(♪) it's that feeling when you're at disneyland resort. and there's no better time than now. now, kids 3-9 can visit a disneyland resort theme park with a limited-time kids' special ticket offer. (♪) well, i've been doing this for almost 20 years, and this is a first for me. >> a real life flight of fancy tonight. new information on the man accused of pilfering a plane and ditching it on a bay area beach. we are now told that stealing an aircraft like this might be easier than you think. good evening. i'm ama daetz, and i'm dan ashley. >> thanks for joining us. the plane landed at poplar beach near half moon bay yesterday. >> tonight, abc seven news south bay reporter dustin dorsey has the latest on this investigation . and what an aviation expert is

saying about pulling off a landing like this. >> this new video shows the dramatic moments when a small aircraft came in for a beach landing. this is just south of poplar beach. around five thursday evening. authorities say 50 year old miami man luis gustavo perez stole the plane from palo alto airport and brought it down 27 miles away in half moon bay, aviation expert max trescott says this type of landing is no easy feat. >> now, this person obviously had some flying ability. taking us off is probably more difficult than landing a citabria. and in fact, the takeoff for a citabria is considerably more difficult than most small airplanes. so yeah, i think we can safely assume that this person had some pilot training of some kind. >> the plane belongs to advantage aviation flight instructor rachel webster. we reached out to webster about her stolen plane. we did not hear back. one of her past students, boris teksler, hasn't either. >> have not heard from her in the past couple of days since this happened, but she's a wonderful instructor and a great

cfi. i think she's a professor at berkeley as well, so she, uh, she teaches and she. i took flight school from her and she's fabulous. >> when we got to the airport where webster's plane was registered, we found this hole in the fence. police on scene told us the hole was not here yesterday, but we don't know for sure if this was how the plane was stolen. i heard that yesterday. >> it's a pretty shocking to think that a plane would get stolen out of palo alto airport here. >> a shock, but trescott says this kind of plane does not require a key to start them. and stealing the plane may not have been hard to do. >> the owner flew the aircraft earlier in the day, and when the owner arrived, the airplane was untied and the cover had been removed, which was quite a surprise. uh, so the owner then flew the aircraft and then later in the day, the aircraft was stolen. so clearly somebody had started to steal this airplane earlier in the day. >> authorities tell us the investigation is ongoing and there's no update at this time. areas remains booked at the san

mateo county jail. arrested for theft of an airplane in san mateo county. dustin dawsey abc seven news exciting is building for the super bowl that is now just two days away. >> two days? >> can you believe it? a victory sunday would put the 40 niners back on top of a list that they are certainly very familiar with. >> yeah, the niners are shooting for their sixth super bowl title right now. they are tied with the dallas cowboys with five each. only the pittsburgh steelers and new england patriots have more. san francisco actually sat on top of the heap for more than a decade. >> yeah, abc seven news sports anchor chris alvarez is live in las vegas. >> he's been there all week with some perspective on the niners quest for six. hi, chris. haha, hi dan and ama. >> yeah, you saw that graphic right there. the 40 niners were actually the first team to win five lombardi trophies as they won their last one, though in the 1994 season. it's actually january 95th, so it's almost been three decades. hard to believe a team as good as the niners have been. they haven't won since the mid 90 s. all right. they're trying to change

that this weekend. you know we'll show you some positive video though that nfc championship win over detroit. but as you know a heartbreaking loss to the chiefs in super bowl 54. as we talk about the quest for six followed by two nfc championship losses the previous two years to the rams and eagles . but they're back here in this game with a core of players that have been through the wars and on sunday, a chance to capitalize and celebrate after the biggest game of the season. it definitely would mean a lot. >> obviously just growing up, watching my dad win super bowls and, um, knowing how much work that he put in to accomplish all those with his teammates and to have an opportunity to do it this week with this team is special. you know, i was talking to brandon today and i'm just like, bro, i kind of feel different than like talking about it and you really hear it. >> he was like, yeah bro, it's a little different. i said, yeah man. like, you got to enjoy it bro. but i promise you, like we got to keep the main thing, the main thing. just so we can get the job done. you know, like losing a super bowl is not fun and it makes you want to win one. >> even more because you're so close. right? but like, it's not

