tonight, breaking news as we come on the air. we have learned ivana trump has died. former president trump's first wife and the mother of his three oldest children found dead in her new york city apartment. paramedics responding to an emergency call, finding her body at the bottom of the stairs. what we've learned tonight. ivana trump helping her husband build the trump empire in the 1980s and early '90s, giving him the nickname "the donald." tonight, the trump family paying tribute. what the former president is saying, and her children, too. amy robach with the story tonight. also breaking, the secret service and missing text messages from january 6th. tonight, sources now telling abc news according to a dhs watchdog, the secret service erased text messages from january 5th and 6th after oversight officials requested that they be handed over. rachel scott standing by with

late reporting. the story that made national headlines taking a new turn tonight. the disgraced attorney alex murdaugh now charged with murder in the deaths of his wife and son. what posecutors are now saying. news on the pandemic tonight. covid deaths in the u.s. up 10% in just the last week. what they're now seeing in new york city. and the news coming in at this hour from los angeles. matt gutman standing by. the devastating flood emergency in virginia news on the urgent search tonight. and at least 100 homes there damaged, many lifted right off their foundations. rescuers now marking cars that they've searched with pink tape. the war in ukraine tonight. the horror revealed. surveillance video seen online showing that deadly missile strike. at least 23 people killed. the death toll rising tonight. russia targeting offices and apartment buildings southwest of kyiv. president biden's mideast trip tonight. the tensions on display in israel over how to handle iran. and tomorrow's controversial trip to saudi arabia.

president biden was pressed today, will he bring up the murder of journalist jamal khashoggi during his meeting with the crown prince? how the president responded made immediate news. mary bruce traveling with the president. tonight, the 10-year-old ohio girl who was raped who had to travel to indiana after roe was overturned to get an abortion, well tonight, the indiana attorney general now indicating he will investigate the doctor who helped her. we're learning about the death of a college football star tonight, falling on rockslides, hitting his head. the news coming in. and we pay tribute tonight to an american hero. good evening and it's great to have you with us here on a thursday night. and we begin tonight with the passing of ivana trump. former president trump's first wife and the mother of their three oldest children, don jr., ivanka, and eric. she helped build the trump empire and after their very public divorce, she kept the

family name. we have learned she was found unresponsive in her manhattan apartment at the bottom of the stairs. paramedics responding to an emergency call. it was her ex-husband, the former president, who announced her death on social media. ivana trump was czech-born and a model when she met and then married donald trump. they were a force on the new york city scene in the 1980s. tonight, son eric trump releasing this photo of the family when the children were young. and then decades later, ivana trump with her adult children and their spouses. the very bruised relationship with her ex-husband eventually became a friendship again. in fact, ivana trump said there were talks of offering her an ambassadorship during the trump administration, and what she said about that idea. amy robach, who interviewed ivana trump not so long ago, on the passing of ivana trump. >> reporter: she helped her husband build an empire, well before he won the white house. and tonight, the former president and his children mourning ivana trump. the nypd responding to a 911 call shortly after noon from her apartment on manhattan's upper east side.

the 73-year-old was found at the bottom of the stairs unconscious and unresponsive. she was pronounced dead on the scene. her ex-husband announcing her death on social media -- "i am very saddened to inform all of those that loved her, of which there are many, that ivana trump has passed away at her home in new york city," he said. "she was a wonderful, beautiful, and amazing woman, who led a great and inspirational life. her pride and joy were her three children, donald jr., ivanka, and eric. she was so proud of them, as we were all so proud of her. rest in peace, ivana!" eric trump seen tonight leaving his mother's home. >> it's been a very sad day, guys. a very sad day. >> reporter: earlier he posted this picture and a statement from the family -- "our mother was an incredible woman. a force in business, a world-class athlete, a radiant beauty, and caring mother and friend. ivana trump was a survivor.

