Cellphone robbery suspect tripped up by his sagging jeans

New York - A Brooklyn cellphone crook`s poor wardrobe choices led to his arrest when his saggy jeans tripped him up during his getaway attempt and allowed cops to chase him down, police said. Joel Donaldson, 21, allegedly punched his victim in the face before snatching her phone at around 2:30 p.m. at Court and Remsen streets, just steps from Borough Hall. He then tried to get away on foot, but didnt get far. His droopy blue jeans - which left his boxer shorts exposed - kept slipping down as he ran. A cop who was directing traffic nearby spotted the bungling bad guy`s sorry sartorial situation and hurried after him. Donaldson made it only about a block before his pants were completely around his ankles, allowing the officer to tackle him near Joralemon Street. More

Police apologize for dog wedding

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – Sri Lankan police apologized Tuesday for holding a group wedding ceremony for sniffer dogs after the country’s culture minister condemned the event and demanded an investigation.
Nine pairs of police dogs dressed in shawls, hats and socks were placed on a decorated platform like those used in traditional weddings in the ceremony Monday in the central town of Kandy.
Their marriages were registered by an official in the presence of a crowd of veterinary surgeons, medical doctors, top police officers and the public.
Local television showed the dog couples later being driven away in a decorated police jeep for their “honeymoons.” More

Men pay for items when no employees were around

WAYNE - Four football players from a North Jersey college are being rewarded for their honesty.
The four William Paterson football players paid for items at a store even though no employees were around.
The members of the William Paterson University football team each received $50 gift cards after they were captured on surveillance cameras inside a closed store, paying for some batteries and sunglasses at the counter even though no employees were around.
The lock at Buddy’s Small Lots in Wayne malfunctioned and the lights were on, making it appear the store was open Sunday night when Anthony Biondi, Jelani Bruce, Kell’E Gallimore and Thomas James entered between preseason practice sessions, according to a university website.
Cameras showed them calling out for a clerk. Gallimore and James can be seen depositing cash on the counter. More

Parakeet foils robbery at neighbor’s house

TAMPA – He may have a limited vocabulary, but 21-year old parakeet “Emerald” knows a thing or two about his neighborhood.
When owner Suzette Beesley heard her bird raising cain in his cage one afternoon, she knew something was wrong.
“I heard this bird making this serious squawking,” Beesley said Tuesday.
When she peeked out her back window to check things out, she saw a stranger breaking in to her next-door neighbor’s house. Beesley called 911, as Emerald kept a watchful eye from the confines of his cage.
Hillsborough County Sheriff’s deputies quickly surrounded the home and tackled 31-year old Hans Christensen as he tried to bolt from the Brandon home. More

Will Batman save us?

Residents in Marseille, France have officially asked for a Batman to come help them with skyrocketing crime.
The mock petition, titled "Will it take Batman to save Marseille?" has thousands of signatures and a Facebook page for the group has more than 4,000 fans.
Europe's current "Capital of Culture" is also considered "Europe's most dangerous place to be young."
More than a quarter of the 800,000 population is living below the poverty line, and there have been 13 gang-related killings so far this year. In 2012, authorities intercepted around 300 Kalashnikovs. More

Chinese zoo disguises dog as lion

China – The rather inventive owners of a zoo in the People’s Park of Luohe, in the central province of Henan, have come under fire for using a dog as an African lion.
The Tibetan Mastiff  was sneakily disguised and then blew his cover after barking in front of visitors.
The zoo has also been accused of some other strange switcheroos.
They incorrectly housed rodents in a snake cage and a white fox in a leopard’s den. More

Missing dog found 10ft up tree

Owners of a missing dog were happy but amazed to hear that it had been found safe and well – up a tree.
Laddy, a seven-year-old border collie, had disappeared from his home in Davenport, Iowa, two days earlier, reports the Quad City Times.
Owner Cynthia Weeks said: “I was beside myself. We went around calling for him, and I drove around. I put it on my Facebook pages, and we put fliers out around the neighborhood.”
Two days later, Ron Stevenson was working in his yard a couple of blocks away when he heard a dog barking and then whining.
He looked around but could see no dog. Finally, he looked up and spotted Laddy – at least 10 feet up a tree near his driveway. He called police but decided to try a rescue attempt. More

