tonight -- horrifying twists and turns in the brutal murder of an ex-cop's wife. police questioning that husband, but he's refusing to give dna. now an ex-girlfriend is stepping forward to say he used to abuse her and even attacked her when she was holding their newborn. did this guy really point a gun at her and say "today you are going to die"? why was this ex-cop given so many chances? and a woman is kidnapped, viciously tortured for 13 days. friends of the victim now say

they thought the neighbor accused of the horrific crime was obsessed with her. i'll talk one-on-one with somebody who spent a lot of time with this creep. you won't believe the glaring warning signs. plus -- ed addict nation out of control. an ice cream truck busted for selling hillbilly heroin. is there anyone we can trust anymore? i'm taking your callings and i'll tell you about an incredible movie that will have you questioning everything you eat. "issues" starts now. she's like my daughter, really. with the kids also. by him, it's very are strange. >> tonight, breaking news as yet another woman comes forward with a horrifying abuse story involving that ex-new york city cop whose wife was found dead with blunt trauma to the head and chest. the ex-cop's previous lover says years ago he beat her and held his service revolver to her head.

so why can't we find any evidence that this ex-cop was ever charged with anything? that ex-cop eddie coello still walking around a free man. there he is in a cap. showed up at the police station yesterday but refused to give a dna sample or look at photos. coello's estranged wife, mother of foushgs was missing for nearly a week before she was found dead, strangled, baetsen, stuffed and a garbage bag and dumped in a wooded area. tina's landlord said the husband beat her black and blue in the past. neighbors say the couple could be heard arguing right before tina disappeared. >> we heard the neighbors, this lady and the gentleman fighting here a couple of days ago. i heard them fighting constantly in the past few weeks. >> then there's the issue of the surveillance video that allegedly shows somebody who looks like eddy coello dragging

out a large bag out of the apartment and then driving away. coello's ex-girlfriend is saying she knows what eddy coello is capable of. that he terrorized her for years. i would say this ex-cop's past is definitely coming back to haunt him. straight out the mike brooks, hln law enforcement analysis. you're tracking this case. what are your law enforcement sources telling you tonight. >> apparently mr. coello is not cooperating. he was at the 45th precinct station house. they asked him to look at some pictures. he didn't want to look at any pictures. they asked him to give a dna sample. he wouldn't give a dna sample. he was only there for about 24 minutes, jane. sources are saying when they did the search of the house, we saw the crime scene unit at the apartment just the other evening, there was no blood found there but they found some bodily fluids in his vehicle. that's all they'll say right now. is this some evidence that will

lead us or lead law enforcement to this guy for this murder? we don't know. but i tell you it looks like he is the only -- i hate to use the term -- person of interest in this particular case, this whole gruesome murder. >> that's what the top cop, phrase he used, we're not using it. it was new york's top cop who used that phrase. did tina foresee her own fate. here's what she told her divorce attorney. listen carefully. this is very quick but very significant. >> that if something would have happened he would be a guy to look at. >> that was quick. >> yeah. tina actually told her attorney if something happens to me look at my ex-cop husband, the guy in the cap right there. she reportedly even got an order of protection recently after she decided to file for divorce but decided not to serve him with the papers after he agreed to counseling. straight out to my very special guest brenda clubine who was

convict for killing her abusive husband who had also been a cop, by the way. do you see, brenda, striking parallels between your case and this case? >> absolutely. this was my story. the only difference, unfortunately, is that i survived and tina didn't. this person, this perpetrator, this abuser, her ex-husband to be, manipulated the entire situation. he's going to try to do whatever he can to get off. and you know what? he needs and must be held accountable. and unfortunately this repeats itself over and over again. and until we start saying it doesn't matter if they're cops, it doesn't matter who they are, they're going to be held accountable. >> and we have to say, we have called his attorney numerous times, no response. eddy coello and/or his attorney invited on the show anytime to tell their side. eddy coello's ex-girlfriend has come forward to describe her

