Several people were injured in a chain-reaction crash that caused a van fire on northbound Interstate 15 in Miramar Wednesday afternoon.

At least five vehicles, including an RV, a van and pickup truck, were involved in the collision just before 2 p.m. at Miramar Way.

Scott Kamali said he saw the crash unfold when a van stopped in the middle of the freeway ahead of him.

"And as I saw it, about 100 feet in front of me, I saw a truck pile into it at almost full speed. He barely got to hit his brake," Kamali said.

As soon as the truck hit the van, it burst into flames. Kamali said he heard the passenger had to pull the driver of the van before he became more burned.

The crashed vehicles veered right, Kamali tried to turn right to avoid him. Just as he thought he cleared the crash, he felt a thud on his Jeep, which was being pulled by an RV. His dog was in the car, but he and his pet were uninjured.

The van was completely gutted by fire, and four lanes of the freeway were blocked, backing up traffic nearly to Friars Road.

After firefighters transported the patients to the hospital, CHP officers opened all the freeway lanes except the far right lane and Miramar Way off-ramp at 3 p.m.

A retired U.S. Marine has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the 2011 death of his girlfriend, a Southern California woman whose remains were found on a remote island near Panama.

Brian Brimager will be imprisoned for the murder of Yvonne Baldelli after entering a guilty plea Wednesday at the San Diego federal courthouse.

Baldelli vanished five years ago when she traveled to Panama with her boyfriend, Brimager, a retired Marine formerly based at Camp Pendleton. The couple left Dana Point, California, in September 2011 to stay on Isla Carenero, an island off the coast accessible only by boat. Baldelli was last seen at a restaurant with Brimager on Nov. 26, 2011.

Brimager admitted Wednesday he stabbed Baldelli in the back on Nov. 27, 2011, then used a machete to dismember her before dumping her remains in the jungle. He also admitted to using a computer in an effort to convince family members that Baldelli was not only still alive but had traveled to Costa Rica with another man.

Authorities said Brimager withdrew money from Baldelli's bank account and sent emails from her laptop, including messages to her family saying Baldelli was happy.

According to court documents, Brimager used the laptop to search for information on how to remove blood stains from a mattress. He’s also accused of stuffing Baldelli’s belongings into garbage bags and disposing of the bags on a dock outside the couple's hostel.

Prosecutors said Brimager lied to investigators about Baldelli’s disappearance and told them she took her laptop while traveling. In 2012, he was found with the computer in his possession, at which point Brimager changed his story but said he never used it to send emails.

Baldelli’s remains were found in 2013 on a small island off the Isla Carenero coastline. Scientists identified her body using DNA analysis on her skull and bones. Her DNA was also found under the handle of a machete, prosecutors revealed last week.

Brimager has been in U.S. custody since June 2013 on charges of obstruction of justice, giving false statements to a federal officer and falsifying records.

In April 2015, he was indicted by a federal grand jury in San Diego on a charge of foreign murder of a U.S. national. Brimager initially pleaded not guilty.

Just last week, court documents were filed revealing a machete was the weapon in this grisly murder, and that blood found under the handle of that machete contained Baldelli's DNA.

A student was struck and injured by a hit-and-run driver in front of Lincoln High School Wednesday morning, authorities confirmed.

The collision happened just after 9 a.m. in front of the school in the 4700 block of Imperial Avenue.

Officers with the San Diego Police Department (SDPD) said an unknown driver was making a left turn from 49th Street onto Imperial Avenue just as a 17-year-old Lincoln High School student was crossing the street. The driver hit the student and then took off.

The victim suffered a broken ankle, police said, and was taken to a local hospital.

Officers with the San Diego Police Department (SDPD) shut down eastbound traffic at 47th Street following the crash so they could begin their investigation. Officers detained someone on nearby Division Street after the crash, who may be the hit-and-run suspect, but that person is still under investigation.

No other injuries were reported.

Officers said the teenage victim had a skateboard with him at the time of the hit-and-run, but they're not sure if he was riding the skateboard or carrying it.

The hit-and-run remains under investigation and police are trying to determine who was at fault. Several witnesses have been interviewed, and many said the driver was a woman inside a gold-toned SUV.

Check back for updates on this developing story, and watch NBC 7 News at Midday for details from the scene.

Donald Trump's near-landslide victory in Nevada early Wednesday is the result of support he enjoys from almost every key segment of the electorate, according to the NBC News Entrance Poll. 

