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UK: Muslim girls, who kicked a young woman in the head, freed after judge said they are not used to drinking

Diane A. Wade
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UK: Muslim girls, who kicked a young woman in the head, freed after judge said they are not used to drinking

A judge from Leicester, UK, freed a gang of Somalian Muslim girls who repeatedly kicked a young woman in the head after he heard they were “not used to being drunk” because of their religion.

The attackers screamed “kill the white slag” while kicks raining in on 22-year-old Rhea Page as she lay motionless on the ground, the court heard.

The girls – three sisters and their cousin – were told by a judge that normally they would have been sent to jail.

However, the judge handed the girls suspended sentences after hearing that they were not used to alcohol because their religion does not allow it.

Rhea Page was left with a bald patch after they pulled a chunk out of her hair during the attack on the High Street, Leicester.

Ambaro and Hibo Maxamed, both 24, their sister Ayan, 28, and cousin Ifrah Nur, 28, attacked Rhea Page, a care worker, as she walked to a taxi rank with her boyfriend after a night out.

Rhea Page, a support worker, was left so traumatized that she lost her job following repeated absences with stress and flashbacks, Leciester Crown Court was told.

The charge – assault occasioning actual bodily harm – carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

James Bide-Thomas, prosecuting, said Ambaro Maxamed, who started the violence, had called Rhea Page a “white bitch” during the incident.

The women, who are all Somalian Muslims, were not charged with racial aggravation.

The victim said: “I had gone for a drink after work and then I met my boyfriend for a couple more before heading home.

“We didn’t want to stay out too late so we went to get a taxi and all of a sudden I heard these women shouting abuse at me.

“We were just minding our own business but they kept shouting “white bitch” and <<white slag>> at me.

“When I turned around one of them grabbed my hair – she literally wrapped her fingers in my hair – then threw me on the ground. That’s when they started kicking me.

“They were taking turns to kick me in the head and back over and over. I was lying on the ground the whole time, crying and screaming. It was terrifying. I thought they were going to kill me.

“Eventually the police came but it felt like ages. Afterwards I was covered in blood and hair. I had a bald patch on my head where they had yanked my hair out and I was black and blue all over.

“I honestly think they attacked me just because I was white. I can’t think of any other reason.”

The judge freed the Muslim girls who repeatedly kicked Rhea Page in the head after he heard they were “not used to being drunk” because of their religion
The judge freed the Muslim girls who repeatedly kicked Rhea Page in the head after he heard they were “not used to being drunk” because of their religion

Rhea Page suffered bruises and grazes to her head, back, legs and arms, and had clumps of hair pulled out.

Gary Short, mitigating for Ambaro Maxamed, said the attack was down to alcohol.

“Although Miss Page’s partner used violence, it doesn’t justify their behaviour. They’re Somalian Muslims and alcohol or drugs isn’t something they’re used to.”

Seventeen months on from the attack, Rhea Page is still undergoing counselling and suffers from panic attacks and flashbacks.

The group all admitted assault occasioning actual bodily harm and received six month suspended sentences.

Judge Robert Brown told them: “This was ugly and reflects very badly on all four of you.

“Those who knock someone to the floor and kick them in the head can expect to go inside, but I’m going to suspend the sentence.”

Judge Robert brown said he accepted the women may have felt they were the victims of unreasonable force from Rhea Page’s partner Lewis Moore, 23, who tried to defend her from the attack.

As well as the suspended sentence, Hibo Maxamed, who needs dialysis three times a week for a kidney complaint, received a four-month curfew between 9:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.

The others were ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work.

Rhea Page said after the hearing: “It should have been immediate custody after what happened. It’s not sending out the right message about street violence.

“They were kicking me in the head right up to the minute the police arrived.

“Even after the police came and they all ran away, one of them came running back to kick me in the head one last time while I was lying unconscious on the ground.”

Rhea Page, a support worker who helps care for people with autism and learning difficulties, said the sentence was “disgusting”.

“It’s no punishment at all and sends out a message that it’s okay to do that to someone,” the woman said.

“And for them to say they did it because they were not used to alcohol is not an excuse. If they were not supposed to be drinking then they shouldn’t have been out in bars at that time of night.

“The attack has had a devastating effect on my life and they have just been allowed to get away with it.”

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New Jersey: 4 adults and one baby shot dead in a murder-suicide

Diane A. Wade
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New Jersey: 4 adults and one baby shot dead in a murder-suicide

Last night a gunman went on the rampage in Bayonne, New Jersey, killing three people, including a baby, and then himself in an apparent murder-suicide.

According to neighbours, the violence erupted from a domestic dispute in a small, white ranch house near the Bayonne Bridge.

A fifth person was rushed to Bayonne Medical Center and was being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

Bayonne Mayor Mark Smith, who was at the scene in Avenue A late last night, said initial reports indicated that one person did all the shooting.

The suspect is believed to have first fired at two adults, then the infant, and then turned the gun on himself.

“It is a tragedy and a senseless loss of life for the family and the community as a whole,” Mayor Mark Smith said.

The mayor said two other children were in the home at the time of the shooting, but were unharmed.

 

A gunman went on the rampage in Bayonne, New Jersey, killing three people, including a baby, and then himself in an apparent murder-suicide
A gunman went on the rampage in Bayonne, New Jersey, killing three people, including a baby, and then himself in an apparent murder-suicide

 

The shootings occurred around 8:00 p.m. When police turned up a woman was outside the house suffering from a gunshot wound.

The woman spoke little English but was able to convey to the officers that there were more people shot inside the home, officials said.

Police then entered the house and found a man and a woman shot dead.

According to officials, a boy, who was aged one to one-and-a-half years old, had also been shot and was rushed to the hospital, but did not survive.

Police have not identified the victims.

Officials also said that the man believed to have been the gunman died inside the home, apparently of a self-inflicted wound.

It was not clear whether he was dead when police arrived or whether he shot himself after police had entered the home.

Around 15 to 20 shots were fired, and police believe a gun recovered at the scene was the one used in the killings.

Around the neighbourhood, stunned residents were trying to get a handle on what had happened.

Has Jones, 30, said he heard the gunfire: “I heard four shots and then it stopped, and then I heard screaming and then three more shots.”

Has Jones, who lives about 50ft from the house where the shooting took place, said the person screaming was a woman.

Nicole Poesl, 33, who walked several blocks from her home to the scene tonight, said she saw a police officer exit the house, cradling a young girl in his arms.

She said she asked police: “What’s going on? Murder-suicide?” and an officer shook his head, “yes”.

Some residents said a “lady with two kids” lived in the home.

Chris Myers, a mayor in New Jersey, has resigned two months after being photographed with a male escort

Diane A. Wade
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Chris Myers, a mayor in New Jersey, has resigned two months after being photographed with a male escort

Chris Myers, the married Republican mayor of Medford, New Jersey, has quit – two months after he was accused of having sex with a prostitute at a California hotel.

The anonymous allegation against Chris Myers, a father-of-two, was posted on a website and included a photo of a man who appeared to be him, in his Calvin Klein underwear.

The person making the allegation claimed to be a prostitute.

The man said Mayor Chris Myers contacted him through a male escort website and they met at hotel in Newport Beach, California.

The man also complained Chris Myers paid him $500 but didn’t fulfill promises of a car and other gifts. He said on the website that the broken promise was the reason he was taking his story public.

The anonymous allegation against Chris Myers, a father-of-two, was posted on a website and included a photo of a man who appeared to be him, in his Calvin Klein underwear
The anonymous allegation against Chris Myers, a father-of-two, was posted on a website and included a photo of a man who appeared to be him, in his Calvin Klein underwear

The website was taken down soon after becoming public.

Chris Myers, in an interview with a reporter for the Courier-Post newspaper in October, refused to comment on the allegations but didn’t deny them.

At a November township council meeting, Chris Myers denied the claims, calling the internet “a murky, anonymous place”.

Chris Myers’ resignation letter submitted to town officials Monday did not mention the scandal.

“My work commitments will not allow me to devote the time that is needed in the months ahead,” he wrote.

Some other council members have complained that the allegations against Chris Myers have gotten in the way of the business of Medford, a town of 23,000 residents about 20 miles east of Philadelphia.

Chris Myers missed one township council meeting and postponed another after the allegations surfaced.

He won the GOP nomination for a congressional seat in 2008 but lost the general election.

Chris Myers has been suspended as a vice president at technology manufacturer Lockheed Martin Corp.

Charlotte Cripps left with permanent burn marks after an IPL session

Kathryn R. Bown
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Charlotte Cripps left with permanent burn marks after an IPL session

Arts writer Charlotte Cripps from Ladbroke Grove, London, UK, was off to a private beauty therapist for a lovely session of pampering when a botched procedure left her forever “permanently scared”.

