News Quirks

Curses, foiled again• Police charged Danielle Saxton, 27, with shoplifting from a boutique in West Frankfort, Ill., after investigators saw pictures of her wearing the stolen clothing and jewelry that she posted on Facebook. Police Chief Shawn Talluto said officers used background images to determine the suspect’s exact location and found her still holding the […]

Curses, foiled againPolice in Bloomsburg, Pa., arrested Jacob Close, 25, for jumping bail after he took part in the local newspaper’s “Your Opinion” feature and allowed his photo to be published. An officer noticed Close’s photo and tracked him down. (Associated Press) After Quamier Claiborne, 20, asked a passerby for a coat hanger, explaining that […]

Curses, foiled again• An armed woman entered a store in Oklahoma City and started beating clerk Lein Nguyen, 70, with her gun, demanding money. Police Sgt. Jennifer Wardlow said Nguyen responded by throwing cases of beer at the suspect, who fled empty-handed. (Oklahoma City’s KOCO-TV) • Security officers pursuing three shoplifters at a mall in […]

Curses, foiled againPolice investigating a burglary in Lakewood, Wash., found a plaque on the front lawn of the home naming Alfred J. Shropshire III, 49, as a local car dealer’s “Salesperson of the Month.” When questioned, Shropshire confirmed the award was his and was charged with the crime. (United Press International) Police charged Perry Martin, […]

 Curses, foiled again• After a camera was found secretly recording in the women’s locker room at a fitness gym in Seekonk, Mass., police examined the video and named a club member as their suspect because it shows the man setting up the hidden camera. (Associated Press) • A burglar who stole two cash registers and […]

Curses, foiled againAfter a 17-year-old baby sitter reported a home invasion and robbery, police in Ferndale, Wash., wound up arresting the sitter, her 16-year-old boyfriend and another male suspect because the child being watched contradicted the sitter’s story. The sitter said two armed black men broke in, but 4-year-old Abby Dean declared the robbers were […]

Curses, foiled again• Three Seattle teenagers tried to steal a woman’s car at gunpoint but failed because none of them could operate a manual transmission. “I got a five-speed in there,” victim Nancy Frederickson said, “and they couldn’t figure out how to get it going.” Surveillance cameras showed the suspects running away. (Seattle’s KOMO-TV) • […]

Curses, foiled againPolice accused Jeremiah Scales of selling synthetic marijuana from his girlfriend’s house in Bloomington, Ind., after a nearby sign announcing “Drugs This Way” alerted them. “Our detectives did some surveillance, as well as some buys,” police Sgt. Pam Gladish said, noting that comings and goings at all hours stood out in the otherwise […]

 Curses, foiled again• Police reported that a gunman forced a 60-year-old man in New Orleans to withdraw money from an automated teller machine, but before the ATM dispensed the cash, the robber fell asleep. The victim alerted police, who arrested Meyagi Baker, 17. (New Orleans’s WDSU-TV) • While shooting scenes for a Fox television show […]

Curses, foiled again• After two people reported being maced and robbed by two men, police in Anchorage, Alaska, quickly nabbed one suspect. While searching for the other one, officers spotted a man who appeared in distress, “with tears and mucus running down his face.” When they questioned him, they determined that he wasn’t a victim […]

Curses, foiled again• Dean Richard Smith, 27, entered a bank in Treorchy, Wales, holding a breadknife, covering his face and wearing socks over his shoes. When he demanded money, teller Catherine Stockton stood behind her glass partition and pressed the alarm. Meanwhile, a gentleman in his 70s standing next to Smith offered him 20 pounds […]

Curses, foiled againPolice charged Shanwaz Khan, 30, with being the brains behind a car-theft ring in Birmingham, England, after he attracted their attention by driving a $90,000 Audi with the personalized license plates “S2OLUN” (stolen). “This was a clear jibe at the authorities,” Detective Constable Mo Azir said after investigators who noticed his car traced […]