allegedly abusive relationship with this ex-cop. she told the "daily news" she was with coello for three years. she claims he hit her, threatened her life and claimed he threw her around even while she was holding her infant son. here they are before her son was born. she says when coello was accused of threatening her with his service revolver, cops asked her is eddy coello into steroids? he looks very built there. let's go to jen berman, psychotherapist. could that explain the sort of rageaholic style behavior we're hearing about? >> well, certainly steroids can contribute to that problem, but also we know that police officers are particularly high-risk for domestic violence. they are two to four times more likely to commit acts of domestic violence. in a fairy recent study, they found 40% of police officers use

force to intimidate in their own home. >> i want to give mike brooks, a law enforcement analyst, a chance to weigh in on that. we have many law enforcement officers who are wonderful people who save lives. >> yes. >> what do you make of that? >> it does happen, jane. when i was on the force, i heard about it happening all the time. and that's when they finally decided to step up and say, look, if you're involved in any kind of domestic violence we're going to come after you because you shouldn't be threatening anybody with a gun, you know, because that's one of your tools of your trade, your service weapon. and if you are even thought, mostly -- you have to be convicted for them to fire you. but if you're thought have been involved in domestic violence they will look at you closely and if possible they will get you off the force because you shouldn't be walking around with a weapon and dog these kinds of things. i'm sorry. that's the way it goes. >> let's analyze his past. new york's top cop says coello is being less than cooperative.

listen to this. >> he was asked if he would give a dna sample. he was asked to look at certain pictures. he refused. >> ex-girlfriend gloria perez who we showed you in the "new york daily news" said coello threatened her with his service revolver. his service revolver, that she claims he pointed the gun at her head and said today you're going die and made her beg for her life. this brings me to my big issue. did this guy get too many chances? seriously. let's take a look at how many chances this guy got. if it were you and me would we be in jail? we tried to find any evidence that this guy was ever formally arrested or jailed. we couldn't find anything. and, remember, it's that ex-girlfriend who's coming forward, it's also the woman who turned up dead, his current wife just found beaten to denial in -- death in 2006 and 2007, there were domestic violence incidents involving them and neighbors and relatives claim he

beat her black and blue and even fractured her jaw at one point. mark eiglarsh, why haven't they arrested him and charged him with anything? >> well, a great question. that leads to my big issue. you're not the only one with big issues, that is why aren't more victims of domestic violence coming forward because that's how cases begin. neighbors can scream all they want. but the evidence can equally be consistent with some disturbance, maybe the victim was the initial aggressor, they don't have enough evidence. when a victim comes forward and says i'm going all out, i'm tired of the cycle of violence repeating itself, things get done. my question is why aren't they coming forward. i understand why sometimes. hopefully this program will help people come forward. >> jane? >> breaking news here first. we just got a phone call from eddy coello's attorney who said if authorities wanted to come in, he's available. we want his attorney to come in. we want to be fair.

we're giving that person the opportunity to tell their side. quick point, brenda? >> again, though, we're blaming the victim. it isn't the victim here that needs be held accountable. obviously this victim did report domestic violence previously. that's why there is a record it. and the problem is that the risk to the victim increases 75% once she leaves. so this tells you this person was going to kill her anyway because of his behaviors. >> well, we have more on the brutal slaying of an ex-cop's wife in a bit. let's point out he has not been charged, okay, with anything. also, a woman allegedly kidnapped and tortured by a former neighbor. i will talk one-on-one with someone who spent a lot of time with this apparent sicko. you will not believe the glaring warning signs from this guy. but first, ex-girlfriend of a former cop speaking out tonight. did he really point a gun at her head and make her beg for her life saying today was the day

she was going to die? >> we heard the neighbors, this lady and the gentleman, fighting here, couple of days ago. i've heard them fighting, you know, constantly in the past few weeks.

do you think he did this? >> without a doubt. >> why? >> without a doubt. look at his history. look at his history. >> tell us what you know about any type of abuse that happened. >> actually it was very quiet. she was quiet about this. even the children were -- i guess they feared for their lives. >> all eyes on new york cop, ex-cop, eddy coello, after his wife was found murdered. coello reportedly abused her for