Charlotte Cripps, 40, underwent Intense Pulsed Light treatment – where light is used to smooth the complexion – for a newspaper story in 2008.

With the treatment recommended by a friend, Charlotte Cripps was shocked when she felt “excruciating pain” as the technician ran a hand-held machine over her chest and face at a London spa.

“I left the department store and got home within about 20 minutes. I looked in the mirror and I screamed,” Charlotte Cripps said.

“My chest was covered in red burn marks that look a little like when you brand an animal.

“I couldn’t put a duvet over me or anything because it was just so raw and painful,” Charlotte Cripps told the BBC’s Inside Out London programme, which was broadcast last night at 7:30 p.m.

Charlotte Cripps was shocked when she felt “excruciating pain” as the technician ran a hand-held machine over her chest and face at a London spa
Charlotte Cripps was shocked when she felt “excruciating pain” as the technician ran a hand-held machine over her chest and face at a London spa

Charlotte Cripps, who is a writer for The Independent, spent months in pain after the treatment in 2008 and has now been given a five-figure sum in compensation by the spa’s insurers.

The woman said: “I think there should be laws brought in so you can’t have IPL or Botox unless it is administered under the supervision of a doctor.”

1.5 million cosmetic surgery procedures will be carried out in the UK this year, many in lunch breaks or at parties.

Heidi Worman, a paramedical cosmetic make-up practitioner, said recent moves by the Government to deregulate IPL and the laser industry were a step in the wrong direction.

“We need these regulations just to protect the public,” she said, adding she was finding a greater need for treatments to correct cosmetic surgery.

Sitting down for too long may give you a bigger bottom. An Isreali research.

Kathryn R. Bown
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Sitting down for too long may give you a bigger bottom. An Isreali research.

Israeli scientists warn that sitting down for too long may give you a big bottom.

Not just eating junk food put your bottom at risk – sitting all day in the office is just as likely to broaden your rear.

The warning comes from a scientist who usually researches bed sores which can affect those bedridden or in a wheelchair due to paralysis.

Israeli scientists warn that sitting down for too long may give you a big bottom
Israeli scientists warn that sitting down for too long may give you a big bottom

Scans of their buttocks showed the muscles there shrinking and breaking down due to lack of exercise.

More surprising was the discovery that fat cells seemed to thrive on the inactivity, infiltrating the muscle, and creating thick “stripes” of fat.

Israeli researcher Professor Amit Gefen, whose findings are reported in the American Journal of Physiology – Cell Physiology, experimented on fat cells in a dish to test his conclusions.

Professor Amit Gefen spread a layer of fat cells on a piece of elastic and stretched the elastic, along with the cells.

The stretching was meant to mimic the constant pressure placed on the buttocks by being confined to a wheelchair or bed-ridden. A second layer of cells was fed exactly the same nutrients but not stretched.

After two weeks, the stretched cells contained noticeably more fat, and after four, the fat levels were 50 per cent higher. So the researcher’s advice to those sitting down on the job – Get up and go for a walk!

Researchers found that preadipocyte cells – the precursors to fat cells – turn into fat cells and produce even more fat when subject to prolonged periods of “mechanical stretching loads” – the kind of weight we put on our body tissues when we sit or lie down.

By studying MRI images of the muscle tissue of patients paralyzed by spinal cord injuries, they noticed that, over time, lines of fat cells were invading major muscles in the body.

This spurred an investigation into how mechanical load – the amount of force placed on a particular area occupied by cells – could be encouraging fat tissue to expand.

A team stimulated preadipocytes with glucose or insulin to turn them into fat cells. They then placed individual cells in a cell-stretching device, attaching them to a flexible, elastic substrate – or underlying – layer.

The test group of cells was stretched consistently for long periods of time, representing extended periods of sitting or lying down, while a control group of cells was not.

The researchers noted the development of liquid droplets in both the test and control groups. However, after just two weeks of stretching, the test group developed significantly more – and larger – droplets.

By the time the cells reached maturity, the group that received mechanical stretching had developed 50% more fat than the control group.

Professor Amit Gefen said: “Obesity is more than just an imbalance of calories. Cells themselves are also responsive to their mechanical environment. Fat cells produce more triglycerides [the major form of fat stored in the body], and at a faster rate, when exposed to static stretching.

“There are various ways that cells can sense mechanical loading. It appears that long periods of static mechanical loading and stretching, due to the weight of the body when sitting or lying, has an impact on increasing lipid [fat] production.”

These findings indicate that we need to take our cells’ mechanical environment into account as well as pay attention to calories consumed and burned, said Professor Amit Gefen.

Amit Gefen warned that, while there are extreme cases of people confined to wheelchairs or beds due to medical conditions, many people live a too sedentary lifestyle – spending most of the day behind a desk.

Enmac, the Islamic smartphone that comes with the Koran already downloaded

Nancy Clayson
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Enmac, the Islamic smartphone that comes with the Koran already downloaded

Enmac is an Islamic smartphone that has been launched with a compass pointing permanently to Mecca and the Koran already downloaded.

Indian inventors of the Enmac said they focused on religious technology when designing the new phone.

And the market is heaving as India has the fastest growing mobile phone users in the world with more than 850 million subscribers including farmers and rickshaw drivers.

Enmac is an Islamic smartphone that has been launched with a compass pointing permanently to Mecca and the Koran already downloaded
Enmac is an Islamic smartphone that has been launched with a compass pointing permanently to Mecca and the Koran already downloaded

Anuj Kanish, who has launched the Enmac in India, told The Telegraph: “India has around 180 million Muslims and the penetration of mobile phone in that community is less.

“But when a compelling product or service is available, it has a potential to increase the number of users. So far, we have had a tremendous response for the product.

“Religion has a very important place in Indian society, so has the mobile phone. Our aim was to bring a device which caters to both the sections, the product is a combination of both technology and religion, the first of its kind in India.”

Enmac translates the Koran from Arabic into 29 languages, and includes the Hadith sayings of the Prophet Mohammed, and a guide for Indian Muslims on how to perform the Hajj rituals in Mecca and Medina.

Anuj Kanish said his company had focused on “religious technology” to help customers with busy lives “remain connected with God”.

Transgender Brooke Fantelli tasered in the stomach by Bureau of Land Management rangers

Diane A. Wade
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Transgender Brooke Fantelli tasered in the stomach by Bureau of Land Management rangers

Brooke Fantelli, a transgender woman from Romano, San Diego, claims she was tasered in the stomach and the crotch by rangers after they found out she was born a man.

Brooke Fantelli, 43, was stunned by the taser gun by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) while she was participating in a photo shoot in the desert near El Centro late last month.

During the disturbing incident, which was captured on cell phone, Brooke Fantelli can be seen standing with her hands up talking to police before they taser her in the stomach.

Brooke Fantelli, 43, was stunned by the taser gun by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) while she was participating in a photo shoot in the desert near El Centro late last month
Brooke Fantelli, 43, was stunned by the taser gun by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) while she was participating in a photo shoot in the desert near El Centro late last month

Brooke Fantelli is then seen rolling around in agony on the ground before the rangers taser her for a second time in the crotch.

Speaking to News10 about the incident, Brooke Fantelli said: “There’s no way to put it, it’s just plain out brutal, plain out brutal.”

Brooke Fantelli said the BLM ranger ordered her to lie down in the dirt but she refused, though she did tell him she would not resist being arrested.

“You can see I’m obviously not threatening him as my hands are in the air.”

She said the ranger allegedly first accused some in her group of taking nude pictures in the desert and demanded everyone’s IDs.

Brooke Fantelli said once the ranger saw her license – which still has her registered as a man – everything changed.

The 43-year-old told News10: “He actually looked me straight in the eye and says, <<You used to be a guy>>, and I said, <<Yes, I did>>. There was no way around it. I could see it in his eyes. He wanted to tase me.

“I wasn’t giving him any problem. He’s got another officer there with him. All he had to do was put the handcuffs on.’’

The rangers eventually arrested Brooke Fantelli for public intoxication.

The BLM issued a statement to 10News which said their ranger acted appropriately.

The statement also said: “When deploying Tasers, rangers target the subject’s lower center mass, legs or back if possible. It appears the ranger targeted appropriately in this case.”

Brooke Fantelli is allegedly filing a civil lawsuit.

According to LGBT Weekly Brooke Fantelli was previously known as Rodd Fantelli, and was a well known off-road race driver who won numerous races.

Brooke Fantelli owns Fantelli Racing Products in Ramona, a custom off-road fabrication shop with 20 years of fabrication and racing history – she’s still a well known figure in the off-road racing community.

