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American Charged with Plotting Attack on U.S. Embassy; Man Charged with Torturing Victim for Bitcoin Password; Federal Workers Face Chaos; Clint Henderson is Interviewed about Summer Travel. Aired 9:30-10a ET

Aired May 26, 2025 - 09:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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[09:30:10]

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: This morning, a dual German U.S. citizen is in custody in New York and facing federal charges after allegedly plotting to firebomb a branch office of the U.S. embassy in Israel. Israeli police say they found Molotov cocktails, which they're showing in this picture, in the backpack at the scene there. They say the suspect left that backpack behind after he spat at an embassy guard in Tel Aviv and then fled. The 28-year-old was arrested at JFK Airport in New York after being deported from Israel.

This comes just days after the horrific shooting in Washington, D.C., that killed two Israeli embassy staffers.

CNN's Katelyn Polantz is with me now from Washington.

Katelyn, what are you learning this morning from the Justice Department in this case?

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Sara, this man is in custody. He is back in the United States after Israel sent him back after this altercation outside of the embassy location in Tel Aviv, Israel.

This man, his name is Joseph Neumeyer, he is a U.S. citizen, also a German citizen. He was born in Colorado and he was living in the U.S. essentially until this year. And then at some point earlier this year left the United States and ends up in Israel about a week ago. That's when this altercation took place.

He was walking in front of the embassy building in Tel Aviv. He spat at a guard there. The guard touched him on the shoulder, and then they had an altercation. The man tried to flee. The new mayor tried to flee. The guard grabbed his backpack. So, had his backpack left behind. And then though Neumeyer was fleeing, this backpack, it smelled like alcohol. This is according to the criminal complaint that is available now through the Justice Department. When they looked inside the backpack, they believe that there were three Molotov cocktails there. And then the Justice Department, the FBI, did a bigger scrub of who

Joseph Neumayer is, looked at his social media postings, and he had indeed, Sara, on that same day, May 19th posted, join me as I burn down the embassy in Tel Aviv. He posted that to Facebook.

He had also posted previously in March about wanting to kill Donald Trump and Elon Musk. So, Israel has sent him back to the U.S. He is very likely to face more formal charges. There is a criminal complaint against him. And it is quite an intense time for watching people who may have some sort of animus toward the United States and the state of Israel. We just had that horrific shooting in Washington, D.C., and the Justice Department does now want to charge and prosecute this man in the eastern district of New York.

Sara.

SIDNER: It does also sort of go to show you that sometimes those -- what people think are benign posts online, this looked like, according to police, it was going to turn into reality. So, something to watch out for.

Katelyn Polantz, thank you so much for your reporting and have a happy Memorial Day.

Erica.

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: We have new information this morning in the alleged kidnaping of a man who police say was beaten and held against his will for weeks in a Manhattan townhouse, all as part of a plot to allegedly steal his bitcoin password. Thirty-seven-year-old cryptocurrency investor John Woeltz is now facing several charges, including kidnaping and assault. Authorities say he tortured the 28- year-old victim until the man agreed to reveal his bitcoin password.

CNN's Gloria Pazmino is joining me now with more on this story.

This is just wild to me, the details, and also the fact that this man was allegedly held for weeks.

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: For weeks, since early May, since his arrival here in New York city from Italy actually. We are told that this man, John Woeltz, 37 years old, lured the victim from Italy here to New York City and kept him inside his Manhattan apartment, where he was tortured, beaten and told that his family would be killed if he did not give up his bitcoin password.

We're also learning, Erica, that there is another person that was involved. Prosecutors have referred to them as an unapprehended male, meaning they have not yet taken him into custody. But we understand that there is another person that appears to have been allegedly involved in this scheme.

Now, for days, the victim, who has not been identified but is 28 years old, was held inside this house. He was tortured. He was shocked with a taser gun. He was wrapped, tied up in chicken wire. He was told that his family would be killed if he didn't give up his -- his bitcoin password.

Now, what's not clear to police just yet is exactly how these two men knew each other. If they had a personal or a business relationship, and just how much money perhaps we might have been talking about here. The fact that this went on for so many days and he didn't want to give up his password.

