Saturday, March 14, 2015
Knife-wielding man tried to rob woman at stamp kiosk in post office after mistaking it for an ATM
Police have arrested a man from Reading, Pennsylvania, for allegedly robbing a woman at knife-point at a stamp kiosk.
It happened at 6:22pm on Tuesday inside the Gus Yatron Post Office in Muhlenberg Township.
"The robber came in and demanded money, thinking that she was at the ATM, when it was actually a stamp kiosk," said Sgt. Joel Marino of Muhlenberg Township Police Department. Police said the woman told the man she did not have any money and was just buying stamps.
That is when, police said, Damian Vazquez pulled a knife on the victim. Police said the woman then screamed, a post office worker came out and that is when Vazquez ran. Once police responded, an officer found Vazquez hiding in a dumpster at a neighbouring business.
"Our police officers did a really good job finding and apprehending this robber and taking this dangerous person off the street. They did good work," said Marino. Vazquez has been charged with robbery and theft by unlawful taking.
With news video.
"The robber came in and demanded money, thinking that she was at the ATM, when it was actually a stamp kiosk," said Sgt. Joel Marino of Muhlenberg Township Police Department. Police said the woman told the man she did not have any money and was just buying stamps.
That is when, police said, Damian Vazquez pulled a knife on the victim. Police said the woman then screamed, a post office worker came out and that is when Vazquez ran. Once police responded, an officer found Vazquez hiding in a dumpster at a neighbouring business.
"Our police officers did a really good job finding and apprehending this robber and taking this dangerous person off the street. They did good work," said Marino. Vazquez has been charged with robbery and theft by unlawful taking.
With news video.
Man who set fire to own house, crashed car and knocked on doors half-naked said he's Lucifer
A man covered in religious tattoos set fire to his own house, crashed his car, ran around half-naked knocking on doors and identified himself to police as Lucifer, according to the police chief in Wolcott, Connecticut.
What came in as a report of a possible house fire turned into a much more unusual story as police gained more information about the suspected series of events.
The report of a possible fire came in at 7:52am on Thursday. Just a few minutes later, police received a report of a car that was rolled over about a mile and a half away from the fire. Wolcott Police Chief Edward Stephens just happened to be nearby, so he started heading in that direction to help when yet another call came in. This one was about a half-naked man banging on doors at an apartment complex. “Being I was right there, I pulled into the complex and sure enough there was a gentleman there who we later arrested,” Stephens said.
“His pants were down, his exposed buttocks covered with tattoos, banging on doors.” Figuring the man, since identified as Alex Chambrello, 23, had been involved in the crash, Stephens approached him and asked his name. Chambrello, who has a massive tattoo that says "Conquer All Evil" with depictions of Jesus with a crown of thorns and the Virgin Mary, identified himself as Lucifer, according to police. “He said he was Lucifer from Hell the Inferno and he’s talking all kinds of gibberish,” Stephens said.
Then Stephens asked where he lived and Chambrello said 9 Edgemont Lane, which was where the fire was. Police said Chambrello is suspected of setting fire to the basement house, which caused the death of a cat. A second cat reported missing after the fire was found safe and in good health, aside from some cuts to its face, according to Stephens. Chambrello has been charged with arson and breach of peace and is held on $100,000 bond. He is set to be arraigned at Waterbury Superior Court.
With news video.
The report of a possible fire came in at 7:52am on Thursday. Just a few minutes later, police received a report of a car that was rolled over about a mile and a half away from the fire. Wolcott Police Chief Edward Stephens just happened to be nearby, so he started heading in that direction to help when yet another call came in. This one was about a half-naked man banging on doors at an apartment complex. “Being I was right there, I pulled into the complex and sure enough there was a gentleman there who we later arrested,” Stephens said.
“His pants were down, his exposed buttocks covered with tattoos, banging on doors.” Figuring the man, since identified as Alex Chambrello, 23, had been involved in the crash, Stephens approached him and asked his name. Chambrello, who has a massive tattoo that says "Conquer All Evil" with depictions of Jesus with a crown of thorns and the Virgin Mary, identified himself as Lucifer, according to police. “He said he was Lucifer from Hell the Inferno and he’s talking all kinds of gibberish,” Stephens said.
Then Stephens asked where he lived and Chambrello said 9 Edgemont Lane, which was where the fire was. Police said Chambrello is suspected of setting fire to the basement house, which caused the death of a cat. A second cat reported missing after the fire was found safe and in good health, aside from some cuts to its face, according to Stephens. Chambrello has been charged with arson and breach of peace and is held on $100,000 bond. He is set to be arraigned at Waterbury Superior Court.
With news video.
75-year-old woman strangled rabid raccoon after it bit her
A 75-year-old woman from Henrico, Virginia, said she had no choice but to strangle a rabid raccoon with her bare hands.