years. now an ex-girlfriend coming forward saying coello did the same thing to her. cops trying to put a case against this guy and we're wondering given his long history of domestic incidents, we can't find any record that he was ever arrested or charged with anything and i wonder, mark, why? there's got be a law against using your service revolver and putting it against somebody's temple and say today you'll die which is what this girlfriend is saying he did to her. also, she says he's a dead beat dad and says he is not paying child support. there's two things that i can think of off the top of my head that he could be sought for. >> correct. you've got two potential o offenses. what you need then, as law enforcement needs to have as mike brooks will verify, probable cause. it needs to be based on evidence, corroborating witnesses, information. once they did that did the state attorney's office or d.a. have enough evidence to prove this case beyond a reasonable doubt. there are reasons why cases don't go forward. it's any of the reasons i just

mentioned or other reasons. >> one of them is that the women involved with these men are afraid. here's a quote from eddy coello's ex-girlfriend. gloria perez. it really sticks out. she says coello gave her a wedding ring but she told him you have anger issues and i will not marry you. i will only be your domestic partner. what? to me that doesn't make any sense at all. now that's why i want to talk about the power and control wheel which we talk about a lot here on issues which really outlines how a domestic abuser controls a female victim. using emotional abuse, isolation, intimidation, threats, economic abuse, children and also i'll throw in another one, male privilege. all seemed to be involved here. could this woman -- and this is my take -- could this woman have been in a sense, this first girlfriend who has just come forward a hostage or even a victim of stockholm syndrome? what's the difference whether you're married or domestic

partner? she's still agreeing to live with a guy who was abusing her and her message is she said she thought she was in love and she was afraid to go to cops and that the lesson that she's learned is the first time he pushes you get out. but why it is that so few women learn this lesson? j jenn berman? >> well, it's that cycle of violence. what happens is you have the tension building phase then the violent incident and traditionally after that the perpetrator then says i'll he in rear do it again, i promise i'll get counselling and i heard a quote that he promised he would do that. i will never, ever do it. then he's the guy that she always dreamed of and shows up with presents and it goes on for a little while. then it starts all over again. >> it starts all over again, brenda clubine, you actually killed your abusive husband because you said if you hadn't he would have killed you. let's go back to that power and control wheel. how exactly was it done to you?

>> well, he made sure and isolated me. he kept me from family and friends. any friends that wanted to stick up for me he slashed their tires. he ruined their house. he made sure that he was in control of our funds, not me. i had no credit. there was nothing in my name. the vehicle was in his name. he made sure that i was completely cut off in every single way. and he threatened me. when i did get away -- and remember, i've mentioned before, i left 11 times. when i did i went back because he would get me fired. i couldn't keep a job. i couldn't do any of these things because he didn't want it to happen. and this is a problem -- >> how does a woman get out of this short of what you did, killing your husband? by the way, how did you kill him? did you shoot him? >> i hit him over the head with a wine bottle. >> okay. short of that, how do you get out of a situation like this? for women watching tonight who

are trap in this, they've got an abusive husband who is in the next room getting a beer about to come in and they want to know, they want to learn something. give them a lesson now. >> basically, what it's about is you need to call a hotline. you need to create a safety plan whatever is best for you. speak to your friend, find out one safe person that you can go to. i don't care who it is. it may not always be the authorities. but once the authorities get involved, speak up. don't let your fear and intimidation of these kinds of creeps keep you trapped in an abusive situation. >> tile tei'll tell you what, c these stories for decades, get out of state, get far away. give no warning. pack up your children, your pets, whatever you need to take because they are your love and get out of there and get to a relative on the other side of the country. and then call a lawyer and have absolutely no contact at all.

this couple was fighting, they were fighting right before she disappeared. to me right there is part of the problem. my heart goes out the her. this is not a blame the victim, her family. we hope this horror is solved. we'll stay on top of this story. coming up, unbelievable story. an ice cream truck busted for selling hillbilly heroin. is there anyone we can trust any more. first, a woman kidnapped, sadistically tortured for days by a former neighbor. i'll speak to somebody who knows the suspect well.