As in the past three contests, the real estate mogul performed best among Republican voters who were looking for a candidate who "tells it like it is," receiving 86 percent of their support.

He also did very well among those who want the next president to come from outside the political establishment, getting 70 percent of this group's vote.

Trump took 59 percent of the vote among caucus-goers who wanted a candidate who could bring about change. He was also on top among voters whose top issue was the economy (47 percent), terrorism (37 percent) and government spending (36 percent).
 

As a large-scale, $4.5 million restoration project presses on, the historic boardwalk at Mission Beach will be dominated by construction crews and cones at least through Memorial Day, city leaders confirm.

With backhoes in tow, construction crews are currently replacing the iconic boardwalk, seawall and splash wall along Ocean Front Walk near Belmont Park – a neighborhood improvement project with intentions to restore the beachside landmark to how it looked when it was first constructed in the 1920s. This vintage photograph shows the bustling boardwalk in the mid-1950s.

According to San Diego city leaders, the extensive work is expected to be finished by May 30 – Memorial Day, and the unofficial start of the summer season.

Work first began on the boardwalk after summer 2015.

On Wednesday, San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and San Diego City Councilmember Lorie Zapf toured the construction site and gave some updates on the massive coastal undertaking, which is part of a long-term effort to improve the area for years to come.

“Reconstructing the boardwalk is good for our beach neighborhoods, good for our tourism economy and good for preserving a piece of San Diego history,” Faulconer said. “This is an example of how we're building our better future by investing in neighborhoods throughout the city.”

The City of San Diego posted some photos of the coastal construction on Twitter during the mayor's tour:

Faulconer also took to Twitter to talk about the project:

Mission Beach visitors and residents say the boardwalk area was deteriorating, and the improvement project is much-needed.

“It’s just amazing. The walls are splitting, they’re falling apart,” Mission Beach visitor Keith Johnson told NBC 7. “I was pleasantly surprised when I saw them at least start to put some money into the beachfront here.”

Some local business owners along the boardwalk say improvements to the area will likely bring more tourists to the beach, and customers to their shops and restaurants. Ocean Front Walk is also home to many vacation homes.

“That’s going to give it a good look over here,” said Mike Soltan, owner of Kojack’s Restaurant. “The wall has been there for years and years, and as of right now, I think that’s going to help business; it’s going to improve the area. It’s going to be great. I think they did a good job.”

For now, the popular pathway used daily by bicyclists, joggers and those casually strolling, remains tight. It is difficult to walk along parts of the boardwalk, as the path is more narrow than ever because portions are closed off by construction crews.

The shorterm inconveniences, however, will not outweigh the bigger picture, according to city leaders.

“Restoring the infrastructure of one of San Diego's most precious resources is greatly needed and will be appreciated by all,” Zapf added.
 

Thirty dogs that were living in a Korean dog meat farm have been rescued by the San Diego Humane Society.

The 21 dogs and nine puppies; which are a variety of breeds, including huskies, golden retrievers and tosas; will be taken in by the local humane society.

The dogs were living in filthy, cramped cages in Korea, and a local team of animal welfare professionals coordinated their rescue.

They were taken from Korea to San Francisco and will be at the local shelter on Thursday, according to a news release from the San Diego Humane Society.

The rescue was coordinated in conjunction with Humane Society International.

Many of the dogs suffer from diseases and malnutrition and most have been subject to animal cruelty, the humane society said.

The dogs and puppies, all under 2 years old, will be medically treated over the next two weeks before they can be adopted.

 A neglected horse, described as just "skin and bones", is on the road to recovery after being rescued Monday, the San Diego County Animal Services Department said. 

Molonko, an underweight 7-year-old mare, was found with a sore on her withers, shoes on her back feet that need to be removed and only nails without proper shoes on her front hooves. 

"If you have an animal, you owe it to that animal to provide nutritious food and veterinary care and not simply say we're going to let it die," said County Animal Services Deputy Director Dan DeSousa in a statement. "This horse was in horrible shape."

At the facility, the owner was supposed to provide food and water for the animal. The owner said he was just going to let the horse die, others at the stable told officials. 

This most recent case marks the third time officials have been called out to help this particular animal. In 2013, animal services officials came out to help educate the owner on feeding after receiving reports the horse was underweight. The next year, animal services officials noted the animal had lost so much weight they seized it to provide lifesaving care. 

