9 years after Pulse massacre, survivors revisit nightclub before building is demolished
Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
(ORLANDO, Fla.) — The Orlando, Florida, community on Thursday evening is set to honor the 49 victims who were gunned down at the Pulse nightclub on June 12, 2016.
It was the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history at the time, though it was surpassed by the Las Vegas attack the following year.
The ninth anniversary of the attack comes as groups of victims and survivors this week visit Pulse — once a popular gay nightclub — for the last time before the building is razed so that the city can build a permanent memorial in its place. All of the furniture and the dance floor inside the building have been moved and the walls were painted black.
City of Orlando Outreach and Engagement Coordinator Donna Wyche told ABC affiliate in Orlando, WFTV, that the families of victims and survivors expressed that they wanted to visit the building before it is demolished.
“They’ve said very clearly we want to see it for one last time before it’s gone. We want to be in that sacred place one more time where our loved ones take their last breath,” Wyche said. “It’s part of the journey of grief.”
Pulse nightclub shooting survivor Joshua Hernandez told WFTV on Wednesday that he needs to go inside the nightclub so he can heal.
“It’s going to feel horrible because I was in the restroom for three hours. So when I go to the restroom, it’s going to be very, very sad for me,” Hernandez, who was held hostage in the bathroom during the shooting, said.
“I’m not ready yet. It’s hard. It’s hurt me. I’m gonna be — come out stronger. I’m gonna be stronger to do this, it’s time to close the chapter of my life,” he added.
Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, who has been in office since 2003, also did a walk through of the building on Wednesday and reflected on the 2016 massacre.
“It took me back nine years and reflecting on being in the command center on Orange Avenue as all the things are transpiring then,” Dyer told WFTV. “The realization of just how many people were impacted. I came out the second time and told everybody, it’s not 20, it’s 49 victims.”
Family and friends of the victims, as well as survivors and advocates for the LGBTQ+ community, are set to gather at First United Methodist Church in downtown Orlando at 5:30 p.m. local time for a remembrance ceremony. Rick Scott, who was Florida’s governor in 2016, declared June 12 Pulse Remembrance Day in Florida in 2018.
The City of Orlando purchased the Pulse nightclub site in October 2023 and committed to building a permanent memorial. Now, the city said plans are moving forward.
In March, the city of Orlando issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) to solicit a design-build firm for the permanent PulseMemorial, following the advancement of a conceptual design in February.
Proposals were submitted by May 29 — the conceptual design includes a survivor’s tribute wall, a reflection pool, a hearing garden and a private gathering space for reflection, according to the city. The memorial is slated to be complete by 2027, it noted.
(NEW YORK) — A hotel security guard on Tuesday told the jury in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ sex-trafficking and racketeering trial that the rap mogul paid him $100,000 in an attempt to secure his silence and bury a video that is now the central piece of evidence in the criminal case that threatens to send him to prison for life.
In the video captured in 2016 by security cameras at the Intercontinental Hotel in Los Angeles — and shown to the jury during the testimony of three different witnesses — Combs is seen kicking and dragging his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura. Ventura, a musician who testified as the government’s star witness, said she was trying to escape Combs and one of his drug-fueled orgies, called “freak-offs.”
“When I chose to leave, I grabbed what I could and I got out,” Ventura testified during the second week of the trial. “Sean followed me into the hallway before the elevators and grabbed me up, threw me on the ground, kicked me, [and] tried to drag me back to the room.”
Combs has pleaded not guilty to the charges in the case. His lawyers have said that Combs takes “full responsibility” for the domestic violence captured in the video but argue that the rap mogul has not committed the sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and prostitution alleged by federal prosecutors.
Hotel security guard Eddy Garcia testified Tuesday that Combs frantically worked to make sure the CCTV video never saw the light of day, paying $100,000 to obtain what Combs thought was the only copy of the recording.
“He was concerned this video would get out and it would ruin his career,” Garcia testified. According to Garcia, Combs promised “he would take care of me” and ended up paying $100,000 in cash to the man he later referred to as “Eddy my angel.”
When the video was obtained by CNN last year, the condemnation was swift and led to Combs offering a public apology, saying he was “truly sorry” for his conduct and that he “sought professional help” after the incident.
Prosecutors have argued that Combs’ $100,000 payment to Garcia was a bribe and one of the underlying crimes at the heart of their allegation that the hip-hop superstar is guilty of racketeering conspiracy. They allege that Combs realized the episode could reveal years of criminal conduct and might pull back the curtain on how the mogul used his business empire to coerce women into sex, threaten them into silence, and protect his public reputation.
The trial is set to resume Wednesday when three more witnesses are expected to take the stand.