brecking news here on cnn. mow ama gadhafi's compound has been hit and one building has suffered major damage. it's believed according to nic robertson, two circular holes in the roof of this building, it was possibly cruise missiles that hit the compound. nic robertson, our senior international correspondent said this building is a heavily fortified concrete building, fortified with rebar and concrete thick as his fist if not thicker. there is major damage, parts of the roof has collapse. there you're looking at a picture of moammar gadhafi's compound, again, one building heavily damaged. cnn's worldwide resources on top of this story. nic robertson will join us in a moment from tripoli. also, elyse laughette, our state

department correspondent. she's been to this compound, our matthew chance joins us from london as well as retired generous general russell eun array. general, you have been in these situations before. as you and i have talked here on cnn, moammar gadhafi is not the focus of this mission in terms of hitting him. it is, according to the allied forces, according to the u.s. president barack obama an others, it is is to keep the people of libya safe. they're there for the safety of the people. does this change anything now that moammar gadhafi's compound has been stuck? >> i don't think so. i think the commanding control was always on the list, the intent to hit it. not him directly. i would suspect when we went into this we have a no target, no shoot list, restricted fire zone which designates mosques, buildings such as hospitals and his headquarters was on that no

target list. but remember last night and early tonight you saw air defense weapons from that compound shooting in the air. you've got two possible scenarios. you've got a scenario where a pilot could have seen that anti-aircraft weapon, a zsu-23-4, could have been at the top of the building, could have been shooting. don't know the fact s yet, but commend robinson and his crew for going there. the other moment is, the moment that cnn crew walked on the scene, all of our targeteers are watching this, everybody is using cnn intel. it immediately -- during that period they were there. so there's a lot of schemes going back and forth on both sides. we need to keep that in effect, don. >> we have been talking here saying that the propaganda campaign, the propaganda war, is in full effect. is that the reason, one reason, maybe the main reason, that these reporters, including nic,

were invited to this compound? >> it could have been that, or it could have been the hope that's we would shoot again and they would end up being injured. then we would look like the scapegoat. the good news is we're watching cnn just like he's watching it, and hopefully we are communicating with our people on the ground and where they're going. but he is using the press to try and paint a message. remember the first victim of the war is the truth. >> general, i was going to get back to nic robertson but i understand he has dropp eddropp. obviously difficult to get him under these circumstances. stand by, general. i'll update our viewers if you have just joined us. moammar gadhafi's compound has been hit and substantially so, especially one building with two giant holes, circular holes, in the roof. it's believed according to our nic robertson who was invited to the compound in the middle of tripoli to see the damage, to tour the damage, that they believe it was possibly cruise missiles that struck the compound. heavily damaged, heavily

damaged. let's go now to london and cnn's matthew chance as general honore stands by as well as ed henry who's traveling with the u.s. president barack obama. standing in front of 10 downing street. any response from there? >> reporter: well, there's been no response to these developments, being dramatically reported by nic out of tripoli. as you can see behind me, the door of number 10 downing street, the official residence of the british prime minister, a couple of hours ago a security meeting, a very high-level one, endzed there where they were considering various aspects of this u.n. security council-mandated mission to impose that no-fly zone. they came out, reacted to the si cease-fire that had been declared by colonel gadhafi, essentially repeating what they had said the day before when he declared that first cease-fire, saying that colonel gadhafi would be judged on his actions, not on his words. their assessment was that he was still in violation of his obligations under the united

nations security council resolution, that the mission to impose that no-fly zone would continue. what the british government, though, has been insisting throughout the course of today and earlier cnn spoke with the british foreign secretary, william haig, is that the limits of this mission are very clearly set out by the u.n. resolution 1973. they do not intend, according to the british government, to undertake regime change, for instance, in libya. the intention is not to topple colonel gadhafi, as part of this mission, merely to enforce this no-fly zone. but obviously these developments in tripoli would appear to contradict that. >> and how is the prime minister cameron being kept up-to-date on what's going on. i understand there's a different time there, but i'm wondering how he's being updated and if he is aware -- i'm sure he is -- of the situation that's happening now, a huge development here,

matthew. >> reporter: yeah, i'm absolutely certain in a situation as imminent as this, as important as this, the british prime minister in his residence here behind me will be updated continuously, probably throughout the night. obviously he's been meeting with the top security officials, the head the british air force, army, navy have been meeting here over the past few hours together with representatives of the other security services as well. and the expectation is obviously, david cameron, the british prime minister, will be kept fully abreast of the developments in tripoli and elsewhere. >> matthew chance, thank you so much. joining us from 10 downing street in london. let's move on now and go to cnn's elyse labot. elyse, i understand that you have been inside of this compound, the one that nic was reporting from just moments ago and he will join us again shortly, nic said this is a heavily fortified compound. tell us about it. >> heavily forts i fived. i was in the residence in 2008