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JP Morgan banker David Gray stalked his ex-girlfriend Daniela Rausnitz across the Atlantic

Clyde K. Valle
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JP Morgan banker David Gray stalked his ex-girlfriend Daniela Rausnitz across the Atlantic

David Gray, a very successful JP Morgan investment banker has thrown away his career by stalking his beautiful colleague Daniela Rausnitz.

David Gray, 28, is almost certain to be fired from his prestigious position at JP Morgan after a passionate affair became an uncontrolled obsession.

The young and wealthy American analyst was yesterday convicted of harassing Daniela Rausnitz, 25, after she transferred to the global finance giant’s London offices to escape him.

David Gray, a very successful JP Morgan investment banker has thrown away his career by stalking his beautiful colleague Daniela Rausnitz
David Gray, a very successful JP Morgan investment banker has thrown away his career by stalking his beautiful colleague Daniela Rausnitz

David Gray deluged Daniela Rausnitz with hundreds of texts, emails and phone calls as he repeatedly flew across the Atlantic to pursue her when their one-year relationship turned sour.

He used his old key to get into her Chelsea flat, falsely said his sister had died and even claimed he was critically ill in a desperate effort to attract her attention.

Daniela Rausnitz told police David Gray planted a tracking device in her phone and hacked her email, leaving her afraid that his campaign would never end.

When officers confronted David Gray at a Park Lane Hotel where daniela Rausnitz was hiding with her family he told them he was an agent for the Israeli secret service.

Even on the eve of his trial David Gray was accused of breaching his bail by turning up at the same Notting Hill restaurant as his former lover.

David Gray deluged Daniela Rausnitz with hundreds of texts, emails and phone calls as he repeatedly flew across the Atlantic to pursue her when their one-year relationship turned sour
David Gray deluged Daniela Rausnitz with hundreds of texts, emails and phone calls as he repeatedly flew across the Atlantic to pursue her when their one-year relationship turned sour

West London Magistrates’ Court heard the couple met while working in adjacent cubicles at JP Morgan’s investment banking division in New York. David Gray, a graduate of Ivy League Cornell University, had been working for the firm since 2004.

Daniela Rausnitz worked as an unpaid intern before completing her studies at Duke University, ranked as one of the best in the world, where she set up a high-profile organization dedicated to supporting women in business.

When she returned as an employee she began an affair with David Gray, despite the fact he was married. In a strange twist, their relationship was cemented after she confided that she was being sexually harassed by a senior banker at the firm.

The court heard they were at one point “very much in love with each other” as David Gray considered leaving his wife.

But his behaviour became stifling and when Daniela Rausnitz transferred to London to further her career and put distance between them, he followed her.

The tipping point came in August as David Gray flew to London four times and subjected his victim to a relentless barrage of visits and messages.

David Gray was extremely jealous after discovering she had a new boyfriend during one visit and caught them together at her Chelsea flat.

At one stage David Gray sent Daniela Rausnitz 176 text messages and 23 emails over just 16 hours. He even used his key to enter her Onslow Gardens home and take two candlesticks that belonged to his grandmother.

Daniela Rausnitz accused him of trying to change his flights so they were on the same aircraft, putting a tracking device in her bag and breaking in to her email account.

David Gray collapsed in front of her at Heathrow Airport –something she accused him of faking and which he said was brought on by stress.

And in a bizarre confrontation at the Intercontinental Hotel in Park Lane, David Gray was arrested after telling police he was an Israeli secret service agent.

Carrying two bottles of whisky and Cuban cigars, David Gray said he travelled to the hotel to apologize to Daniela Rausnitz and her father.

David Gray told a police officer that he had received tapes of conversations recorded by a hidden bug under the bed at her home and urgently needed to speak to her.

Speaking in his defense, David Gray admitted the story was a complete lie which he concocted in a desperate attempt to evade arrest.

David Gray also admitted claiming falsely that his sister had died and that he was seriously ill in a Paris hospital after an accident. He described himself as a “broken man”.

David Gray’ solicitor Dan O’Callaghan described him as a “pathetic lovelorn fool” who was sent “mixed signals” by the victim.

Daniela Rausnitz wept in court as she described how David Gray’s actions left her scared, unable to sleep and forced her to take a leave of absence from work.

In a statement, Daniela Rausnitz said: “His erratic and obsessive behaviour began to frighten me and I was hopeful that moving to London would put an end to it. Unfortunately it escalated.

“His unwarranted, unprovoked and unrelenting actions have caused me extreme distress.”

Sentencing David Gray to a conditional discharge at West London Magistrates’ Court, District Judge Andrew Sweet said Gray could face a serious penalty if the harassment continues.

The judge said David Gray will be arrested if he contacts Daniela Rausnitz by any means and then visits Britain.

The court has no powers to stop David Gray contacting his victim from America but can arrest him if he returns having done so. David Gray is free to come to Britain if he does not contact Daniela Rausnitz before or during the visit.

JP Morgan declined to comment.

BA teenage stewardess pregnant with a married pilot after the company launched “Hug A Pilot” programme

Diane A. Wade
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BA teenage stewardess pregnant with a married pilot after the company launched “Hug A Pilot” programme

A teenage British Airways stewardess got pregnant with a married pilot after the airline company launched “Hug A Pilot” programme.

British Airways launched a programme to boost morale among cabin crew by encouraging them to mix more.

The initiative – dubbed “Hug A Pilot” – was taken to extremes by the married man and the stewardess on a foreign stopover between flights.

The pilot’s wife is also believed to be a British Airways employee but is apparently standing by him, The Sun reported.

The stewardess, based at Heathrow’s Terminal 5, has now been moved to a regional engineering base. She is planning to keep the baby.

When the pilot, who earns £100,000 ($150,000) per year, discovered that the young employee was pregnant he apparently denied it was anything to do with him but later confessed.

 

A teenage British Airways stewardess got pregnant with a married pilot after the airline company launched “Hug A Pilot” programme
A teenage British Airways stewardess got pregnant with a married pilot after the airline company launched “Hug A Pilot” programme

 

A spokesman for British Airways declined to comment.

The pilot and his wife are also apparently based at Terminal 5.

A source at the airline told The Sun: “The girl’s pregnancy and move to engineering is the talk of the airline. She was stunned to find she was expecting, but wants to keep the baby.

“She will be looked after financially because of the captain’s pay.”

British Airways employee 3,000 pilots and 13,500 cabin crew.

As part of the “Hug A Pilot” scheme, all staff are being urged to mix more to boost morale.

BA’s mandatory Safety and Emergency Procedures three-day training session for staff now has a new 90-minute team work discussion.

One crew member posted on an internet forum: “It transpires at SEP on the first day, BA have now introduced how to interact and socialize with the <<pilot community>>.

“The session includes pre, during and post flight interaction, you will now be advised it’s inappropriate and bad mannered not to include everyone on the crew and pilots while socializing in the bar or down route.”

Following the pregnancy the source, speaking to The Sun, added: “The Hug A Pilot edict was not supposed to lead to this.”

Lauren Scruggs suffered horrific hand and facial injuries after walking into a spinning plane propeller

Diane A. Wade
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Lauren Scruggs suffered horrific hand and facial injuries after walking into a spinning plane propeller

Lauren Scruggs, a fashion model from Plano, Dallas, had her hand sliced off and suffered severe facial injuries after accidentally walking into a spinning airplane propeller.

Lauren Scruggs, 23, sustained horrific wounds to her head and shoulder but is now in a stable condition after undergoing emergency treatment where surgeons were forced to amputate her left hand.

The fashion model, who writes a fashion blog, was injured as she climbed out of a two-seater plane at Aero County Airport in McKinney, Texas, after a flight to see Christmas lights across the state.

Lauren Scruggs was taken to the Parkland Memorial Hospital where her family gathered at her bedside.

Fashion model Lauren Scruggs had her hand sliced off and suffered severe facial injuries after accidentally walking into a spinning airplane propeller
Fashion model Lauren Scruggs had her hand sliced off and suffered severe facial injuries after accidentally walking into a spinning airplane propeller

Family friend Janee Harrell said: “Speaking for the entire Scruggs family, your prayers are greatly appreciated and felt every moment.

“Many of you know, our beautiful Lauren was in an accident. After exiting a propeller plane, an accident occurred where she walked into the front of the prop.

“Struck on the left side of her body, Lauren’s hand, head, and shoulder area were hit.

“Following multiple surgeries, Lauren has received facial and shoulder reconstruction, as well as the loss of her hand.

“We are currently praying for healing on the left eye and brain. She is in a stable condition with ongoing surgery. Keep praying!”

In a later blog post, Janee Harrell wrote that Lauren Scruggs was “currently resting peacefully in ICU”.

