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Colin Gray Trial Continues; Trump Ballroom Plans Approved; Prince Andrew Arrested. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired February 19, 2026 - 13:00   ET

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

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BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Royal family rocked. The former Prince Andrew is arrested after revelations from the Epstein files. He now becomes the most senior member of the British royal family to be arrested in more than 300 years.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Plus: Election security or intimidation? Republicans in Arizona pushing new legislation that would deploy immigration agents to polling sites for the midterms. We will take a closer look at the bill and the backlash.

Plus: a commission controversy, CNN learning more about the group that just fast-tracked approval of President Trump's East Wing renovations, a group perhaps most notable for its political affiliations than any expertise in design or architecture.

We will explain as we follow these major developing stories and many more all coming in right here at the CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

KEILAR: We begin with breaking news on this stunning arrest of former Prince Andrew, the late queen's son and younger brother of King Charles now the first senior British royal to be arrested in nearly 400 years.

Just hours ago, police surrounding his private residence on what is today his 66th birthday, authorities then taking him into custody on suspicion of misconduct in public office. For years, the now former royal has been embroiled in controversy over his ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

But his arrest today is apparently not related to any possible sex crimes, but rather for sensitive information he may have given Epstein during his time as a British trade envoy.

Let's go right to CNN's Max Foster, who is outside of Buckingham Palace.

Max, this is truly unprecedented in modern times. MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, imagine the former prince

now in a police cell. Could potentially be the case as he's waiting between interviews, so he could be held for into tomorrow without being charged. He could be bailed at some point today. He could be held well into next week.

This is a very complex case. This charge he's potentially facing or what he's been questioned about is very difficult to pin down, but it's quite profound that he has been brought in. Clearly, the police had some new information that escalated this case to the point where they were ready to confront Andrew with something and arrest him and interview with him about that.

As I say, he hasn't been charged and this isn't anything to do with any sexual allegations. It's purely his role in public office as a trade envoy. And we saw in those Epstein papers some evidence that suggested that he was forwarding internal government secrets, effectively, market-sensitive information, to Jeffrey Epstein.

And that's what this police investigation was about, although we're getting very little detail on specifically what they're questioning him about today, Brianna.

KEILAR: Max, can you explain what misconduct in public office means?

FOSTER: Yes, so it's very broad, which is why it's very hard to pin down.

So it's effectively you have a role a public office of some kind and you did something against the public interest. So that is broadly what it is. And there are various stages in proving that. And they will have to prove also that Andrew knew what he had and was sharing was confidential and that he shared it knowing it was confidential intentionally.

So it is very complex. But it's basically an abuse of position. So he was given a privileged position representing the U.K. on trade visits, and he allowed Epstein some access to the information that he was receiving. That's the broad allegation of the initial investigation at least.

KEILAR: And now that he's in custody, what does this mean?

FOSTER: Well, it means that he could be held and he could be charged or he could be released on bail, or they could keep him from even longer, or they could decide that they haven't got a case against him.

It feels that that is unlikely, because they have -- very public arrest, and they would have been very confident with what they had to go into that. The other question is what it means for the British monarchy. And we have seen how the king has issued a statement today, did so very quickly, and with his own hand, which is quite stark, because this was a very quick response.

[13:05:18] But he talked about learning with the deepest concern the news about Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, not naming him as a brother, trying to keep that distance there, and suspicion of misconduct in public office. "What now follows is the full and fair and proper process by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities."

It's interesting he says: "In this, as I have said before, they have our full and wholehearted support and cooperation." So the king is making the monarchy the priority here and making sure it isn't tainted by this, although that's going to be very difficult.

And we saw that again in demonstration today as we saw the king and queen out on public duties today in the public, which would have been very difficult for them to do. But the message there is that we need to keep the monarchy strong. We need to keep it going. We cannot let this paralyze us. But, even today, Charles was thrown questions and the queen was thrown questions about Andrew.

So everything they're doing is being overshadowed. So, effectively, the monarchy is almost paralyzed at the moment because it can't carry out its work under this constant shadow.

KEILAR: Yes, it is stunning indeed.

Max Foster, thank you for the latest there out in front of Buckingham Palace -- Boris.

SANCHEZ: The arrest of the former prince is recasting a spotlight on a perceived lack of accountability by the Justice Department in the United States, as Epstein's survivors are demanding a reckoning.

Let's go to the White House now with CNN's Kevin Liptak.

And, Kevin, the president called it a tragic situation when Prince Andrew, formerly Prince Andrew, lost his royal titles. What is he saying about this news?

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, he hasn't responded to this arrest that happened today, although he did just get on Air Force One for a trip down to Georgia. That has become kind of his preferred place for speaking to reporters.

But you're right. When he has responded to Andrew's predicament in the past, it has been with the degree of sympathy, at least for the royal family. And President Trump, of course, has an affinity for the British royals, particularly the House of Windsor.

But I think every time one of these arrests happens overseas, someone powerful of being held to account, it does raise some hard questions for President Trump and for the administration about why that isn't happening more in the United States.