with secretary of state condoleezza rice when she traveled there to meet with colonel gadhafi. it's so fortified that everyone was checked, all their equipment checked at several checkpoints inside the compound. we went through several buildings. everyone was taken through many checkpoints while we were there. all the buildings are heavily fortified, security very fight tight. we weren't allowed to make any phone calls. they took our phones while we were there. we weren't allowed to do any live broadcasting at the time. so when i heard that nic was broadcasting live from this compound i really thought it was extremely extraordinary. >> and russell honore, general honore, said something that struck me. eench it's a propaganda campaign or they wanted another strike while the journalists were inside. >> svery possible they wanted t make sure that there were some human shields there or possible casualties that they could say that this is not exactly against

hiss targets. obviously safety is an important issue for all the journalists so not sure how much longer they'll be there, but certainly it's very extraordinary for them to bring them in. you might remember that's the same compound that was bombed by american air strikes in 1986 during the height of tensions with libya and colonel gadhafi's adopted daughter was killed there. in fact, some officials were taken to that very area while they were on the compound. so it's probably a combination of both. >> e-lise, thank you very much. she's been to the compound. good reporting from her. on the other side of the break, we'll talk to retired general russell honore as well as the rest of the players on cnn. breaking news being reported by nic robertson, moammar gadhafi's compound has been attacked. it's been struck. one building suffering major damage. it's believed to be attacked by a missile. we're back in a moment with breaking news here on cnn. welcome back to geico radio, it's savings, on the radio.

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breaking news here on cnn. under attack. moammar gadhafi's compound in tripoli, a likely missile attack on the grounds there. cnn has not confirmed who's responsible for it, but the coalition has said that gadhafi is not being targeted

personally. it's not clear where he is right now. earlier loud explosions rang out in the capital city, gadhafi's forces blasting anti-aircraft fire into the skies. we saw that yesterday, yesterday evening, and we're seeing it again today. those are those strikes. the libyan army announced a cease-fire after allied forces took out most of the country's air defense capabilities. but the white house isn't buying it. u.s. president barack obama's national security adviser says, quote, it isn't true or it was immediately violated. this is, by the way, the second cease-fire libya has declared in three days. gadhafi's forces ignored the first one. and joint chiefs chairman mike mullen says the u.n.'s no-fly zone now in place. allied strikes have done major damage to libya's fixed air defense systems according to another u.s. official and again the breaking news that we're reporting here on cnn is that

moammar gadhafi's compound has been attacked. not exactly sure, can't confirm, whether it was by allied forces. the u.s. and britain have fired 124 tomahawk missiles on key sites and the u.s. is only, is only, one of the countries taking part in this offensive. france and great britain have taken major roles, italy, canada, spain, belgium, denmark, nor wray and qatar also involved. we want some perspective from lieutenant general retired russell honore joins us from new orleans. gordon chang writes for forbes dox. thanks for both of you. general russell honore, there's an inherent risk going into what is obviously a war zone and into these conflicts. you said something to me that was very disturbing. why would government officials invite reporters into moammar

gadhafi's compound? is it because of a propaganda campaign? and you said it's because maybe they're hoping another strike would happen with these reporters there. >> absolutely. as tactical things are happening, they're playing psychological warfare, we are targeting buildings. what nic said, two rounds in the top of a building, we've got the precision weapons system. we own -- they could hit any building they wanted to. i again say that building was either key to command and control or it was a strike against those zsu-22s for two nights who have been shooting there almost continuously and they saw that as a potential threat and those zsu-22s have the capability to put them on the top of a building. they may have been perceived as a threat or that building was targeted as a significant -- we've been working for years

now, since desert storm and last time we went into baghdad and with the targets we focused on in north korea to be able to do some deeply penetrating bombing. and it looked like the air force and the navy has gotten this right. we're getting those bombs where they can penetrate a building that's well fortified and deeply into it. so, again, it's precision. it's at night. if the target was selected, we hit that building intentionally because it was a threat to our forces, or it met the objectives which is to stop him from being able to talk to his troops in the field. >> and general let's get the picture of moammar gadhafi's compound back. i want to ask you this. do you believe that this was allied forces? again, i want to ask you, do you believe this strike was by allied forces? >> it plays into a scenario. we're looking for high-value targets, targets that threaten our aircraft above, targets that

