>> reporter: an active manhunt underway for this alleged shooter that left nine people dead in a mass shooting last night here in downtown charles on the. police have been saying they believe this gunman sat for an hour while a bible study session was underway. among the nine killed is a state senator, also a pastor here, clementa pinckney. he is the only confirmed casually so far. police chief here in charleston talked about what he knew. >> last night at approximately 9:05 we received a call for a shooting that occurred at the emmanuel a.m.e. church. police were immediately dispatched and arrived at that location. when we did, we initially

identified eight victims inside of the church that had suffered gunshot wounds. earlier we told you that there were two victims that were transported to musc. there was actually one victim that was transported to musc. and that individual is deceased as well. so we have a total of nine victims that were involved in this very tragic situation. >> the quality of work of our law enforcement agencies has been inspiring. this is an unfathomable and unspeakable act by somebody filled with hate and with a deranged mind. as the chief said this person is dangerous. we need every tip we can get to bring this person into custody as soon as possible. and of course we'll make sure that he pays the price for this

horrible act. >> we cannot stress this enough. police are in dire need of any and all informing. the smallest tip is welcome. they're encouraging the public to call into 911 if you have any information about this shooting. take a good look at the images we're putting up on your screen right now. this suspect described as 21 years old, 5'9" a distinctive haircut, a distinctive license plate as well arriving at the scene in a black four-door sedan. they're casting a wide net to look for this man who left nine people dead. >> nick bring us any new developments as you get them on the ground there. joining us is the cousin of

pastor clementa pinckney. mr. williams we are so sorry this morning for your cousin who was the victim in this heinous crime. >> caller: thank you for that allison. it's really a sad day here in south carolina especially with the family and friend and the south carolina general assembly. we are all very saddened here today as to what has taken place last evening in charleston. >> how did you get the news that something horrible had happened at your cousin's church? >> caller: first and foremost senator pinckney is my cousin. he's flesh of my flesh and bones of my bones. and he also happens to be my colleague in the south carolina state senate. and so we always communicate. and of course through communications last night i got

the call got the text message that something had happened really really bad in charleston and imanemmanuel a.m.e. church. there was a shooting which really alarmed me because i knew he was the pastor there. and then as i learned more i learned that he was one of the victims in that shooting along with others. i want to say my prayers also go out to those other victims' families who have been impacted by this tragic tragic event. >> you two were very close, as you've said. when is the last time you spoke to your cousin? >> caller: yesterday. we were in a senate finance committee meeting yesterday. we were in a senate democratic caucus meeting yesterday. he did the prayer for the

meeting as he does quite often. so just yesterday we were together. we talked and had some discussions. and of course he -- his mother grew up right across as we like to refer to across the field from my parents' house. we were a very close family and he and i were very close. senator pinckney first and foremost, he was a god fearing man. he was loved by everyone. never heard anyone say a harsh word about him. he was a peacemaker. as that old saying goes i'd rather see a sermon than to hear one. well you saw it every day through senator clementa ping

knee. he was quite he had a deep voice. when he spoke he commanded your attention and always had words of wisdom,well thought out, well articulated. he was just a wonderful guy. he was a great asset to the south carolina senate to the democrats there. we're going to miss him. it's almost like a dream. it's like we're dreaming and this hasn't happened and we're going to wake up and realize, hey, this is all a dream. but i can tell you my prayers go out to his wife his two daughters, his grandmother who lives here in marion where i live. i see her often. it's just a huge huge loss and a sad, sad thing that has taken place here. >> you're echoing all of the things that we have heard from other people that he was a giant among men, that he was a calming voice not only in the

church but in the state house there and in the community. can we ask you about his daughters? how old are they? >> caller: i think his oldest daughter may be ten or 11 and his youngest is four or five, swrb somewhere in that neighborhood. he had a lovely wife. he always took care of his family always put his family first. was a great provider for his family was a family man. just a wonderful guy. you know what? anybody would want in a father and in a pastor and in a senator anywhere in this country. he was just a great guy. i loved him. i adored talking to him. he never called me senator. he always called me cuz.