she fled from communism and embraced this country. she taught her children about grit and toughness, compassion and determination." ivana trump met her future husband in 1976. she was a model, he a budding mogul. the next year, they were married. >> the look and the brain and the energy and the really potential. donald always had a great head on his shoulder. and i saw the potential, really. >> she's a very nice woman. she's a very nice person. she's a friend. she's a lot of things. >> reporter: together they were the ultimate '80s power couple, crafting an image of glamour and excess, coupled with business savvy. she had a nickname for him and it stuck -- the donald. >> as a boss, you have to be a leader and you have to say what you want. you have to tell them, you have to motivate them. >> reporter: but it didn't last. and just as the tabloids documented their marriage, they ran with their divorce. and ivana trump becoming known for something else -- her grit and resilience. >> ladies, you have to be strong and independent. and remember -- >> what? >> don't get mad, get everything! >> reporter: she went on to launch businesses of her own -- a clothing line, jewelry,

writing several books about her relationship with her ex-husband. when we sat down in 2017, ivana trump told me her ex-husband, by then the president, had offered to name her ambassador to the czech republic. >> donald called me and he said, if you want to take the position, i give it to you, but i said, i would not have freedom. bye-bye to miami in the winter. bye-bye to new york in spring and fall. bye-bye to st. tropez, where i spend all summer long. so i declined. >> reporter: i asked her how they were able to stay friends after such a public split. the two of you have remained good friends. how does that happen? >> donald during the divorce was brutal. he took the divorce as a business deal. and he cannot loose. he has to win. so it took about two years and after the final situation was straightened up, he was just talk. and we are friends. >> reporter: how often do you two talk? >> talk about once a 14 days. i have the direct number to white house, but i no really want to call him there, because

melania is there. and i don't want to cause any kind of jealousy or something like that, because i'm basically first trump wife. okay? i'm first lady. okay? >> she made that clear to amy. one of the final network interviews with ivana trump. and amy, she was just 73 years old. a lot of people are going to be asking, are there any early indications, any word on what led to her death? >> reporter: david, police are investigating whether she fell down the stairs and whether that in any way contributed to her death. there were no signs of forced entry, no signs of foul play, so, that investigation continues tonight, as the trump family mourns. >> yes. all right, amy, i know you are anchoring "gma" in the morning, you'll have much more then. we'll see you then. in the meantime, now to the other breaking headline, this one from washington tonight. the secret service and missing text messages from january 6th. tonight, sources telling bc news according to a dhs watchdog, the secret service erased text messages from january 5th and 6th after oversight officials

requested that they be handed over. let's get right to rachel scott, she's live up on the hill with late reporting. rachel, what have you learned? >> reporter: david, sources tell me that the inspector general of the department of homeland security told lawmakers that the messages were deleted from the secret service after his team requested them as part of their investigation into the january 6th insurrection. typically once those materials are requested, those records should be preserved. but the inspector general says that there was confusion in delays on how those records should be turned over. tonight, no comment yet from the secret service, but a top republican, senator rob portman, he is sounding the alarm. he says it is essential for the department to be transparent with the inspector general, congress, and the american people, david. >> all right, rachel scott with late word from capitol hill tonight. rachel, more questions to come on this. in the meantime, now to a case that made national headlines for months, and the dramatic new turn in this case. the once prominent south carolina attorney alex murdaugh already disbarred and accused of

an insurance fraud scheme tonight now indicted in the murders of his wife and 22-year-old son. abc's eva pilgrim back on the story tonight. >> reporter: tonight, a shocking twist in that south carolina double murder mystery. alex murdaugh, a once-prominent lawyer, now indicted in the brutal killings of his wife and son. >> please hurry. neither one of them is moving. >> reporter: murdaugh called 911 in june of last year claiming to have found the two dead on the family's rural property. but now prosecutors allege murdaugh shot his wife maggie using a rifle, and his 22-year-old son paul with a shotgun. the now disbarred attorney already in jail, facing dozens of charges, including stealing millions from clients, and even allegedly planning his our murder for insurance money. he has not entered a plea to any of the charges. tonight, murdaugh denying he had anything to do with the murders of his wife and son. his lawyers saying, "he loved them more than anything in the world." murdaugh's brothers telling me shortly after the murders last year they just wanted answers. >> the person that did this is

out there and -- there's information. >> reporter: saying earlier this week, "as hard as it may be to hear, we remain united as one family seeking the truth." if convicted in the double murders, alex murdaugh could be looking at the death penalty. david? >> all right, eva pilgrim tonight. eva, thank you. we're going to turn to news on the pandemic tonight and new concerns amid this very transmissible variant of covid now sweeping the u.s. in fact, covid deaths in the u.s. now up 10% in just the last week. what they're now seeing here in new york city. and the news coming in tonight from l.a. at this hour. here's our chief national correspondent matt gutman in california. >> reporter: tonight, the nation's largest county is on track to return to an indoor mask mandate in two weeks. >> we're saying there is need to worry. this variant is, as everybody has noted, highly infectious, easily transmitted. >> reporter: l.a. county, home to 10 million people, now seeing high covid transmission. hospitalizations up 88% in l.a. county and doubling across the country since april. >> you have to be as prudent and

