Unusual Attacks

[Mighty_Emperor]

Just not the right place for a fight 1

Man Says He Was Assaulted After Bible Study Discussion

BY GARY E. LINDSLEY Staff Writer
Friday April 2, 2004


LITTLETON NEW HAMPSHIRE
A Littleton man claims he was pulled, dragged from his car and assaulted after a Bible study discussion became heated Wednesday night.

The pastor of the Crossroads Church, the Rev. Ralph Green, disputes the claims.

Lenny St. Laurent said he was attending a Bible study at the church on Route 302 in Littleton when a philosophical discussion became heated and turned violent.

St. Laurent, declining to say what the discussion was about, says he left the church and was in his car when Green and three other people pulled and dragged him from the passenger side of his car.

He said he was then assaulted by the group, a claim Green vehemently denies.

"They punched and kicked me and threw me to the ground," St. Laurent said.

He was taken to Littleton Regional Hospital where he was treated and released. Thursday, he said he had suffered a separated shoulder and cuts and bruises as a result of the alleged assault.

St. Laurent said he works in the boxing, shipping and receiving department at Tender Corp. in Littleton.

"He was not assaulted," Green said. "That's absolutely untrue."

St. Laurent, according to Green, is a troubled young man who has been attending Crossroads for about two years.

"He's a very mixed up young man," Green said. "We have tried to help him repeatedly. He has chosen to go his own way."

He disputes there was an assault and insists St. Laurent created a disturbance during a church service by swearing and "carrying on."

Green also said St. Laurent was making threats, all in the presence of women and children. Because of this, a member of the church called police.

"The police responded to the disturbance call," Green said.

As for St. Laurent's injuries, Green said he and other members of his church have given statements to Littleton police as well as the state police's Troop F. He suggests St. Laurent sustained the injuries elsewhere before attending the church service Wednesday night.

"Before this had all taken place, he said he had fallen ... long before this incident took place," Green said.

St. Laurent says he has been told by Littleton police no charges will ever be filed.

Littleton police have turned the investigation over to state police at Troop F because of a conflict of interest.

Troop F Commander Lt. John Scarinza confirmed the investigation is being conducted by his troopers. However, Scarinza did not have any information about the incident nor whether any arrests had occurred or were pending.

http://www.caledonianrecord.com/pages/local_news/story/2cf263baf

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Just not the right place for a fight 2

Mother says she tried to stop fight

Woodlawn: Sherod Bailey contends officials haven't done enough to diffuse violence at the high school.



By Julie Bykowicz
Sun Staff
Originally published April 2, 2004, 8:52 PM EST

The mother arrested after Thursday's melee at Woodlawn High School said Friday that she had been trying to prevent a fight involving her daughter when she burst into the building during an anger management assembly.

Sharod Bailey, 33, is charged with disturbing the peace, disorderly conduct, trespassing on school property and disrupting school activities. Her daughter, 15-year-old Tearra High, is charged as a juvenile with second-degree assault.

The mother and daughter said they had been escorted out of the auditorium by the time fights had broken out among the audience of 750 ninth-graders, who had gathered to learn about ways to peacefully resolve conflict.

But Bailey's interaction with girls who she said had been fighting with her daughter in recent weeks touched off several other fights throughout the auditorium, according to officials and witnesses.

Ninth-grader Melissa Parks said people climbed over seats and shoved each other to get a better look at some of the fights. Woodlawn Principal C. Anthony Thompson described the scene Thursday as "chaos." Eleven students were suspended.

Bailey said she had taken matters into her own hands Thursday because she does not believe that school officials have done enough to diffuse what she said is continued violence at Woodlawn, a 1,900-student high school near Security Square Mall that has been trying to improve its image in recent years.

"They toss out suspensions -- three days, five days," she said. "But they never really do anything else. I don't want my child or anybody else's child getting hurt."

Thompson did not return calls Friday, but school system officials said on the principal's behalf that the high school has worked hard to curb issues of violence and that administra tors have met several times with groups of parents, students and police officers to address such concerns.

