. Tate, a former contestant on Big Brother and self-described success coach, has amassed a massive social media audience, known for his misogynistic remarks and controversial opinions on masculinity.

For example, this interview posted in December. Most stupid people on the planet are men, and the most intelligent people on the planet are men. Women are more likely inside of the middle of the deviation. So this has all been proven, right? Men are more likely. Read the study. It's more likely men are out there. Google it. And several other moments on camera while he expresses his contentious ideas. Shut the fuck up. You know, women know the clue how business works. And if a woman sleeps with one man once, that's unacceptable. If a man does it, it's acceptable. His remarks clearly often provoking indignation. And they've gotten him banned from most.

major social media platforms, except he's back on Twitter after Elon Musk reinstated his account last November. And Elon is truly a hero of free speech. Using the platform to make his case, retweeting an account saying authorities have no evidence because no crimes were committed. Tate and his brother have denied all allegations against them. But screenshots of his now deleted website describe how he would get women to work for his webcam business. At one point saying, my job was to meet a girl, go on a few dates, sleep with her, test if she's quality, get her to fall in love with me to where she would do anything I say, and then get her on webcam so we could become rich together.

That process resembling some aspects of the lover boy method, a technique authorities named when announcing his arrest for human trafficking. And Savannah, we reached out to Tate's representatives about that deleted web page but did not hear back. Authorities say there were seven victims in this alleged scheme who were sexually exploited. Our producer in Romania telling us the judge is expected to take

on the case in the next 60 days. First, we'll be the issue of whether to keep them under house arrest. Savannah? A lot of disturbing utils there. Allie. Thank you very much. When we come back, the hate crime investigation here in New York City, dozens of pride and transgender flags

broken or stolen outside of the landmark stonewall in at least three times this month, the urgent search for those involved ahead of this weekend's pride festivities. We are back now with Top Stories News Feed, and we begin with a shocking incident caught on camera in a Florida parking lot. Surveillance footage shows a woman arriving at an eye hop in Oakland Park, then leaving her three-year-old inside her car. Well, moments later, a man jumps in the via. and drives away. The child was later recovered unharmed, but police are still searching for that suspect. The NYPD's hate crime task force is investigating multiple acts of vandalism at the

Stonewall Monument. Dozens of pride flags broken or stolen from the LGBTQ landmark for the third time in just over a week. Police are releasing footage of the suspects from the first incident on June 10th. It's unclear whether the incidents are connected. And a wild escape at a home in Colorado. You have to see this video to believe it. A bear is seen clinging to a second story window in steamboat springs before clawing his way back inside. Look at this. A neighbor says the bear got in through an open window on the lower floor while the owner was not inside and then tried to get through the second floor. The bear eventually went back downstairs and caught out safely. And next tonight in France, investigators raided the headquarters of the Paris

2024 Olympic Organizing Committee. According to French prosecutors, the search is part of a corruption investigation. NBC News Chief International correspondent, Keir Simmons, joins us on this now. Hi, Kier, we appreciate you being there for us up late for us. And this is not the first time in recent years that anti-corruption authorities have investigated Olympic organizers. There were these vote-buying allegations linked to the 2016 Rio Olympics and then in 2020 in Tokyo. But what more do we know about the investigation into the Paris Organizing Committee unfolding right now? Well, that's right, Savannah, and for that reason, this is the first Olympics with an anti-corruption policy. And yet, if this investigation, if the allegations are corroborated, well, then you have to wonder what that anti-corruption policy is really going to be worth.

It's been a bombshell today. We've just heard about these police raids, not just at the Olympics offices, but also at a company, Solidio, which has taken some contracts out with the Paris 24 organizers. There appears to be two aspects to this. First, a suspected embezzlement of public funds, favoritism, concealment of favoritism in contracts awarded by Paris 2024, and second, after an audit by the French anti-corruption agency into suspected conflicts of interests and favoritism by Paris 2024 organizers with that company, Soledio. We knew that there was unhappiness.

We knew that there were questions. The president of the French National Olympic Committee resigned last month, and there's been talk of infighting with the committee in turmoil. But this is another level, Savannah. I think it has many people really stunned. Absolutely. And, I mean, Keir, we're about a year out from the start of the games. In Paris, is there any indication that this could potentially impact those games, the start of them?

Well, there is always controversially before an Olympics. kind of begin to wonder as we get closer, what's it going to be? My experience is for several games, many games, is that once the games get started, all this stuff gets forgotten. But it doesn't look good. And one of the reasons I think it doesn't look good is because it just raises questions in people's mind about fairness. Now, I think it's important to point out, as you heard from what I described, what we're talking about here are questions over contracts awarded, not the kinds of corruption that people have talked about in the past, things like vote buying, questions over how particular places are awarded the games.

It doesn't appear to be that, but that being said, it doesn't look good. It's going to be a great game, you know, after COVID, in Paris, I mean, who's not going to love it? We've talked about it many times. The events are going to be outside, you know, beach volleyball under the Eiffel Tower. So I think once it gets started, it really will be a celebration. Before that, though, I suspect we can expect some more controversy of this nature. Absolutely. Hopefully it's all buttoned up by next year. Kier, thank you so much.

We'll still ahead tonight. A fishing team disqualified from a $3.5 million prize, despite catching a 600-pound Marlin. Why a little-known rule costs of the jackpot and how the boat's captain is reacting. We are back now with Top Stories Global Water. in the deadly heat wave in northern India. Nearly 170 people have died from heat-related illnesses as temperatures soared past 113 degrees. The largest hospital in the region says it has run out of room

for new patients, and officials have urged residents to limit time spent outdoors. And Estonia is becoming the first former Soviet state to legalize same-sex marriage. The nation's parliament voted today to approve the new law, despite nearly 40% of Estonian's opposing it. Estonia is on track to become the first country in Central Europe to allow gay marriage. The new law will take effect in January.

