that's it for abc 7 n welcome to "world news tonight." moment of truth. high drama as the fbi's james comey gets ready to testify. what will he say about russia and president trump's unsubstantiated wiretapping claims? developing tonight, explosive new details about the teacher accused of abducting one of his teenage students. her family's emotional plea. and this, from the teacher's own wife. >> tad, this is not you. this is not who you are. deadly arson. the manhunt tonight for the suspect baltimore police are calling public enemy number one for allegedly firebombing a home that killed two teenagers. tonight, the video that appears to show the arsonist at work. plus, high fire danger. the growing wildfire setting off mass evacuations. and, lost and found. he rescued her from

flood-ravaged new orleans so many years ago. tonight, their incredible reunion. good evening. thanks for joining us on this sunday. i'm tom llamas. and we begin tonight with the showdown brewing on capitol hill. the nation's most powerful law enforcement officer, fbi director james comey, set to testify before a house committee, digging into russian involvement in the 2016 campaign. possibly making his first public comments also about president trump's so far unproven claim that president obama wiretapped trump tower. the stakes are so high. we start tonight with david wright. >> the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. >> reporter: one day before what promises to be a showdown on capitol hill. >> have you seen any evidence that president obama ordered an illegal wiretap? >> no, i haven't. >> reporter: lawmakers on the

house intelligence committee are preparing to grill the nation's top law enforcement officer. one committee member already calling for president trump to apologize. >> it never hurts to say you're sorry. >> so you think the president should say i'm sorry? >> i think so. >> reporter: at issue is not just the trump tweets accusing obama of a felony. >> was there a physical wiretap of trump tower? no, there never was. >> no evidence to support the president's claim. >> reporter: also, the lingering question of whether the president's men may have colluded with russia to influence the election. democrats and republicans see it differently. >> i would characterize it, there is circumstantial evidence of collusion. there is direct evidence, i think, of deception. >> no, everything i have up to this morning. no evidence of collusion. >> reporter: james comey is in a position to know whether there's probable cause to support either story.

>> he's become more famous than me. >> reporter: the very same fbi director who grabbed so much attention himself during the 2016 campaign. first, closing the case against hillary clinton for using that private e-mail server for sensitive government business. >> our judgment is that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case. >> reporter: only to reopen it nine days before the election. >> i have to give the fbi credit. that was so bad what happened originally, and it took guts for >> reporter: after all that, nothing found. until now, comey has not spoken publicly. hasn't even confirmed an investigation is under way. but he has briefed committee members behind closed doors. today, we spoke with christopher ruddy. if he says case closed, no

wiretap, will president trump accept that? >> you'll have to ask the president that. >> david joins us live. a lot of anticipation for comey tomorrow. and another important name headed to capitol hill, judge neil gorsuch. >> reporter: that's right. president trump's pick for the supreme court begins his confirmation hearings tomorrow. it's lick -- likely to be contentious as well. democrats are unlikely to give him an easy ride. >> david, thank you. next to the nationwide manhunt for the high school teacher accused of taking off with one of his freshman students. state investigators worried the trail may be growing cold. the girl's family coming forward with an emotional plea for her return. the teacher's wife doing the same. and we're learning there are new concerns tonight about a possible missed warning sign. eva pilgrim, with the latest. >> reporter: as the frantic search intensifies for that missing tennessee teen and her former teacher accused of kidnapping her, tonight, new details of his alleged plan to get away.