it hasn't been like, singed in the back of my brain. when you get close repeatedly and it doesn't, you know, you don't get over the hump or whatever, you know what words you want to use. it's just, uh, it is a little bit more motivate thing, but just want to, you know, i don't think we're very motivated to win this football game. >> and there's nothing else that's going to motivate us any extra. >> you going out to celebrate? >> um, i haven't thought about that yet, but i'll do it for a while. it won't just be one night. >> uh, yeah. it's going to be more than one night for kyle shanahan if he's able to get over the top on sunday. the parade will be some time next week. if the 40 niners do win on sunday and we're here at the nfl experience here, the mandalay bay convention center, this is a fans paradise of football. there's all kinds of drills, goodies. you can see players. i mean it's been so fun here earlier today larry and i got here before the fans did. we threw the ball around larry benched about 500 pounds. it was very impressive. i'm surprised he didn't make the nfl with that weightlifting experience. >> that was good stuff. earlier today. >> chris, let me ask you this question. you've been there all week long. now we're getting really close to the super bowl. there's obviously a great deal of excitement there. have you seen though the energy change

increase, perhaps as we get closer to the weekend? >> absolutely. each and every day the energy has increased of a pan over and show you just the amount of fans that are getting here. you think about it friday night, 5:00 i'm sure the airport's going to be packed tonight, but the every day we've gotten here, i got here sunday afternoon. it was kind of quiet. you wouldn't know the super bowl was coming in each and every day. and now you see a lot of jerseys, a lot of fans. vegas is always fun and busy and lots of events, but it has grown each and every day. i can't. tomorrow is going to be a madhouse. and then sunday the scene when we get to allegiant will be crazy. not only obviously at the stadium with all the things going around there, but the strip as well, because as you know, the tickets are so expensive to get into the game. i think a lot of people just want to be around the vibe here in las vegas, and they are certain coming to the nevada desert to do that. >> all right. sounds good. thank you chris. we'll see you later. >> all right a san francisco officials cheered on the 40 niners at a sort of rally this morning. let's go. niners >> let's go. niners >> mayor. london breed led the

cheer. the event promoted a watch party at the crossing at east cut near salesforce tower. there will be a super bowl viewing party here on sunday. today there was a sobering message with the celebration. officials are urging fans to have fun if the niners win, but to do it in a safe manner. police are urging fans not to light fires, break windows or vandalize property, do stupid things like that. the chp will close several off ramps heading into the mission district after the game to control possible crowds in the north bay. >> preparations are underway for a unique super bowl watch party, one for teens and young adults looking for a safe space to enjoy the game free of drugs and alcohol. in our ongoing mission to build a better bay area, abc7 news reporter cornell bernard introduces us to the special people teaming up to host the event. >> so over here, we're going to have a hot dog stand. we will have a cotton candy machine. popcorn machine? >> sally newson is getting ready for the super bowl at karma club, a free after school space

for teens. she opened last summer. located inside the north gate mall in terra linda. >> you know, it's a place where uh- it gives them really like a sense of community, a sense of belonging, often a sense of purpose. >> karma club is hosting a watch party sunday, giving young people like stephanie medina a fun, safe space to see the game. >> during the big game, there is going to be like a lot of emotions and i know, like, you know, some bad emotions, some good emotions. so i feel like here you can have like a calm place where you can watch it away from drugs and alcohol. >> marin bay substance abuse prevention nonprofit alcohol justice is co-hosting the event. >> we said this would be a great place to have a safe place for teens to be able to watch sports, whether alcohol is an issue in their house or not. but you know, perhaps there's parties and they have no other option other than to be around a drinking party. beer beer, thompson says videos like this were created by teens to challenge the message of some

super bowl beer ads. we're concerned about the alcohol industry targeting youth show teens that they can have a blast. >> they can have a lot of fun. they can be with their peers with the without the presence of alcohol and drugs. i think it's pretty cool because they're going to have like pizza. >> they're going to have like all those things. photo booths. >> stephanie is ready to cheer on the niners hanging in a safe space with her friends in san rafael. cornell, bernard abc seven news. >> all right. >> we have compiled our story. so many good ones, like the one you just watched on the 40 niners run to the super bowl in a new streaming special. it's called the road to las vegas. you can stream it on demand right now on our website or the abc seven bay area app. >> many of us consider our pets family, but after one san francisco family's pet cat disappeared, then was found, they can't get their cat back. abc seven news anchor dion lim went in search for answers. my sister thought it was a really good idea to get her when she's

