The Stupid Crimes & Misdemeanors Thread

[TexasStooge]

Man in Batman Suit Climbs Onto Court Roof

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands (AP) - A man in a Batman suit spent several hours on a rooftop balcony atop a courthouse in the Dutch city of Utrecht on Monday, protesting the treatment of fathers in divorce cases.

Police initially said they planned to ignore the man, a member of the group Fathers for Justice, until he came down.

But police spokeswoman Wendy Alberse said the man, whose name was not released, struck a deal to surrender peacefully. Police offered him a ladder and he climbed through a window to safety, she said.

"He won't be charged, and he has promised not to do it again," Alberse said.

Dave Ellison, a spokesman for the group Fathers for Justice, said the man's identity could not be revealed but tha his first name was Andrew.

Ellison said months of planning went into the stunt, intended to draw attention to the plight of Dutch fathers who have been barred from visiting their children after a divorce.

In September, a member of the group's British wing, wearing a Batman suit, climbed onto a balcony at Buckingham Palace, Queen Elizabeth II's London residence.

[TexasStooge]

Florida Man on Lam Found Inside of TV

BAINBRIDGE, Ga. (AP) - A 6-foot man allegedly on the run from Florida authorities since September was found this week curled up inside of a television.

After receiving a tip that Alfred Blane, 45, of Ponce de Leon, Fla., might be in Decatur County, police went Friday to a mobile home near Bainbridge College, where a woman told police he was hiding under a mattress inside.

Lending the department's police dog, Thomasville officers accompanied the Florida authorities inside the residence. The officers searched the house thoroughly, even checking a freezer and washing machine, said Lt. Tim Watkins of the Thomas County Sheriff's Department.

Meanwhile, the dog kept poking around a television, an older floor model, Watkins said. When officers unscrewed the back of the television, they found a balled-up Blane inside, he said, adding that Blane is between 5-foot-10 and 6-feet tall.

Blane escaped in handcuffs from two sheriff's deputies in September as they tried to place him in the back of a police car, said Capt. Stan Sunday of the Walton County Sheriff's Office in Florida.

After being arrested again, Blane was placed in the Walton County Jail on Friday and faces numerous charges, including burglary, possession of methamphetamine, battery on a law enforcement officer and escape.

[TexasStooge]

Prankster Arrested for Fake Bomb Threat

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) - A prankster has been charged with telling cabin crew aboard an Australian domestic airline flight that he had explosives, police said Wednesday.

The 29-year-old man, who was on a Virgin Blue flight between the northern cities of Brisbane and Darwin late Tuesday, said he had 13 pounds of explosive strapped to his body, according to police. He was handed over to police on arrival in Darwin.

"He confirmed and proved that he was joking but we, as an airline, take security very seriously," said Virgin Blue spokeswoman Amanda Bolger.

The man will appear in Darwin Magistrates Court Wednesday charged with making threats and false statements, the Australian Federal Police said in a statement.

His name has not been released. The potential maximum penalty was not immediately known.

[TexasStooge]

No Slap on the Wrist for Slap on the Bottom

ROME, Italy (Reuters) - An Italian man who slapped a young woman on the bottom while she was making a telephone call has been handed a 14-month suspended jail term by the Supreme Court.

The tough sentence made headlines in Italy where judges have been cracking down on sexual harassment with a string of ground-breaking verdicts against unsolicited advances.

A man in northern Italy was fined 300 euros ($392.5) last year for sending a flirtatious text message to a woman.

In the past such cases would rarely have made their way into the courts of a country renowned for its macho society.

Italy's high court ruled that the slap was an act of sexual aggression, which belittled the woman and caused her "duress."

The aggressor, identified only as Ivan P., told the court that the victim was a relative, who had invented the story to get revenge in a family feud.

"I don't believe in justice anymore. The sentence has ruined my life," he told Il Messaggero newspaper. His prison term was suspended because he was a first time offender.

[TexasStooge]

Drug dealer loses loot and liberty

WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - A crack cocaine dealer who forgot a backpack containing C$91,000 (40,000 pounds) in a Winnipeg mall was arrested after he tried to reclaim the bag at the mall's lost-and-found desk.

The dealer, Shu Tshung Wong, 32, received a five-year prison sentence this week, the Winnipeg Sun reported on Wednesday. The newspaper quoted the judge in the case as saying the penalty was at the "low end of the scale," but noted Wong, who agreed to the sentence, did not have a previous criminal record.