careful as possible. >> reporter: this latest wave fueled by that highly transmissible subvariant ba.5. >> we do know it to be more transmissible and more immune-evading. >> reporter: and the number of americans dying of covid is once again climbing. up 10% in just the last week. nearly 350 deaths reported every day. but in new york city, where new cases are up 30% in the past two weeks, officials have scrapped their color-coded covid alert system and are working on a new one. many don't want to take a step back. >> i don't feel like i need to wear a mask at this point. >> reporter: and it's not just on the coasts. three-fourths of americans are now living in counties at medium or high risk for covid. so the cdc is urging people in those high risk areas to mask up indoors. and those in medium risk areas to consider masking based on individual risk. david, health officials are telling us that that latest generation of vaccines is expected out in october, but

they're saying if you are due for a vaccine like that family behind me, get it now. you will still be eligible for that latest generation vaccine when it comes out in the fall. david? >> yeah, they say get the shot now and get the booster in the fall. matt, thank you. in the meantime, now to that state of emergency in virginia that continues tonight after flood waters ripped through. everyone initially feared missing, dozens now accounted for tonight, but they are still checking cars and homes destroyed to make sure no one else could have been inside. those powerful waters ripping homes from foundations. in fact, this truck swept up and left hanging right there along the river bank. abc's trevor ault on the scene in buchanan county, virginia, tonight. >> reporter: tonight, that monumental search effort in western virginia. authorities scouring some 30 miles of roads and rivers and 400 structures in the wake of devastating flash floods. >> crews were out all night last night and there was five crews out this morning. >> reporter: officials say all of the 44 people once unaccounted for have now been found alive.

at least 100 homes are severely damaged. this street is full of them. if you look up above, you can see houses swept clean off their foundations. this one dragged across the street into their neighbor's front yard. that neighbor is robert rife. >> the car got lodged under the house and kept it from coming any farther. so it probably saved my house. >> reporter: for a time, robert himself was on the list of people feared missing. >> i'm here. and alive and well. >> reporter: good. the flash flooding was caused by a stalled front that dumped six inches of rain tuesday night. look how high the water line was. this is well above my head. this is basically as tall as the front windows. with zero cell service and power out to thousands, rescuers marking cars they've searched with pink tape. and double-checking there isn't anyone else out there. and david, this is te second significant flood in this region in the past year. in september, 50 people needed to be rescued and one person was killed. in this flood, officials say

miraculously, everyone seems to have survived. david? >> all right, trevor ault in virginia for us tonight. trevor, thank you. we turn to the war in ukraine tonight, and the horrific toll now emerging after russian missiles targeting an office building in central ukraine, far from the front lines. an apartment building complex was hit, too. at least 23 people killed, including three children. more than 100 injured. abc's tom soufi burridge is on the scene in ukraine for us tonight. >> reporter: tonight, death and destruction in the heart of vinnytsia in central ukraine. surveillance videos posted by a ukrainian official showing the moment of impact. some ducking for cover inside a store. a cyclist thrown to the ground. debris flying everywhere. sheer panic. and a shadow descending. likely from the thick column of acrid smoke seen filling the skyline in this video online. and 4-year-old elizaveta, seen in this video, thought to be taken just before the attack,

killed. tonight, her stroller now the scene of an alleged war crime. imagine this area mid-morning, downtown, in a major ukrainian city. and look what the russian missiles have done here. the russians would have known that this area would have been packed full of families and children. and your husband works where? >> my husband's office was on fourth floor. >> reporter: on the fourth floor, your husband had an office? p>> reporter: ludmilla's husban luckily not in his office at the time. but her despair, clear. this car is a graphic illustration of what a missile will do. look at the way it's riddled with holes. shrapnel exploding everywhere, maiming everyone in its path. russia claiming it was targeting military officials in this building. ukraine saying there were no mlitary targets here and calling it a russian terrorist attack on civilians. well, the clearup operation in this sbhientire area is still ongoing tonight.