Cas Overton said she was walking in the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden while birdwatching when a raccoon latched onto her leg and started biting. Overton said she immediately drew on her tai chi training, which she’s taught for 40 years.
“I could reach down to get it off of me, got it by the neck with both hands… so I knew what I had to do,” she said. Overton said she then put her knee on the raccoon’s neck until the raccoon stopped breathing.
YouTube link.
Since the attack Overton said she has been receiving rabies shots and treatment for the bite. In addition, Overton said she felt terrible killing the raccoon because she loves animals.
Cas Overton said she was walking in the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden while birdwatching when a raccoon latched onto her leg and started biting. Overton said she immediately drew on her tai chi training, which she’s taught for 40 years.
“I could reach down to get it off of me, got it by the neck with both hands… so I knew what I had to do,” she said. Overton said she then put her knee on the raccoon’s neck until the raccoon stopped breathing.
YouTube link.
Since the attack Overton said she has been receiving rabies shots and treatment for the bite. In addition, Overton said she felt terrible killing the raccoon because she loves animals.
Two men 200km apart bitten by snakes 'within minutes of each other' flown to same hospital
In an unusual coincidence, two men have been flown to the same hospital in Darwin, Australia, after being bitten by snakes in separate remote parts of the Northern Territory "within minutes of each other".
A man on a station near Adelaide River was bitten by a snake as he was walking in long grass, while 200km to the north another man on the Tiwis was bitten on the arm by a snake he disturbed under a building. The calls came "within minutes of each other", at about 2:00pm on Thursday, according to CareFlight co-founder Ian Badham.
He said the man on the station was driven 40 minutes to the Adelaide River clinic with his leg strapped with a compression bandage to slow the potential spread of venom. "Two separate CareFlight crew flew to the men and transferred them to Royal Darwin hospital were they are under observation in a stable condition," he said.
Mr Badham said the rescues presented a "surprising challenge" and required the CareFlight helicopter and turbo-prop aircraft to fly simultaneous missions. "Two separate medical teams to fly in opposite directions to bring them back to Darwin for observation," he said. Neither man required antivenom.
A man on a station near Adelaide River was bitten by a snake as he was walking in long grass, while 200km to the north another man on the Tiwis was bitten on the arm by a snake he disturbed under a building. The calls came "within minutes of each other", at about 2:00pm on Thursday, according to CareFlight co-founder Ian Badham.
He said the man on the station was driven 40 minutes to the Adelaide River clinic with his leg strapped with a compression bandage to slow the potential spread of venom. "Two separate CareFlight crew flew to the men and transferred them to Royal Darwin hospital were they are under observation in a stable condition," he said.
Mr Badham said the rescues presented a "surprising challenge" and required the CareFlight helicopter and turbo-prop aircraft to fly simultaneous missions. "Two separate medical teams to fly in opposite directions to bring them back to Darwin for observation," he said. Neither man required antivenom.
Man who escaped harm in vehicle rollover then attacked by bees from trailer he'd been towing
A driver crawled "miraculously uninjured" from the wreckage of a vehicle rollover only to be stung by a swarm of angry bees that had escaped from the trailer he was towing, police say.
Police and fire crews were called to remove the vehicle because of the "bee hazard" at the accident scene on the Stuart Highway about 17 kilometres north of Katherine in Australia's Northern Territory, according to Duty Superintendent Louise Jorgensen. "The bees became very angry and they escaped and as he was crawling out of the vehicle miraculously uninjured he got stung by the bees," she said.
Police were called to the accident at about 5:45pm on Wednesday. "The bees presented more of an issue than the wreckage initially," Duty Superintendent Jorgensen said. "We were concerned if people saw the wreckage passing by they were going to stop and get stung as well. It was quite a hazard for the attending police and fire crews."
The four-wheel drive vehicle had flipped and come to rest in scrubland 10 metres from the edge of the road. "He was towing a trailer full of bees when the trailer wheel caught the edge of the road," Duty Superintendent Jorgensen said. "The vehicle and the trailer fishtailed for quite a distance, then the vehicle actually flipped." She said the 18-year-old man was uninjured except for the bee stings.
Police and fire crews were called to remove the vehicle because of the "bee hazard" at the accident scene on the Stuart Highway about 17 kilometres north of Katherine in Australia's Northern Territory, according to Duty Superintendent Louise Jorgensen. "The bees became very angry and they escaped and as he was crawling out of the vehicle miraculously uninjured he got stung by the bees," she said.
Police were called to the accident at about 5:45pm on Wednesday. "The bees presented more of an issue than the wreckage initially," Duty Superintendent Jorgensen said. "We were concerned if people saw the wreckage passing by they were going to stop and get stung as well. It was quite a hazard for the attending police and fire crews."
