marci gonzalez takes us behind the story of the podcast. >> reporter: it is the chilling tale of miblindn would kill me to try to get the money. the papers show that he has numerous things, numerous social security numbers. >> reporter: a handsome, volatile con man. >> he said i was a whore and bitch and i was going to pay for what i did. >> reporter: and a woman who fell for him. >> he got in my car, started it and set it on fire. >> reporter: setting in motion a chain of events with deadly consequences. dirty john tells the story of john meehan, a master of deception who charmed and tormented his unsuspecting victims, women like debra newell. what do you think when people hear your story and think how did you let this happen? >> i tell them you weren't in my shoes. >> reporter: millions listen to the podcast which has been adapted into a hit scripted bravo show. and now a new documentary from oxygen. in 2014, debra had a successful interior design business, beautiful children and everything that money could buy here on the coast of orange county, california. >> i decided i had it all e

here is abc's marci gonzalez. >> reporter: police near houston searching for the driver of the truck seen in this surveillance photo. they say opened fire into a family's car, killing this 7-year-old girl. >> he took away an innocent child. she did not deserve this at all. >> reporter: laporsha washington says she was driving to a grocery store with her four daughters sunday morning when out of nowhere that truck pulled up next to them. >> i heard shots start firing, and they came through my window, broke my glass, hit me in my arm. and the truck slowed down and continued to fire as he was in front of us. >> reporter: her children horrified, realizing a bullet hit their sister, jazmine barnes. >> she say mama, jazmine's not moving, she is not talking. i turned around, and my 7-year-old was shot in the head. >> reporter: investigators now looking for this red or maroon four-door pickup and the driver they describe as white, in his 40s with a beard. they say he was wearing a red hoodie. >> we want to seek justice for jazmine, and bring this killer to justice and get him off the street.

abc's marci gonzalez is on the story from our los angeles bureau with more. rci, good morning. >> reporter: hi, guys. good morning. witnesses are describing a chaotic scene after gunfire broke out at that bowling alley. >> this is an active shooter situation. we have multiple subjects down inside and outside gable house. >> reporter: overnight police racing to the scene after calls of shots fire at the gable house bowl in torrance 20 miles south of los angeles. authorities saying just before midnight a verbal fight broke out between a group of women. it turned physical with others getting involved. moments later gunshots. >> so, as they were fighting and the guys got into the fight and people were up and down, probably not even a good minute later we heard gunshots, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop. >> reporter: the scuffle sending terrified customers running for cover. >> i seen people running and i heard gunshots and i tried to get down and my daughter is right there. my niece is right there. i told everybody to get down. >> reporter: police and ems rushing in to hel

marci gonzalez, abc news, los angeles. >>> two men involved in a dramatic case of road rage near bostonue in court today. authorities say the men got into a minor accident and started arguing. richard to that suv's hood for nearly three miles. it only ended when a man held a gun at the driver just as officers arrived. kamrowski is being charged with disorderly conduct. >> he kept going fast, slow, fast, slow. trying to get me to slide off. i wasn't getting off the car. i just kept telling him, stop the car, stop the car. he wouldn't stop. >> just incredible. the driver is facing multiple charges including assault with a dangerous weapon. >>> in medical news, an area considered to be one of the nation's anti-vaccination hot spots is battling a growing measles outbreak. a state of emergency declared in washington state where 35 case of the infection are now confirmed. 34 are in clark county, which including vancouver. most of the patients are under 18 and were not immunized. warnings have been issued in neighboring oregon and idaho. >>> in sports, what's worse than playing a football game

abc's marci gonzalez has new details. >> reporter: investigators in texas releasing this new surveillancered truck they say was driven by the gunman who killed 7-year-old jazmine barnes. >> we're not going to stop looking for you, and it'll be so much easier for everybody if you would just turn yourself in. >> reporter: jazmine's mother laporsha washington says was driving to a grocery store in west houston with her four daughters when the truck pulled up next to them. the driver started shooting. >> hello. >> reporter: killing jazmine and killing her mother. >> he intentionally killed my child for no reason. >> reporter: washington now home from the hospital says the shooting was unprovoked. she believes it was a hate crime. her children watching their sister die, one of them left shell-shocked. >> she hasn't dropped a tear and it scares me. it scares me because i don't know what's going on in her head. >> reporter: the family describes the suspect as a skinny white man with blue eyes and a black hoodie. police say they believe he's in his 40s with a beard. they're now looking into wheth