Janee Harrell added: “Earlier in the night, there was a victory. With her eyes closed, Jeff [her father] asked Lauren to respond by squeezing his hand, moments later that is exactly what she did! Praise the Lord.

“Tomorrow, Lauren will be heading back into surgery so that the doctors can finish up the work on her left hand area. Pray that the surgery goes flawlessly, as well as there will be no infections.”

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is investigating the incident.

A FAA spokesman said in a statement: “According to our preliminary information, the woman was a passenger in a 2011 Aviat Husky.

“She had just exited the aircraft when she walked into the propeller around 9.30 pm on Saturday at Aero Country Airport. We are still investigating and will interview the pilot and any other witnesses.”

The identity of the pilot would not be revealed while the FAA investigation was ongoing but he was believed not to have been injured.

The plane is believed that have been fairly new and the pilot was in the process of changing passengers when the accident happened.

Lauren Scruggs is a part-time model and has also worked in the wardrobe department of the TV show Gossip Girl. She is also an editor an online fashion magazine Lolo.com and recently interviewed Twilight star Kellan Lutz at New York Fashion Week.

Lynn Jones fired as a baggage handler from Reno-Tahoe Airport after she refused to load an emaciate dog on a plane

Diane A. Wade
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Lynn Jones fired as a baggage handler from Reno-Tahoe Airport after she refused to load an emaciate dog on a plane

Lynn Jones from Lockwood, Nevada, claims she was fired as a baggage handler at Reno-Tahoe International Airport last month after she refused to load an emaciated hunting dog on a plane.

Lynn Jones said her supervisor told her to load the dog lying in a pet carrier because the animal’s paperwork was in order and its condition wasn’t her concern.

The woman, an employee of contractor Airport Terminal Services at the time, told the Reno Gazette-Journal that she couldn’t put the dog on the plane for shipment to Texas because its paws were bloody and its body was covered with sores.

Lynn Jones said: “Everybody who saw it, the TSA people, the airport police officers, the girls at the ticket counter, was concerned.

“The dog was so weak and torn up. It didn’t look like it could survive the flight. I was crying. I kept saying that dog could not be put on a plane.”

Lynn Jones claims she was fired as a baggage handler at Reno-Tahoe International Airport last month after she refused to load an emaciated hunting dog on a plane
Lynn Jones claims she was fired as a baggage handler at Reno-Tahoe International Airport last month after she refused to load an emaciated hunting dog on a plane

Lynn Jones said airport police phoned Washoe County Regional Animal Services, which took custody of the dog.

The animal is owned by a hunter who has it shipped to places he hunts, according to authorities. It was taken back to Texas after being nursed back to health.

Lynn Jones said she was fired on the spot on November 15, adding: “[My supervisor] kept yelling, <<That’s it, you’re done, you are out of here, go home>>.”

Officials at St Louis-based Airport Terminal Services, didn’t return phone calls.

Krys Bart, CEO of the Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority, said she was proud of how airport police intervened.

“In all my years here, this is the first time I’m thoroughly disgusted over what I understand to be the situation this animal was put in.

“They [officers] had an affirmative responsibility to deal with this, and that’s what they did.”

Krys Bart said she was out of town when the incident occurred, but determined later that the dog had been abused prior to arriving at the airport.

County animal services officials declined to comment on the incident, citing a new state law that keeps details of animal abuse cases secret.

Lynn Jones said her job loss has been a hardship, but she has no regrets. She held the job for more than five years.

Lynn Jones said: “I just couldn’t turn my back on that dog. My supervisor said it wasn’t my concern, but animal abuse is everyone’s concern who sees it.”

Madeleine McCann case: Scotland Yard officers travelled to Barcelona to probe reports she was smuggled in Spain

Diane A. Wade
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Madeleine McCann case: Scotland Yard officers travelled to Barcelona to probe reports she was smuggled in Spain

Two officers from Scotland Yard investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann have flown to Spain as part of a review into the case.

Detectives travelled to Barcelona two weeks ago to liaise with officers as part of a review of the whole investigation.

Officers would not confirm their specific reasons for travelling to Barcelona, however it is thought they might be looking into reports the three-year-old was abducted and smuggled over the border from Portugal to Spain.

This morning Clarence Mitchell, McCann family spokesman said: “Kate and Gerry welcome the on-going work by the Metropolitan Police and they are pleased that the investigative review is making progress.”

Two officers from Scotland Yard investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann have flown to Spain as part of a review into the case
Two officers from Scotland Yard investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann have flown to Spain as part of a review into the case

The trip is part of the Met Police’s “investigative review” into all the work done since the investigation into the missing child began in 2007.

It was ordered by David Cameron and Home Secretary Theresa May in May last year.

As part of the review detectives have also travelled to Portugal three times to speak with officers who worked on the original investigation.

They also spent the first five months reading all the information from the case file which had to be translated from Portuguese to English.

There are no suggestions of any major breakthroughs in the case.

According to The Evening Standard, officers could be investigating one theory that the toddler was abducted by a paedophile gang and smuggled over the border to Spain either in a vehicle or by boat.

There were sightings of a girl matching Madeleine McCann’s appearance in Spain shortly after she vanished and Portuguese authorities were criticized for not informing border officials for 12 hours after they first knew she was missing.

In September 2009, the McCanns received 1,000 reports following an appeal of a Victoria Beckham lookalike seen in Barcelona who they thought may be connected to the disappearance of their daughter.

Investigators wanted to trace the woman, said to have been acting suspiciously, who asked a witness at a Barcelona marina if he was there to deliver her “new daughter” on May 7, 2007.

The well-dressed woman was described as possibly having an Australian accent and appeared agitated.

Madeline McCann, from Rothley, Leicestershire, vanished from Portuguese holiday resort Praia da Luz in the Algarve in 2007. The girl was asleep in the family’s holiday apartment with her brother Sean and sister Amelie when she vanished on May 3, 2007 shortly before her fourth birthday.

Her parents Gerry and Kate McCann, both doctors, were eating at a nearby tapas restaurant with friends at the time.

A Met Police spokesman said two officers had travelled to Portugal three times for the investigative review and two officers travelled to the Spanish city between November 23 and 25.

The spokesman would not reveal any further details but added: “The investigative review is on-going.”

The official Portuguese and Leicestershire police investigation into Madeleine McCann’s disappearance ended in July 2008. However private detectives working for the McCanns have been working to trace her ever since.

Khloe Kardashian bad-mouthing Kris Humphries in the latest episode of Kourtney&Kim Take New York

Lisa.Felice
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Khloe Kardashian bad-mouthing Kris Humphries in the latest episode of Kourtney&Kim Take New York

The latest episode of Kourtney & Kim Take New York opens with both Kris Humphries and Scott Disick awol, and Kim and Kourtney Kardashian surveying the damage from their Manhattan duplex.

Even Scott Disick’s parents are livid with him, while Kim Kardashian’s best friend Jonathan Cheban expresses his concern that Kris Humphries has fled to Minnesota.

Jonathan Cheban also calms Scott Disick’s father, who calls his son a “mental case” as Kourtney Kardashian sticks to plans to visit them in the Hamptons, even without their son.

Then Khloe Kardashian arrives to stage a double intervention.

“I miss my sisters so much, and it is the last big weekend of the summer and we are going to the Hamptons.”

First up, Khloe Kardashian tries to play peacemaker between Kourtney and Scott Disick, after receiving unprecedented calls from the angry Disick.

The crux of the problem for Kourtney Kardashian is soon pinpointed as Scott Disick’s drinking, and the destruction that habit wrought in Miami.

Khloe Kardashian tells Kourtney that Scott Disick wants to sleep in the same bed as her, and wants to feel like “he’s the man”.

She then turns to Kim, and tells her that she should go to Minnesota, and say: “I find it a little odd as it’s been a few months and usually the first year is when you’re most obsessed with that person.”

Khloe Kardashian also talks about how she scaled down work to focus on her relationship with Lamar Odom.

Kim Kardashian then cancels her Hampstons plans with her sisters and plans to head to Minnesota to spend time with Kris Humphries, vowing: “I will do whatever it takes to make it work.”

Kim Kardashian cancels her Hampstons plans with her sisters and plans to head to Minnesota to spend time with Kris Humphries
Kim Kardashian cancels her Hampstons plans with her sisters and plans to head to Minnesota to spend time with Kris Humphries

After a tanning session, a grumpy Kim Kardashian swears at her sisters for disrupting her lie in as they head to Long Beach for their weekend away.

Kim Kardashian rails at Khloe for not being supportive and says: “She doesn’t like Kris so she’s purposefully trying to mess with me.”