that's how we greateted each other. just a great guy. we're really going to miss him. i mean it is devastating that someone would go into god's house and commit such a crime. it's just beyond my imagination. i can't even comprehend this. >> yes. >> caller: it tells me and it says to the word we're not safe anywhere anymore. if you can't be safe in god's house when you're there studying his word, praying and liftding him up and so forth and someone can come in and do something like this it is depikspicable for something like this to happen. >> absolutely. the police had a press conference. they said there were six women

and three men killed one of them your cousin clementa. do you know if there were any other family members with him? >> caller: i don't know. i've heard there was a possibility that there may have been another family member there with him. but there again, i have not verified that. >> yeah. so the public per sepg ofception of him is par excellence. you say he was a character. can you tell us more? >> caller: oh yes. he was a man of character. as i said he was a god fearing man. he was a family man. he was a man that lend a helping hand to all. didn't matter who you were what walk of life you came from your

race color or creed, anything like that your religious background. it did not matter.- he was a man that wanted to help people and lend a hand and lift people up and bring them along. and he was all really really about the poor. he really had a passion for helping the poor for helping to improve the quality of life for all mankind, but especially those who are the least among us us. that was clementa pinckney. >> we heard just yesterday -- we heard from one of his colleagues this morning that clementa pinckney was working on some legislation in the state house about body cameras, police having to wear body cameras.

>> caller: absolutely. he was one of the lead spokespersons on the body cameras. i can remember him taking the podium and talking about the importance of body cameras to protect lives, law enforcement and the citizens. >> yes. and he talked about the need to combat violence and how this would help. and he was very focused on cutting down on violence however he could. can you tell us me about that speech yesterday? >> caller: well the speech didn't take place yesterday. it took place here three weeks or so ago. he represents a part of charleston county. walter scott, who was gunned down by the police officer and of course was unarmed. and he was very passionate about that. he held a vigil prayer there in charleston and played for the family and those kinds of things. and there was no doubt in his

mind and in the south carolina general assembly that body cameras would make a difference and deserves a place with law enforcement in terms of helping to better protect lives. >> mr. williams can you tell us about your cousin's sermons from the pulpit? what do you remember about those? >> caller: well he was a biblical man. he knew the word of god. he studied that word. he always talked about doing the right thing, being godly, living by the word and to be god fearing. to love people regardless of race color, creed. we're our brother's keeper. those are the kind of messages i

can remember by reverend pinckney. >> we appreciate you sharing your personal impressions of your cousin as well as the public perception of him. we are so sorry for your loss. our prayers are with your whole family this morning. >> caller: thank you. keep us in your prayers, if you will please. >> we will. thank you. chris? >> we have somebody very important to talk to right now. the president of the charleston chapter of the naacp. that is dot scott. dot has information from family members who are talking to victims that survived this crime down there. and it goes to why authorities believe it was a hate crime. can you hear us right now? >> caller: yes, i can. >> thank you for joining us. i'm sorry it is on this occasion. but the information you have i think is going to be very helpful. what did you hear about what the

suspect did or said inside this church that feeds our information that this was a targeted attack on the people inside there? >> caller: i stated earlier that while i did not hear this from the victim's mouth and i may not even be repeating it verbatim, over a dozen times it was said that this victim who was not shot but was there, her life was spared because the shooter said i am not going to shoot you -- or i am going to let you go because i want you to be able to tell them what happened. >> and what was said that indicated why this happened there? was anything said by him about why he was targeting this group of people in this church? >> caller: i don't have the rest of the information. i've heard reported by the news reports, family members have said other things. no one said it in my presence

while i was there during the three or four hours i was there last night. so i don't know anything else that was said in my presence that goes to why the perpetrator did what he did. >> did anybody recognize this young man as someone who had been there before? was there any talk about that? >> caller: well the only discussion that has been had -- and i had this with one of the church members who is a friend of mine not part of those who were there last night. but this church being a historically black church one of the oldest f not estoldest if not the oldest church there, it sits in an area that a lot of the tourists frequent. it's not out of the ordinary that folks just walk into the sanctuary and sit and listen to what's going on.