marci gonzalez joins us with more on this crazy case. marci. >> reporter: that's right.orities taking suspects into custody on two continents. but police say they are still are are his captors again. investigators tracking down the . >>> investigators tracking down the accused ring leader in spain, arresting him, his mother and girlfriend. taking nine accused co-spire tors in central america, including vegas's grandmother who lives in this house where investigators believe creighton was being held. >> the biggest question from this takedown operation is where is creighton and why did the kidnappers take him? was it just for a ransom payment or something more to this kidnapping? >> reporter: with all of the digging in that basement and in the yard of that home, they still have not found any evidence there. we spoke with creighton's family this weekend and they are hopeful he could still be alive. >> just a strange case. marci gonzalez in los angeles for us, thanks so much. >>> let's transition to rob marciano. a check of the forecast. i'm surprised you're not out in the s

abc's marci gonzalez joins us live with more. marci. >> reporter: whit, good morning. those two kids, one in middle school, the other in elementary school, were the only ones on board the bus with the driver heading home at the end of the school day when they were hit. the images from the scene as horrifying as the outcome. >> the athens fire department is requesting assistance on a train accident involving a bus. >> reporter: a train colliding with a school bus killing one student and badly injuring another. >> our hearts are broken for the families and everyone involved. >> reporter: the accident friday afternoon in athens, texas, about 70 miles from dallas happening as police say the bus drove over tracks in an area with no way of alerting drivers of an oncoming train. >> there are no warning lights there. there were only the cross buck signs in place. there were no arms, there were no bells. >> reporter: the impact pushing the bus a quarter of a mile down the tracks. first responders at the scene within three minutes finding a 13-year-old boy dead, a 9-year-old gir

with your gma first look, i'm marci gonzalez, abc news, los angeles. >>> same news anchor, tom brokaw is apologizing for comments he made on "meet the press." >> the comments about hispanics came in discussions about the proposed border wall. >> i believe the hispanics should work harder at assimilation. i've been saying that for a long time. they ought not to be codified in their communities, but make sure that all their kids are learning to speak english and they feel comfortable in the communities. that's going to take out -- on both sides, frankly. >> in a series of tweets, he apologized and says he feels terrible he offended people. >>> next, the seven things you need to know as you start your day. >>> oatthey're tually kind ofight? extraordinary. see, oats contain a soluble fiber called beta-glucan. beta what? stay with me here. this is where it gets interesting. this fiber really doesn't like cholesterol. so it traps some of the bad cholterol and shows it a thing or two. making quaker oats a delicious part of a heart-healthy diet. high five, fiber! essentially enriched body lot

." >> abc's marci gonzalez is in los angeles with the plea they are making to their loved one on the n. marci, good morning. >> reporter: hi, guys. good morning. they say they have no idea where she is and say they haven't been able to reach her, hoping she will see this interview and come forward. this morning, the driver accused of killing a las vegas nail technician still on the run. the suspect's family speaking exclusively to abc pleading with her to turn herself in. >> you can't run, baby. you cannot run. you have to come forward, baby. >> reporter: police releasing this old booking photo of the suspect, 21-year-old krystal whipple, who they say plowed into 51-year-old knock nguyen while trying to leave the salon without paying for her $35 manicure. >> our mom was loved by the community here. it's very traumatizing. >> reporter: authorities say her cred cart was declined at the salon. surveillance shows her walking to her car, telling the employee she was going to get cash. instead, police say she starts the engine. nguyen, running in front of the black camaro to stop it from le

abc's marci gonzalez is on the story from our l.a. bureau.ing to you. >> reporter: good morning. police aren't saying what they think possibly could have happened to the 22-year-old but now multiple agencies are working around the clock to find her. this morning, the family of this missing mother of four pleading on facebook for her safe return. >> this person is someone's daughter, someone's mother, someone's sister. if you know anything, we beg you, come forward. >> reporter: savannah spurlock, last seen two weeks ago, leaving a bar in richmond, kentucky, with three men. shortly after these surveillan images were taken, spurlock's mother, ellen said her daughter facetimed her saying she would be home by the morning. >> she was in the car with a guy driving and at least one guy and a girl in the back because those people in the backseat were hollering at me. >> reporter: the 22-year-old hasn't been heard from since. her cell phone now going straight to voicemail. the men police say savannah was with that night, questioned and released. no su