She then calls the girls in the car, and continues to vent on speaker-phone… prompting her sisters to say she is acting out of character.

“Think she’s just p***ed as she’s married to a barking dog,” Khloe Kardashian quips to Kourtney’s guffaws.

Kim Kardashian then sends Khloe messages over Blackberry messenger calling her sister an “evil troll” and “spiteful”.

Jonathan Cheban persuades Scott Disick to go to his parents’ home to see Kourtney Kardashian and their son, Mason.

Meanwhile Kim Kardashian arrives in Minnesota and initially the reunion is sweet.

But Kris Humphries said he missed his wife but not the chaos of their New York living arrangement and Kim Kardashian admits she is hurt that he is so comfortable with sleeping separately.

And the romantic tone is somewhat sullied when Kris Humphries tells Kim Kardashian he can tell she had been travelling because her armpits smelled of: “Uncooked fish and hot garbage.”

Back in the Hamptons, Scott Disick and Kourtney Kardashian are offered some alone time by Aunty Khloe, but Kourtney remains frosty to Scott.

“All she cares about is her role as a mom, but she has to remember that she has another boy, and that’s me,” Scott Disick complains.

Khloe Kardashian stages an intervention and negotiates “alone time” for Scott Disick with her sister Kourtney.

Meanwhile Kris Humphries is being told by his trainer that marriage “adds 50 pounds to you”, and Kris 6ft9 quips “and takes off inches”, before asking his trainer if he will come to New York.

Kim Kardashian attempts to be domestic, and prepares a homecooked meal after Kris Humphries “manfully” brings home the groceries.

“Is this what it feels like to be actually married,” Kris Humphries says happily.

Kris Humphries attempts to sell Minnesota and says he misses the lake, Kim Kardashian begs him to compromise but he says he “can’t afford to fly back and forth”.

But there is a hint of suspicion as Kris Humphries asks Kim Kardashian who “put her up to” the trip and domesticity.

Kim Kardashian cuts her finger and Kris Humphries says: “You really haven’t been in the kitchen for a while.”

Kris Humphries also mentions that Khloe Kardashian left Miami for Lamar Odom and says: “It’s great you have a role model like that.”

Khloe Kardashian opens up about Kim in the Hamptons: “I don’t want the things she wants in life, I don’t compete with her, she’s in her own lane.”

Kim Kardashian finally gets the sleep she’s been craving and decides to confront Kris, she tells him it’s his “off season” and he should be living with her, but Kris Humphries blames distractions.

Kim Kardashian yells: “You have to meet me halfway,” as Kris Humphries lolls on the sofa chanting: “You don’t want me to resent you baby, do you?”

She then storms off saying she’ll skype him to “say goodbye”.

Later they share a tender moment, and Kim Kardashian tells Kris Humphries: “We’re not going to have a successful marriage if we live in separate states,” which combined with tears prompts him to act.

Scott Disick and Kourtney Kardashian enjoy a double date but he confronts her about de-cluttering his parents’ home and throwing out a beloved chess set.

But then it’s back to New York for all key players, and the showdown, “the Hump is back!” Kourtney Kardashian yells as Kris Humphries insists he will make it work.

But Kim Kardashian ignores her sister Khloe as she gushes to Kourtney about Kris Humphries, Khloe calls her insincere and the sisters part on bad terms as Khloe leaves to fly back to LA.

How Diet Coke and low-calorie substitutes may actually make your body to gain weight

Kathryn R. Bown
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How Diet Coke and low-calorie substitutes may actually make your body to gain weight

Scientists claim that low-calorie substitutes in food and drink may actually make fool your body into gaining weight.

An American research team from Purdue University in Indiana discovered that the taste of fat and sugar gears the body up to expect a high-calorie hit.

When low-calorie substitute doesn’t come the body’s mechanism for controlling food intake becomes confused, making us eat more.

The Purdue University research team carried out a series of experiments on laboratory rats.

Professor of psychological sciences Susan Swithers said: “Substituting a part of the diet with a similar tasting item that has fewer or zero calories sounds like a common-sense approach to lose weight, but there are other physiological functions at work.

“These substitutes are meant to mimic the taste of fat in foods that are normally high in fat while providing a lower number of calories, but they may end up confusing the body.

“Tastes normally alert the body to expect calories, and when those calories aren’t present we believe the systems become ineffective and one of the body’s mechanisms to control food intake can become ineffective.

“When the mouth tastes something sweet or fatty it tells the body to prepare for calories, and this information is key to the digestive process.

“This is a reminder to not discount the roles that taste and experience with food play in the way the body’s systems work together.”

Professor Susan Swithers, based at the Ingestive Behaviour Research Centre, added: “We didn’t study this in people, but we found that when rats consumed a fat substitute, learned signals that could help control food intake were disrupted, and the rats gained weight as a result.”

Scientists claim that low-calorie substitutes in food and drink may actually make fool your body into gaining weight
Scientists claim that low-calorie substitutes in food and drink may actually make fool your body into gaining weight

The research team fed laboratory rats with crushed crisps as a supplement to their diet, and they were then divided into two groups that were given either a low-fat diet or a high-fat diet.

These groups were then each split into two smaller groups. One group on each diet was fed a mixture of high-fat crisps and the fat-substitute crisps, containing olestra, which is a synthetic fat with no calories, while the other group received only high-fat crisps.

After 28 days, of the animals maintained on the high-fat diet, the rats given fat-substitute crisps gained more weight and developed more fatty tissue than those on regular high-fat crisps.

Study co-author Professor Terry Davidson said: “We are looking at an animal model, but there are similarities for humans, and based on what we found, we believe that our findings question the effectiveness of using fat substitutes as part of a long-term weight loss strategy.”

The study findings appear online in Behavioural Neuroscience, which is published by the American Psychological Association.

9-year-old Emanyea Lockett suspended from school for sexual harassment, calling his teacher “cute”

Diane A. Wade
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9-year-old Emanyea Lockett suspended from school for sexual harassment, calling his teacher “cute”

Nine year old Emanyea Lockett, a fourth grader at a North Carolina school, was suspended from school for two days when he told a friend that he thought his teacher was “cute”.

Emanyea Lockett told local WSOC news:

“I was talking to my friend and I said Miss Taylor was cute.”

“That’s all I said,” the boy continued.

Nine year old Emanyea Lockett, a fourth grader at a North Carolina school, was suspended from school for two days when he told a friend that he thought his teacher was “cute”
Nine year old Emanyea Lockett, a fourth grader at a North Carolina school, was suspended from school for two days when he told a friend that he thought his teacher was “cute”

 

A substitute teacher at Brookside Elementary School overheard the remark, told the principal, and then the principal suspended the boy for two days.

Emanyea Lockett’s mother thinks that his punishment is far more severe than the crime.

“It’s not like he went up to the woman and tried to grab her in a sexual way,” Chiquita Lockett said.

“Why would he be suspended for two days?”

One local broadcast pointed out the irony that Emanyea Lockett, a fourth grader was being accused of sexual harassment, even though he does not know what the term means.

A school representative for the district, located just outside of Charlotte, North Carolina, said that the details of the suspension were not available.

She did tell local reporters that the incident related to “inappropriate behavior after making inappropriate statements”.

Kathia Maria Davis, a hockey mom accused of having sex with teen players

Diane A. Wade
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Kathia Maria Davis, a hockey mom accused of having sex with teen players

Kathia Maria Davis, the divorced mother of a hockey player from California, is accused of having sex with one of her teenage son’s teammates and molesting another while a third victim reportedly may be coming forward.

The 44-year-old mother-of -three plead innocent in court Friday after the boys as young as 13 accused her of sexually assaulting them.

Complaints of Kathia Maria Davis throwing alcoholic parties and sleepovers for the teenage boys at her Laguna Niguel home over at least a year and a half, was just the beginning for prosecutors.

Since her surrender, Kathia Maria Davis has pleaded not guilty to the charges of sexual intercourse and lewd acts on a child in her court appearance Friday.

With a 13-year-old boy, Kathia Maria Davis is accused of kissing and fondling him after her son and daughter had fallen asleep on the floor of the room they were sharing, prosecutors tell the Los Angeles Times.

Kathia Maria Davis, the divorced mother of a hockey player from California, is accused of having sex with one of her teenage son's teammates and molesting another while a third victim reportedly may be coming forward
Kathia Maria Davis, the divorced mother of a hockey player from California, is accused of having sex with one of her teenage son's teammates and molesting another while a third victim reportedly may be coming forward

A 16-year-old boy, also a member of the hockey team, claims that between July 1st of 2010 and July 31st of 2011, she had sex with him four times in her bedroom.