Now, last Friday, when the victim told police he believed he was going to be killed, he told them what the password was. That made the suspect go into another room where the computer was being kept to obtain the password. And that gave the victim a brief opening of time to run out of the apartment and flag down a traffic cop.

[09:35:05]

And that's how he was able to get away. And that's how police were eventually called into the house.

When they arrived, a treasure trove of evidence apparently left behind. Photos, including of the victim being tied up to a chair with a gun pointed to his head, the chicken wire that was used to tie him up, a lot of evidence left behind, according to prosecutors.

The suspect, John Woeltz, originally from Kentucky, is being held without bail. He was ordered to surrender his passport. Prosecutors said in court on Saturday that they believe he has the means to escape, including a private helicopter and a private jet.

HILL: Wow.

PAZMINO: So, they asked for him to be kept in custody. He has not yet entered a plea but is expected back in court next week.

HILL: I have so many questions. So, private helicopter, access to a private jet, a sort of ritzy Manhattan townhouse where all this allegedly took place.

PAZMINO: Yes.

HILL: Luring somebody from Italy. What's remarkable is that we still don't know, as you point out, they have not named the victim.

PAZMINO: The victim, yes.

HILL: Do we know how much bitcoin he may have had that this -- that the suspect was -- was perhaps after?

PAZMINO: That's one of the key questions. And not only how much money was he after but -- but why, right?

HILL: Yes.

PAZMINO: How did they know each other? What sort of background was there that he at least knew him, you know, knew to come to New York City, knew to go to this apartment, or was he brought there under some other ruse that maybe we don't -- we just don't know about yet. HILL: OK.

PAZMINO: It's all part of, I have to say, a little bit of a bizarre and very disturbing mystery that unfolded here in New York City over the past few days.

HILL: Yes, absolutely. Well, glad you're on top of it. I know you'll bring us the updates, Gloria. Thank you.

Sara.

SIDNER: All right, thank you guys.

They were laid off, reinstated and then left in limbo. Why federal workers are still fighting for benefits after Trump's mass firings.

And traveling this summer? Weekdays are your wallets best friend, folks. We'll find out when you should fly to save the most money. The points guy, coming up.

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[09:41:45]

SIDNER: New for you this morning, a number of federal workers are facing canceled health insurance and bungled benefits in the wake of the Trump administration's mass layoffs. Some workers who were fired say they couldn't get their health coverage back for weeks or even months after their jobs were reinstated. One telling CNN she had to take her son to the ER, even though she had no health insurance.

CNN's senior reporter Marshall Cohen broke the story for us this morning.

Marshall, what are you learning is happening to these federal workers caught in the middle of this, you know, madness, if you will?

MARSHALL COHEN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Sara, that's so -- it -- that's exactly right. For these folks, their lives have been turned upside down. And most of these federal employees lost their jobs in February when the Trump administration fired thousands of new or probationary employees. They were later reinstated by a judge, but that's what's creating all of this confusion. Because of this whiplash, this back and forth, some federal workers lost their health insurance for weeks or perhaps even months. We spoke to one IRS employee, as you said. She had to drive her son to the ER without her insurance because he was sick and she needed to take him to get care. And now she has a $3,000 hospital bill.

A Department of Education employee said that without insurance, her husband couldn't schedule necessary treatments for his cancer and suffered complications with his chemo.

The people we spoke to described a bureaucratic nightmare. And I want to share with you some what they told us. One federal worker said, quote, "I was on the phone every single day for two weeks, and I broke down in tears." Another said, "if I get into an accident, that's going to bankrupt me." A third employee told us that it felt like they had been forgotten about. And another said, quote, "there's been no communication, no kindness and no compassion."

And, Sara, it's not just health benefits. Our colleagues Sunlen Serfaty and Tami Luhby also spoke to other federal employees who are struggling to get their -- their workers comp approved or to get their pension payments delivered. And the common theme that we've noticed is that when these people called HR, they told us that a lot of the folks that typically handle these issues have -- that have themselves been fired as part of the Trump administration's mass layoffs.

SIDNER: Right. Yes. I mean, some of the federal workers I've spoken with are saying they think that this is actually punishment and that it -- that not being compassionate and not being kind is actually the plan.

What does the Trump administration, though, have to say about this?