here's abc's marci gonzalez. >> reporter: tonight, the death toll from this massive explosion in mexico rising. at least 66 people dead, another 76 injured, after authorities say criminals ruptured a fuel line which then ignited, sending flames shooting dozens of feet into the air. a crowd of people from a neighboring village seen here just before collecting gasoline among the victims. this man saying they were young people who didn't realize the risks. the fire in a small town about 60 miles north of mexico city burning for hours. ambulances and fire trucks rushing to the scene. families now desperately waiting for word on their loved ones. this woman says her brother was there looking for gasoline when the explosion happened, but no one knows if he made it out. fuel theft, a major issue in mexico. the country's new president promising to increase his crackdown on the illegal $3 billion a year industry, and tonight sending his condolences to grieving families. many of the injured remain in critical condition, and we've learned a 12-year-old boy is among those being treated tonight. tom

here's marci gonzalez. >> reporter: tonight, police in delphi, indiana, looking into a possible new development in the cold case murder of two teenage girls. 13-year-old abby williams and 14-year-old libby german, killed on a hiking trail in february, 2017. libby recording their attacker's voice. >> down the hill. down the hill. >> reporter: and snapping this photo of a man police call a person of interest. but their killer still hasn't been found. now, investigators say they're looking into whether this man, arrested in a sting this month more than 100 miles away on suspicion of child molestation, could be connected. the sheriff's department there saying charles andrew eldridge admitted to multiple sex acts with a minor. the public calling in tips, flagging what they say is a strong similarity between his mugshot and this sketch of the killer. >> the reality is, law enforcement, even if they think he's the right guy, what evidence do they have to prove that he is the right guy? >> reporter: indiana state police saying, "many similar tips and arrests of other persons alleged to be connected to

here's abc's marci gonzalez. >> reporter: tonight, police near houston searching for the driver of the truck seen in this surveillance photo, they say opened fire into a family's car, killing this 7-year-old girl. >> he took away an innocent child. she did not deserve this at all. >> reporter: laporsha washington says she was driving to a grocery store with her four daughters sunday morning, when out of nowhere, that truck pulled up next to them. >> i heard shots start firing and they came through my window, broke my glass, hit me in my arm. and the truck slowed down and continued to fire as he was in front of us. >> reporter: her children horrified, realizing a bullet hit their sister, jazmine barnes. >> she said, "mama, jazmine's not moving. she's not talking."und an-old w. >> reporter: investigators now looking for this red or maroon four-door pickup, and the driver they describe as white, in his 40s, with a beard. they say he was wearing a red hoodie. >> we want to seek justice for jazmine and bring this killer to justice and get him off the street. >> reporter: jazmine's mother sa

here's abc's marci gonzalez. >> reporter: tonight, doctors warning about extreme injuries caused by those trendy motorized scooters growing in popularity across the country. >> they don't understand the speed and the potential danger with that speed. >> reporter: a new study published this week tallying electric scooter injuries from two california emergency rooms. finding 249 people hurt in one year alone. 91% were riders, not pedestrians. and most injured riders, 95%, were not wearing a helmet. >> anybody who gets on a scooter going 15 miles an hour should definitely wear a helmet to protect their brain. >> reporter: kelly mitchum on her first electric scooter ride in dallas, sent flying over the handle wars and landing face first. >> when you hit the cement at 17 mph, it hurts. >> reporter: pat brogan riding a scooter downhill in san diego when she says the brakes wouldn't work. her crash leaving her cut and bruised, sending her to the hospital for surgery on her broken hand. >> i thought i was going to die. >> reporter: multiple cities across the country now banning electric scooters,

here's marci gonzalez. >> reporter: tonight, the family of this 5-year-old girl, sharing a warning about social media identity thieves. maya was born premature, diagnosed with cerebral palsy. her first steps airing here on "world news tonight." >> i'm walking! yes! >> reporter: but now, her family says they're in an almost daily battle against scammers, using photos and videos from her instagram page, creating new, fictitious accounts. >> they're trying to scam people by saying this is their daughter, she's ill, and they need money for treatment. >> reporter: she says she filed a police report and notified instagram multiple times. instagram says they disabled a number of accounts, and blocked them from creating new instagram accounts. for weeks, with each deactivated account, a new one would pop up. one threatening to only stop creating new accounts using maya's likeness if she paid $30,000. >> it's a pretty sickening feeling to see that as a parent. instagram and facebook have been a wonderful platform for us to share our story. i would hate to see it ruined by not being taken care of