still young, because then you could grow old with them and they, like, live a lot longer. high school student leanne lee may never get that wish to grow old with her cat. >> after the feline disappeared from her family's home in late october 2023. >> that made me like, really sad. she was like a family member for me, so leanne and her mom posted, fliers, reported the calico missing to animal care and control and searched this excelsior park. >> we are looking every single day. >> the fliers worked. leanne and her mom got a tip on blackie's whereabouts and were able to connect with a young woman who had. >> i was really happy that happiness was short lived, mom, jana says. >> the person was living with refused to give her back, even after offering a $2,000 reward and suggesting shared custody. >> we miss her so much. >> san francisco animal care and control confirmed they scanned the cat and it indeed was. but that's all they could do. all we can tell you is the chip matches. >> we have no idea if somebody

and family one gave somebody and family two. the cat. >> animals are considered personal property in california, animal law attorney bruce wagman says he gets a lot of pet custody cases. >> and even though leanne and jana are technically in the right, if i left my computer on the beach and you picked it up, it doesn't become your computer. >> if you picked up my cat, it's still my cat. >> it's proof of ownership that makes things complicated. sometimes these animals are given as gifts. >> if i said dianne, happy birthday, here's a cat. then the cat's yours. >> leanne. and jana say they definitely did not give away. and my calls to the person is staying with were not returned. so for now, this family is considering legal action and are holding out hope. >> we want her to return the cat to us. >> i hope to somehow negotiate with her still and maybe get her back in san francisco. >> dianne lim abc seven news. well in addition to the super bowl, people all around the bay area are ready to celebrate the lunar new year.

>> up next, a look at how people are gearing up to welcome the year of the dragon. abc seven news at five. we'll two very different visions for california. steve garvey, the leading republican, is too conservative for california. he voted for trump twice

and supported republicans for years, including far right conservatives. adam schiff, the leading democrat, defended democracy against trump and the insurrectionists. he helped build affordable housing, lower drug costs, and bring good jobs back home. the choice is clear. i'm adam schiff, and i approve this message. growing up, my parents wanted me to become a doctor or an engineer. those are good careers! but i chose a different path. first, as mayor and then in the legislature.

i enshrined abortion rights in our california constitution. in the face of trump, i strengthened hate crime laws and lowered the costs for the middle class. now i'm running to bring the fight to congress. you were always stubborn. and on that note, i'm evan low, and i approve this message. district attorney pamela price announced today. gang enhancements have been added against all three men accused in the deadly shooting of kevin nishida. he was killed while

guarding a news crew back in 2021. >> the previous prosecutors who charged the case under my predecessor made certain mistakes about who was responsible for the murder of kevin nishida and failed to include some charges that we deemed appropriate. >> two of the suspects were charged individually while authorities searched for 29 year old lauren gilbert gilbert. for more than two years. he was captured near kansas city last month. now charges have been refiled, so all three can be tried together with lunar new year celebrations beginning, san francisco police are warning asian residents of a scam that has victimized two seniors out of thousands of dollars. >> it's called the blessing scam . this video from several years ago shows how it works. the scammers wearing hats approach a person and say that that person is facing a harmful spirit. they then ask the victim to put their valuables in a bag so they can be blessed. the crooks then, as you can imagine, switch the bag for a similar one with worthless items and take off. police are urging residents not to hand

over valuables to strangers. >> the super bowl isn't the only big celebration in the bay area this weekend. tomorrow is the start of lunar new year, the year of the dragon. abc seven news reporter anser hassan shows us the preparations now underway in oakland. reporter the long lines in oakland's chinatown are of people buying food for new year's eve dinner. >> barbecue pork, roasted duck and chicken are part of the traditional ancestral offerings. >> whatever we taste good, we feel like, oh, it's going to be a good offering for the ancestors. and in that way they offer us wellness and health for the next year. >> tui nguyen is among the tens of thousands of asian americans who will celebrate the year of the dragon, which begins saturday, may. the dragon is the only mythical creature among the 12 chinese zodiac signs. the year of the dragon is believed to represent courage, bravery and passion. it also symbolizes strong leadership, and this dragon. >> just like they have the energy. you know, just like a dance. like at the energy.