>> we have no idea where tad cummins has elizabeth thomas at this hour. >> reporter: authorities say 50-year-old tad cummins was 15-year-old elizabeth thomas' health science teacher. the sheriff confirming to abc news, cummins was suspended last month for inappropriate behavior with thomas at school. >> he planned this for some time before disappearing with elizabeth. >> reporter: investigators say days before the two disappeared, cummins put up the title on his suv to get $4,500 cash. tonight, cummins is armed. now facing charges for aggravated kidnapping and sexual contact with a minor. >> come home, because we all love you. >> reporter: investigators say thomas was last seen monday morning at a restaurant in columbia, tennessee. cummins seen here on surveillance video shortly after, next door at a gas station filling up his silver nissan rogue suv. detectives say monday afternoon the pair were tracked in decatur, alabama, before their trail went cold. cummins' wife, making a desperate public plea to her

husband. >> tad, this is not you. please do the right thing and turn yourself in to the police and bring beth home. >> reporter: tonight, tips coming in from dozens of states. authorities think they are still in the u.s., but may have changed their appearance. tom? >> eva, thank you. now to the hunt for an alleged arsonist. a man baltimore police are calling public enemy number one. he's accused of firebombing a home, igniting a blaze that killed two teenagers and sent young children to the hospital. police say it was a revenge attack. here's maggie rulli. >> reporter: tonight, an urgent manhunt for the arsonist accused of firebombing this apartment. >> we've got a fire showing, third floor. >> reporter: baltimore firefighters arriving on saturday morning to the home engulfed in fast-moving flames. investigators claim the fire set to target someone inside. police say this surveillance video shows the suspect throwing

two molotov cocktails into the building. >> all units approach with caution. children jumping outside. >> reporter: the heat, so intense that one woman leapt from the top floor to escape. she's still in critical condition. two teenagers killed, six others injured, including two small children. >> he didn't care that the kids were in those homes. he just knew that there were people inside that home that he wanted to kill. >> reporter: baltimore police believe they've identified the suspect as antonio wright. now calling him public enemy number one. how dangerous is this man? >> he remains a clear and present danger to our community. >> reporter: the commissioner says evidence shows the arsonist used accelerants to create as much damage as possible. police are still searching for a motive. one possible connection, a nonfatal shooting in this neighborhood a couple of nights ago. the victim of that shooting ran into the apartment that was firebombed. tom? >> maggie, thank you. and now to the wildfire danger from texas to wyoming.

with red flag warnings extending over a wide stretch of the country. sparking massive evacuations in boulder, colorado. sam champion reports. >> possible wildfire. >> reporter: tonight, this wildfire raging outside boulder, colorado. forcing evacuations in the middle of the night. >> a phone call about 2:00 a.m., it was a recording, it was on speaker, we yelled fire and everybody got up and threw everything in our vehicles. scary. very scary. >> reporter: right now, in the danger zone, 1,000 homes. more on standby. in case the fire grows. >> trees are torching, looks like it's running downhill. >> reporter: over 200 firefighters attacking the blaze on the ground. >> a lot of steep, rocky terrain. difficult to get crews into some of those areas. >> reporter: there are also planes and helicopters dousing the flames from the sky to help get the blaze under some kind of control. >> and the firefighters expected to work through the night. sam, welcome back.

you were telling me the conditions are right for wildfires? >> this exact thing could be happening in any of these eight states. take a look at this. these are the areas we've highlighted because of days and days of record temperatures, and humidity levels in the single digits. everything is tinder-box dry. everyone wants to know about spring. this heat actually plays a role in the springlike temperatures we'll see in the next couple of days. spring starting tomorrow morning, just after 6:00 a.m. watch the numbers, by the time we get the heat spreading east, atlanta, 80 degrees by the time we get to tuesday. charleston, 77. the good, or okay news for areas in the northeast, it's not the brutal chill we have now, a little bit milder air. >> sam, thanks so much. heading overseas, we're learning more about the man at the center of a deadly confrontation with soldiers at a paris airport. here's lama hasan.