that's not out of the ordinary. it may not have been quite unusual to see a young man come in and sit down. they said he did come in. he sat down and then he proceeded to what i call wreak carnage on the church. white people tourists other black folks -- it wouldn't be something that it would be some red flag that someone's there that maybe don't need to be here. that's not the way it is at that church. and most black churchers that are on the peninsula in charleston. >> the authorities mentioned that of those who lost their lives, there were six female and three male. i'm wondering why they didn't say men and women. do we know anything about any children being in there? and did you know anybody who

lost their lives there? >> caller: yes, i know three of the people and i may know some of the others. i'm just beginning to get some of the other names that were released because three of those who passed including the pastor senator pinckney is a member of the charleston branch of the naacp. >> and did you hear anything about there being children there? or were they all adults? >> caller: there was no indication that any child was injured. there were children there, because there were children at what i call the site last night where the gathering that authorities were searching for folks that could counsel them meaning that they had somehow experienced some but not all of what went on at that church which is really unfortunate, very sad. >> the people who survived did they say whether or not there was any indication that this

murderer was targeting certain people? was he there for the pastor or anyone in particular? >> caller: no indication. whatever i heard late about "you people" which was something that was shared that obviously something we as a people had done. or you people have i think -- and this was reported on cnn this morning. and this is a family member of the reverend pinckney. that you people are -- our people and we're taking our, i think -- i think -- i'm not sure. let's just say i'm not absolutely sure. i've got probably a total of an hour's sleep. i don't want to repeat.

cnn is reporting that there have been some statement made by the shooter indicating that this was for retribution. and it didn't appear that there was any one or two people targeted but it's "you people," meaning, you black people that happened to be at this church tonight. >> right. that's something that we're tracking down right now at cnn. and i'm sure other media asis as well. we know that there was a big group of people at the embassy suites nearby that are family. we know they're hurting right now and we know you have important work to do. thank you, miss scott, for giving us this piece of information on why somebody would do something so terrible. >> caller: thank you. bye-bye. >> as the nation struggles to understand what happened there, the broader impact of the south

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. we're, of course following breaking news right now. there is a manhunt underway right now for a man who opened fire in a historic african american church in charleston, south carolina. he took nine lives. we know this gunman who has a picture out that authorities are asking us to circulate, they're still looking for him and he supposedly left victims alive because he wanted people to know what happened inside. to discuss what happened what it means and what we do about it we have governor of louisiana. obviously, this is going to take precedence. what is is message coming out of something like this? >> i think like every american

when we heard this shocking news i had conflicting emotions. on the one hand my heart breaks for the families the members of this community that lost loved ones. i don't think we'll ever understand why. we're talking about people that were there in a do i believebible study. this is the last place you'd expect random or senseless acts of violence. i say random. we don't know that it's random. i'm also outraged. this is beyond evil. this is horrific. this monster needs to be tracked down and brought to justice. you semene man's capacity to-- there aren't any answers for why this would happen. like so many americans i think about this not only as a

governor but as a husband and a father. church is a safe place. it's a place to go to worship and get away from life's worries. to have their lives cut short by this evil -- look there's no other term for it this evil monster. i hope the authorities are able to capture him quickly and bring him no justice. >> authorities said he sat there in there for an hour in the do i believe study before this happened. they designated it a hate crime not just because of the nature of the victims being african american but because they know what was done and said inside. we hear from the head of the local naacp who heard from survivors and people who had spoken to survivors about it. we know that the fbi is involved and they're trying to connect this with any chatter from extremist groups. what does that mean if this is a