The four-wheel drive vehicle had flipped and come to rest in scrubland 10 metres from the edge of the road. "He was towing a trailer full of bees when the trailer wheel caught the edge of the road," Duty Superintendent Jorgensen said. "The vehicle and the trailer fishtailed for quite a distance, then the vehicle actually flipped." She said the 18-year-old man was uninjured except for the bee stings.
Bride walked out of wedding when groom failed to solve simple mathematical problem
A groom had to return home without his bride from a marriage hall in the Kanpur Dehat district of Uttar Pradesh, northern India, after he failed to solve a simple mathematical problem on Wednesday. The bride-to-be got suspicious of the groom's educational qualification. Her cousins asked the groom to solve simple mathematical question, what is 15+6.
The groom failed to give the correct answer and the girl refused to marry him. According to information, groom Ram Baran had come from Etawah district to the marriage hall to marry Lovely, daughter of Mohar Singh. The two families and other villagers gathered at the venue. The bride and her cousins received a shock when the groom said 15+6 is 17 instead of 21. This angered the girl, who refused to marry the youth.
Just as the wedding was about to be solemnised, the bride walked away saying she would not marry an uneducated person. The groom's family tried to persuade her into going ahead with the ceremony but she refused to budge and walked out of the mandap. "Any class I student must be able to solve the simple problem asked by us. The family of the groom had kept us in dark about the youth's qualification," Singh said.
"It was a very embarrassing situation for all of us as we had come with all preparations and it was a matter of social prestige as well. We have been cheated," he added. The bride's relatives informed the police. The police did not take action against the groom and his family as both the parties reached at a compromise after intervention of some prominent citizens of the area. According to the compromise, the bride and groom's families returned gifts including jewellery exchanged during pre-marriage rituals. "Both families have amicably resolved the matter," a police officer said.
The groom failed to give the correct answer and the girl refused to marry him. According to information, groom Ram Baran had come from Etawah district to the marriage hall to marry Lovely, daughter of Mohar Singh. The two families and other villagers gathered at the venue. The bride and her cousins received a shock when the groom said 15+6 is 17 instead of 21. This angered the girl, who refused to marry the youth.
Just as the wedding was about to be solemnised, the bride walked away saying she would not marry an uneducated person. The groom's family tried to persuade her into going ahead with the ceremony but she refused to budge and walked out of the mandap. "Any class I student must be able to solve the simple problem asked by us. The family of the groom had kept us in dark about the youth's qualification," Singh said.
"It was a very embarrassing situation for all of us as we had come with all preparations and it was a matter of social prestige as well. We have been cheated," he added. The bride's relatives informed the police. The police did not take action against the groom and his family as both the parties reached at a compromise after intervention of some prominent citizens of the area. According to the compromise, the bride and groom's families returned gifts including jewellery exchanged during pre-marriage rituals. "Both families have amicably resolved the matter," a police officer said.
Man beaten with penis enlarger after men broke into his home looking for drugs
Two men broke into a man’s home looking for drugs but ended up battering their victim with a penis enlarger.
Steven Graham, 24, and Ryan Gandy, 25, pushed their way into William Hughes’ home in Leith, Edinburgh, and beat the man over the head with the device.
The two raiders also slashed Mr Hughes’ face with a kitchen knife before attacking him with the plastic object.
Mr Hughes was “pinned to his settee” by the two thugs as they scoured the flat looking for quantities of heroin and cash.
But when the homeowner told them there was no drugs in the house the pair turned on their victim with violent Gandy threatening to poke out his victim’s eye with the large knife. Mr Hughes suffered cuts to his face and legs and bruising to his head during the attack. Graham and Gandy, both described as prisoners at Saughton, were jailed for 27 months each for the horrific attack at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Tuesday.
Fiscal depute Ann McNeill told the court the pair arrived at Mr Hughes home at around 5.30pm on November 26 last year. Ms McNeill said: “The accused asked if Mr Hughes had heroin and he said he had none. They pinned him on the settee and punched him in the face several times. Mr Gandy [then] brought the knife across Mr Hughes’ face but as the knife was blunt only a scratching resulted. During the search of the flat they came across a number of sex toys, one of which was used to strike Mr Hughes across the head.”
The court was then informed the sex toy used as a weapon was a penis enlarger belonging to Mr Hughes. After the pair of robbers had left the flat, Mr Hughes, who was left covered in blood following the attack, then managed to raise the alarm with a neighbour. Graham and Gandy appeared from custody and pleaded guilty to assaulting Mr Hughes at his home address by punching him on the head, striking him on the body and head with a knife, threaten to poke Mr Hughes’ eye out with the weapon and striking him with a plastic object and robbing him of a quantity of cash, a wallet and a mobile phone.