After police arrested Wong, they found a key to a storage locker that contained cocaine, cash and equipment commonly used to cook cocaine into the crack form, the newspaper said.

"Regret doesn't come close to describing my feelings," Wong said in court. "My family has been devastated and that is something that is my fault."

[TexasStooge]

Man Holds Up Sex Shop, Steals Inflatable Doll

MILAN (Reuters) - He shouldn't be hard to spot.

Police are searching for a pistol-wielding robber who stole female leather bondage gear and an inflatable sex doll from an erotica store in Milan Wednesday.

The clerk at the "Night Shop" speculated that the kinky crook might have been unsatisfied with the payout of his hold-up, which only yielded him about 60 euros ($78).

"There was just a little cash," the clerk, who declined to be named, told Reuters by telephone.

"Then he took some stuff ... an inflatable doll and a leather outfit for a woman," he said.

[TexasStooge]

Mont. Police Arrest Two in Pizza Sting

BUTTE, Mont. (AP) - Two men who tried to pay for a pizza delivery with a forged check were arrested following a sting operation involving an officer disguised as a Papa John's employee. Police later ate the "evidence."

Monday's incident began with a pizza order that Papa John's employees recognized as going to an address where customers had paid with forged checks.

Manager Brian Holm called police, and officers came up with a plan to catch the crooks.

Officer Rhonda Peterson volunteered to wear a Papa John's uniform and ride with an employee on the delivery. Peterson brought her gun and radio and three officers provided backup while she approached the apartment, said Sgt. Jerry Williams.

The pizza delivery was 20 minutes late because of the police work and the customers even called asking what was taking so long.

Charles Pederson, 39, answered the door and was arrested after passing the forged check to police.

Officers also arrested Jesse Risher, 28, after he allegedly tried to hide in the apartment. Officers searched him, finding methamphetamine and a pipe in his coat pocket, court records indicate

[TexasStooge]

French police seize cocaine Santa

MONTPELLIER, France (AFP) - French police arrested four men in southern France after a search of their vehicle revealed a statue of Father Christmas made of pure cocaine.

Investigators stopped the car, which had travelled from the Spanish city of Barcelona, at a motorway toll station at Saint-Jean-de-Vedas near Montpellier.

Inside they found four Christmas crowns and a statue of Father Christmas on a base. Subsequent examinations showed all were made entirely of aggregate cocaine, an extremely rare method of disguising the drug, according to police.

The cocaine, which weighed about 5.5 kilos (12 pounds), could be reconstituted thanks to a chemical process, investigators said.

The alleged dealers, all French nationals aged between 40 and 50, were placed under official investigation and remanded in custody.

Three were arrested at the toll point, while a fourth man was detained in Montpellier.

Spanish police arrested a further two Frenchmen in Barcelona in connection with the haul.

[TexasStooge]

This Has to Be Homer Simpson...

PRAGUE, Czech Republic (Reuters) - A Czech man is being taken to court after he hid in a restaurant washroom until the employees had left and then hooked up beer kegs directly to his mouth.

Cleaning staff found him drunk and lying on the floor of the bar at the restaurant in the city of Brno, about 200km (120 miles) east of Prague, the CTK news agency reported on Thursday.

"He had broken the door of the cooling mechanism ... and detached the hoses leading from the keg, squashed them in his mouth and literally filled himself up with beer," CTK quoted a police official as saying.

The man will be charged with damaging property because he caused 8,000 crown ($340) damage to the beer cooling box.

[TexasStooge]

Police Nab 'Handshake Man' at Bush Inauguration

WASHINGTON D.C. (Reuters) - "Handshake man" struck again -- almost.

The unidentified man who embarrassed police by sneaking past inauguration security four years ago to get a handshake from President Bush was arrested on Thursday before he had a chance to get another presidential grip.

"We checked his information against our information and it turned out that it was him," said Michael Lauer, spokesmen for the U.S. Capitol Police.

Asked if the man was close to getting a handshake when he was arrested, Lauer said, "absolutely not."

The man, who police did not name, was arrested on an outstanding misdemeanor warrant for unlawful entry dating back to the 2001 inauguration.

[TexasStooge]

Man steals van with four tourists inside

HONOLULU, Hi. (AP) — A man stole a tour van left idling at a beach park with four people inside, but eventually let the four go unharmed, police said.

The van had been left running early Tuesday morning at Kahe Point Beach Park in Oahu while the driver and three tourists stepped out to admire the view, police said.