window into a problem of targeting these people because they were african american? is it an act of terror? >> whatever words you want to put on it this man goes into a church sits there for an hour kills nine people. and then says to some of the survivors, i'm letting you live so you can go tell people what i've done. in my mind there are no words strong enough to condemn that evil terror whatever words we want to use. this is horrific. i'm sure you have a lot of people waking up to this news thinking, how could this happen in america? we don't want to think this could happen in our countries, our communities, our churches. i hope this catch this guy quickly and bring him to justice quickly. i don't know that we'll ever understand what was going on in

his mind. we'll see what he says. we'll see if he had written anything. we'll see -- how do you understand evil at this level? there's no rational for going into a church and taking lives. these people were in a do i believe study-- bible study. when they catch him, let's see what he says. let's see if he's got writings, if he's posted things online. our hearts break. i do think this community will be able to find some comfort in their faith. there are certain questions we can't understand in this life. there are certain questions that until we meet god, we've got to have faith. i'm a christian. the men and women who were

killed here were christian. we believe in god's love and mercy. we believe his son died on the cross for us. some of this can't make sense in this lifetime. some of the members of this church i know they're going to try to heal their community. these men and women were going about their business and coming together to pray one of the most harmless and uplifting things you can do. and they're not going home after that. >> and we know that the community is coming out, the leaders and saying we are going to love our way through this because that is the answer to the hate that inspired it to be sure. ands a this christian community, they called it the holy city because of all the religious places that are there. one we have a picture now of the state senator's seat. the pastor himself was in there,

senator clementa pinckney. and now there's a black cloth over his seat it's draped obviously in respect to his passing. there were presidential candidates there. hillary clinton was there. jeb bush is going to come down. obviously they're going to cancel political events. this is when your fabric is being tested. who are you, what do you value? what do you do to those who attack what you value? >> it's time to give these families space. i'm glad their cancelled their political events. if there's an opportunity to go to a worship service, i think that would be appropriate if they want to go and support the skmunt community. one of the rays of hope and one of the few bright things you see in this you listen to the response of the community. you hear them talk -- and i've

been listening and watching all morning. you've seen the senators colleagues the members of the church the leaders in the local naacp and the christian community and the other local pastors speaking and saying we're going to pray and provide love and support to these families. look these are incredible people. i think most of us watching were thinking if that had happened in our community, the first impulse is hate and revenge. it's an understandable human emotion when something this awful as happened to your friends and family members. and what you're hearing from this community is we're going to pray and come together. and we're going to come back to this church. we're going to remember these lives. we're going to honor their lives. we know what they would want us to do. that's very impressive. and as a christian it's encouraging me. keep that eternal perspective if you do have faith, if you do believe, christian or

otherwise -- but as a christian, you do believe there is another life after this. bad things happen to good people things that we can't always explain or understand. i struggle to explain to my kids when they ask mye why did this happen. sometimes it's hard to make sense of life without faith. i honestly don't understand how you can comprehend and deal with evil without faith. >> the worst is also a test of people to be at their best. and we're seeing this early on down there. governor thank you for joining us and thank you for the meaningful words. the nation is praying for the people of south carolina charleston in particular. we also know that a manhunt continues right now, looking for the gunman who killed nine people storming into a historic african american church. that suspect is on the loose. we're going to talk to a man who has a very specific view on this

district. congressman mark sanford will join us about the shooting in his district. >> the victims, there were three males and six female victims in this tragedy. >> we're going to put our arms around that church and that church family. but not every insurance company understands the life behind it. ♪ those who have served our nation have earned the very best service in return. ♪ usaa. we know what it means to serve. get an auto insurance quote and see why 92% of our members plan to stay for life.