But when the homeowner told them there was no drugs in the house the pair turned on their victim with violent Gandy threatening to poke out his victim’s eye with the large knife. Mr Hughes suffered cuts to his face and legs and bruising to his head during the attack. Graham and Gandy, both described as prisoners at Saughton, were jailed for 27 months each for the horrific attack at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Tuesday.
Fiscal depute Ann McNeill told the court the pair arrived at Mr Hughes home at around 5.30pm on November 26 last year. Ms McNeill said: “The accused asked if Mr Hughes had heroin and he said he had none. They pinned him on the settee and punched him in the face several times. Mr Gandy [then] brought the knife across Mr Hughes’ face but as the knife was blunt only a scratching resulted. During the search of the flat they came across a number of sex toys, one of which was used to strike Mr Hughes across the head.”
The court was then informed the sex toy used as a weapon was a penis enlarger belonging to Mr Hughes. After the pair of robbers had left the flat, Mr Hughes, who was left covered in blood following the attack, then managed to raise the alarm with a neighbour. Graham and Gandy appeared from custody and pleaded guilty to assaulting Mr Hughes at his home address by punching him on the head, striking him on the body and head with a knife, threaten to poke Mr Hughes’ eye out with the weapon and striking him with a plastic object and robbing him of a quantity of cash, a wallet and a mobile phone.
Six-year-old girl with eyepatch left in tears after being called 'pirate girl' by deputy headteacher
A six-year-old girl who wears an eyepatch due to a severe visual disability was called "pirate girl" by her deputy headteacher in front of a packed assembly.
Alicia Blanco-Clements, of Chelmsford, Essex, was left in tears and afraid she might be bullied after the comment by Jona Davies in a morning assembly at Springfield Primary School on Wednesday last week.
Her mother Aimee, 30, said: "I was absolutely horrified. Alicia is normally smiling from ear to ear when I pick her up from school but on Wednesday she was really solemn and I could tell she was upset.
"It was only when my other daughter Olivia told me what had happened that I went marching into the school to confront him. I couldn't believe that someone with such authority could be so ignorant and insensitive. We spoke but he didn't seem sincere." Alicia, has suffered from the impairment in her left eye since she was two and is also extremely short sighted. The patch, which she wears for six hours a day, helps to maintain the 20/20 vision in her right eye. Alicia's elder sister Olivia, 11, is also a pupil at the school and saw Alicia accidentally standing in the wrong line as she waited to leave the assembly hall.
"My sister was queuing in the wrong place and that's when Mr Davies called her 'pirate girl'. He forgot her name and so he was trying to get her attention," she said. Mr Davies then apparently sought out Olivia in the playground to explain his actions. But he didn't go as far as apologising to her younger sister Alicia directly. Aimee said once she told her husband Liam, 29, about the deputy's outburst, they returned to the school immediately. She said: "My husband couldn't believe what he had said. Liam was seeing red. We're so protective of Alicia because of everything she's been through; she's already got enough on her plate.
"We went back later that afternoon and had a meeting with the head teacher, but it was too late by then. The wrong message had already been sent out to the children that bullying is okay." Sharon Tyler, head teacher, said: "We accept that what was said was inappropriate and have apologised unreservedly to the pupil and her parents. While the comment was not malicious or intended to cause offence, the teacher in question has been reminded of our expectations. As a school, we actively promote equality and I can assure all parents this was an isolated incident which will not be repeated."
"It was only when my other daughter Olivia told me what had happened that I went marching into the school to confront him. I couldn't believe that someone with such authority could be so ignorant and insensitive. We spoke but he didn't seem sincere." Alicia, has suffered from the impairment in her left eye since she was two and is also extremely short sighted. The patch, which she wears for six hours a day, helps to maintain the 20/20 vision in her right eye. Alicia's elder sister Olivia, 11, is also a pupil at the school and saw Alicia accidentally standing in the wrong line as she waited to leave the assembly hall.
"My sister was queuing in the wrong place and that's when Mr Davies called her 'pirate girl'. He forgot her name and so he was trying to get her attention," she said. Mr Davies then apparently sought out Olivia in the playground to explain his actions. But he didn't go as far as apologising to her younger sister Alicia directly. Aimee said once she told her husband Liam, 29, about the deputy's outburst, they returned to the school immediately. She said: "My husband couldn't believe what he had said. Liam was seeing red. We're so protective of Alicia because of everything she's been through; she's already got enough on her plate.
"We went back later that afternoon and had a meeting with the head teacher, but it was too late by then. The wrong message had already been sent out to the children that bullying is okay." Sharon Tyler, head teacher, said: "We accept that what was said was inappropriate and have apologised unreservedly to the pupil and her parents. While the comment was not malicious or intended to cause offence, the teacher in question has been reminded of our expectations. As a school, we actively promote equality and I can assure all parents this was an isolated incident which will not be repeated."
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