COHEN: Well, a couple points here. First of all, the insurance companies, we checked in with them. They say that this is not a widespread issue. But obviously for the people who are affected, it has been highly disruptive and traumatic.

We did reach out to the White House for comment. They didn't have anything to say. But a spokeswoman from the Department of Education did give us a statement. And she said, quote, "while we acknowledge that transitions are difficult, employees have been fully informed and supported during these changes."

Sara.

SIDNER: That is not what you are hearing from the federal workers themselves. We'll see how this all pans out over time.

[09:45:00]

Marshall Cohen, great reporting. Thank you so much for that.

All right, ahead, airfares, this is good news, they're down and deals are up, especially if you fly smart. So, how points and timing can slash your summer travel cost. We've got the details, coming up.

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SIDNER: The vast majority of Americans believe this is the unofficial start of summer, Memorial Day. And if you're thinking about booking a getaway, now might be the perfect time. After years of sky-high prices and jam-packed airports and airplanes, there might be a little relief, at least in the pocketbook for travelers.

[09:50:06]

So, where are the best deals and when should you buy?

Let's bring in Clint Henderson, managing editor at thepointsguy.com. Hey, Clint, I'm glad we're not going on any fancy trips, but working

right now. But anyway, not bitter. So, if -- if you are planning to book that last-minute summer trip, what -- what kind of deals are out there right now?

CLINT HENDERSON, MANAGING EDITOR, THEPOINTSGUY.COM: So, it's extraordinary. And I love sharing good news like this because even though the economy might be slowing down a little bit, that means cheaper prices for consumers. In fact, The Points Guy teamed up with a company called Points Path, and they sort of scraped Google data. And we found that flights -- domestic flights are down some 13 percent year over year. International down a little less, but still down 6 percent.

And I'm seeing extraordinary deals this summer. Like deals I haven't seen in five years, basically. So, under $500 on airlines like Delta, American, United, all over Europe, pretty remarkable for this time of year. Usually those flights sit around $1,200. So, lots of deals out there right now. Really, really good.

HILL: You got your calendar up there, Sidner, so we can plan our trip?

SIDNER: I mean, I just think I'm just going to start looking at this.

HILL: OK, while Sara plans when we're going to take advantage of those $500 deals to Europe -- should we go to Europe?

SIDNER: Sure.

HILL: Sure. When is the best time for anyone, perhaps us, to buy these flights? It used to always be buy a ticket on Tuesday. Does that still hold?

HENDERSON: No, that's -- that's -- that's really fake news, basically. Basically, it doesn't matter when you actually purchase a ticket. However, if you travel on Tuesday, yes, you can actually score some deals. So, if you travel during midweek, you're less likely -- you're -- you're more likely to pay less for those flights. And, obviously, off season you're going to pay less.

But the best time to book flights domestically is one to two months ahead of time, and internationally its usually three to five months.

SIDNER: What?

HENDERSON: But like I said, this summer is extraordinary. We're seeing deals day after day where you don't have to book, you know, you don't have to book those flights way in advance to get a good deal.

HILL: Sara and I are like --

SIDNER: We're upset.

HILL: We've never booked a flight that far in advance.

SIDNER: No. Three to five months, there -- I -- I literally -- you just made me, like, guffaw, because I'm like, wait, three to five. I don't even know what I'm doing tomorrow.

HENDERSON: Well, then this is the summer for you.

HILL: Maybe three to five hours in advance. That's how we roll.

HENDERSON: It is. It really is because you don't have to plan ahead.

SIDNER: I like -- see, this is the kind of deals I'm looking for, last minute.

So, this is the thing I always struggle with, which I know I should pay more attention but I don't. When it comes to points and cash, are you seeing more value in using your points or using cash this summer?

HENDERSON: So, there's -- it -- there's so many factors that go into it, it gets really complicated. But basically, if you've got the points to use, use them because they only go down in value over time. So, if you've got a stash of points, the airlines are making last minute seats available on flights. So, that's when you're going to get the best points deal usually because some airlines don't release seats till one or two days before the flight, when they know the seats are going to go out empty.

And then another tool, just to blow your mind, is Google Flights Explorer. You put in your home airport, put in Atlanta, you can search all over the world. It will show you the cheapest places you can go using your cash. So, you know, if you don't know where you want to go, find the cheapest flights.