"The school has been trying to be pro-active, as witnessed by the conflict management course," said Charles Herndon, a school system spokesman. "Unfortunately, that got out of hand when the mother disrupted it."

All Baltimore County schools participate in anger management and conflict resolution programs, system officials said.

In the first half of the 2002-2003 school year, the most recent data available, Woodlawn ranked second of all 24 Baltimore County high schools for the number of times county police were called to the building, according to the county Police Department. Only Randallstown High School, with 30 calls from August 2002 to February 2003, topped Woodlawn's 26 calls, according to the police statistics.

Bailey said she had talked with school officials when, about three weeks ago, her daughter became involved in a fight in a hallway. Tearra said she and half a dozen other ninth-grade girls were suspended.

Tearra said she hates going to school and sees fights there almost every day.

When a friend of Bailey's daughter called Thursday morning to tell her that Tearra was about to fight with several girls -- one of whom the caller thought had a knife or razor blade -- Bailey said she "went a little insane."

She said she jumped into her white Honda Acura, which had a flat tire, and sped to the school. At the school, several girls were standing at the auditorium door shouting, "Miss Sharod, Miss Sharod. Over here!" she said

Bailey entered the auditorium -- she said she didn't realize there was an organized event in progress -- and she and her daughter approached several ninth-graders with whom Tearra had been involved in skirmishes recently.

"I went up to one of the girls, and I said, 'Baby, what's the problem with you all and my daughter?'" Bailey said.

She said she and her daughter soon were escorted out of the auditorium by school officials -- before any real fighting began. "Neither myself nor my daughter ever laid our hands on anybody," she said.

The statement of charges against Bailey gives a different account -- one in which the mother stormed into the building "in a hostile manner" and screamed curse words at the girls.

Bailey, who was released on her own recognizance early Friday morning, said she would like to see Woodlawn officials work with parents to address some of the high school's problems.

"Something has to be done," she said. "I don't want to attend a funeral for my child or any other child."

But Herndon, the school system spokesman, said that compared with previous school years, this one has seen fewer problems at Woodlawn High School.

"We haven't seen the entrenched trends of suspensions or problems there like we have in previous years," he said. "It's unfortunate that this event, right before spring break, marred what has been a relatively quiet year."

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/education/bal-fight0402,0,5743035.story?coll=bal-local-headlines

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

6 deputies needed to restrain man on rampage in DA's office


By Denise Allabaugh and Gene Skordinski , Citizens' Voice Staff Writers
04/01/2004



Six deputy sheriffs were needed to restrain Joseph Peter Arnone Jr. Wednesday at the Luzerne County Courthouse in a violent struggle that ended with the man defecating in the district attorney's office.

Arnone, 43, of Hanover Township, failed to appear for his sentencing Monday on charges of resisting arrest and criminal trespass.

On Wednesday morning, Arnone showed up at the district attorney's office, ripped the door off the frame and defecated on a chair in the office, said Luzerne County Chief Deputy Sheriff George Kamage.

Kamage said they have been looking for Arnone since Monday, and sheriffs apprehended him Wednesday in the basement.
Luzerne County District Attorney David Lupas said the incident at his office was "alarming," and he is now evaluating courthouse security.

"Two employees were visibly upset and visibly shaken, one of whom we allowed to go home," Lupas said at a press conference held later Wednesday.

Lupas said Arnone charged in toward the receptionist, the door swung open and an employee was caught behind the door.
"How he was able to get through security, elude sheriffs and make his way into our office, I do not know," Lupas said. "I am concerned with the protection of my employees."
West Pittston Police Chief Ralph Zezza, who was in the DA's office at the time, helped to block Arnone's path as he tried to get inside the office.

Arnone was charged with resisting arrest and criminal trespass for an incident on Oct. 1, 2001, at Whiskey Business in Wilkes-Barre.

Wilkes-Barre police officers told Arnone he had to leave when he allegedly picked up a beer bottle in a threatening manner and refused. As police tried to restrain him, he became violent and tried to pull away.

