Articles Posted in Odd Cases

Who knew a couple mankinis would cause such a fuss? As reported by the BBC:

Two students who dressed up as the TV character Borat are at the centre of a row in Vietnam.

The pair performed a dance act at a company party dressed as the spoof Kazakh journalist in his notoriously skimpy “mankini” swimming costume.

They have now found themselves suspended from college for 12 months.

The incident, dubbed the “nude dance of FPT Arena students”, has stirred up a storm on internet forums and also in the domestic media.

The leading technology firm FPT owns the college where the two performers were studying design.

In a statement, FPT Arena said the organisers of the party did not know about the act in advance, adding that two of the firm’s executives had been sacked over the incident.

Hanoi Cultural Inspectorate on Tuesday fined the college 4m dong ($240; £135) for a number of offences including “use of improper clothing”.

You can read more here.

Would you turn your kid into the police if you knew he was breaking the law? This mother answered “yes” as reported by The Sandusky Register:

A 16-year-old boy who used a page from his Bible as a rolling paper for a marijuana joint was charged with drug possession, an Erie County sheriff deputy’s report said.

The boy’s mother called deputies at about 11:35 p.m. Tuesday, asking them to meet her at a car wash on Ohio 101.

The mother said she saw her son smoking in his bedroom and found a small bag of marijuana in his night stand, the report said.

The mother told deputies her son “was smoking a marijuana cigarette using a page from his Bible,” the report said.

So what’s the problem with a guy washing his pants at a laundromat? Um, he apparently didn’t have any other pants to wear … and was walking around bottomless. Per the Naples Daily News:

Arresting Deputy Jeffrey S. Magner reported making contact with [Mr. James T.] Lowe while he sat against the window of the laundromat at 6000 Radio Road, and states he was wearing a jean jacket around his waist, but no pants. However, the report notes, “it was not completely covering his genitalia. At this time, there were several adults and small children walking around the plaza and in and out of the coin-operated laundry.”

Exposed genitalia? Dude must have been high. Actually …

The report further states that Lowe appeared impaired, and had a plastic mug with a “Bud Light” logo on the ground next to him, filled with a partially-consumed substance that smelled like alcohol. While taking him into custody, the report states, deputies also found a baggie of white pills on Lowe, but were unable to identify them through poison control.

The charges?

… indecent exposure in public, trespassing, having an open container of alcohol in a public area and resisting an officer without violence.

Here’s the source, including a photo of Mr. Lowe.

If you do a good job, you should get a good tip, right? Let’s say you work for Notre Dame University’s catering department, and you earn a tip of $29.87. Such was the case for Sara Gaspar. As luck would have it (good luck, initially – now, not so good), per The South Bend Tribune:

…because of a “mistake,” court documents say a total of $29,387 was deposited into her account.

Shazam! Uh-oh. I think he said “court documents.” He did. Seems the school wants its money back (in addition to getting its pound of flesh – they fired her too). There’s just one small problem…

You’ll have a hard time believing what this Minnesota man’s fetish is, and that he will be spending a year in jail because of it. Per the Duluth News Tribune:

Christopher Neil Bjerkness is not a rapist, but a Duluth judge lectured him on Wednesday that unless he stops carrying out a bizarre sexual fetish of slashing exercise balls with a knife, he could some day find himself facing an indeterminate civil commitment as a sexual psychopath.

Bjerkness was sentenced in St. Louis County District Court to 21 months in prison, but as part of a plea agreement the sentence was stayed for five years of supervised probation, which includes a one-year sentence at the Northeast Regional Corrections Center, where he will enter a sex offender treatment program.

Why jail?

The judge said no one wanted to send him to prison at this time but that his behavior was a violation of privacy and his predilection for the fetish seemed to be escalating.

And after that year in prison?

If he doesn’t change his ways, the judge said, Bjerkness could wind up in prison and potentially face a civil commitment process.

Sexual psychopaths can be civilly committed after their prison sentences when the court determines they still pose a risk to the public. It can be a lifelong commitment.

If you’re wondering why Mr. Bjerkness does this …

In a July interview, [he] told the News Tribune that he couldn’t explain his fetish. He said he suffered from fetal alcohol syndrome, bipolar depression and cerebral palsy. That information was later confirmed by his adoptive parents.