marci gonzalez, abc news, malibu, california. >> the west coast hoping to catch a break before the next>> the storm system is still hanging over california, oregon and washington. >> accuweather's paul williams has the detailed forecast. good morning, paul. >> good morning, ryan, emily. we're looking at widespread rain from seattle, portland down towards medford and snow showers as you move further inland. look for that to reach down towards san francisco and then transition into snow showers as you move further inland. now, also be mindful we're looking for one mess of a storm along the mississippi valley region around the great lakes region in the form of snow, a mix as well as rain leaning towards the northeast. big-time cold air in place that's going to punch its way through and that is going to combine with that moisture giving us 3 to 6 inches of snow, ryan, emily. >> turning now to the government shutdown now in its third week with hundreds of thousands of federal employees working without pay. now, there's been an uptick in the number of tsa workers calling out leading to longer

marci gonzalez, abc news, los angeles. >> good tip there from marci. and this original story about maya just so sweet, just inspiring as well just to see her steps there and then the ugly side on social media with those scammers. those folks who are god knows where, who are literally behind the keyboard trying to steal her likeness. >> and a couple other steps to try to protect your identity on social media like marci said keep your information private. don't tag or post your specific location. know your friends and connections and always log out of social media accounts after you've used them. >> yep, strong passwords, not password 123. that's not a strong password. >>> coming up, why you should pass up that box of cereal for your breakfast this morning. >> we have something else in mind on this national blueberry pancake day. you're watching "world news now." actually, you do. harmful bacteria lurk just below the gum line. new crest gum detoxify works below the gum line to neutralize harmful plaque bacteria and help reverse early gum damage. gum deto

here's marci gonzalez. >> reporter: tonight, the emotional, desperate search for this missing mother. >> i just want her to come home. i just want to know she's okay. i don't understand what's going on. >> reporter: emily wade, disappearing after going to a co-worker's house last saturday to watch a movie. a friend there telling police, the 38-year-old waitress drove away around 8:30 that night in a 2012 silver nissan altima like this one with a kentucky license plate. emily hasn't been heard from since. her family baffled, saying her bank account and cell phone haven't been used. >> i know she would never run away or run away from her daughter or mother or us. and i'm honestly kind of at a loss at this point. >> reporter: her 7-year-old daughter confused and heartbroken. >> she needs her mommy so much and she just wants her home. >> reporter: as her family passes out flyers, joining the ennis police department in pleading for the public's help. >> somebody please help us bring her home safe. >> reporter: investigators say they're working several leads right now. they're urging anyon

abc's marci gonzalez has the details. >> reporter: multiple raids on two continents, as the mystery deepens tonight over the disappearance of an american businessman in costa rica. police there, and in spain, breaking down and ripping off doors. seizing cash and credit cards. arresting a dozen people overnight, all in connection to the kidnapping of sean creighton. the 43-year-old was living in costa rica with his wife and two children, when investigators say he was pulled over by police on september 24th. but authorities now saying those two officers were in on the scheme, working with four others who immediately pulled creighton into a truck and disappeared. investigators say the kidnappers crashed creighton's porsche into a wall to stage an accident. later, demanding ransom from his family. >> translator: they demanded a very large ransom, around $5 million. later, it was reduced until it reached around $1 million that was paid with the virtual money bitcoin. >> reporter: after that payment, the family says they never heard from creighton or his captors again. police say they still have

marci gonzalez starts us off in malibu. >> reporter: tonight, that powerful storm still creating havoc from california to washington. this video taken near seattle capturing this power line being blown by the strong winds, sparking and catching fire. in northern california, heavy snow and whiteout conditions closing down i-80 for hours. backing up traffic for miles. drivers like this one, forced to pull over and chain up. in san francisco, high tides and gusts up to 70 miles per hour, sending waves crashing over the sea wall into san francisco bay. flooding this popular pier. in southern california, multiple funnel clouds reported. this one spotted spinning off the coast of long beach. torrential rain triggering this mudslide on the pacific coast highway near malibu, shutting it down in both directions. car after car stuck. crews using bulldozers to clear the debris. tonight, more than 166,000 customers still without power. down from 246,000 at the height of the storm. with millions now bracing for round two slated to hit this week. >> marci, the devastation from the earlier wildfires