>> carol liao posted blessings on her storefront to offer her customers and the community. she says oakland's chinatown was hit hard during covid, followed by a crime wave. but she says the busy streets are a sign that the year of the dragon will usher in change. >> oakland chinatown to see now we are already more clean, more safe and the just like every store you know they just like a try you know to prosperity. >> gong xi fa cai steward chen is president of oakland's chinatown improvement council. >> he says, as tradition goes, saturday will be a day of rest. sunday, a day of worship. he's looking forward to the following sunday for the second annual oakland chinatown parade, which is expected to attract thousands . >> if you walk around chinatown today day and actually yesterday, two, there are a lot more shoppers out of town. shoppers are coming back, they're shopping here, they're dining. they're seeing their doctors and their dentists. it gives us hope. >> in oakland, anser hassan, abc

seven news. >> a lot more to come. king tides are hitting our coastline today. coming up next, the plan of attack. local officials are now pushing to protect local areas at risk of but his vision dimmed with age. he had amd. i didn't know it then, but it can progress to ga, an advanced form of the disease. his struggle with vision loss from amd made me want to help you see warning signs of ga. like straight lines that seem wavy, blurry, or missing visual spots that make it hard to see faces like this one, or trouble with low light that makes driving at night a real challenge. if you've been diagnosed with amd and notice vision changes,

don't wait. ga is irreversible. it's important to catch it early. talk to your eye doctor about ga and learn more at gawontwait.com this ad? typical. politicians... "he's bad. i'm good." blah, blah. let's shake things up. with katie porter. porter refuses corporate pac money. and leads the fight to ban congressional stock trading. katie porter. taking on big banks to make housing more affordable. and drug company ceos to stop their price gouging. most politicians just fight each other. while katie porter fights for you. for senate - democrat katie porter. i'm katie porter and i approve this message.

eyes. they unveiled the plan at cooley landing as the king tides were rising alongside the park.

san mateo county assembly member diane papin coauthored a bond measure for the november ballot. now, backers are hoping to make up for hundreds of millions of dollars in sea level adaption funds being cut from the proposed state budget. >> that happens because wetlands during high storm events, they act as a sponge. they can hold water that would otherwise threaten to overtop levees and when they're combined with levees and other types of protection, they can protect people and property and habitat advocates. >> advocates estimate that the san francisco bay needs roughly 100,000 acres of restored wetlands for a healthy, flood resistant environment. >> all right, well, no worries about flooding, right now because we are basking in the glory of the sunshine. we are. >> these are good times indeed. meteorologist sandyha patel is here with the forecast. >> yeah. and dan and anna, we want sun soaked, that's for sure. for the weekend, after all the stormy weather we have had. don't worry. the storms will

return as we look at live pictures right now from our tower cameras. here's how we're going to take you into the weekend. stunning views of the sunset from all of our tower cameras right now, and it is going to be a sunny one in las vegas for the super bowl. kickoff 55 degrees. bright skies , skies. fourth quarter 49. breezy and mainly clear skies. now for the watch parties here in the bay area. make sure you have your shades because it is going to be nice out there. inland areas in the low 60s, just before kickoff, temperatures drop off into the 40s later on at night, around the bay. plenty of sun as well, mixing in with some higher clouds, temperatures go from the low 60s to the upper 50s by 5 p.m, and by 7 p.m. low 50s along the coastline. it will be in the mid 50s and eventually dropping off to the low 50s. tomorrow is the start of lunar new year festivities and here in san francisco, 9:00. it's going to be a bright, cool start. temperatures will come up into the upper 50s. it is going to be just bright sunny skies and a milder afternoon by evening.