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. so we're watching this breaking news horrifying massacre inside a historic black church in charleston south carolina. nine people killed in a bible study. there were three survivors. we're told that one of them is a young girl. the shooter remains on the loose. look at these pictures very closely. police have released these images. authorities were very quick to label this a hate crime because of what the shooter said and did before he opened fire. we want to bring in congressman mark sanford. this shooting happened in his district. he's also the former south carolina governor. i can see the grief in your

face sir. first of all, this is a terrible day in your district. tell me what you're hearing from the people you're speaking to. >> shock, disbelief, incredible sorrow. and frankly a real sense of quandary of i don't understand this doesn't make any sense to me which indeed it doesn't. >> i also know this hits quite close to home. clementa pinckney who was a state senator and a pastor of mother emmanuel a.m.e. church. he was there the entire time you were governor. you obviously knew this manuel. >> i did. you want to talk about somebody who lived and walked this notion of faith. he did. i cannot say enough good things about clementa. he was a remarkable human being. he had a gravelly deep voice, a radio announcer's voice, if you will. and he approached life with that same level of gravitas.

just very serious, very thoughtful. an incredibly considerate and warm human being. he served south carolina. i think it was a real honor he would pastor at this church given its historical cig significance in charleston. >> it is a quandary. were you aware in your time as governor of concern about threats against houses of worship in your state? >> no. this is so out of place. that's why people are shocked. they're in disbelief. i think that mayor reilly said it well this morning. i think that chief mullen said it well. i think a whole host of community leaders have said it well this well.

this is out of character for charleston south carolina. you're left in dispolice chiefbelief. >> an active manhunt underway right now to find this person and get him off the street before he commitments any other atrosa atrocityies atrocities. he said there's a lack of racial harmony in your state and talked about reducing racial violence. do you agree? what do you think the solutions are? >> i would say, no i don't see it that way. we come from a strained past based on slavery existing in our state, as it did in other colonies. and that's a regretful past. but ultimately past is past. i think there are a lot of people black, white and other in your community working to make things work.

one of the first calls i put this morning was to the head of the naacp. he's been a long time friend both before and since my time in governorship and since. he's been a real friend. i think there will always be bad apples in any basket. but i think if your look in charleston, if you look in charleston county the state as a whole, there are a lot of people working daily with friend that they work with friends that they know friends that they worship with toward better race relations in our state and as a consequence in the region. >> you're going to be on the front lines of some of the conversations of what to do now. clearly, churches want to leave their doors open. they don't want to lock them down. but there are going to be great questions about security in our houses of worship. thanks so much to you and our

condolences to you. >> thank you. >> the big question is where is this murderer and how to the authorities go about finding him? law enforcement has put out his picture. they're asking for help. this could be his vehicle. we'll give you the latest on their efforts in a moment. woman: for soft beautiful feet i have a professional secret: amopé and its premium foot care line. the new amopé pedi perfect foot file gives you soft beautiful feet effortlessly. its microlumina rotating head buffs away hard skin even on those hard-to-reach spots. it's amazing. you can see it and feel it. my new must-have for soft, beautiful feet. amopé pedi perfect.

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back to our breaking news. nine people shot and killed inside an historic south carolina church during a prayer meeting. police releasing this image of

the suspect. it's the most clear image they have. and they're asking for the public's help in bringing them in. cnn has just learned the fbi will be opening a hate crime investigation into this shooting. let gentlemen, it's great to have you onset with us. we are learning more information about what happened during that horrible hour inside the church just before 9:00 p.m. last night. 13 people total were inside we hear. nine of them were killed. three occur three survived. the victim's families all reported that the gunman said that he was letting one of these women live so that she could go out and report what happened. he then took off, as you know.