go after the command and control. it fits the profile. there's a no target list that's going out to all of the targeteers. and this compound where he is at the known given time, probably was on the restricted target list. as well as the hospitals and the mosques and other big apartment buildings. this target met the profile, and remember there was a lot of shooting come from that compound the last two nights. >> okay. your advice to reporters, journalists near that compound? what would you say to them right now? would you get them out of there? >> i would tell them to make sure they check with the headquarters, wherever that is, and let the national leaders know that they're going out at night particularly, before and after bombings start. because they may be being drawn in as a target. and i commend nic and his crew for going there, but this could be a part of playing into

psychological war that gadhafi and his men are very good at playing. >> all right. stand by. retired general russell honore, we'll need your help getting us through this hour, as well as gordon change in new york. there may have been some wavering in the arab world and arab league. i'll ask gordon chang about that. you heard the news, of course, from senior white house correspondent ed henry, the white house working behind the scenes to shore up support in the arab world. moammar gadhafi's compound struck, heavily damaged. we're back in a moment. can help get your child healthy. get ideas. get involved. get going at letsmove.gov. that's letsmove.gov. i don't have to leave my desk and get up and go to the post office anymore.

is the s.a.t. biased? >> in some technical sense it's probably not a biased tests. the problems become how it's used in the process. >> dedicated to fairness in process. >> it was to predict college grades. what happens is that kids of color are very often left out. they're going to be predicted to not do well when in fact they could do well. >> what's your alternative? >> we have a list of 830 colleges for whom the test is optional. and what's been found out is that those colleges, they get in more diverse student body, the grade point average stays the same and they graduate at the same rate. >> from the college board, the owners of the s.a.t. disagrees. >> he's mistaken on this point,

that the s.a.t. is absolutely predictive of how well students will do in college. every single question on the s.a.t. is tested with real students from all races and all walks of life to ensure that every question on the s.a.t. is fair. >> so there is no group that generally outperforms all other groups? >> there is an achievement gap in this country, not just on any one test. >> so the country is bad and the test isn't. >> well, the test is a fair test that helps mirror what's going on in the country. students and parents should understand that colleges look at a variety of factors, not just a test. >> so why do we need the s.a.t.? >> i would think that parents would be glad to know that there is a fair national test of math and english so that college admissions are not so subjective. >> yeah, that may be one thing you and i leave disagreeing on.

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p of. >> we're following brecking news out of libya. mow march gadhafi's compound is attacked and it is really in shambles, crippled there, heavily damaged. it's believed to be by cruise missiles. our senior international correspondent ed henry -- excuse me. nic robertson reporting from there live earlier, just moments ago, on cnn. a whole lot of moving parts here happening on cnn. that is a picture of mow maramm gadhafi's compound. let's go to our senior white house correspondent ed henry, standing by traveling with the u.s. president in latin america. you see gordon chang joining us from new york as well as russell

honore joining us from new orleans. ed henry traveling with the u.s. president, what do you have for us, new information? >> reporter: well, i've been pressing various senior u.s. officials for some sort of confirmation that they were either targeting gadhafi's compound or have, in fact, hit it. obviously nic can see what he can see with his own eyes. senior u.s. officials are sort of hedging on whether they were directly targeting the compound, et cetera. but one senior u.s. official when i asked, are more bombs coming, this official stressed to me, it's ongoing, this official said, quote, we are hitting him very hard. the bottom line is various senior u.s. officials close to the administration are saying that they're stepping this up here in these next couple of days because, as we've been hearing separately from other officials on the record, the president wants u.s.'s lead role to be out in days, not weeks.

so they basically want to hand this off in terms of enforcing the no-fly zone to other part r partners and allies. but over these next 24 to 48 hours, we may see an intensification of the bombing campaign before the u.s. steps aside, don. >> i have a quick question. i want to bring gordon chang in. ed, stand by. we'll get back to you quickly. gordon, there was some wavering on the part of the arab league, and that leaves the obama administration as well as the other allied officials in a precarious position here. >> yes. the arab league spokesman this afternoon said that the bombing campaign was not what the league had in mind when it asked for a no-fly zone. after that, there was another statement that confirmed the league's continued support for the no-fly zone. but clearly there's a lot of disquiet among arab nations and i'm sure gadhafi is going to try to split them off from the coalition. >> gordon chang, stand by. ed henry, stand by. general russell honore, please stand by also.