Veterinarians and animal care staff are treating and monitoring the horse now. 

The owner has ten days to request a hearing to fight the seizure of his animal. 

The case is under investigation. Officials say they may charge the owner with misdemeanor or felony animal neglect charges. 

Gas under $2? Believe it or not, there are a number of spots around San Diego County where you can get that deal.

The low gas prices mark the first time since May 2009 fuel has been this cheap, Consumer Bob reports.

The lowest prices have been reported in Otay Mesa, where customers have reported paying $1.90 a gallon.

You’ll find the most gas stations offering cheap gas in Escondido. U.S. Gas in Escondido was attracting a number of drivers this week for gas at $1.97.

Other areas seeing almost-too-good-to-be-true gas prices? El Cajon in East County and Midway Drive in Point Loma, drivers told Consumer Bob.

Consumer Bob said on Monday that he expects prices to get even lower by the end of the week, dropping between 4 to 8 cents a gallon in some places.

But, he said, he expects gas prices to go back up next month with the wholesale price of fuel.

A stranger described as a bald man driving a windowless van allegedly approached an 8-year-old student outside Greg Rogers Elementary School Monday, telling the boy his mother had sent him to pick him up, school officials said.

Erika Taylor, the principal at the Chula Vista school located at 510 East Naples St., sent a letter home to parents Tuesday alerting them to the incident, which happened just after school let out Monday afternoon.

“A gentleman in a white van with no windows approached a student and told him that ‘his mom asked him to pick him up,’” Taylor letter stated. “The gentleman was bald, with a very thick beard, and was wearing a red shirt.”

According to the principal, the elementary school student acted quickly. He has little contact with his mother, who lives in Tijuana, so he was not sure if the man was telling the truth. The boy ran to the school's main office but told no one at the time, Chula Vista police said.

That night, the boy told his grandmother about the incident, and she told the school the next day. Taylor said the Chula Vista Police Department (CVPD) was called to the campus, and a report was taken. The CVPD’s investigation is ongoing.

No further description of the suspect was given. On Wednesday, police said no one could verify with the boy's mother whether she sent someone to pick up her son, so out of an abudance of caution, the school sent out a warning letter to parents.

The principal’s letter went on to remind parents to talk to their children about this type of situation and remind their kids to “say ‘no’ to anything that makes them feel uncomfortable, scared or confused.”

“Tell your children to tell you if anyone makes them feel this way,” Taylor wrote. “There is a difference between reporting, tattling or gossiping.”

Taylor said children or parents with concerns should contact the school’s office or authorities.

Rogers Elementary School is home to students in kindergarten through 6th grade.
 

For the first time the State of California is releasing data detailing where controversial guardrails manufactured by Trinity Industries are located in San Diego County.

Trinity manufactures guardrails lining highways in California and across the country and has been ordered to pay millions in damages and penalties for defrauding the federal government. The highway manufacturing heavyweight, based in Texas, has been accused in lawsuits and complaints for making a change to the ET-Plus, a widely used version of its guardrail end terminals. The changes cause the guardrail to perform improperly, according to the lawsuits.

The company has always maintained their guardrails meet federal standards.

Through a California Public Records Act Request, NBC 7 Investigates requested the inventory and location of where ET-Plus end terminals are located in the region from the California Department of Transportation. The state public records request also asked Caltrans how the agency identifies the systems.

Click here or on the map below to see where the guardrails are located and find out more about any recent repairs under “description.”

[[370000111, C]]

According to Caltrans, there are more than 3,600 ET-Plus units along California freeways, representing about 9.5 percent of all guardrail end terminals in California.

According to lawsuits filed against Trinity across the country, instead of passing through the terminal chute and pigtailing out the side, away from the vehicle, the metal railing of the guardrail jams up inside the chute. The metal then sometimes pierces through a vehicle like a spear, cutting through cars and sometimes the people inside.

Caltrans provided NBC 7 Investigates photos and documents showing the differences between an older approved guardrail system and the ET Plus. Click here to view them.

In California the ET-Plus is no longer being installed on roadways, a spokesperson for Caltrans told NBC 7 Investigates. The state is weighing what to do next with the ET-Plus guardrails currently on roadways across the state.