Anthony Lopez of Colorado said he and three girls were dozing in the van when a man slid into the driver's seat and sped out of the parking lot. The man agreed to free them after Lopez begged him to let them go.

"He threatened me with the knife and tried to get me to leave the girls and I just pled with him to please let me have the girls," Lopez said.

Lopez said the girls were getting out when a second man pulled up in a blue sedan and shoved him into the bushes. The car then followed the van up a highway.

Police recovered the van, which had been abandoned, but said the victims' belongings were stolen.

[TexasStooge]

Woman uses sausage in rampage against ex

NEWTON, Mass. (Court TV) - When Katrina Ackermann showed up at the home of her ex-boyfriend's female friend, she came prepared to do serious damage—with slabs of salami.

Police in Newton, Mass., say the unidentified ex-boyfriend was visiting a friend Jan 13 when Ackermann, 21, showed up at about 12:31 a.m. and got into a verbal argument with the duo. Ackermann reportedly struck the man in the face several times and kicked him in the leg with the heel of her shoe. She also threatened to kill the other woman.

Newton Police Sgt. Ken Dangelo said that Ackermann left after her ex's friend called police. The woman told officers that during the altercation she had observed Ackermann standing around her car. When officers investigated the woman's vehicle, they found several slabs of salami on its trunk, as well as peeling paint.

Chemicals used to preserve the meat had damaged the car's paint job, Dangelo said.

Ackermann was arrested 15 minutes later and charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon for using the heel of her shoe during the fight, malicious destruction of property and threats to commit a crime.

She has a pretrial hearing scheduled for Jan. 21.

[TexasStooge]

Thieves ask for directions from store they tried to hold up

POULSBO, Wash. (Court TV) - After an hour and a half of driving around Poulsbo, Wash., Jared Persitz and Matthew Barela decided that they were lost and stopped at a Chevron gas station to get directions.

Police are still not sure why two men failed to recognize that they had stopped at the same gas station they had attempted to rob earlier in the evening.

According to Poulsbo Police Sgt. Bill Playther, Persitz and Barela, both 22, were visiting from Vancouver and targeted the gas station Dec. 25 when they decided that they needed money. Persitz allegedly walked up to a female clerk with a knife and demanded money. Undaunted by Persitz's threat, another clerk grabbed a nearby phone and started to call police.

Persitz attempted to cut the phone cord, Playther said. But the clerk moved the phone out of his reach. The would-be robber then ransacked the merchandise on the counter and left the store empty-handed. Police were unable to locate the men immediately after the incident because of an inadequate vehicle description.

However, Persitz and Barela returned to the gas station 90 minutes later to ask for directions. Persitz reportedly showed no indication that he recognized the gas station or the clerks, but the clerks remembered him and took down a detailed description of his vehicle for police.

The two men were arrested after a high-speed chase and also admitted to robbing a Blockbuster video store the night before.

Persitz pleaded guilty to two counts of felony robbery and burglary. He will be sentenced Jan. 24.

[TexasStooge]

Do NOT Give This Man Batteries...

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - Police were on the search on Friday for a thief who made off with three "male appendages" from a Vancouver-area sex-toy store and may now be looking for batteries.

A clerk discovered the man stuffing the fake body parts into his clothes and asked "if he was going to need batteries for these three objects," the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in a news release.

"The male calmly stated 'no' and then panicked and fled, running out of the store with the three objects, minus batteries," the police statement said.

[TexasStooge]

British man with fetish for surgical masks jailed

LONDON, England (AFP) - A British man with a sexual fetish for tie-on surgical masks was jailed for telephoning hospitals and dental surgeries around the country to ask for supplies to be sent to him.

Norman Hutchins, 53, was jailed for three years at Leeds Crown Court in northern England after pleading guilty to a series of offences including obtaining property by deception, as well as threatening and abusive behaviour.

He had phoned a string of medical organisations claiming he needed the masks for bogus charity fun runs and amateur dramatic performances, the court heard.

Judge Paul Hoffman, who called Hutchins "manipulative and deceptive" and a "menace to anyone involved in medical or dental institutions", also banned him indefinitely from entering any National Health Service premises in England and Wales.

The court was told that Hutchins, who is unemployed, had a long criminal history dating back to 1970 for offences of dishonesty and violence.

"You are a serial offender. You have a worrying obsession with medical and dental equipment and with medical and dental institutions. You caused bother to the staff there. You are manipulative and deceptive. You play on the victim's good nature," the judge said.