Arnone had to be physically pushed towards the door, police said. Police also had to prevent him from biting them and spitting at them.

He was found guilty of the charges of resisting arrest and criminal trespass at a jury trial June 18, 2002.
Luzerne County Judge Peter Paul Olszewski Jr. was scheduled to sentence Arnone Monday.

According to Olszewski's executive secretary, Arnone has been calling the office making threats. Reportedly, Arnone also has called Luzerne County Judge Michael Conahan's office making threats.

Paul Steuber, news director at WBRE-TV, said Arnone was featured on Channel 28's "Most Wanted" Monday night.
Arnone called anchor Andy Mehalshick after the show aired, Steuber said.

According to Steuber, Arnone has a "raspy" voice and he continued to charge that Olszewski has "got it in for me." Mehalshick encouraged Arnone to turn himself in.
On Wednesday at 7:15 a.m., Arnone called Steuber saying Olszewski "has got it in for me."

Steuber also encouraged him to turn himself in, and Arnone said he was "working on it" with Sheriff Barry Stankus.
Luzerne County Det. Gary Sworen is investigating the case.
Arnone was handcuffed Wednesday and is now incarcerated in Luzerne County Correctional Facility.

"We are happy he is in custody," Lupas concluded. "Fortunately, no one was harmed."

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=11220342&BRD=2259&PAG=461&dept_id=455154&rfi=8

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Ouch:

Woman's Finger Flushed After Fight With Another Over Boyfriend


Published on 4/4/2004

Bridgeport — A 25-year-old woman has been arrested after an investigation into a February fight that ended with another woman's finger being flushed down a toilet. Takoe Dawkins was charged Thursday with first-degree assault. She is accused of biting off the right ring finger of the 23-year-old victim, whose name has not been released. The victim was visiting a friend on Feb. 20 when Dawkins arrived at the same home in the company of the victim's boyfriend, police said. The two woman began fighting and Dawkins grabbed the victim's finger and bit it off, police said. The boyfriend and others then stepped in and broke up the fight. Someone picked up the finger and disposed of it in the toilet, police said. The victim quickly wrapped a towel around her bloody hand and fled, police said. She was treated at Bridgeport Hospital, and later identified Dawkins as her assailant. Dawkins is being held in lieu of ,000 bond and is due in court on April 26.

http://www.newlondonday.com/eng/web/newstand/re.aspx?reIDx=730F05D7-91F4-4065-8B59-7C4C81F3B39D

Emps

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Theres vigilante justice and then there is this:

Public chase killers and hack leg off one

April 6, 2004 - 1:28PM


Angry bystanders chopped off a suspect's leg after a gang shot a shop manager dead in front of his wife in Papua New Guinea.

After Crystal Trading manager James Hana was murdered yesterday in the sleepy island township of Kavieng, members of the public chased the five-strong gang and used a machete to sever the leg off one of the suspects.

The leg is completely severed, a police spokesman told The National newspaper.

Hana's wife and an employee had been held-up by an armed gang as they opened for business in the morning. When Hana came downstairs to investigate, he was shot at close range.

Police said one suspect was in police custody while the suspect with a severed limb was in a critical condition.

They expect the town to return to normal today following the temporary closure of businesses.

Kavieng politician Martin Aini blamed the police for failing to protect citizens.

"These long-serving policemen need to be transferred out," Aini told reporters.

"They have become friendly with the people and cannot uphold the laws to perform their duties with honesty."

Aini said law and order problems were increasing in Kavieng, one of PNG's more popular tourist destinations.

"Kavieng is no longer a peaceful place to live and work in," said Aini.

Kavieng is located in the far north-eastern province of New Ireland.

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/04/06/1081017147870.html

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Flasher Attacked by Schoolgirls Sentenced

Wed Apr 14, 4:43 PM ET


By JOANN LOVIGLIO, Associated Press Writer

PHILADELPHIA - A man who was tackled and beaten by a group of Roman Catholic schoolgirls after he flashed them outside their high school was sentenced Wednesday to 10 months to two years in prison.




