Britain pulls the plug on its UFO hotline
LONDON (AP) — Britain's military has closed a hotline that took reports of unidentified flying objects, or UFOs, after determining that the money is better spent in Afghanistan. The Ministry of Defense says that the phone service and an associated e-mail address were taken offline earlier this week, and said Friday that 50 years of UFO sightings had not revealed any evidence of alien life or threats to the U.K.
'Elf' jailed over dynamite hoax on Ga. mall Santa
MORROW, Ga. (AP) — A man dressed as an elf is jailed after police in Georgia say he told a mall Santa that he was carrying dynamite. Police say Southlake Mall in suburban Atlanta was evacuated but no explosives were found.
Texas couple say hen laid egg with cross on it
BURLESON, Texas (AP) — A Fort Worth-area couple said one of their hens laid an egg with a cross on the end of it. Pam and Tracy Norrell of Burleson, who displayed the odd-shaped egg, said they believe it's a sign of encouragement during the holiday season. Tracy Norrell said he was gathering eggs Monday night when one he picked up seemed to be unusual, not smooth like other eggs. The misshapen egg has an indentation on one end with what appears to be a cross on it.
Fla. teen allegedly attacks dad for loud snoring
OLDSMAR, Fla. (AP) — A Florida teenager has been charged with assaulting his father, reportedly because the man was snoring too loudly. The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office reported that the teen, 18, first threw a magazine at his father, who was sleeping on a living room couch Tuesday evening. When that didn't work, deputies said the teen pushed his father onto the floor and punched him in the face. The father was checked out at a nearby hospital as a precaution.
Would-be thief sends merciful NY store owner $50
SHIRLEY, N.Y. (AP) — A Long Island convenience store owner who showed mercy to a would-be robber said he's received an apology note and $50 in the mail. The unsigned note said it was from the man who tried to rob Mohammad Sohail. It said the would-be robber has a new job, a new child, and is staying out of trouble. Sohail is saving the $50 for charity.
Iowa woman accused of shoplifting 418 items
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — An Iowa woman is accused in a South Dakota shoplifting case that authorities say involved more than just a few items stuffed in a pocket. Sioux Falls police said a 51-year-old woman allegedly took $2,200 worth of items from the Lewis Drug Store, hauling stolen merchandise to her car in bags and then returning to the store for more. Officers say they found 418 stolen items in her car, ranging from books to jewelry.
Police: Man hides in Ala. Wal-Mart, takes cash
FAIRFIELD, Ala. (AP) — Fairfield police said a Mississippi man took holiday shopping to another level by hiding in a Wal-Mart and trying to leave with cash. Police said the man hid inside the Walmart on Nov. 25 after it closed at 11 p.m. and took $54,000 in cash and checks. A guard subdued the man when he tried to leave through locked doors. Police said money bags started falling from his clothes as he shook the doors. Officers found money strapped to the man's chest, in his backpack and in his pants. They confiscated a key used to enter the cash room but haven't said if he had an accomplice.
Ohio police say man tried to take their candy bars
CINCINNATI (AP) — Talk about sticky fingers: Police arrested a man they say tried to take their candy bars. Police in the southwest Ohio city of Middletown, around 30 miles north of Cincinnati, charge that Derek Kidd, 32, tried to walk out of the station with two candy bars and a police toboggan cap. Police Maj. Mark Hoffman said Kidd and his girlfriend had just been released Wednesday after disorderly conduct arrests and were asking passers-by to use a cell phone. He invited them inside to use a police phone. While the woman was on the phone, Hoffman said, he chased Kidd out of a detectives' break room.
Police: Bubble gum bandits walk, talk and steal
STERLING HEIGHTS, Mich. (AP) — Police said a pack of bubble gum bandits is walking into suburban Detroit gas stations and chewing through the candy aisle. Police said the latest heist happened Nov. 21, when two suspects chatted up the clerk of a Speedway gas station in Sterling Heights, while a third suspect filched $318 worth of gum. The Detroit Free Press said police in Warren and Madison Heights also reported similar thefts at gas stations.
What do cats do home alone? Cat cams have answers
LOS ANGELES (AP) — What do cats do when their owners are away? There was one way to find out — "cat cams." Fifty house cats were given collar cameras that took a photo every 15 minutes. The results put a digital dent in some human theories about catnapping.