"It appears you get a sexual kick out of obtaining these things. You have done this sort of thing repeatedly. You are in my mind an absolute menace to anyone involved in medical or dental institutions."

According to a doctor's report, Hutchins had no treatable personality disorder, the judge added.

[TexasStooge]

Cops: Alleged Robber Calls Victim for Date

NEW CASTLE, Del. (AP) - Police say a man involved in the recent robbery of a Domino's Pizza delivery woman would be a good candidate for "World's Dumbest Criminal."

Police say that after two men robbed the woman, one of them called the victim on his cell phone to apologize — and to ask her out on a date.

The victim, 18, declined the request, instead giving the cell phone number to police, who arrested Brent Brown, 25, on Thursday.

Police also arrested Andre Moore, 18, and were looking for a 16-year-old linked to the crime.

Officers searched a residence and found the pizza boxes in the trash can with the original receipt still attached.

Brown and Moore were charged with second-degree robbery.

[TexasStooge]

Texas Cops Undress to Catch Prostitution

HOUSTON, Texas (AP) - Some suspects in prostitution investigations are confronting naked justice. A prosecutor says police are now allowed to undress in an effort to persuade suspected prostitutes to negotiate sex acts.

During a four-month sting operation that ended with 56 arrests in November, some undercover vice officers dropped their covers altogether.

"Someone had to do something to shut these places down," said Harris County Assistant District Attorney Ted Wilson. "It was just so widespread. It had almost gotten in your face."

Wilson said Police Chief Harold Hurtt has changed a long-standing, unwritten department policy to allow undercover vice officers to disrobe in such cases.

But Hurtt and other Houston police officials declined to discuss the new policy.

"I'm not going to comment about the strategies and tactics that we use," said Hurtt last week.

The Houston Police Department has stepped up efforts to crack down on the local "spa scene." Besides the new policy, authorities are using organized-crime charges to prosecute owners and operators of prostitution businesses.

[TexasStooge]

Cops use plane to nab apple-eating driver

LONDON, England (Reuters) - Police called in a spotter plane, helicopter and video-equipped patrol car to help convict a woman who ate an apple while driving to work, newspapers have reported.

After nine court hearings and a trial lasting more than two hours, nursery nurse Sarah McCaffery was fined 60 pounds on Monday when a court upheld a police decision to give her a penalty ticket.

Police used the plane, helicopter and car to film road conditions on the route she took in Tyneside, northeast England, after officers pulled her over in December 2003.

"It is a joke they put so much effort into this," McCaffery, 23, told the Sun newspaper on Tuesday. "You would think they had better things to do."

She said she had both hands on the wheel of her Ford Ka and was driving safely.

But police and public prosecutors said she was not in control and they were obliged to gather evidence when she chose to fight the fine in court.

[TexasStooge]

Hong Kong police arrest mainland men for stealing 'good luck' trees

HONG KONG, China (AP) - Hong Kong police intercepted and arrested two Chinese men for shipping allegedly stolen "good luck" trees to the mainland, a police spokesman said Tuesday.

Police made the arrests late Monday when the suspects' boat broke down after a pursuit in Hong Kong waters, spokesman Anson Lo said. Officers found a shipment of Buddhist Pines on the boat, which was headed to the southern Chinese city of Nanao, Lo said. The trees are in demand in China for promoting positive feng shui.

Feng shui is the Chinese belief of improving fortunes through the positioning of furniture and other objects.

The suspects, aged 26 and 27, remain in custody for further investigation and were not immediately charged, Lo said.

Theft carries a maximum penalty of 10 years' imprisonment in Hong Kong.

[TexasStooge]

Man Allegedly Robs Bank With Beer Bottle

NORCROSS, Ga. (AP) - A man robbed a bank armed with a broken beer bottle, then stole a car and caused at least five accidents Tuesday as he was chased toward Atlanta along Interstate 85, Gwinnett County Police said.

Bobby Tyrone Hill, 45, was arrested without resistance by police from Gwinnett and other agencies and was taken to the Gwinnett County Detention Center. Charges were pending.

Three people were taken to hospitals with non-life threatening injuries from the accidents.

Police said the suspect went into the Bank of America branch in Norcross, demanded money and broke a beer bottle he held in his hand. A teller gave him an undisclosed amount of cash, some of which he dropped on the floor as he went into the parking lot and carjacked a pickup truck from Mary Burton, 52, of Livingston, Texas, police said.

Initial investigation indicated that Hill was under the influence of an unknown substance.