Rudy Susando, 25, also was sentenced to 5 years probation after his release, Assistant District Attorney Noel Ann DeSantis said. Susando, a native of Indonesia, also might face deportation after his sentence is served, DeSantis said.

Susando was arrested Oct. 30 when more than a dozen girls from St. Maria Goretti High School for Girls, with the help of a bystander, chased him and wrestled him to the ground and held him for police. When he resisted, the girls kicked him repeatedly. He was taken to a hospital and treated for minor injuries to his mouth.

The South Philadelphia schoolgirls said the man had been exposing himself outside their school for about a month and a half. He typically hid behind a van, waited for girls to arrive at school and then jumped out and exposed himself before running away, police said.

In a February bench trial, Susando was convicted of 13 counts each of indecent exposure, open lewdness, corrupting minors and stalking. Family Court Judge Joseph C. Bruno handed down a lighter sentence than the term prosecutors sought — one to five years in prison and 10 years probation.

"There was a consistent pattern; he showed up when the girls were arriving at school in the morning. He targeted them." DeSantis said. "These are the kinds of crimes that escalate to touching, and then to rape."

Public defender David Cross asked for a stay of sentencing, saying he plans to appeal the conviction.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tm...0&u=/ap/20040414/ap_on_fe_st/students_flasher

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

didgeridon't

Partner bashed with didgeridoo

April 15, 2004


A PALM Island man who fractured his wife's leg with a didgeridoo was jailed for three and a half years after appearing in the District Court in Townsville yesterday.

On another occasion Winston Morris Morgan also split his partner's ear open when he threw a full can of beer at her, the court heard.

Morgan, 29, pleaded guilty to two counts of assault occasioning bodily harm, one charge of common assault, one of wilful damage and two breaches of domestic violence orders, when he appeared before Judge Bob Pack.

Prosecutor Darin Honchin outlined a turbulent nine-year relationship between Robertson and his partner, often punctuated with violent outbursts when the pair went on drinking binges.

In October 2001, after an extended drinking spree on Palm Island, Robertson accused the woman of infidelity and when she cowered on their bed, he picked up a didgeridoo and bashed her on the leg, fracturing it.

Robertson's barrister Greg Lynham said, "All these offences took place when he was drunk, and he was invariably ashamed and apologetic afterwards."

Judge Bob Pack noted the long history of violence towards the woman.

"There is an element of cowardice when a powerfully built man like you bashes and belts a woman," Judge Pack said.

He sentenced Robertson to three and half years' jail for the two major assaults and 12 months for the other matters, to be served concurrently.

Judge Pack ordered Robertson be released after serving 12 months, the remainder of the sentence suspended for three years.

Robertson will be released in six months because he has already served six months in pre-sentence custody.

http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,9284378^421,00.html

Emps

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

The sheer randomness of this is frightening:

Man attacks metro passenger with an axe; victim in critical condition

Perpetrator caught at next station

A savage and apparently random attack took place on a Wednesday morning metro train travelling eastbound from Central Helsinki to Mellunmäki. A male passenger hit another man several times in the head with an axe. The victim was taken to a hospital in a critical condition.

According to the police the 36-year-old perpetrator from Helsinki did not know his 23-year-old victim, also a Helsinki resident.

The attack happened at 10.20 in the third carriage of a metro train. Just before the Kulosaari station the assailant walked behind the victim who was sitting alone at the rear end of the carriage and reading a newspaper. The assailant revealed a long-handled axe under his grey leather coat and hit the victim unexpectedly three times in the back of the head.

The assailant never threatened other passengers who were sitting at the front of the carriage, and he did not resist the police who arrested him at the Kulosaari station. According to eyewitnesses he seemed to understand what he had done.