During some of those encounters, two of her children were inside the house at the time, according to prosecutors.

The 16-year-old victim eventually came forward to his mother, telling her he’d been having sex with the woman for a year and a half.

Kathia Maria Davis is being charged with two felony counts of lewd acts on a child under 15 years of age.

The mother-of-three is additionally being charged with four felony counts of unlawful sexual intercourse with the older 16-year-old boy.

Kathia Maria Davis as well faces a sentencing enhancement allegation for substantial sexual conduct with a child.

Since her arrest KTLA-TV has reported that a third possible victim, under 16 years of age at the time of the incident, has also come forward.

The alleged third victim accuses Kathia Maria Davis of sexual contact within the past two years.

If convicted of the six felony counts, Kathia Maria Davis faces a maximum sentencing of 12 years and eight months in state prison.

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Jesua Tatad accused of pouring boiling water over her ex-husband for seeing another woman

Diane A. Wade
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Jesua Tatad accused of pouring boiling water over her ex-husband for seeing another woman

Jesua Tatad from California is accused of pouring boiling water over her ex-husband after she found out he was seeing another woman.

Jesua Tatad, 39, is said to have scalded her ex-husband as he slept and then beat him with a baseball bat.

Even though they were divorced, Jesua Tatad shared the same home with the victim, who suffered 60% burns.

Prosecutors said Jesua Tatad waited until her former spouse was asleep before pouring a full pan of boiling water over his body.

As the man leapt up in pain she was waiting with a baseball bat and allegedly clubbed him in the head.

Police said the man was able to escape and flagged down a passing security guard outside his home in Daly City, California.

An ambulance rushed him to San Francisco General Hospital where he was admitted in critical condition.

San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said the victim is unable to speak due to his injuries.

Jesua Tatad from California is accused of pouring boiling water over her ex-husband after she found out he was seeing another woman
Jesua Tatad from California is accused of pouring boiling water over her ex-husband after she found out he was seeing another woman

Steve Wagstaffe said Jesua Tatad wasn’t cooking anything prior to the incident and deliberately boiled the water for the attack.

He said the woman had waited until her ex, who has not been named, returned home to the flat they shared from a night shift.

The victim is in “pretty bad shape” but will survive, Steve Wagstaffe said, adding “he’s in for a long, long recovery”.

“It wasn’t like she was cooking breakfast,” Steve Wagstaffe added.

“He boiled up that pot of water to pour on him.”

Jesua Tatad was arrested and charged with several felonies, including assault with a deadly weapon, aggravated mayhem and torture.

Jesua Tatad is being held on $600,000 bail.

DB Cooper case close to end. Marla Cooper claims he was her uncle.

Diane A. Wade
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DB Cooper case close to end. Marla Cooper claims he was her uncle.

It looks as if DB Cooper case, the notorious skyjacking saga that baffled US authorities for 40 years may finally be coming to a close.

Marla Cooper from Oregon, who claims her uncle was the elusive criminal known only as DB Cooper says she has been told by the FBI that the case is about to be closed.

Burdened by guilt over her knowledge surrounding the case, Marla Cooper came forward earlier this year, claiming she had a 40-year-old family secret protecting her uncle, a man named Lynn Doyle Cooper.

It looks as if DB Cooper case, the notorious skyjacking saga that baffled US authorities for 40 years may finally be coming to a close
It looks as if DB Cooper case, the notorious skyjacking saga that baffled US authorities for 40 years may finally be coming to a close

Marla Cooper said she was eight years old when her uncle, whom she called LD Cooper, came to her home for Thanksgiving – the day after the infamous incident – and was badly injured.

She never saw her uncle again after that day and was told he died in 1999.

It was the FBI’s most promising lead after the Northwest Airlines flight from Portland to Seattle was hijacked and robbed following a bomb threat on the night of November 24, 1971.

Marla Cooper also provided investigators with a photograph of LD Cooper and a guitar strap that he owned for fingerprint testing.

While the results of the fingerprint test have not yet been determined, authorities seem eager to end the investigation.

Marla Cooper told NBC affiliate WFIE: “Regardless of the findings of the fingerprints, they would be closing the case after this. He said, <<I am certain your uncle did it. I feel certain that your uncle did it. And that, what’s the point in continuing the investigation?>>”

Marla Cooper also said that her uncle was fixated on a comic book character named “Dan Cooper”, the name the skyjacker gave the airline before boarding.

Marla Cooper provided investigators with a photograph of LD Cooper and a guitar strap that he owned for fingerprint testing
Marla Cooper provided investigators with a photograph of LD Cooper and a guitar strap that he owned for fingerprint testing

FBI officials told the station that they are conducting the tests, but would not comment on their next move in the case.

As for the $200,000 ransom, the woman believed Lynne Doyle Cooper lost it all as he parachuted to earth.

DB Cooper has intrigued everyone from federal agents to amateur sleuths.

On that day in 1971, the suspect, who was wearing a suite and sunglasses, boarded the flight after buying a $20 one-way ticket to Seattle.

After getting on the plane, the mysterious man ordered whisky and lit a cigarette before passing a flight attendant a note that read: “I HAVE A BOMB IN MY BRIEFCASE. I WILL USE IT IF NECESSARY. I WANT YOU TO SIT NEXT TO ME. YOU ARE BING (sic) HIJACKED.”

DB Cooper told the captain that in return for $200,000 and four parachutes, he would allow 36 people to leave the plane when it landed in Seattle.

The FBI agreed to the swap and the plane took off again under DB Cooper’s orders to fly towards Mexico at an altitude of under 10,000 feet.

Somewhere over the lower Cascade mountains in southwestern Washington, DB Cooper stepped out of the plane with a parachute strapped to his back.

DB Cooper was never seen again.

There were more than 1,000 possible suspects considered over the past four decades.

Several people even claimed to be DB Cooper at times, but were dismissed on the basis of physical descriptions, parachuting experience and, later, by DNA evidence recovered in 2001 from the cheap, clip-on tie the skyjacker left on the plane.

Items recovered from the skyjack include $5,800 of the stolen money, in tattered $20 bills and DB Cooper’s tie.

Many believe that DB Cooper was Richard McCoy, a Vietnam War veteran, experienced parachutist and BYU political science student who staged a similar hijacking several months later.

But the FBI has said that Richard McCoy – who was killed in a shoot-out with law enforcement officers after a prison break in 1974 – simply didn’t fit the description of DB Cooper provided by two flight attendants.

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Sienna Miller to play Tippi Hedren, the victim of Alfred Hitchcock’s obsession

Lisa.Felice
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Sienna Miller to play Tippi Hedren, the victim of Alfred Hitchcock’s obsession

Sienna Miller will be the star of a new drama about film director Alfred Hitchcock’s obsession with Tippi Hedren – star of his classic The Birds – and how it destroyed both their careers.

The new movie, The Girl, which will be screened next year, will show how an infatuated 62-year-old Alfred Hitchcock sexually harassed the 31-year-old blonde starlet, Tippi Hedren, and tried to control every aspect of her life – both on and off screen.

Tippi Hedren suffered in silence for the best part of three years but eventually walked out when her mentor made it clear her future career depended on giving in to his sexual demands.

Gwyneth Hughes, the writer of the BBC2 drama, said: “Everyone knows Hitchcock was keen on his blondes. Unfortunately for Tippi, he developed a twisted and obsessive love for her that left her feeling isolated and terrified. He made repeated sexual advances towards her and tried to take over her life.

“Today we would call it sexual harassment but that concept had not been accepted back then.”

The new movie, The Girl, which will be screened next year, will show how an infatuated 62-year-old Alfred Hitchcock sexually harassed the 31-year-old blonde starlet, Tippi Hedren, and tried to control every aspect of her life – both on and off screen
The new movie, The Girl, which will be screened next year, will show how an infatuated 62-year-old Alfred Hitchcock sexually harassed the 31-year-old blonde starlet, Tippi Hedren, and tried to control every aspect of her life – both on and off screen

 

The new film is inspired by the biographer Donald Spoto’s account of Alfred Hichcock’s relationship in his 2008 book “Spellbound By Beauty”.

Alfred Hitchcock’s infatuation with Tippi Hedren began in 1961 when he spotted her by chance in a television commercial for a diet drink.

Convinced he had found the next Grace Kelly, Alfred Hitchcock ignored the fact that Tippi Hedren had no real acting experience and signed her up for the starring role in 1963 film The Birds.

Alfred Hitchcock immediately set about transforming her into the perfect Hollywood icon and took control of all aspects of her life, including her off-set wardrobe and diet.

Divorcee Tippi Hedren – whose daughter Melanie Griffith grew up to be a major Hollywood star in her own right – was initially grateful for the director’s attention.