Meet the olinguito the world’s newest mammal

A new mammal species has been confirmed by scientists, and it’s already melting hearts.
The olinguito, described as a cross between a house cat and a teddy bear, is the first new carnivorous mammal identified in the Western Hemisphere in 35 years, and it’s considered one of the cutest scientific finds in recent memory.
Researchers first spotted the critter on a trip to Ecuador in 2006.
On their very first night out into the fig tree jungle near Otonga, they saw it, but it has taken seven years to determine, genetically, how distinct it really was from the other furry mammals it resembles.

Pepsi-flavored Cheetos on shelves in Japan

Japan – Pepsi and Cheetos are a natural combo.
Anyone who’s ever indulged in an after-school snack knows they’re made for each other.
There’s even an I Love Cheetos and Pepsi group on Facebook.

The folks at Frito-Lay have caught on too: Pepsi-flavored Cheetos are one of the newest snack flavors to hit shelves in Japan.
We called Frito-Lay for comment but so far no word on if, or when, the flavor will make its way to the U.S. market. More

Chameleon Hat

In 2002, a 17-year-old arriving from Dubai was stopped at the Manchester Airport because of her startling ‘hat.”
She was actually wearing a rare chameleon on her head scarf, a lizard she had purchased at a market in Saudi Arabia.
At first, other passengers thought it was a plastic accessory – until they spied its tongue flicking out.
The creature was her exotic pet and appropriately nicknamed Hattie.
Sadly, Hattie became the property of the fine folks down at Customs and Excise.

Escape artist pulls off locked coffin skydive

Illinois - An escape artist has parachuted safely to the ground after freeing himself from handcuffs and a locked coffin while it was falling from 14,500 feet in the air.
Anthony Martin waved to a crowd after landing softly Tuesday in a field in Serena, Ill., about 70 miles southwest of Chicago.
He says after freeing himself, he watched the box plummet to the ground. He first performed the stunt 25 years ago.
The 47-year-old Wisconsin man was locked in the casket with his hands cuffed to a belt and his right arm chained to the inside of the box. More

4- year- old mayor

Robert "Bobby" Tufts hasn't made it to preschool yet, but he's already been elected twice as mayor of a tiny tourist town in northern Minnesota.

Mayor Tufts' name was picked Sunday during annual Taste of Dorset festival to be mayor of Dorset for a second term. It has no formal city government and has a population of 22 to 28, depending on whether the minister and his family are in town.

Anyone could vote as many times as they like — for $1 a vote — at any of the ballot boxes in stores around town. The proceeds go toward organizing the festival.

Bobby was only 3 when he won election last year. His mother, Emma Tufts, said she and her son, who turns 5 in October, got choked up when his name was pulled for re-election Sunday. More

Talking robot takes off for International Space Station

Japan - When the Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata arrives at the International Space Station in November, a companion will be waiting for him whose eyes will light up in recognition - literally. Kirobo, the world`s first talking humanoid space robot, has already taken off and should arrive at the space station by 9 August to await Wakata`s arrival. It knows he is coming: it has been programmed to recognize his face, and greet him warmly in Japanese. It`s name comes from the Japanese words for hope and robot, and its task is momentous for a kilo of superbly engineered plastic and a bundle of plug leads: nothing less than to supply emotional warmth and companionship. More

Man Hides Turtle in Hamburger at Airport Security Checkpoint

China – A Chinese man was boarding a flight from Guangzhou to Beijing when airline authorities spied something suspicious sticking out a KFC burger he had reportedly packed in his bag.
The Guangzhou Daily reports that local airport authorities handling security were surprised when they found something a little different about the burger – odd protrusions seemed to be showing up on the  X-ray machine.
The man, by all accounts known solely as Mr. Li, was then asked to surrender  the mystery burger for inspection. Although he insisted that there was nothing  to see, authorities persisted.
Li finally acquiesced to an inspection after repeated requests from airport staff, who uncovered the pet turtle hidden inside the burger.
When asked why he  had devised this strange idea, Li said that he had only wanted to travel together with his beloved turtle. More