and there's an active search underway. what does this tell you, if anything about the character of who police were looking for? >> he has some sort of an ego. and he wants people to respect the work that he did and that's why he left those people living to be able to tell the story. >> let's look at the latest photographs. these are the snapshots of surveillance video. they have been enhanced by the police. they're much clearer than what we had an hour ago. one hour ago they put these out. joe, what do you see as an investigator when you look at this photograph? >> we have to find out what that insignia is on that vehicle. these investigative clue that is the detectives are going to be running with. >> he has a piece of black fabric or a fanny pack. >> they have them for firearms. you can put a firearm in there, keep rounds clips. they're pretty popular

especially in the warmer climates where you can't wear pants because it's too hot. >> this is a huge clue. >> this is a huge clue. let me tell you what's going top next. they're going to identify the vehicle, the approximate year of the vehicle. they're going to check the registry in south carolina and determine how many of these vehicles exist in the state. they're going to run each and other one and narrow down on a number of suspects and finally on one suspect. >> once they get some real information on who might have rented this vehicle or owned this vehicle, then what do you do? >> you go to these locations based on the demographics. male white you're going to be looking for. we don't even know if this car is stolen too. that's something else that has to be thought about. >> sure. but the fact that you get such a good glimpse of this person

chances are, i'm guessing that they already have a name. >> i'm sure by now. it's been almost ten hours. someone out there knows who this is. and based on the nature of this crime, someone is going to and will give it up. >> they have hundreds of leads already that they are pursuing. matthew and joe, thanks so much for being onset set with us. nine people dead. we're going to talk about the role race might have played and why. don't just visit new york.

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we are following breaking news this morning. nine people have been shot and killed inside an historic black church in charleston south carolina. we have a picture of the alleged shooting. this is who was identified as a 20 something-year-old male. slender bill eduild. they believe about 5'9".

they are asking for any help in finding him. there is no word he has been located in anyway. this is an ongoing manhunt there. six females, three males lost their lives, including a pastor and state senator in south carolina and loomed very large in the community. let's bring in david mack state representative as well and a radio host. what can you tell us about what the pastor meant to you and what he meant to this community? >> he meant so much to us. senator and reverend clementa pinckney and i entered the south carolina state legislature 19 years ago. this would have been our 19th year together. he entered at 23 very focussed very smart, very compassionate, very caring as it relates to the community and had the perfect blend of being a pastor and being an elected official a servant to people.

and he was my friend. so right now individually and collectively this community is in a lot of pain as well as all the other folks that were killed with attending a bible study, prayer service. >> just about the worst circumstances imaginable. the contrast of people getting together for all the right reasons and being killed for all the wrong reasons. the mayor said we are going to love our way through this as a community. bt the idea that this was designated as a hate crime, what does that mean to you? >> well you know i think it's obvious. and i think i was at the press conference when the mayor made that comment. anyone that would go into a church -- and of course race is a factor. this is a young white male.

this is a historically african american church. and commits this type of act, it is a hate crime. it is hate. it is pure hate. i think one of the things we have to take this moment that we have to use this moment for is to heal as a country. it's not just the south. it's not just south carolina. it's the united states. and right now we are operating -- i've said this before the tragedy on yesterday, we have some healing to do as a country. because to me there's just too much hate right now. >> all right. senator, thank you so much for joining us. i'm very sorry for the loss of your friend and the victims as well as the pastor pinckney and all that he was doing there. we will continue to cover this story for this healing as you say that's all important. thank you, sir. we're going to continue our coverage right now, because we know who police believed murdered nine people in a black

church in skouth carolina he is still on the loose. stay with cnn. father's day is this weekend. and who's better than dad? now, at t-mobile, get the new lg tablet on us when you get a new data plan. no money down. no monthly payments. so get to t-mobile and get a tablet on us.

the only reason someone could walk into a church and shoot people praying is out of hate. >> you tell people to go to work do right, go to church. these people were this church. they were in church! >> we will bring that person to justice as soon as possible.

>> we are communities trying to live and survive. why do we have to live like this? >> we stand in solidarity but we also solicit your prayers for the family members who have lost loved ones here tonight. >> it's gonna be all right. >> and good morning. i'm carol costello. i'd like to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. dangerous men on the loose right now. two dramatic manhunts are unfolding in south carolina. authorities are searching for this man on the run after allegedly shooting and killing six men and three women during bible study at a historically black church in charleston south carolina. police are calling it a hate