HILL: That I actually love.

SIDNER: I stopped listening because I started typing Google Flights Explorer while you were --

HILL: Sarah is taking us to, let's see, Denver, Mazatlan. Oh.

SIDNER: Oh, Mazatlan.

HILL: Mazatlan, that sounds good.

SIDNER: I'd do that.

HENDERSON: See.

HILL: Where are -- so we're looking at -- we're looking at all of this --

HENDERSON: Scroll down to Europe and it's a --

SIDNER: Montreal. It's only 240.

HENDERSON: Yes, it's great (INAUDIBLE).

HILL: OK, let's scroll over.

So, in terms of the best picks that are out there, what are your best picks? I mean you've given us ideas sort of geographically of where we could go, but are there some specifics that you would recommend for more budget friendly destinations?

HENDERSON: Yes, so, I think go where the U.S. dollar is strong. You know, it's lost some of its power, but it's still remarkably powerful almost anywhere you go in the world. Places like Japan, don't go to Tokyo because Tokyo is super expensive for hotels. But all the secondary cities, you know, the U.S. dollar is taking you really far and it's going to be a cheaper trip.

I like places like Colombia, Turkey. Go to Istanbul. Pretty much anywhere you can go where the U.S. dollar is strong. Just avoid Switzerland because the Swiss franc, for some reason, that currency blows us out of the water. So, it's really expensive to go to Switzerland.

HILL: Yes. You know, this is great. And we have quite an itinerary we're planning here, so thank you, Clint.

SIDNER: Yes. I'm -- I'm on it.

HILL: I think we're going to have a good summer.

SIDNER: I really need to go --

HILL: Yes.

SIDNER: Because I need to book these flights right now.

HILL: While Sara books her flight --

HENDERSON: Do it.

HILL: Clint, thank you again.

HENDERSON: Good to see you.

HILL: Before we leave you this morning, we also want to bring you a little bit more. A home security camera near Chicago capturing, get this, a stunning moment when a truck explodes as it's driving down the road.

SIDNER: This is crazy.

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HILL: Just wild. There you see it again.

SIDNER: Geez.

HILL: So, investigators actually think it's a leaking propane tank that may have caused the explosion, sending that debris flying through the air.

[09:55:03]

They say the driver -- this is the most incredible part -- walked away with just minor injuries.

SIDNER: How?

HILL: That's insane.

Also a scary moment on a flight from Tokyo to Houston. The FBI says the Nippon Airways flight was diverted to Seattle. Had to make an emergency landing on Saturday after an unruly passenger tried to open not one but two of the plane's exit doors midair. The crew and passengers, though, were able to restrain the passenger, who was taken to the hospital for medical evaluation after the plane landed. But it didn't end there. The airline says a second passenger, who was frustrated by the delay, was also removed after punching a bathroom door. Really, people? No one was injured. The flight eventually made its way to Houston.

SIDNER: OK, I just want to give this really quick, important update to our executive producer, Chris.

HILL: Yes.

SIDNER: There are flights to Lima, Peru, for $498. You can go from there and you can go to Cusco, and then you can go up to Machu Picchu. I think you need to just go ahead and start typing in and buy your thing, OK, Chris.

HILL: There you go.

SIDNER: You're welcome. Happy Memorial Day.

HILL: By the way, employee of the year over here planning your vacation, Chris, right?

SIDNER: It's so I can -- it's so I --

HILL: She gets some extra days off for that?

SIDNER: No.

HILL: Can we expense our trip that were taking?

SIDNER: He knows that when he's gone I go nuts.

HILL: Yes.

SIDNER: And so, I'm about to, like, act up while he's off doing his thing.

HILL: So, my real question is, where are we going?

SIDNER: I think we might -- I -- I would like to go to Lima.

HILL: OK.

SIDNER: So, I think we might be going there.

HILL: I think Lima sounds great. I've never been to Peru.

SIDNER: OK. Love it.

Thank you for joining us.

HILL: Thanks for letting me hang out with you this morning, my friend.

SIDNER: I mean, this is so much fun.

This is our gift. Our real gift. According to the company.

HILL: Oh.

SIDNER: This has been CNN NEWS CENTRAL. "THE SITUATION ROOM" is up next.

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