Well, back here at home and to North Carolina, where a fishing team was disqualified and lost out on a multi-million dollar prize. Wait to hear why NBC's Guadvenegas spoke to the captain, still reeling over the massive Marlon. It's the moment the sensation and its crew returned to shore carrying what they thought was the catch of a lifetime. A 619-pound marlin enough to secure a first-place win at the Big Rock Blue Marling fishing tournament and a $3.5 million price, or so they thought. On the fish up and refused to announce the weight. Welcome. The event's host making an observation that would change everything.

It would appear that this fish has been bitten by a shark. Greg McCoy, who captained the boat, says it. It took more than five hours to reel in the massive marlin, admitting the crew noticed the shark bite. We noticed it when we pulled the fish on board out in the ocean. I didn't think it was going to be an issue. The tournament's rules committee ultimately deciding the blue marlin catch would not be price eligible, citing an international game fish association rule that says a catch is disqualified by mutilation to the fish prior to landing or boating to catch caused by sharks or other animals.

injuries that can slow down a fish, making it easier to catch. But McCoy says this competition was not an official IGFA event, and it was not clear to his crew that the shark bite rule would be in effect. That's a bitter pill to swallow, you know. We feel like we won the tournament. Yes, is it a rule? Yes, I guess so. The boat owners say they've hired lawyers and are officially protesting the results,

putting the distribution of the price money on hold. But for now, it's a technicality. costing this 30-year veteran of competitive fishing, a small fortune. Money was going to be put away and hopefully go to my son someday. Sorry. Are you coming back next year? This has certainly put a bad taste in my mouth. It's the Super Bowl around here.

So I think we'll probably be back, but it's just tough to swallow. A bittersweet memory of perhaps the most amazing and unluckiest catch of the year. Guadvinegas, NBC News, Miami. Wow, what a story. All right, we'll still ahead tonight one-on-one with Lori Hernandez, the Olympic gold medalist, opening up about her new role as a UNICEF ambassador, her recent work with migrant children in Panama and her plans for the future. Finally tonight from arenas to advocacy,

Lori Hernandez is now a new ambassador for UNICEF. I sat down with the gymnast to chat about her recent trip with the organization, and what is next for the gold medal champion. U.S. Olympic gymnast Lori Hernandez has always understood balance. Becoming a household name when she soared to new heights at the 2016 Rio Olympics. This is something I've wanted ever since I was a little girl. At just 16, she helped bring home the gold. helped bring home the gold with USA's final five and secured an individual silver medal on the balance beam.

Simone Biles, Ali Raisman, Lori Hernandez, Madison, Cotian, and Debbie Douglas, the final five. Hernandez quickly nicknamed the human emoji for her infectious smile. Now she's bringing her positive energy to a new role and paying it forward. Look who's here. Lori Hernandez. On World Refugee Day, the Olympian announcing her new title. UNICEF is naming Lori as their newest U-UNICEF ambassador. Hernandez telling me it's the type of adventure she's been preparing for her whole life.

First, tell us about this role that you're announcing today, right on your t-shirt. It means the world to me. I mean, I've been connected with UNICEF for a while, but to actually be an ambassador is such an honor. My mom is a social worker. My sister is a social worker, so helping others and being really in touch with community is so important to me and my family. In May, she traveled with UNICEF to the Darien region in Panama, meeting with migrant families who were making the perilous journey through Central America. We saw a lot of children on the move, migrants coming in,

and UNICEF was just so prominent there between wash, so water, sanitation, hygiene, and also like psychosocial support for especially mothers, women, children, and families. UNICEF says between January and May of this year, over 30,000 children, Many unaccompanied crossed the Darien Gap, one of the most dangerous migration routes in the world. It can be a really heavy experience to be there in person. And for me, I was only there for a few days, but I know that these families have been traveling for weeks coming in. And so there's a lot of respect and there's a lot of, like, empathy. But it's also understanding that while this is such a difficult journey for them, especially the children are so resilient.

It is about determination and courage. Hernandez visited a migration center there, giving some of those children a chance to be kids again by playing games, sharing laughs, and even reading them her own book. They were just so receptive. Part of me thought that they may not want to listen or that they may want to be somewhere else. But there was just a group full of kids who were sitting there looking up at me reading and then asking questions about the book. And my book, she's got this, talks about falling and getting back up and perseverance. And I think they were really connected with that. 23, she's already an ambassador, an author, and a retired gymnast. Now looking toward her next chapter, currently studying drama at NYU.

Dronastics is something where you finish the sport at a really young age. Right. And so you kind of have to decide, what am I going to do afterwards? And that can be a nerve-wrecking choice. For me, performance directly tied into acting, entertainment, and things like that. Was that ever scary that it is something that you know sort of ends or at least transitions young? I was always kind of taught, like, 16 to 24. That's, like, the sweet spot after that, I'm going to go do something else. Yeah, absolutely. So interesting, because so many people feel like that's when their life starts.

Yeah, I, like, practically retired the same year as my dad. I just turned 23. Like, that's... What an interesting life experience. Yeah, it's so weird. Like, you've lived nine lives already. It does feel like that sometimes. And, you know, I'm not going to sit here and tell you I know everything.

I feel like I don't know anything, but it does feel like I've lived a thousand. Absolutely. You can learn more about Lori's Panama journey and how you can help at UNICEFUSA.org. Thank you to Lori for that conversation. And thank you at home for watching. Top Story for Tom Yamis. I am Savannah Sellers in New York. Stay right there.

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