Ex-IMF Chief Out on Bail; Predicting the Apocalypse
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, folks. We are following several developing stories this morning. One of them being that one of the most powerful and most wanted drug runners in Mexico responsible for bringing drugs into this country is now under arrest. And would you believe where he was caught? His own birthday party. Also, from Rikers Island to a luxury Manhattan apartment. Dominique Strauss-Kahn left jail yesterday. So, what now for the former head of the IMF? And today is it, folks -- Doomsday. The start of the apocalypse right now, or at least according to the Family Radio Network which has spent millions of dollars to warn you that the end is here and it is today. Hello, from the CNN Center. This is my final CNN SATURDAY MORNING on this Doomsday, Saturday, May 21st. I'm T.J. Holmes. We'll get back to Doomsday happenings throughout the morning. People are certainly are taking it seriously. You should know, though, so far, so good around the world. But, first, let me tell you about Dominique Strauss-Kahn -- out of jail now. He's staying at a luxury Manhattan apartment for now. He's the former IMF chief released yesterday. Now, it wasn't easy getting out. He had to put up $1 million cash, also had to give up $5 million in insurance bond. It was secured by his wife, Anne Sinclair, who is staying with him in New York. CNN's Susan Candiotti picks up some of this now and tells us more about the living arrangements, including why he couldn't stay at his first choice of apartments.</s>SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A plan to release him hit a snafu when the place where he was planning to live wouldn't let him stay there. That led to a court hearing to discuss the issue. The judge agreed to allow the former IMF chief to live in a temporary location for a few days until a more permanent apartment can be arranged. Why wasn't he allowed to stay at the first place? Here's Strauss- Kahn's lawyer.</s>WILLIAM TAYLOR, STRAUSS-KAHN'S ATTORNEY: The reason that he had to move is because members of the press attempted to invade his private residence and interfered with his family's privacy.</s>CANDIOTTI: The only reason he can leave this place is for a medical emergency. Now, he'll be a little less restricted when moved to a permanent location and then at that point, he can leave only if he gives prosecutors six hours notice of his plans. And there will be constant monitoring of his whereabouts.</s>HOLMES: All right. Thanks to our Susan Candiotti there. Strauss- Kahn is accused, as you know, of sexually assaulting a hotel maid last week. He resigned from his post at the IMF. The organization says, though, he got a $250,000 separation payment and will draw a modest pension. Well, listen to this name. Gilberto Barragan Balderas, a name you probably have never heard of. But he is a big deal -- at least in the Mexican drug cartels. And now, he is under arrest. You'll see him in some of these pictures wearing a Budweiser shirt. There he is in the red. He was captured in Mexico just across the border from McAllen, Texas. He was a suspected member of the powerful Gulf Cartel, responsible for bringing a large amount of drugs into the United States. In fact, the U.S. State Department had a $5 million reward out there for information leading to his arrest. Mexican police picked him up at a birthday party -- his birthday party. Well, who do you believe? Well, depending on who you believe, this will be my last CNN SATURDAY MORNING because, yes, for some today is the beginning of the end of days, the apocalypse, Doomsday, the rapture -- all that, May 21st starts today, at least according to one Family Radio Network. Family Radio Worldwide Network -- is what they're called -- spent some $100 million, though, to get their message out. So, they are taking this very seriously. That message is that the world ends today. At least the first parts of the apocalypse will happen. The leader of the Family Radio Worldwide, Harold Camping, he says the time line is in the Bible. He did the math and came up with the date of today. He also did math back in 1994 and he predicted the same thing would happen. So, who's taking him seriously and should we all be taking him seriously?</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I definitely do not think the world will end tomorrow.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I say just chill. Let the days go. I don't think anything is going to happen.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not worried. I've got to go to work. I'll enjoy my weekend.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is going to happen. Jesus is going to come back, but not on tomorrow. I mean, he could come back tomorrow. He could come back any day, but the Bible does not predict an exact date. And when somebody does predict an exact date, they are usually wrong because the Bible warns us not to try to predict a date, but instead just to be ready.</s>HOLMES: All right. Well, so far so good. The end was supposed to start at least with earthquakes in New Zealand at 6:00 their time. That time came and went. No issues. Maybe we can breathe a sigh of relief, even though we had a major technical issue here in the studio a short time ago. I don't know if that's a sign of anything. We're going to have more on this Doomsday prediction a little later in the show, including this man, Harold Camping, who is behind this current message. Also, tell you something else happening right now. We're getting more and more information in about this -- but an explosion inside the main Afghan military hospital in Kabul. Sources there are telling us there are casualties but we don't have many more details at this moment. We're being told it was a suicide bomber who set off his explosives inside the mess hall there. And there may be a second suicide bomber hiding in the 400-bed hospital. Again, a developing story there. We'll bring you those details as we continue to get them. Also, famed pro wrestler macho man, Randy Savage, has died. His jeep slammed head on into a three in Seminole, Florida. His wife was injured in that accident as well, but has since been released from the hospital. Police say Savage suffered a medical event before that wreck. His brother telling TMZ it was a heart attack. The police say an autopsy is being done. Savage's real name was Ralph Poffo. He was 58 years old. Well, there are already victims of the storms and now, they could be victims of a new phone scam. People are trying to take advantage of people in east Tennessee. The FBI says people report getting phone calls asking for personal information, like bank account numbers. The voice on the phone says the bank lost the records because of computer problems during the storms. Anybody who gets one of these unsolicited calls should contact the FBI.</s>HOLMES: Well, nice moments here for 200 service members injured in Iraq and Afghanistan. This is them arriving at the airport in Houston yesterday. They are taking part in the fifth annual Warrior Weekend. It's a good day for it. This is Armed Forces Day. Many of the veterans are headed out for a weekend of fishing in the Gulf of Mexico. Also, for you folks who like to fly Delta Airlines, how about this? They are going to give some passengers a little extra leg room. Yes, though, it will cost you. They are calling this now economy comfort. That essentially means you are in coach still but you get four more inches of leg room and also it's costing you between 20 and 40 bucks an inch up to $160 extra per ticket on overseas flights. Well, we're talking about the end of days today. May 21st. Some call it Doomsday. Could zombies end up walking around after Doomsday? Well, the CDC wants you to be prepared. Yes, for zombies. They have put up a zombie emergency preparedness plan on their Web site -- and, folks, I am not joking with you. This is for the zombie apocalypse. Now, why would they do this? It's a little tongue in cheek, but they do give you legitimate emergency plan tips. Essentially, they want to draw your attention with the zombies and you get your plan together that would work for other natural disasters. You see where they are going to this? We're going to be talking to the CDC's man behind the zombie idea next hour and ask him what in the world were they thinking, and is this what it has come to to get people's attention to get them prepared. Well, of course, as we know, millions in the central U.S. have been dealing with a real life disaster that hit too close to home. Historic flooding up and down the Mississippi River and its tributaries, and the forecast gives those in the flood zone even more reason to worry.\ It's eight minutes past the power.