The ET-Plus remains eligible for federal reimbursement according to regulations from the Federal Highway Administration. The agency is responsible for approving which highway safety materials are eligible for federal reimbursement, and states look to it on guidance for which products are approved for use on their highways.

Under orders from and under the supervision of the FHWA, the company ran tests on the ET-Plus guardrail system last year. The guardrails met all crash test criteria, a U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration official said.
 

 The sister of a 10-year-old girl declared brain dead following a hit-and-run crash said she has forgiven her baby sister's alleged killer. 

"And I know everyone expects me to be angry, but I'm not angry," said Jessica Rosete. "Everyone makes mistakes and this mistake is just unfortunately irreversible. And you know what? I forgive her. My family forgives her family."

Raquel Lee Ann Rosete, 10, and her friend, 12, were struck by Julianne Little, 30, when she veered off Santo Road in Tierrasanta and onto the sidewalk. Raquel suffered cardiac arrest and a brain injury; she was declared brain dead Tuesday morning. The 12-year-old suffered serious but non life-threatening injuries. 

Following Little's arraignment, where she was charged with felony vehicular manslaughter, non-alcohol with gross negligence, and one count of felony hit-and-run with injury, Jessica stood with a photo of her sister on her shirt, surrounded by friends and family, to speak about her baby sister. 

"I am going to miss my baby sister, my only sister, but I know she’s happy," Jessica said through tears. "I want everyone to remember Raqeuel, my baby sister, the baby of the family, I want everyone to remember her smiling and doing cartwheels and back flips and dancing."

She remembered her sister as a bouncing young girl who was always smiling, always active and always happy; a girl who would often wander into her room and annoy her. 

"I don't regret not one time," Jessica said, thinking back to those days her sister would come into her room. 

Jessica said she initially felt a strong flush of anger come over her when she first saw Little, the woman accused of striking her sister. 

"I had to look down at my shirt, at Raquel smiling, and she's not an angry person," she said. "She easily forgives people, she's such a good person."

That was how Jessica knew she would be able to forgive Little, she said. 

"All I can do is forgive her," she said. 

Instead, she wants people to look at her only sister and remember her as the happy, joyous and loving person she was. 

Jessica did not have a chance to speak with Little Wednesday; she said if she could speak with her, she would only hope Little learns from her mistakes. 

"You took something from me that I can never get back. Raquel was my only baby sister. Just doing certain things with your little sister, like going to the prom, going to girls days, you took that from me," Jessica said.

"Hopefully you learn that you’ve affected a lot of people, especially the big sister, the only sister," she said.

Voter turnout for Republican candidates in this year’s presidential primaries and caucuses is breaking records, NBC News reported.

The Nevada Republican Party reported Wednesday morning that more than 75,000 voters participated in the contest, demolishing the participation record from 2012, when about 33,000 GOP voters showed up to caucus.

Republican front-runner Donald Trump captured 34,531 votes in his victory in the state, showing his ability to capture support from every key segment of the electorate.

In South Carolina, more than 730,000 voters turned out during Saturday's GOP primary, up from about 603,000 in 2012. New Hampshire and Iowa saw the same pattern, with the Granite State receiving about 36,000 more Republican voters than in 2012, and the Hawkeye State garnering more than 180,000 participants, up from about 121,000 in the last election cycle.

A Carmel Valley woman who killed her mother with a meat tenderizer has been sentenced to 12 years in prison.

Lara Epstein, 51, earlier pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in the death of her 73-year-old mother.

The defendant's mother, Svetlana Gurinova, was found dead the night of June 16, 2015, inside her Carmel Valley home on Carmel View Road.

When responding officers and paramedics opened the door, they found Epstein standing in the living room.

Epstein then directed officers to the lifeless body of her mother inside the house. Pirrello said authorities found plastic bags covering the woman's head and feet; there had been an effort to clean up the scene.

A large kitchen knife and metal meat tenderizer mallet were found in a trash bag next to Gurinova's body, prosecutors said.

Homicide investigators said the victim had suffered massive blunt force trauma to her body, including some lacerations. She had apparently been hit over the head with the meat tenderizer and stabbed several times in the neck and chest, prosecutors said.

The motive of the killing was never clear, though the prosecutor said family members reported a strained relationship between the mother and daughter. They also reported that Epstein had a history of mental health issues.

A driver accused of striking two young girls and then fleeing the scene, leaving one brain dead, pleaded not guilty to two felony charges Wednesday. 