here's marcy gonzalez with the new details. >> reporter: police say this is the man they believe raped patient he was supposed to be caring for at this phoenix nursing facility. staff saying they didn't realize the victim who'd been in a vegetative state for 14 years was pregnant until she gave birth december 29th. >> what's the emergency? >> someone just had a baby. one of our patients just had a baby and we had no idea she was pregnant. >> reporter: police say their investigation led them to 36-year-old nathan sutherland, a nurse at the facility, now charged with sexual assault and vulnerable adult abuse after investigators say they learned his dna and the baby's are a match. >> we owed this arrest to the victim. we owed this arrest to the newest member of our community, that innocent baby. >> reporter: hacienda health care says sutherland has now been fired adding every member of the organization is troubled beyond words to think that a licensed practical nurse could be capable of seriously harming a patient. once again, we offer an apology and send our deepest sympathies to the cli

abc's marcy gonzalez takes us through the story behind the hit podcast. >> it is the chilling tale ofry to get the money because i married him. >> and the lies. >> the paper shows john has numerous names and numerous social security numbers. >> a hand some volatile con man. >> and he said i was a who are and bitch and i would pay for what i did. >> and the woman who fell for him. >> he got in my car, started it and set it on fire. >> setting in motion a chain of events with deadly consequences. >> at that point i realized, i'm his latest victim. >> dirty john tells the story of john meehan, a master of deception who charmed and tormented his unsuspecting victims, women like deborah newel. >> what do you think of people who hear your story and think how did you let this happen. >> i tell them you weren't in my shoes. >> millions listen to the popular los angeles times podcast. >> is there something about john's past he's trying to hide. >> which was drafted in a scripted show starring connie britton and eric banna. and now a new documentary from oxygen. in 2014 deborah had a successful

abc's marci gonzalez is live with the latest. marci, good morning. >> reporter: guys, good morning. those threats made against police in general as well as an unsuspecting officer seen driving in one of those videos. investigators say they are taking these threats very seriously. this morning, chicago police searching for the men in these viral videos threatening to shoot police. >> we're going to kill them. >> reporter: the videos reposted on a police support facebook page called chicago code blue. the first now has 1.4 million views. in it, the two men flash guns and make repeated threats about the officer in the suv next to them. >> i'm going to shoot this [muted] in public. >> reporter: in the second post, one of the men denies that was him in the initial video. >> that video fake. whoever made that, i'm going to kill y'all. >> reporter: and makes more threats against law enforcement. >> if it look like they going to do anything to me i'm going to shoot. >> reporter: police say their social media team discovered the videos almost instantly and shared them internally with all off

abc news reporter marcie gonzalez has the latest. >> witnesses transcribe a chaotic scene after gunfire broke out at the bowling alley. police responded to the gablehouse bowl before midnight in torrens, about 20 miles south of loseswitnesse say a v fight ng whots rang out. terrified customers say they just ran for cover. >> as they were fighting and then the guys got into the fight and people were up and down, then probably not a good minute later we heard gunshots, pop, pop, pop, pop. >> i seen people running heard gunshots and tried to get down my daughter and niece is there. i told everybody get down. >> everyone just started running for in re lives for the cars and took off started running. >> all available units. all available units down at gablehouse for crowd control. >> and we're told the bowling alley has security guards but unarmed. three people killed, four injured. police are not saying whether the suspect is among them or whether that person is in custody. marcie gonlds, abc news, los angeles. >>> here in the bay area oakland police are investigating a shooting that left t

bnb vacaoner found them in the apartment he boo marci gonzalez is here with tips on how to spot them . this is really alarming. our security expert says the technology is just so advanced now. these cameras could be placed anywhere. he walks us through where to look and how to spot something out of place like this guy did. an unsettling discovery inside this airbnb. max vest checking into this miami apartment, finding these small black boxes plugged in and growing suspicious. >> i wasn't sure what they were. i unplugged them. i looked them up and found out they were hidden cameras. >> reporter: vest finding memory cards inside those cameras taking them to miami police who now say they are trying to identify people seen in recordings on those cards. >> you want to see are there items in a room, a property, that shouldn't be there? >> reporter: former fbi special agent steve gomez says when you arrive at a hotel or rental property, immediately do a quick check. >> check every closet, every room, every nook and crannie to see what is inside because you want to know what is in here if i'm