But Tippi Hedren grew more and more fearful as his obsession began to spiral out of control, first on the set of The Birds and then during production on their follow-up film, Marnie.

Alfred Hitchcock, who had taken to incessantly staring at Tippi Hedren between takes, banned her from sharing cars with her male co-stars and insisted that all their conversations took place in private so they could be alone together.

As well as bombarding her with unwanted gifts, Alfred Hitchcock had her followed around town and, totally obsessed, even sent examples of her handwriting to graphologists.

Tippi Hedren, who had signed a seven-year contract with the director, put up with his harassment because she was fearful he would blacklist her if she spoke out.

Tippi Hedren finally quit when Alfred Hitchcock made it clear on the set of Marnie that she would never work again unless she gave in to his sexual demands.

Her decision to walk away stalled her career because Alfred Hitchcock kept her to her contract and refused to allow her to work with other directors. But the collapse of the couple’s working relationship also had a devastating impact on the director, whose long run of hit, classic movies dried up.

Both Donald Spoto and Tippi Hedren, who is now 81 and has already met Sienna Miller, 29, to discuss the role, are co-operating with the producers of the film.

The film will begin shooting on Thursday and will be screened on BBC2 in 2012. Imelda Staunton will play the director’s long-suffering wife, Alma.

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Clifton Vial was stranded in snow for three days and he survived with frozen Coors beer

Diane A. Wade
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Clifton Vial was stranded in snow for three days and he survived with frozen Coors beer

Clifton Vial from Alaska, who was stranded in snow for three days at temperatures of 1.4 F (minus 17 C), has survived by eating frozen Coors beer.

Clifton Vial became stranded in his Toyota Tacoma 40 miles outside Nome, Alaska after plunging in a snow drift.

Uncharacteristically unprepared for the situation, the 52-year-old was wearing jeans and a thin coat – not protective enough to dig himself out of the snow without getting frostbite.

With no signal on his cellphone, Clifton Vial had to sit and wait for his colleagues to realize he was missing.

Clifton Vial kept warm in a fleece sleeping bag and by wrapping a bath towel around his feet, and would occasionally start the truck to run the heater. He stuffed rags in his clothes and unraveled tissue paper, pushing it down around his feet.

After searching the truck, Clifton Vial found only three cans of frozen Coors Light.

Clifton Vial told the Anchorage Daily News:

“I cut the lids off and dug it out with a knife.

“I felt really pissed at myself. I shouldn’t have been out there by myself unprepared for what I knew was possible.”

Clifton Vial from Alaska, who was stranded in snow for three days at temperatures of 1.4 F (minus 17 C), has survived by eating frozen Coors beer
Clifton Vial from Alaska, who was stranded in snow for three days at temperatures of 1.4 F (minus 17 C), has survived by eating frozen Coors beer

Clifton Vial said the cold was more unbearable than the hunger.

“When I was just sitting there in my coat in the sleeping bag liner I would pull my arms inside my T-shirt to try and utilize my body heat as much as I could,” Clifton Vial said.

“That worked fine for some time, as far as keeping my torso warm and my arms. But my legs and feet where getting pretty cold.”

Clifton Vial’s wife and daughter were out of town and he feared he would never see them again.

“I tried to sleep when I could, but I knew that I might not wake up,” he said.

When he failed to turn up for work the next day, co-workers patrolled the area – and alerted the police when he failed to show up for a second shift.

Troopers joined the search. Rescuers looked for Clifton Vial on the ground and from the air, in planes and from a helicopter.

“When we get called on situations like this, it’s a needle in a haystack,” Jim West Jr., a Nome fire department captain and search and rescue coordinator, told the Anchorage Daily News.

More than 40 miles out of town, at about 9:30 that night, Clifton Vial’s pickup plunged into a snowdrift.

Three days after he first became stranded in the snow, rescuers pulled up behind his pick-up.

They gave him a Snickers bar – it seemed too dry to eat – and an orange soda.

Clifton Vial planned to visit a doctor Friday afternoon, then return to work. He showed no signs of frostbite.

Angelina Jolie sued by Croatian journalist for stealing the story of her directorial debut

Lisa.Felice
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Angelina Jolie sued by Croatian journalist for stealing the story of her directorial debut

Angelina Jolie is being sued for the second time in a month.

This time, James J. Braddock, a Croatian journalist, is accusing Angelina Jolie, 36, of stealing the story behind her directorial debut, In the Land of Blood and Honey.

In legal documents obtained by RadarOnline, James J. Braddock claims that an article he wrote and published in 2007 is the basis for the film, which Angelina Jolie wrote and directed.

James J. Braddock gives examples of the similarities between his work and Angelina Jolie’s film in the lawsuit.

The lawsuit states that: “The Subject Work’s main female character is subject to continuous abuse and rape by soldiers and officers in the camp.”

“In addition to being raped continuously by soldiers and officers, she is forced to become a servant at the camp headquarters, a duty assumed by very few of the captives.”

James J. Braddock, a Croatian journalist, is accusing Angelina Jolie, 36, of stealing the story behind her directorial debut, In the Land of Blood and Honey
James J. Braddock, a Croatian journalist, is accusing Angelina Jolie, 36, of stealing the story behind her directorial debut, In the Land of Blood and Honey

James J. Braddock is demanding that a court awards him damages.

“The Motion Picture’s main female character is also subject to continuous rape by soldiers and officers in the camp and subsequently becomes a servant at camp headquarters.”

The drama revolves around a Muslim woman named Aija who falls in love with Serbian Daniijel.

In the unlikely love story, which opens in American theatres on December 23, Daniijel inadvertently becomes Aija’s jailer when the Bosnians are captured by the Serbs.

James J. Braddock isn’t the only person taking legal action against Angelina Jolie.

Angelina Jolie and partner Brad Pitt are also being sued by a former nanny.

The couple fired 45-year-old Ana Charlotiaux for allegedly taking too much sick leave.

Ana Charlotiaux worked on Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s French estate, Chateau Miraval, from 2008-2010 and is demanding fair compensation for dismissal.

13 people injured after fans stormed the football field following Oklahoma State’s victory

Clyde K. Valle
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13 people injured after fans stormed the football field following Oklahoma State’s victory

At least 13 people have been injured, including two in critical condition, after thousands of fans stormed the field and tore down goalposts after Oklahoma State’s 44-10 victory over archrival Oklahoma last night.

According to emergency services, spectators were trampled and one person fell 15 feet to the concrete during the wild celebrations.

No 13 Oklahoma State routed the Sooners on Saturday night to win the Big 12 championship and play for the Bowl Championship Series national title.

The Cowboys ended an eight-game losing streak with the victory and won their first outright conference title since 1948.

Michael Authement, who heads the command post at emergency medical provider LifeNet EMS, said: “They won the game and stormed the field and ripped down the goalposts and some were jumping off the stands and hit the field and others got trampled. It was a nasty deal.”

At least 13 people have been injured, including two in critical condition, after thousands of fans stormed the field and tore down goalposts after Oklahoma State's 44-10 victory over archrival Oklahoma last night
At least 13 people have been injured, including two in critical condition, after thousands of fans stormed the field and tore down goalposts after Oklahoma State's 44-10 victory over archrival Oklahoma last night

He also said fans began storming the field with about 20 seconds left in the game.

The crowd was so large that it took police 45 minutes to clear fans from the field at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater.

Michael Authement said: “There were thousands of people. Thousands of people stormed the field. You couldn’t move there were so many people.”

Fans climbed on to the yellow goalposts and tore them down amid a crush of people on the field.

Nine ambulances took 11 of the injured to hospital while two fans in critical condition had to be airlifted from the stadium.

According to emergency services, the majority of the injured suffered leg fractures and two were treated at the scene and released.

Spokeswoman for Stillwater Medical Center, Shyla Eggers, said the hospital received six of the injured in ambulances, two in private vehicles and at least two of the patients have been admitted and would undergo surgery on broken ankles.

Shyla Eggers said: “Our staff that was on hand took care of it. They were just very busy. Game day is always busy.”

Stillwater police and the Oklahoma highway patrol also had no immediate comment.

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Gladys Remigio kidnapped a baby after she lied to her boyfriend she is pregnant

Diane A. Wade
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Gladys Remigio kidnapped a baby after she lied to her boyfriend she is pregnant

Gladys Remigio, a teenager from Santa Ana, California, who lied to her boyfriend about being pregnant, allegedly hatched an elaborate plan to kidnap her roommate’s two-week-old baby.

Gladys Remigio, 17, allegedly asked gang members Steven Quirino, 20, and Robert Rodriguez, 19, to steal the child.

The teenager then intended to ride with the men to her boyfriend’s, where she would pass the baby off as her own.