Frank Piazza, a video expert, is expected to be the first witness followed by Bryana Bongolan, who has alleged Combs threatened to kill her by dangling her over a balcony in the presence of Ventura. Bongolan made similar allegations in a civil case, which Combs has denied.
A woman being called “Jane” is expected to take the stand on Wednesday afternoon and to testify for as long as five days, according to prosecutors. Jane is expected to be the third and final alleged victim to testify against Combs.
Security guard testifies about Combs’ alleged effort to bury assault video
Garcia testified Tuesday that he heard about the assault shortly after he clocked in for his shift at the InterContinental Hotel on March 5, 2016. Garcia told the jury he understood law enforcement was not contacted at the time because Ventura did not request medical or police attention.
About an hour into his shift, Garcia explained to jurors that he got an unexpected call on his work phone from Combs’ assistant Kristina Khorram, who requested a copy of the security video. Despite telling her she would need to contact hotel management or get a subpoena to view the footage, Garcia testified Khorram arrived in the hotel lobby an hour later to watch the recording.
“She was asking about the video and if there was any way she could see it,” he said. “She wanted to know what they were dealing with.”
Garcia said he apologized and said he could not show it to her, though he testified he warned her, “Off the record: it’s bad.”
That evening, Garcia testified he once again received a call on his personal cell from Khorram. He told the jury within seconds, a noticeably “nervous” Combs came on the other end of the line, trying to explain his actions.
“He asked me if I knew who he was. I said yes,” Garcia said. “Mr. Combs sounded very nervous. Just was talking really fast. Was just saying that he had a little too much to drink and that I knew how things was with women when one thing led to another.”
Garcia testified, “He stated that I sounded like a good guy, that I sounded like I wanted to help, that something like this could ruin him. He was concerned this video would get out and it would ruin his career.”
He said he also remembered Combs telling him, “he would take care of me.” After Garcia informed Combs that he would accept $100,000 in exchange for the video, Garcia testified that Combs “sounded excited” and “referred to me as ‘Eddy my angel.'”
“He wanted the video as soon as possible,” Garcia told the court. He explained he was then given an address about a 20-minute drive from the InterContinental Hotel, where he was to make the trade.
Security guard recounts getting $100,000 in cash from Combs
Once he got to the designated location with a thumb drive containing what he said was the only copy of the video, Garcia told the court that someone who introduced himself as Combs’ bodyguard brought him up to an apartment. He testified he recalled seeing Combs “smiling, excited” and looking happy.
“Eddy my angel, he was smiling. He said ‘come in,’ making me feel comfortable,” Garcia testified Combs told him, adding that Combs instructed Khorram to make him a cup of tea.
After Garcia assured Combs the drive had the only copy of the video, the rap mogul allegedly contacted Ventura on FaceTime so she could communicate that she, too, wanted the video to go away.
She was wearing a hoodie, and the lighting wasn’t that great,” Garcia said of Ventura. “Before he passed the phone over to me he said, ‘Let him know that you want this to go away too.'”
“And how did Cassie respond?” prosecutor Mitzi Steiner asked.
“When I got passed the phone, I said, ‘Hi’, she said ‘Hi’ and she said she had a movie coming out and it wasn’t a good time for this to come out and she wanted it to go away,” Garcia responded.
Garcia told jurors that Combs demanded he sign a nondisclosure agreement, agree to a certification that there was only one copy of the video, and hand over his ID as well as the identifications of his supervisor and coworker. Garcia then testified Combs left the room and returned with a brown bag and a money counter, which Combs fed “stacks of $10,000 at a time.”
“In total, at the end it was $100,000,” he testified.
Garcia testified Combs and a bodyguard then accompanied him out of the suite and walked him to the valet where his car was parked.
“He asked me how I would spend the money, and I said I didn’t know,” Garcia testified. “He said not to make any big purchases.”
A few weeks later, Garcia testified he received a message from Combs. “Happy Easter, Eddy my angel. God is good,” Garcia remembered the message, saying Combs “proceeded to ask if anyone had asked about the video.” He said he had heard nothing.
Jury sees alleged paper trail of 2011 extortion payment
Following Garcia’s testimony about accepting a $100,000 payment from Combs, prosecutors called Combs’ longtime employee Derek Ferguson to drill down into the financial structure of Combs’ business empire. Prosecutors have argued that Combs’ companies doubled as a criminal enterprise that allowed the rap mogul to commit crimes for years with few repercussions.
Ferguson, who worked as the chief financial officer for Bad Boy Entertainment for 12 years, walked the jury through Combs’ bank accounts, financial arrangements, how the businesses managed cash and how employees were reimbursed for expenses charged to their corporate cards. Several of Combs’ personal assistants testified about being tasked with purchasing supplies for freak-offs, including gallons of baby oil, sexual lubricant, drugs and alcohol.