>> reporter: tonight, new details emerging about the paris airport attacker, who created a scene of chaos and fear. >> all of a sudden, we just heard people running and screaming, it was really scary, i've never been that scared in my life. >> reporter: officials now saying the suspect, ziyed ben belgacem, was radicalized during a 2012 stay in prison. in saturday's assault, he shouted, "i'm here to die for allah," when attacking a female soldier before being gunned down by two fellow officers. [ speaking foreign language ] >> reporter: this witness describing the terror. "we heard two, three, four gunshots, then five. we thought, it's an attack." >> reporter: his father, speaking out, saying his son was not a terrorist, blaming drugs and alcohol for his violent behavior. ever since the deadly terror attacks in 2015, soldiers patrolling in small units like this one were mobilized across the city at major tourist sites and airports, designed act as a layer of protection. but they've also become prime targets. european airports' unsecured

areas now seen as a soft target after the 2016 coordinated attacks in brussels and the gun attack at an airport in turkey. and we're just learning, the autopsy results, that the man had alcohol and drugs in his blood. this, as investigators are still trying to determine his motives. >> lama, thank you. and now to north korea, and the ground test of its new rocket engine. this, as secretary of state rex tillerson was just wrapping up his first trip to asia. here's bob woodruff with more. >> reporter: north korea's increasingly dangerous leader kim jong-un smiled as he watched the firing of the rocket engine himself, calling it a new birth a revolutionary breakthrough for the nation's rocket industry. late today, president trump called out north korea. >> i had meetings on north korea. he's acting very, very badly.

i'll tell you, he's acting very badly. >> reporter: the test coming just as secretary of state tillerson wrapped up his three-country trip to asia, during which he said the u.s. will change its strategy dealing with north korea. >> let me be very clear. the policy of strategic patience has ended. >> reporter: suggesting that preemptive strikes by the u.s. are on the table. >> tensions on the peninsula are quite high right now. things have reached a rather dangerous level. >> reporter: was the test coincidental or on purpose to coincide with secretary tillerson's meeting today with chinese president xi jinpin? kim jong-un has done that before, including when he launched a ballistic missile last month while japan's president abe was meeting president trump at his golf club in florida. as for the new type of engine, if it is what kim jong-un says that it is, it could send his rockets further into space for science, or to launch missiles

closer to his possible targets like the united states. tom? >> bob, thank you. back here at home, we're also following another security scare at the white house. the second in the last 24 hours. secret service reporting a man drove up to a checkpoint last night saying he had a bomb in his trunk. there was no bomb, and he was later arrested. we turn now to the passing of a rock pioneer. chuck berry. he was a hairdresser in 1955 when his first hit took off. he then revolutionized american music. and tonight, so many remembering him. he wrote, played, and helped create that universal language, rock 'n roll. and sometimes he did it on one leg. ♪ in that hit, "roll over beethoven," berry laid out his musical blueprint. he had a rockin' pneumonia and

he needed a shot of rhythm and blues. from the late '50s into the '60s, he dominated jukeboxes and the airwaves. ♪ he influenced so many, including the beatles, the rolling stones, and the beach boys, who berry later won a lawsuit against for stealing one of his songs. but all that fame and talent couldn't keep him out of trouble. he served time in prison, and police once raided his home, finding drugs and videotapes of women using his restaurant's bathroom. still, berry's fans stood by him. ♪ he played for presidents and was one of the first artists inducted into the rock and roll hall of fame. >> dynamite. thank you. >> reporter: and remembered tonight by so many. bruce springsteen tweeting, "chuck berry was rock's greatest practitioner, guitarist, and the

greatest pure rock 'n roll writer who ever lived." but john lennon may have said it best years ago, if you had to give rock 'n roll another name, you might call it chuck berry. chuck berry was 90 years old. there's still much more ahead on "world news tonight." we'll take you inside a wild rescue. did this all start with road rage? plus, the new scam that is terrifying parents. a caller saying your child is kidnapped. what to do if you get that call. and it's bound to become a meme. the story behind this viral video, coming up. fun in art class. come close, come close. ah. when your pain reliever stops working, your whole day stops. awww. try this. for minor arthritis pain, only aleve is fda approved to work for up to 12 straight hours with just one pill. thank you.