Julianne Little, 30, pleaded not guilty to felony vehicular manslaughter, non-alcohol with gross negligence, and one count of felony hit-and-run with injury. Little was initially arrested on a DUI charge, but prosecutors declined to file the charge until they receive toxicology results.

At her first appearance in court Wednesday, the judge held Little on $1 million bail, emphasizing the seriousness of the case. 

Following Little's court appearance, San Diego County Deputy District Attorney Marissa Bejarano elaborated on the alleged crimes, detailing how Little was driving along Santo Road late Saturday when she veered into the bike path and onto the sidewalk, striking the girls.

Ten-year-old Raquel Lee Ann Rosete was hit by the car as well, Bejarano said. The impact of the crash caused her to collapse on the hood; she was carried 60 feet  backwards before Little allegedly backed the car up, throwing Rosete into the bushes, Bejarano said.

Rosete suffered cardiac arrest and a brain stem injury, Bejanaro said. She was declared brain dead Tuesday morning. The family chose not to reveal whether she was still on life support or not. 

The 12-year-old was hit by the right side of the car and thrown into the bushes. She suffered a fractured ankle, concussion, and abrasions along her back, Bejarano said; the injuries are serious but non life-threatening. 

After the crash, Little allegedly fled the scene and later returned with her father. She was arrested shortly after. 

"When she did go home, she fled, meaning she went back home, she told her father she didn’t know what she hit, she told her mother that she believed she hit a brick wall and then later she gave statements to officers indicated she did hit two people," Bejarano said.

Little's attorney, Anthony Solare, said his client was devastated with what happened. Solare told media after the arraingment that Little fell asleep at the wheel just before the crash, exhausted from a stalker trying to contact her. 

"What I can tell you is that my client is genuinely devastated by this," Solare said. "I've been doing this a while and I've seen people in different situations and this is somebody who, the effect of this is palpable."

He explained how his client may have fell asleep at the wheel after being contacted early last week by a man who stalked her. Solare said Little filed a petition against a man who apparently stalker her last March. He said his client feared for her life, causing her to fall asleep at the wheel as a result of sleep deprivation. 

Solare previously told NBC 7 there is important information about his client’s culpability that is still unknown.

David Newcomb, who taught Raquel judo at Naval Air Station North Island, helped set up a GoFundMe page for the family.

If convicted, Little could face 11 years and eight months in prison. 

A propaganda video released this week by pro-ISIS hackers threatens the founders of Facebook and Twitter, which have been shutting down social media accounts affiliated with the terror group.

ISIS is known to use social media to recruit members and convey its message during attacks.

The video, posted Feb. 23 by the "Sons Caliphate Army," shows bullets riddling the photos of Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey.

Deep-web analysts from Vocativ first spotted the video on Telegram, a social media site reported to be popular with ISIS supporters.

The amateur video claims to have hacked more than 10,000 Facebook accounts, 150 Facebook groups and 5,000 Twitter profiles, saying ISIS supporters would take over many of those accounts.

At the end of the video, the narrator addresses Zuckerberg and Dorsey directly, taunting them and warning the CEOs that ISIS supporters will hack 10 accounts for every one that Twitter and Facebook close. The video also threatens to delete the sites altogether.

Similar threats have been made before over the past year.

Twitter, the terror group's main social media platform, suspended 125,000 accounts earlier this month that allegedly threatened or promoted terrorist acts, primarily related to ISIS.

“We condemn the use of Twitter to promote terrorism and the Twitter Rules make it clear that this type of behavior, or any violent threat, is not permitted on our service,” Twitter said in a statement in early February.

Ari Mason contributed to this report.

A 21-ton airdrop of food that was being delivered to starving Syrians in the besieged city of Deir el-Zour, was damaged, lost or fell into an area full of land mines, the U.N. World Food Programme said Thursday. 

The delivery, which was dropped from 23,000 feet, would have been enough to feed 2,500 people for a month, but 10 of the 21 pallets pallets "drifted away and are so far unaccounted for," the agency spokeswoman Abeer Etefa told NBC News.

"This plane had to fly at a high altitude to avoid rockets, missiles and gunfire," she added. "We are disappointed that people who were anxiously waiting to receive this food did not receive it."

Deir el-Zour is a city of some 200,000 in the country's east that is besieged by ISIS. The WFP said it has not been able to reach Deir el-Zour's civilians since March 2014.