Jurors also saw documents showing a series of wire transfers in 2011 to and from Cassie Ventura’s mother. While Ferguson said he did not know the reason for the $20,000 payment, jurors last month heard directly from Regina Ventura, who testified that she and her husband took out a home equity loan to fund the payment. She testified Combs demanded to “recoup” money he had spent on Cassie Ventura “because he was angry that she had a relationship with Scott Mescudi.” Mescudi is also a well-known rapper, performing under the name Kid Cudi.
The jury saw a Dec. 14 transfer from an account set up to manage Combs’ home in Alpine, New Jersey, to Cassie Ventura for $20,000. On Dec. 23, the same account took in $20,000 from Ventura’s father. Four days later, on Dec. 27, the account transferred $20,000 for “return of funds.”
Regina Ventura testified that she decided to send the money because she feared for her daughter’s safety after Combs threatened to release explicit videos of her. Combs ultimately returned the money, she said.
During his cross examination, Combs’ attorney Marc Agnifilo tried to use Ferguson’s 19 years of experience working with Combs to cast doubt on the way the prosecutors have described Combs’ business empire. .
“Did you see anyone help Sean Combs commit crimes?” Agnifilo asked.
“No,” Ferguson answered.
“Did you see anyone help Sean Combs commit acts of violence?” Agnifilo asked.
“No,” Ferguson replied
“Did you see anyone make the company stronger through threats of violence?”
The booking photo for Vanessa Esquivel. Frisco Police Department
(FRISCO, Texas) — A Texas mother has been arrested for murder after her 15-month-old was left in a hot car for over two hours and died, police said.
Police said 27-year-old Vanessa Esquivel “intentionally” left the child in a vehicle while at work on Aug. 16 in Frisco.
“At that time, detectives believe Esquivel intentionally left her 15-month-old child for over two hours in a vehicle she knew did not have working air conditioning with an outside temperature of at least 95 degrees,” the Frisco Police Department said in a press release Thursday announcing the arrest.
Frisco police officers responded to a hospital in Plano on Aug. 16, after local police alerted them to an infant death that likely occurred in Frisco.
Officers learned that the child had been left in a car for over two hours, after the child’s mother arrived at her workplace in Frisco around 2 p.m. that day, police said.
Detectives obtained a warrant for Esquivel’s arrest for first-degree murder, and Dallas police arrested her on Aug. 20, police said. She has since been booked into the Collin County Jail, where she remains held on $250,000 bond, online jail records show.
If convicted, Esquivel faces between five years and up to life in prison, police said. It is unclear if she has an attorney at this time.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
(ATLANTA) — After a gunman opened fire on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) campus in Atlanta last week — forcing hundreds into lockdown, hitting six buildings and killing a police officer — authorities found he’d been harboring years-long grievances with the COVID-19 vaccine.
Patrick White’s neighbors told ABC News that the 30-year-old believed he suffered negative health effects after he got the vaccine, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) found written documents at his home indicating that he wanted to make his discontent known. He died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound during last Friday’s incident.
For many CDC employees, the shooting was the culmination of long-held fears that years of simmering anger and division that grew from those who disagreed with COVID-19 pandemic policies might turn to violence against the CDC, putting public health workers in physical danger.
“I think the environment has been set up for something like this to happen,” Jessica Rogers-Brown, a CDC epidemiologist who has worked in multiple centers across the agency over the past seven years, told ABC News. “But this is far worse than I feared.”
Rogers-Brown, who works at one of the buildings that was struck by gunfire, emphasized that she was speaking in her personal capacity, not in her professional role or on behalf of CDC.
For Rogers-Brown and some of her colleagues, that fear has turned to frustration with government leaders — including President Donald Trump — over the last week.
They feel the shooting has slipped into the background without even a public statement from the president about the attack on federal property or a sufficient denouncement from Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who oversees the CDC and has peddled vaccine skepticism throughout his career.
Earlier in this week, when Rogers-Brown went to pick up equipment that would allow her to continue to work from home while shattered windows and broken doors are replaced on CDC’s campus, she walked past bullet holes.
She said she won’t feel safe returning until she feels federal leadership has publicly stood up for the CDC and Kennedy has condemned any violence aimed at public health workers as loudly as he derided CDC for its COVID response.
Before becoming health secretary, Kennedy falsely called the COVID-19 vaccine the “deadliest vaccine ever made” and, during his recent presidential run, he wrote in a post on X that he would “clean up the cesspool of corruption at CDC.”
“We really are at a turning point of what can happen,” Rogers-Brown said. “We can start to right the ship, or we can keep going down this road and wonder if, next time, I’m going to be triaging the gunshot wound of a colleague. And what will make the difference will be the voices of our leaders that have the microphone.”