And President Trump, for his part, has really refused to reckon with those questions. He has said that the country and that Americans just need to move on from the Epstein matter. Listen to how he put it earlier this month.

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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think it's really time for the country to get on to something else really, now that nothing came out about me, other than there was a conspiracy against me, literally, by Epstein and other people. But I think it's time now for the country to maybe get on to something else.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIPTAK: So you hear the presidency consistently that it's time for the country to move on to something else. That's also been the line that his attorney general has repeated, Pam Bondi. We saw that on pretty stark display during her congressional testimony last week, when she was asked repeatedly why some of Epstein's co-conspirators had not been prosecuted.

And she responded essentially with personalized attacks against those lawmakers who were questioning her. The only person in the United States who is in prison for the Epstein matter is Ghislaine Maxwell. President Trump has refused to rule out a pardon for her, although the White House has said that that is not under consideration at this time.

The president responding to Bondi's testimony last week said that people only cared about Epstein when they thought he could create political harm to a very popular president. But when you see these very powerful people being held to account overseas, I think it just makes that argument harder and harder to make.

SANCHEZ: And, notably, as you see Ghislaine Maxwell transferred to a much cushier location than she was being held at before, and the attorney general apparently cannot explain why.

Kevin Liptak, live at the White House, thank you so much.

Staying in Washington, today, President Trump held the inaugural summit for the Board of Peace, which he chairs. That meeting wrapped up about an hour ago, and representatives from at least 20 countries attended as they embark in their goal of rebuilding war-torn Gaza.

Trump says he wants to bring stability to the world, even as he eyes a potential military strike on Iran. Sources tell CNN the U.S. is preparing for a possible strike as early as this weekend, with the administration aiming to prevent Iran's development of nuclear weapons. The president today, though, said he is still willing to make a deal. Listen.

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TRUMP: So now we may have to take it a step further or we may not. Maybe we're going to make a deal. Well, you're going to be finding out over the next probably 10 days. But this meeting today is proof with determined leadership nothing is impossible.

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SANCHEZ: President Trump also announced a $10 billion contribution from the U.S. to the Board of Peace as they look to -- quote -- "bring lasting harmony."

Still to come this afternoon: A commission entirely composed of President Trump's appointees has just fast-tracked his big ballroom plans, but how they did it is highly unusual. We will explain.

Plus, hear how Republican lawmakers in Arizona want to use ICE to ensure election integrity.

And, later, see the paint job that will soon replace Air Force One's Kennedy era design -- that and much more coming your way on CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

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SANCHEZ: President Trump's project to build a ballroom on the grounds of the now-demolished East Wing of the White House just took a big step forward.

The independent panel responsible for advising the White House on design plans for federal property unanimously approved the ballroom's concept and its final design.

KEILAR: They approved the design even though the final renovation plan based on the concept has not been submitted. So that's really interesting. The panel is stacked with Trump appointees, including the president's executive assistant.

CNN Washington correspondent Sunlen Serfaty is joining us now to explain all of this.

It seems like these two things may be related, that -- who's on the committee and sort of what they have done here. Did the panel just vote on a final design site unseen?

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Essentially. They have been reviewing the proposals coming from the White House.

But what was interesting today is that the ballroom essentially just got fast-tracked by the committee. They -- this is one of two committees that's reviewing the plans for the ballroom. It's called the Commission on Fine Arts.

And, today, they not only approved the concept of the design and the proposal, but they said, let's just go ahead and approve the next step too. So they jumped ahead in the process and they approved the whole project.

Now, notably, again, this has to not only get through this commission, but another one, so it's not the final, final part of this process, but it's significant. And we heard from the -- Trump's architect today during this meeting. For the first time, he presented animated models, animated renderings, how the public would take in this from Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House.

Also, for the first time, we saw a physical 3-D model. I think we have some video of that too, noting that this is a little clunky because this meeting was held over Zoom. So the commissioners were looking at this model over Zoom. They didn't have hands on it themselves.

It's notable, as you said. Since last year, President Trump does really work to install loyalists on this committee. It's a very small committee, only seven people-large.

And back in October, as the East Wing was being demolished, he got rid of everyone on the committee and he's been replacing them person by person with people who are loyal to him, his allies, people who don't have extensive arts and architecture background, which is typically who we see on these committees.

Just an hour before they approve this, his -- the latest, the seventh person on this commission was sworn in. And that's his 26-year-old executive assistant, does not have much arts background, if any, so that's certainly notable that just an hour later she was voting to push this project through.

SANCHEZ: It's striking that, if you wanted to put up something around your house, you would have to go to an HOA and get sort of consensus. If you wanted to put up a gazebo in a community, you go to the town council and there's consensus. People weigh in.

Is there any weighing of public input in this process?

SERFATY: It's a great question. And that's some of the outside critics, what they say is the problem with this whole process.