The arrested man is said to have confessed the attack. Previously he has been convicted of crimes against property. In February 2003 it was established that he had been of unsound mind when committing these crimes.

http://www.helsinginsanomat.fi/english/article/1076152535020

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Woman accused of attacking boyfriend with mounted fish in Saginaw

May 4, 2004, 2:26 PM

SAGINAW, Mich. (AP) -- A woman was arrested on accusations she used a mounted fish with a pointy nose to assault her live-in boyfriend, police said.

A state police trooper responded Monday to a domestic dispute and found a 25-year-old man who claimed he was the victim of a knife assault. The man had several small cuts on his arms, right leg and left shoulder, as well as a bite wound on the same shoulder, a Saginaw police report said.

But when questioned, a 25-year-old woman told authorities she bit her boyfriend back after he bit her first. And she said she never used a knife on him. She said the man threw her down and hit her several times. That's when she grabbed the fish.

"She could not get away, so she grabbed a decorative fish off the mantle of the fireplace and hit him several times until he let her go," the police report said.

Investigators could find no evidence of knives used at the scene, but did find a mounted fish that was "something like a swordfish," The Saginaw News reported.

The woman had not been charged Tuesday.

http://www.freep.com/news/statewire/sw97243_20040504.htm

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Words fail me (although as I'm no fan of corporal punishment it should be no suprise - then again I when I have kids I reserve the right to change my mind but still not this far) - in a grim irony the Google contextual ads include a number selling beef jerky (I'm not sure the people paing for the ads would be happy with that).

MAD DAD 'MEATS' OUT JUSTICE TO HIS KID - WITH BEEF JERKY

By JAMIE SCHRAM


April 29, 2004 -- A Staten Island bodega owner whipped his young son with an 18-inch stick of beef jerky after catching the boy skipping school, authorities said yesterday.

The bizarre incident began at about 10 a.m. on April 24, when a school official called Esteban Palafox, 34, at his store, Mexico Azteca II in Tomp- kinsville, telling him that 10-year-old Esteban Jr. had not shown up for classes for three days, the elder Palafox told The Post. Enraged, Palafox began searching for his son and found him inside their apartment above the deli at 7 Corson Ave.

After he shouted at the boy, Palafox went down to the deli to retrieve the dried beef, cops said.

He then returned to his apartment and repeatedly whacked the boy's thigh with the jerky, leaving bruises, according to police.

"I want to live good. I want my child to live good too," Palafox said.

He insisted the punishment fit the crime.

Asked if he regretted turning the beef jerky on his son, he was emphatic: "No! No! No! No! No!"

Palafox was arrested Tuesday and charged with assault, criminal possession of a weapon - the beef jerky - and endangering the welfare of a child.

Cops found out about the incident after the child's mother - Palafox's ex-wife - took her son to a local hospital. The hospital notified child welfare officials.

Palafox was arraigned yesterday in Staten Island Criminal Court and released without bail. Eva Orzeszko, who owns the Polish Place, a deli a block away, was shocked to hear of the charges against Palafox.

"Oh my God," she said. "Oh, that's terrible. It's unbelievable. He seems like such a nice guy."

She said Esteban Jr. is "a nice kid."

"Sometimes kids can make you angry, but that does not give people the right to lose control," she said.

http://www.nypost.com/news/regionalnews/19831.htm

Emps

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Man bites dog and another man

Twice bitten, dog and cop still get their man

S. Africa rape suspect sinks teeth into pursuers in futile escape bid

Updated: 07:23 AM PT May07, 2004

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa - A man fleeing police in the South African city of Durban bit both a dog and a police officer ordered to apprehend him, police said on Friday.

“The guy actually bit the dog. ... He was stupid because those dogs are trained not to let go,” Superintendent Danelia Veldhuizen of Durban police told Reuters.

The man ran from a house where he is accused of raping a young mother at knife-point on Thursday. The police dog unit was alerted to give chase. The man is expected to be charged with rape and robbery.

Veldhuizen said the man bit the policeman’s finger through to the bone, but the dog was fine.