mainly clear and cool. so for the year of the dragon, you couldn't ask for better weather, high pressure is what's bringing us that nice weather. the storm track well to our north right now. just a few clouds locally on live doppler seven. your temperatures in the 40s and the 50s. it was a cold start this morning and this afternoon. it has been a cool one. and speaking of cool, look at the view from tam cam. lovely sunset there. all right. the headlines tomorrow. sunny and milder super bowl sunday dry for outdoor viewing. but there will be fog in the morning and higher clouds in the afternoon. late next week a wet pattern sets up and it will continue through presidents day. weekend is what it's looking like. coastal flood advisory until 1 p.m. tomorrow. minor low lying flooding due to the high tides, the manzanita park and ride has already seen flooding and has been closed until monday, and that is going to continue. a frost advisory tonight, just limited to the eastern santa clara hills. 10:00 tonight until 9 a.m. tomorrow. temperatures down to the low 30s, which mean frost means frost will form and could injure

or damage your plants. so just keep that in mind as we go. hour by hour tonight at 830, we're looking at 40s and 50s getting cold, so you need that extra layer for friday night plans tomorrow morning. starting off in the 30s for the coldest spots and then quickly warming up with lots of sun. so your morning temperatures will bottom out in the mid 30s in places like livermore and santa rosa, 40s around the bay and as far as the afternoon highs just a nice looking day. upper 50s to the low and even a few mid 60s. the accuweather seven day forecast. sunshine tomorrow morning. fog sunday with filtered sun for sunday for super bowl sunday that is uh- and then we'll go with just dry conditions until we head into about thursday. valentine's is fine. thursday we have a chance of a few showers and then friday level one trending wet and windy. so ama and dan stay tuned. all right, we will. >> thanks, sandhya. all right, coming up next, the rare piece of beatles history up for bid in san francisco. >> it's expected to fetch more than half $1 million. we'll

two very different visions for california. steve garvey, the leading republican, is too conservative for california. he voted for trump twice and supported republicans for years, including far right conservatives. adam schiff, the leading democrat, defended democracy against trump and the insurrectionists. he helped build affordable housing, lower drug costs, and bring good jobs back home. the choice is clear. i'm adam schiff, and i approve this message.

is it possible to count on my internet like my customers count on me? it is with comcast business. keeping you up and running with 99.9% network reliability. and security that helps outsmart threats to your data. moaire dida twoo? your data, too. there's even round-the- clock customer support. so you can be there for your customers. hey billy, how you doin? with comcast business, reliability isn't just possible. thanks. it's happening. get started for $49.99 a month. plus, ask how to get up to a $1000 prepaid card with a qualifying internet package. don't wait, call and switch today! you want to see who we are as americans? i'm peter dixon and in kenya... we built a hospital that provides maternal care. as a marine... we fought against the taliban and their crimes against women. and in hillary clinton's state department... we took on gender-based violence in the congo. now extremists are banning abortion and contraception right here at home. so, i'm running for congress to help stop them. for your family... and mine. i approved this message because this is who we are.

seven bay area streaming tv app. just search abc seven bay area and download it. >> all right? a handwritten first draft of the beatles song lovely rita is going on sale in san francisco today. >> a lovely rita is from the famous sergeant pepper's lonely hearts club band album, released in 1967. the draft includes ten lines as you see written by paul mccartney, all on a single scrap of paper torn from a spiral notebook. okay, that's cool. >> it's being sold at the 56th california international antiquarian book fair in san francisco. the purchase price $650,000. a bit more than a

parking ticket. written by lovely rita meter maid. >> someone's going to want to get that. yeah. for sure. >> that's cool. >> all right. we still have much more news ahead. at 530, you can join me on abc seven, bay area streaming tv. >> i'll be there with you for that. and if you're watching us on tv world news tonight with david muir is next for politicians... "he's bad. i'm good." blah, blah. let's shake things up. with katie porter. porter refuses corporate pac money. and leads the fight to ban congressional stock trading. katie porter. taking on big banks to make housing more affordable. and drug company ceos to stop their price gouging. most politicians just fight each other. while katie porter fights for you. for senate - democrat katie porter.

i'm katie porter and i approve this message. two leading candidates for senate. two very different visions for california. steve garvey, the leading republican, is too conservative for california. he voted for trump twice and supported republicans for years, including far right conservatives. adam schiff, the leading democrat, defended democracy against trump and the insurrectionists. he helped build affordable housing, lower drug costs, and bring good jobs back home. the choice is clear. i'm adam schiff, and i approve this message.

tonight, several breaking stories as we come on the air. millions feeling an earthquake in california just minutes after an earlier quake in hawaii. a deadly plane crash on a busy highway during rush hour. and president biden unleashing his fury over the special counsel's scathing report. first those back-to-back earthquakes in california and hawaii. millions feeling an earthquake centered in malibu. the quake felt throughout the los angeles area.