david? >> tom soufi burridge in ukraine for us. tom, thank you. in the meantime, we turn now to president biden in the middle east. the tensions on full display today over how to handle iran. there were also questions about tomorrow's controversial trip to saudi arabia. the president was asked, will he address the murder of journalist jamal khashoggi during his meeting with the crown prince? how the president answered, it did make immediate news. and our senior white house correspondent mary bruce is traveling with the president. >> reporter: president biden meeting with the israeli prime minister today with iran top of mind. >> we will not -- let me say it again -- we will not allow iran to acquire a nuclear weapon. >> reporter: but the two leaders disagree over how to stop iran. >> the only thing that will stop iran is knowing that if they continue to develop their nuclear program, the free world will use force. >> reporter: biden has said he's willing to use force, but only as a last resort. his biggest challenge now less than 24 hours away. that face-to-face meeting with

saudi crown prince mohammed bin salman, who the u.s. concluded ordered the brutal murder of journalist jamal khashoggi. as a candidate, biden vowed to punish the saudis. >> make them pay the price and make them, in fact, the pariah that they are. >> reporter: but now the u.s. is hoping saudi oil will help bring down soari though biden insists this trip is about regional security. >> what will you say to saudi leaders, specifically to crown prince mohammed bin salman, about the khashoggi murder and other human rights practices? >> my views on khashoggi have been made absolutely, positively clear, and i have never been quiet about talking about human rights. >> reporter: biden then pressed again. >> so you don't expect to bring up -- >> i always bring up human rights. but my position on khashoggi has been so clear. if anyone doesn't understand it

in saudi arabia or anywhere else, then they haven't been around for awhile. >> reporter: the president and the white house are treading very carefully here. tonight, they are still negotiating the specifics of this meeting, trying to choreograph every little detail, including whether cameras will be allowed in and whether we will see president biden shake hands with the saudi crown prince. david? >> yeah, a lot of questions remain over this visit. mary bruce live in jerusalem tonight. mary, thank you. back here at home tonight, and to news in that disturbing case of a 10-year-old ohio girl who had been raped and who went to indiana to get an abortion after roe was overturned. no exceptions in ohio for rape. well tonight, the indiana doctor who performed that procedure is now under investigation. the indiana attorney general saying he is investigating the doctor's license and whether she failed to report the child was raped. detectives saying the child went to indiana for that abortion because of no exceptions for rape after roe was overturned. tonight, a lawyer for that indiana doctor, dr. caitlin bernard, said she, quote, took every appropriate and proper

action in accordance with the r law, that she has not violated any law. when we come back here tonight, news this evening about the deadly mass shooting in buffalo at that supermarket. what we learned today about that scene at tops. and then later here tonight, we pay tribute to an american we pay tribute to an american hero. n't always avoid triggers like stress. qulipta™ can help prevent migraine attacks... you can't prevent what's going on outside, that's why qulipta™ helps what's going on inside. qulipta™ is a pill. gets right to work to prevent migraine attacks and keeps them away over time. qulipta™ blocks cgrp—a protein believed to be a cause of migraine attacks. qulipta™ is a preventive treatment for episodic migraine. most common side effects are nausea, constipation, and tiredness. learn how abbvie could help you save on qulipta™. i've got nothing to eat. nothing. hold on, i can do something. ♪ turning nothing into something ♪ ♪ turning nothing into something ♪ it's amazing what you can do with nothing, and a little best foods. shouldn't body lotion do more than just moisturize?

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until san francisco police showed up. >> several people lost their lives on this road. >> one driver did today. what makes this antioch street so dangerous. >> from warmer to hotter, i will have a look at the weekend forecast coming up. >> building a better bay area, moving forward, finding solutions, this is abc 7 news. >> there is a way tor akin the y area. it is also a way to get arrested. >> take a look. it is hard to count the number of boxes in bottles and it is all evidence police say of organized retail theft. >> they say it comes down to one man who they have arrested. fighting crime is part of building a better bay area and that is why leanne melendez joins us with the details. >> picture this.

police say this man was operating an entire fencing operation from his 10 by 10 -- 10 by 12 bedroom should always items were neatly stacked up against the wall and in his closet. there was only enough space left for his bed to sleep in. the doors to an old courtroom opened to reveal a textbook example of an organized retail theft fencing organization. if you are amazed by the amount of stolen goods, so were re-from early because effort disco police say only one person ran the show. >> we are suspecting they are making upwards of half a million per year. you looking at over-the-counter medications, beauty products, the things you would find in your cvs, walgreens, that type of story. >> in the past few years, have seen other cases of people shoplifting large quantities of items off the shelves. they are called boosters.