She called for Kennedy to make it clear that “public servants are not the enemy” and “CDC workers are humans.”
Over the weekend, Kennedy sent an email to staff, offering prayers and saying he realized that the shooting was “unsettling” for staffers.
Kennedy visited the CDC on Monday, surveying the damage, meeting with senior leadership and visiting the widow of DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose, who was killed Friday in the shooting. That day, he referred to the shooting as “heartbreaking” in an X post.
In an TV interview with Scripps News later that day, Kennedy said CDC workers “should not be the targets of this kind of violence from anybody” and that political violence is “always wrong.”
Asked if he would take action to quell misinformation around vaccines, Kennedy said there wasn’t enough information about the shooter’s motive and went on to criticize public health agencies.
“We have to ask, why are people not believing the public health agencies? And the answer, I think, is pretty elementary: That the public health agencies have not been honest,” Kennedy said.
Some staffers were frustrated by what they perceived to be a lack of strong response from Kennedy, who didn’t directly address staff during his visit on Monday.
“He never even sent an email to us until this past Saturday and never visited our campus until this week,” a CDC scientist who has worked at the agency for 10 years in a variety of positions told ABC News. “I don’t even know how to feel with the lack of words from the White House and RFK victim-shaming us.”
The scientist asked not to be publicly identified over fears of retaliation at work and safety concerns.
HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon told ABC News in a statement that Kennedy “has unequivocally condemned the horrific attack and remains fully committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of CDC employees.”
Nixon said Kennedy’s response was swift and decisive, citing his trip to Atlanta, and said any suggestion of a delay “is simply not supported by the facts.”
“The Secretary’s presence and outreach underscore his commitment to the CDC community and public health workforce. This is a time to stand in solidarity with our public health workforce, not a moment for the media to exploit a tragedy for political gain,” Nixon said.
While Trump hasn’t publicly spoken about the shooting, White House spokesperson Kush Desai also emphasized that the safety and security of government employees, “whether in Washington, D.C. or Atlanta, Georgia — is the topmost priority of the Administration.”
“Violence has no place in any civil society, and the White House extends our heartfelt condolences to the family of Officer David Rose and the entire CDC team,” Desai said in a statement sent to ABC News.
CDC director Dr. Susan Monarez spoke directly to CDC employees on Tuesday, giving brief remarks in a 10-minute all-staff call that was cut short by technical issues.
“You are resourceful, resilient and strong, and we will make sure you have the resources, the protection, the support you need to keep doing the work you do,” she said.
She followed up later the same day with a more direct denouncement of misinformation to the agency’s more than 10,000 employees with a note that read, in part, “the dangers of misinformation and its promulgation has now led to deadly consequences.”
“I will work to restore trust in public health to those who have lost it — through science, evidence, and clarity of purpose,” Monarez wrote.
Another CDC staff member told ABC News that the last six months of the Trump administration had already been tumultuous for the agency. She cited Kennedy’s reorganization efforts that led to the mass-firings of around 10,000 HHS employees and many entire CDC programs being cut, which Kennedy defended as “reducing bureaucratic sprawl.”
“It was an overwhelming grief to watch what was unfolding with public health and how it was going to affect people’s lives,” the CDC worker, who also asked not to be publicly identified over fears of retaliation at work and concerns over her own safety, said. “But it is very personal now.”
With nearly 20 years of experience working in communications at CDC on multiple different public health issues, including immunization and COVID-19, she said she’d never seen as much fear among her colleagues as she had this year.
“The vilification of federal workers is astounding, and people are forgetting … that we’re human beings,” she said. “We’re parents and friends and mothers and daughters. You know, we’re just like everyone else.”
She pointed to Kennedy’s history of vaccine skepticism before joining the Trump administration and actions to dissuade vaccine uptake since taking office.
“This didn’t happen overnight,” she said.
In May 2021, Kennedy filed a citizen petition asking for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to revoke its authorization of all COVID-19 vaccines, which he falsely criticized during a Louisiana House of Representatives meeting about school vaccine requirements as the “deadliest vaccine ever made.”
“After reviewing the science and consulting top experts at NIH and FDA, HHS has determined that mRNA technology poses more risk than benefits for these respiratory viruses,” Kennedy said in a video posted on X when the cut to mRNA funding was announced.
Scientists and doctors contend that mRNA vaccines have been studied for decades. Robust evidence from clinical trials and real-world data shows that COVID-19 mRNA vaccines are safe and effective, despite Kennedy’s claims, and that serious health events after COVID-19 vaccination are rare, as CDC states on its website.
ABC News’ Eric Strauss and Will McDuffie contributed to this report.