Does anyone else think that outpatient therapy would have been appropriate instead of jail?

Bjerkness said his fetish for exercise balls has nothing to do with the people who work or exercise at gyms and he doesn’t believe he is a threat to anyone. He is unemployed, but said he has worked mowing lawns, as a dishwasher and as a telemarketer.

No, this wasn’t his first conviction. In 2005, he was convicted of … breaking into a facility and … damaging inflatable exercise balls.

I seriously doubt that Mr. James Lewis will ever complain about his wife’s cooking again. I can tell you how I know this in 2 words: fifty stitches. As reported by wral.com:

Deputies responded to an assault call Friday morning on the 5000 block of Justice Branch Road and found paramedics treating James Lewis, 85, for head injuries. Lt. Stevie Salmon of the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office determined that Lewis and his wife, Rosie Lee Lewis, 71, had argued over what she had cooked for breakfast.

The couple continued to bicker as Rosie Lewis cooked another meal, Salmon said, and the argument escalated to the point that James Lewis raised his cane as if he were ready to hit his wife. Rosie Lewis then hit him on the head several times with an iron frying pan, knocking him to the ground, Salmon said.

Damn!

James Lewis was taken to Halifax Regional Medical Center, where he received 50 stitches to close his head wounds, Salmon said.

And Ms. Lewis?

[She] was charged with assault with a deadly weapon, and authorities said she was being held without bond because the charge stemmed from a domestic dispute.

Click here for the source, including a photo of Ms. Lewis. And check out this wacky food complaint story. And this one.

I love my car, or so I thought until I read this story. As reported by krqe.com:

An Albuquerque man faces indecent exposure charges after police say children saw him simulating a sex act with his car in a grocery store parking lot.

Danny Brawner, 46, was indicted on two counts of aggravated indecent exposure and one count of indecent exposure for the July 28 incident in the parking lot of the Smith’s Food and Drug store on 101 Coors Blvd. NW, according to a news release from Bernalillo County District Attorney Kari Brandenburg’s office.

Witnesses told police they saw Brawner “humping” his car’s trunk while swinging his arms in the air and shouting. His pants were around his ankles, witnesses said.

An officer said he found Brawner asleep next to his car. The officer woke him up and arrested him. The officer said Brawner appeared to be intoxicated.

And if all of that were not embarrassing enough …

Two children saw the alleged sex act, which is why Brawner faces the aggravated indecent exposure charges. They’re fourth-degree felonies.

What is Mr. Brawner looking at?

If convicted on all counts, Brawner could be sentenced to serve up to four years in prison and attend mandatory counseling.

If convicted of the aggravated indecent exposure charge, under New Mexico law, Brawner would have to register as a sex offender.

Actually this incident is not without precedent.

Just when you thought you’d heard it all – an illegal songbird fighting operation! As reported by Fox61 in Connecticut:

Multiple state law enforcement agencies busted up a bird fighting ring in the town of Shelton Sunday morning. However the birds involved are known more for their voice than violence.

Police confiscated nearly 150 songbirds- canaries and saffron finches- from a home at 176 Ripton Road. Police say the birds were being prepared to fight. The raid was led by Shelton Police with help from the Department of Agriculture and officers from Bridgeport, Ansonia, Fairfield, and State Police departments.

“They have a cage in the middle that’s set up like a ring, where the two will go into one cage and fight.” said Shelton Police Sergeant Robert Kozlowsky. “It’s looking like animal cruelty and illegal gambling. They [officers] have found a large amount of currency also at this scene.”

Animal control officers were seen carrying cages upon cages filled with birds from the residence. According to a relative, the homeowner claimed to be collecting the birds to breed and sell. Neighbors who witnessed the raid were surprised at both the multi-agency response and the unorthodox nature of the bird fighting.

“Am I being punk’d?” asked neighbor John Coniglio, referring to a television show famous for playing pranks on celebrities. “I mean, this is crazy. I’ve never heard of a canary ring. I can’t picture little canaries with razor blades taped to their feet or anything.”

The raid christened 19 jailbirds along with $8,000 cash.