A human torso found in Fremont, California, may be linked to the disappearance of a 57-year-old Brisbane woman whose husband committed suicide after she vanished, police said.

Investigators from the Fremont and Brisbane police departments on Wednesday served a search warrant at the Brisbane home of Shelly Titchener, who was last seen in mid-February after telling her husband she was leaving to spend time with a friend.

A Facebook group dedicated to finding her said Titchener left her home Feb. 13 or 14 and was reported missing Feb. 15 — but neighbor Dee Dee Porter said she spoke with Titchener that day.

"We had a nice conversation last Monday about bamboo at the house and how the gardener was going to come work on that," Porter said.

Titchener's husband, Paul, who reported her missing, was named a person of interest in his wife's disappearance. He committed suicide by jumping from the Bay Bridge late Tuesday, police said.

The severed torso, which investigators said belong to a still-unidentified woman, was found Sunday night by a group of people fishing on a Fremont pier at the eastern foot of the Dumbarton Bridge, police said.

Authorities said the victim's head and limbs had apparently been cut off. The mangled body, wrapped in a plastic bag, spawned a suspicious death investigation.

Investigators found more human remains when they returned to the scene Tuesday night, along with evidence that linked the crime scene to the Titchener case, police said.

"While we cannot confirm the body found is that of Shelly Titchener, we also cannot rule it out," Fremont police said in a statement.

The coroner has not set a timeline for identifying the body.

The case shocked neighbors, who said the couple was very private and that Paul Titchener had recently knocked on doors to ask if anyone had seen his wife.

"He came to the door with his son looking for if I had seen anything," said Dave Burke, who lives across the street from the Titchener family.

Neighbors who asked not to be identified said the Titcheners had a strained relationship and that Shelly Titchener often seemed troubled.

The couple's son posted a statement on Facebook late Wednesday acknowledging that his parents had passed away. He thanked the public and asked for privacy.

Fremont police are asking that anyone who has information about the remains call their crimes against persons unit at 510-790-6900.

Donald Trump leads South Florida native Sen. Marco Rubio 44-28 percent among likely Republican primary voters, according to the latest Quinnipiac University poll.

Men support Trump over Rubio 49-25 percent, while women support Trump 39-31 percent, the poll finds.

“Florida is the single biggest prize of the primary season because it is the largest state to allocate its delegates on a winner-take-all basis. If Sen. Rubio can’t win in his own home state, it is difficult to see how he can win elsewhere,” said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll.

Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas has 12 percent with Ohio Gov. John Kasich at 7 percent and Dr. Ben Carson at 4 percent.

Quinnipiac University surveyed 705 likely Republican primary voters in the state by land line and cell phone from Feb. 21 - 24. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.7 percentage points.

Another former president of Mexico blasted GOP candidate Donald Trump's idea to build a border wall, using colorful language. 

"I declare, I'm not gonna pay for that f*****g wall," ex-president Vicente Fox told Univision's anchor Jorge Ramos, in a video clip posted on Twitter Thursday. "He should pay for it; he's got the money."

The billionaire real estate mogul has made immigration one of the centerpieces of his campaign, saying on the day he announced his candidacy that Mexico was sending "rapists" and "criminals" across the border. 

Former Mexican president Felipe Calderón also had harsh words for Trump earlier in February: "We are not going to pay any single cent for such a stupid wall! And it's going to be completely useless." 

During his conversation with CNBC's Hadley Gamble, Calderon said it was "incredible" that quite an "admirable society" like the United States had candidates like Trump.

Trump reacted with outrage on Twitter Thursday afternoon, saying Fox "horribly used the F word" and "must apologize."

"If I did that there would be a uproar!" Trump tweeted. His campaign did not respond to a request for comment. 

Asked if he's "afraid" Trump will be America's next president, Fox, who led Mexico from 2000 to 2006, said: "Not at all, democracy cannot take us to crazy people that doesn't [sic] know what's going on in the world today."

But Fox admitted he was troubled by Trump's latest decisive victory over his rivals at the Nevada caucus on Tuesday.

Fox said the Hispanics who voted for Trump are "followers of a false prophet."

He said Trump is "going to take them to the desert. And if they think they will benefit with an administration led by Donald Trump, they're wrong. They must open their eyes."

Fox said the United States "will fail if it goes to the hands of a crazy guy" and added that Trump doesn't represent Republican principles.