back to nic robertson, the first to report this breaking news out of tripoli, moammar gadhafi's compound attacked and heavily damaged. nic, tell us about your trip to the compound. what did you see? >> reporter: well, don, the compound, is if you can imagine sort of over my shoulder in this direction, perhaps a mile, mile and a half away. the area outside is absolutely thronging with traffic, people blaring their horns, cars parked to the side of the road. this is all pro-gadhafi supporters come out to this palace compound area because it had been hit by a missile. that's at least what government officials tell us. and certainly the fervor and the sort of utter, utter belief that these people appear to have in moammar gadhafi seems to speak to that. but this compound when we went in through several layers of security, our bags scanned as you would get them scanned as an airport with a mobile scanner, we went through body scanners, then we were patted down.

a lot of soldiers around there. we noticed some of them were wearing helmets where they hadn't been wearing helmets the night before. then we were taken to an area inside the compound about 50 yards from a tent described to us as the famous tent where moammar gadhafi entertains his visitors. then we were shown a building, a four-story building, that had been hit by what appeared to be at least two missiles, ripped apart, don. >> nic robertson, we'll hear more about your trip to the compound, one fr the reporters inside moammar gadhafi's heavily damaged compound. more of the story right after a break.

breaking news here on cnn. as moammar gadhafi's compound heavily damaged, it is believed by missiles. worldwide resources of cnn are on top of this story, including our reporters, our contributors and our correspondents. some of them traveling with the u.s. president. there you see one in new orleans, one in new york and one in latin america. now to the person who visited the compound, who broke this story, nic robertson. nic, continue on your tour of what you saw. >> reporter: well, don, the building that we saw was a four-story building, perhaps 50 to 75 yards long. the roof had had been hit by two -- what appeared to be two missiles, and judging from the fragments that were pulled out of the building, they were

looked like cruise missile. i've seen cruise missiles before and certainly some of the parts, we've got a motor that appears to drive wing of one of the cruise missiles. so it certainly looks like cruise missiles. the roof of the building, this heavy concrete structure collapsed forward like this so you had two holes in it. the roof folded down over two floors of the building. the lower part, the lower floors, ripped apart in the middle of the building. other parts of the building more -- windows blown out, walls ripped apart. you could still see inside those rooms. the building was described to us an an area that moammar gadhafi's special guests and visitors wait in before they go and visit with him in his tent which is about 50 yards away. he has a tent that's his traditional way of greeting people. we went into -- >> nic, i hate to cut you off but we've got to get to a break. i understand, viewers, i want to tell that you we're awaiting video as well at at any moment from what nic saw inside of

moammar gadhafi's compound. our senior correspondent nic robertson after back the break. push your onstar button and you could be one of them. even if you're not an onstar customer. ♪ just push your blue button and tell the advisor you want to enter the onstar push on sweepstakes. ♪ but do it soon. no purchase necessary. see rules at onstar.com to enter without a blue onstar button.

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back now to our breaking news and our senior international correspondent nic robertson. nic, what will this tape show

when we see it in just moments? >> reporter: you'll see a four-story building heavily smashed, apparently by two cruise missiles in the heart of moammar gadhafi's pals compound right in the heart of tripoli. a lot of soldiers around that compound, heavy antiaircraft batteries in that area as well but it will show you the scale of destruction that's now being meted out to moammar gadhafi in a very personal way, targeting hit compound, a building that he uses where he's recently had the indian ambassador, the chinese ambassador, and the russian ambassador were in that building just several days ago. a building that moammar gadhafi uses for his special guests. this is a building that will strike right at the heart -- the heart here of his security right in the middle of tripoli, don. >> nic robertson touring moammar gadhafi's very heavily damaged compound. i'm don lemon at the cnn world headquarters in atlanta. wolf blitzer brings you a cnn special "libya at war" next right here on cnn.

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