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about the new twist on a terrifying kidnapping scam. >> i just froze. my eyes started tearing up. >> reporter: 16-year-old reilly ferguson says she got a call from a con artist, claiming to be a paramedic. >> they had a young male who was in a fatal car accident and could not be identified. >> reporter: panicked, she described her brother, telling the scammer his name, the kind of car he drove, and shared her father's name and phone number. then her dad got the call. the scammer using those personal details he'd just conned out of reilly to convince don ferguson his son was being held hostage and demanding money. >> he told me if i dropped this call that he was gonna kill my son. >> reporter: the fbi says these virtual kidnappings are happening across the country with alarming frequency. and ferguson was suspicious, immediately calling his son's cell phone and learning he was in fact safe. a great tactic, according to experts. who also say, if you get a call like that, be sure to ask

detailed questions. >> give him a question only the person can know, and if they can't come back with that answer, you know it's a hoax. >> reporter: scammers also use social media to get details. one more reason to limit how much personal information you post. tom? >> marci, thank you. still ahead, it sounds like something out of the jetsons. imagine taking a drone home. where this is actually happening, coming up. plus, where this pastor found a 700-carat diamond. stay with us. plus, where this pastor found a 700-carat diamond. coming up. kevin kevin kevin kevin kevin trusted advice for life. kevin, how's your mom? life well planned. see what a raymond james

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destination. it travels at about 60 miles an hour. and has a 30-minute battery. pretty cool. and, an incredible discovery and act of generosity. a pastor in sierra leone finding an uncut 706-carat diamond. worth millions. the pastor giving the diamond to the government to help his nation. and finally, the story behind the ncaa tournament video sweeping the internet. you may have seen this. a northwestern fan crying at a key play as his team tried to mount a second-half comeback. the referees blowing a goaltending call, helping to stop that comeback. the kid was actually right. the ncaa admitting goaltending should have been called. up next, an iconic moment from hurricane katrina. do you remember this photo? a little girl and her hero. tonight, their reunion, nearly 12 years later. stay with us. tonight, their reunion, nearly 12 years later. stay with us.

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finally tonight, this image brought a bit of joy to the devastation of hurricane katrina. a little girl hugging the airman who rescued her. nearly 12 years later, he's at her side again. here's john donvan. >> reporter: there was the disaster, and then, there was the rescue. the airman and the little girl. a hug, and a smile. the chance encounter that lifted us all. africa tree -- after airman mike maroney was deployed and said the photo lifted him up in bad times. >> not sure what planet i was on. i was just in that hug. >> reporter: in 2015, mike set out to find the girl he saved. he didn't even know her name.

her name is lashay brown and they found each other on the real tv show. she'd changed a lot more than he had and he wanted her to know something about who saved whom. >> you rescued me more than i rescued you. >> reporter: mike's become a true friend to lashay, who's been inspired to join the military, starting with her high school's junior rotc program. where, at this weekend's big banquet, mike, now the one who looks different, came along as her guest. he's retiring soon from the air force, but still helping lashay figure out her future. that's what can happen when a chance encounter becomes a story with chapters yet to be written. john donvan, abc news. >> we thank john for that report. and we thank you for watching. i'll see you right back here tomorrow night. i'm tom llamas. have a great evening. good night.

some good news may be on its way. hopefully you enjoyed a beautiful weekend because the rain is returning. abc7 news at 6:00 starts now. a show of solidarity here in the bay area has hundreds join hands to stand up for muslim americans. good evening and thanks for joining us. the event is called move from fear to friendship. abc7 news reporter lillian kim is live at the muslim community association. lillian? >> reporter: this has been done

before, last year in woodland and fremont but the people that came here today say it's more important to show solidarity now more than ever before with muslims feeling like they are under attack from the trump administration and his supporters, and they say it's time again to define who they are instead of critics defining them. they asked faith-based and nonfaith-based groups to come here and join hands with them and hundreds eagerly accepted the invitation, and they surround the very large building that houses a mosque and community center. >> i am going to cry. i just feel as if we need to be building bridges and the atmosphere in the country is so dangerous right now. >> even though we might have different ideas or different thoughts, we are still different people in the end and we still need to get toghe