This is a massive, historical project that is going to make a huge footprint and stamp on the White House complex. And there is a desire by many to have a more public and open process, more transparency. Now, this meeting was held over Zoom. This is the format that they have had it since COVID.

But the commissioner of the committee, he read the public comments that had been submitted online. He said there were over 2,000 comments submitted, 99 of which he said were negative, talking about the lack of transparency, talking about the concerns over the size and scope, talking about the fact that the East Wing was demolished without approval in the first place.

He did not dwell on that, though, I should say. He went on to talk about the more positives that people brought up about the project. And, again, they voted this through. The other commission, the National Capital Planning Commission, they will meet in early March, where they will review these designs and make their own determination whether the project should go forward.

KEILAR: I guess there's always that 1 percent, that 1 percent positive that you can focus on.

But what happens next here in this approval process?

SERFATY: Yes, we will see the next commission likely move towards a vote.

President Trump has been very clear that he wants to start building the new East Wing by April. That's very soon. That's so quick. So these plans, again, they are nearly final, but not the final version of it. And the fact that you're getting approval from these two key committees have to make sure that it goes through before it can be built, the fact that they're getting quick -- they're quickening the pace of approval really speaks to the pressure that the White House is putting on to push this through.

KEILAR: He wants to see it before the end of his term. Is that right?

SERFATY: He does. He does.

KEILAR: Really interesting.

Sunlen Serfaty, we know that you will continue to cover this. Thank you.

Ahead here, the chilling response from Colin Gray after learning about a shooting at his son's school. Gray is just the third person -- I should say, parent ever to face charges for a mass shooting committed by their child.

We will have that story next.

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SANCHEZ: For the first time, jurors are hearing the initial reaction of Colin Gray after learning there'd been a shooting at his son's school.

The father's on trial for murder and more than two dozen other felonies for allegedly buying the rifle his son Colt used in that 2024 rampage. Prosecutors say Gray had been warned to restrict the boy's access to weapons.

Gray's defense, though, argues he had no idea his son was going to attack the school. Remember, two students and two teachers were killed. Nine others were wounded. Yesterday, jurors viewed some disturbing footage. And we should warn you, this is tough for some to watch as it shows where victims were shot.

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Prosecutors presented a 3-D scan of the aftermath inside Apalachee High School that seemed to follow Colt's path. One classroom showed chairs piled up which students set up against the shooter as a barricade.

CNN's Jean Casarez has been tracking all the developments in this case.

So, Jean, tell us what we're hearing from Colin Gray on that September day.

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that September day is very important.

But, right now, the jury is in their afternoon session, and they just watched the entire video of back in 2023 when he was in middle school, which when the FBI had received a report that someone by the name of Colt Gray was on dispatch actually saying he was going to shoot up a school.

And so local law enforcement comes to the home. I think we have some of that video. We can just roll it and I can talk over it. But what -- the father is confronted by law enforcement, saying, this is what we found out that we heard, the FBI told us. And he said this is serious, and he said everything's going to be -- all the guns are going to be taken away from him.

We have gone shooting. We go deer hunting. I'm trying to teach him gun safety. And then Colt comes out and the officer says, did you write on dispatch you're going to shoot up a school? He said, no, not me. He said, no, I swear. I swear I did not do that. He said I think somebody may have hacked me. I haven't used dispatch in about two months.

And so then the conversation continues, and the father says, can you look into this for me and find out any more about this because I want to know? This is serious stuff.

Well, earlier, today, there was another video. It was at the same home, but it was months later. And it was actually shortly after the shooting had taken place at the high school. Law enforcement go to the home and they wanted law enforcement to stay outside of the home. And they don't tell the father about the shooting necessarily, but they say something, and then he starts responding. And they just let him talk.

Watch this.

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COLIN GRAY, DEFENDANT: God, I knew it. My little girl just texted me. She's in middle school. She said: "We're in lockdown."

I'm like, God, almighty, please don't be (INAUDIBLE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why do you think that?

GRAY: He is -- I'm trying to give him into counseling. He just didn't fit in last year at high school. So, we let him do online school. And we brought him back into just doing normal school this year.

And he's doing OK. We reached out, talked to the school, and said, hey, do you all have counselors? We want him to check in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CASAREZ: Now this is prosecution evidence by the defendant which is against his interest. And it's being entered into evidence because the state of mind of Colin Gray, did he know that his son was a risk?

Was it a known risk that this would happen? And, right there, that testimony talks about, oh, no, it's like he thought it could happen, but the defense can use it too, because he said, I'm continually trying to get him counseling. I'm going to the school. I'm trying to help him in areas.

So I think both sides can impact from this, but this is minutes after that shooting happened. And it's an excited utterance out of his mouth. And it's something the jury is going to consider when they're deliberating.

SANCHEZ: Wow.

Jean Casarez, thank you so much for that update.

You can catch Jean and more of her coverage on this trial on CNN All Access by scanning the Q.R. code on the right side of your screen.

Up next: a royal reckoning. We will take you live to London with the latest on today's extraordinary arrest of the former Prince Andrew.

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