The newborn’s mother, identified only as Norma, told police that Gladys Remigio entered her bedroom with a man armed with a gun and ordered her into the bathroom while her other children slept.

Norma managed to escape when the two men fled the scene, and she found her baby outside with Gladys Remigio.

 

Gladys Remigio, a teenager from Santa Ana, California, who lied to her boyfriend about being pregnant, allegedly hatched an elaborate plan to kidnap her roommate’s two-week-old baby
Gladys Remigio, a teenager from Santa Ana, California, who lied to her boyfriend about being pregnant, allegedly hatched an elaborate plan to kidnap her roommate’s two-week-old baby

 

At first, the police thought that Gladys Remigio was also a victim of the robbery – until the story unraveled.

Santa Ana Police Cpl. Anthony Bertagna said:

“She’s engaged to a guy who thinks that she’s 8 months pregnant and working in New York City. But she’s not pregnant.

“Eight months into this lie, she’s living with these people who have a two-week old baby. So her master plan was to befriend these two hardcore gang members and have them rob the house.

“The deal was that she would pay them a little bit of cash and they could steal her iPhone and whatever else they could find in the house.”

Police believe the men did ransack the home, allegedly stealing a video game console.

“The deal was that the two gang members were going to put the baby in the back of the car and Remigio was going to drive to Chula Vista, where her boyfriend lives, and live happily ever after with her fiance and present the kidnapped baby as if she had a kid,” Anthony Bertagna said.

But the men left Gladys Remigio at the house with the baby and fled the scene.

Annoyed with the gang members for leaving her behind, Gladys Remigio told police one could be found at a nearby doughnut shop. The police tracked him down and he is now in custody.

Gladys Remigio then headed towards San Diego County, where she called her boyfriend’s mother and told her that people had kidnapped her, induced labour, and were holding her baby hostage for $10,000.

Gladys Remigio’s future mother-in-law called the police and reported the crime.

She then allegedly changed her story, telling authorities there was never a kidnapping, but that she gave birth to a still born and threw the baby in a trash can.

The police immediately called in child abuse detectives, and they searched dumpsters for the body throughout the night.

When detectives couldn’t find a foetus, they re-interviewed Gladys Remigio, who allegedly admitted she had been lying the whole time.

“She said she thought she was pregnant at one point but she wasn’t, and she wanted to keep her fiance,” Anthony Bertagna said.

The third suspect was found the following day and taken into custody.

If convicted on all charges Steven Quirino, Robert Rodriguez and Gladys Remigio face a maximum sentence of life in state prison.

DSK stopped by police in Bois de Boulogne, Paris’ most infamous red light district

Diane A. Wade
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DSK stopped by police in Bois de Boulogne, Paris’ most infamous red light district

France’s Interior Minister admitted today that Dominique Strauss-Kahn was stopped by police trying to “clean-up” a Paris park notorious for transvestite prostitutes five years ago.

Claude Gueant said DSK was stopped by officers patrolling the Bois de Boulogne, one of the most infamous red light districts in the city.

The incident was recorded in a police log, before being publicly announced by Claude Gueant in the Journal du Dimanche newspaper.

Asked about the scandal, Claude Gueant said: “Yes, I’ve heard of this story in which Mr Strauss-Kahn was stopped in the Bois de Boulogne by the officers in charge of the area’s surveillance during a routine check.

“But there was no action taken over this matter. He wasn’t framed by the police. He was not being followed. After all, it’s not the police’s fault if he was there that night.”

Claude Gueant said DSK was stopped by officers patrolling the Bois de Boulogne, one of the most infamous red light districts in the city
Claude Gueant said DSK was stopped by officers patrolling the Bois de Boulogne, one of the most infamous red light districts in the city

The revelation comes as DSK desperately tries to prove a conspiracy theory aimed at stopping him becoming President of France.

It has been claimed that government agents were behind a “plot” which saw DSK accused of trying to rape a chamber maid in a New York hotel earlier this year.

Although eventually cleared of attacking Nafissatou Diallo, DSK’s bid to challenge Nicolas Sarkozy as Socialist candidate for president is in tatters.

Now Claude Gueant has made clear that Nicolas Sarkozy’s government is sick and tired of the “conspiracy theories” and wants DSK to shut up about his stolen smart phone, which he thinks may have been hacked by the authorities.

“I am shocked when I read that entire conspiracy theories are being concocted just because Mr Strauss-Kahn lost his phone,” said Claude Gueant.

“Mr Strauss-Kahn was not being spied on by the French police – it is scandalous to suggest that today.”

In turn, DSK admitted that he had been stopped by the police in the wood, but said he was with his wife, the former TV presenter Anne Sinclair, and only because they lived nearby.

Richard Malka, a lawyer for DSK, said: “It was nothing more than a routine check”, and that during 15 years living near the wood, the Strauss-Kahns had been “stopped several times”.

Earlier this week, DSK claimed that his “uninhibited” sex life cost him his chance to become president.

DSK, 62,denied paying to sleep with prostitutes but admitted attending “sex parties”.

He was also investigated but then cleared over the attempted rape of writer Tristane Banon, now 32, in 2001.

DSK is now at the centre of judicial enquiry into a prostitution ring operating out of the Carlton Hotel in Lille, northern France.

DSK said: “I have a horror of prostitution and pimping. Can you imagine the damage caused to my wife, our children?”

He is now set to meet prosecutors so he could clear his name of “dangerous and malicious insinuations” connected to the Carlton Affair – a move welcomed by Claude Gueant.

It came as new links emerged between Nicolas Sarkozy and the Accor Group, which owns the Sofitel hotel where DSK was accused of attempted rape.

One of Accor’s senior directors has had a close bond with the French president since Nicolas Sarkozy – then the mayor of a prosperous Paris suburb – helped rescue his three-year-old daughter from a school siege.

Sebastien Bazin’s daughter, Fleur, was one of 21 children taken hostage at their nursery in the Paris suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine in 1993.

The friendship between Sebastien Bazin, 50, and the president is so strong that Bazin often jokes he has known Nicolas Sarkozy “since kindergarten”. They are also united by a shared passion for the Paris Saint-Germain football club.

Kourtney Kardashian fights Farrah Abraham on Twitter

Lisa.Felice
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Kourtney Kardashian fights Farrah Abraham on Twitter

Teen Mom star Farrah Abraham launched an online attack against reality star Kourtney Kardashian her family yesterday.

Farrah Abraham, 20, wrote on her Twitter page: “Im Shocked Kourtney Kardashian is pregnant again, Did she not learn anything from TEEN MOM? Maybe its a fake pregnancy like kims wedding SAD.

“Double standards in this world? Yes & guess what !age and money honestly do not change a persons poor choice . Quit making excuses:).”

Teen Mom star Farrah Abraham launched an online attack against reality star Kourtney Kardashian her family yesterday
Teen Mom star Farrah Abraham launched an online attack against reality star Kourtney Kardashian her family yesterday

Kourtney Kardashian, who announced her second pregnancy with boyfriend Scott Disick earlier this week, wasn’t going to take that particular slight lying down.

“Why would I have anything to do with Teen Mom? I’m 32 years old!” Kourtney Kardashian responded.

She added: “I may look young, honey, but don’t get it twisted.”

Kourtney Kardashian announced her second pregnancy with boyfriend Scott Disick earlier this week
Kourtney Kardashian announced her second pregnancy with boyfriend Scott Disick earlier this week

Scott Disick, 28, also jumped in to defend the situation, though his retaliation involved a bit of name-calling.

“We’re teenagers, y a f***ing moron,” Scott Disik wrote.

When Kourtney Kardashian’s younger sister Khloe asked Scott Disik if he had ever heard of Farrah Abraham, his response was more than a little bit blunt.

“I just thought she was some s**t stain on Twitter, no?” he said.

Khloe Kardashian, 27, didn’t respond, but sweetly noted that she had “never met a better mother than Kourtney”.

After realizing that she wouldn’t win in a battle against the Kardashian clan, Farrah Abraham decided to retract her former comments.

“4 all who misunderstood: regards to kourtney K.~ I hope she takes her relationship w/her boyfriend more serious 4 their children-takecare,” Farrah Abraham wrote late last night.

Aside from dealing with hostility from Farrah Abraham on Twitter, Kourtney Kardashian daughter has been enjoying her pregnancy.

Kourtney Kardashian glowed with happiness as she and Scott Disick stepped out for breakfast and some Christmas shopping at Neiman Marcus in Los Angeles yesterday.

Seeing as she is just nine weeks pregnant, there was little sign of a baby bump under her tuxedo style outfit, which consisted of a cream shirt, black bow tie and black trousers.

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