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/4923957/

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Wednesday, May 12, 2004


Provo man cuts chest, splashes blood

Intoxicated man calls himself Satan, attacks woman in apartment

By Tad Walch
Deseret Morning News

OREM — An intoxicated Provo man cut his chest with a knife and then splashed his blood around an Orem apartment Monday night, according to Orem police.

The 31-year-old man and a woman were drinking earlier in the evening and the man became intoxicated, the woman told police. At about 9 p.m., the man "freaked out" and started to call himself Satan, Orem Lt. Doug Edwards said.

The man grabbed what appeared to be a steak knife and started cutting up his chest, Edwards said. Photos showed about two dozen long slashes, some appearing to make shapes —a star, the letter A or H and possibly a heart.

The blood covered a large part of the kitchen floor and spattered on the refrigerator, walls, ceiling, into the bathroom and on the television and entertainment center in the living room.

"It was more blood than you would expect from what appear to be superficial wounds on his chest," Edwards said.

The man also hit and tried to choke the woman. When the victim tried to call for help, the man tore the phone out of the wall.

"He assaulted a woman in the apartment because, as Satan, she was better than he was and that was unacceptable," Edwards said. "When the officers arrived, the victim of the assault was so upset that she was hyperventilating and could only tell the officers what happened with great difficulty."

Officers found the man running outside the Village Park Apartments near 1000 N. State and took him to Timpanogos Regional Hospital, where he was treated and released. Officers used gloves to arrest the man as a precaution against blood-borne diseases.

"As a matter of course anymore, the officers with any arrest usually glove up," Edwards said.

The man was booked into the Utah County Jail for investigation of assault, public intoxication and interruption of a communication device.

"We aren't sure if drugs were involved, but he had a high level of alcohol on board," Edwards said.

http://www.deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,595062549,00.html

This Satan chappie has a lot to answer for - I assume the police are calling him in formquestioning.

Emps

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

I'm sure we've all felt like this before but I'm not sure we went on such a rampage

Man angry at Verizon hurls phones

More than ,000 in damage results

Friday, May 14, 2004 Posted: 2102 GMT (0502 HKT)



FARGO, North Dakota (AP) -- A man who said he was fed up with his cellular phone service went to a Fargo mall and started hurling phones across a store, striking an employee and causing more than ,000 in damage, authorities said.

Jason Perala, 22, of Fargo, told The Forum newspaper that he planned only to yell at employees at Verizon Wireless.

"Then I just lost it," he said. "I just started grabbing computers and phones and throwing them. I just destroyed the place. ... I kind of regret that I did it, but I hope my message got across."

Police said Perala took off his shirt and put on safety glasses before throwing around computers, phones and other items.

One employee was struck in the shoulder by a phone before he and other workers dashed into an office, locked the door and called police, Sgt. Kevin Volrath said. Other businesses in the West Acres mall lowered their steel security gates during Thursday's incident.

Perala was arrested without incident and jailed on charges of felony criminal mischief and misdemeanor simple assault.

http://edition.cnn.com/2004/US/Central/05/14/store.rampage.ap/index.html

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

May 21, 6:24 AM EDT


Bible Argument Spurs Boiling-Oil Charge

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) -- A woman is accused of pouring boiling oil on her boyfriend's face in an argument over a Bible verse.

Angela S. Morris, 19, was charged with domestic violence assault and jailed on 0,000 bail. Her 31-year-old boyfriend, whose name was not released, was hospitalized with severe burns on his face, neck and chest.

The two were reading the Bible at the boyfriend's apartment May 13 when Morris went to the kitchen to prepare french fries, police said.

Morris told police that they continued to argue and that her boyfriend grabbed her from behind. Police said he then went to his bedroom to lie down. Morris followed and threw the oil on him, police said.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BOILING_OIL_BIBLE?SITE=VTBUR&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

I think I'd get a bit crazy if I wasn't allowed to take a book or a paper to the lav with me:

Employee slashes 3 at Chandler Wal-Mart, police say



Lindsey Collom
The Arizona Republic
May. 27, 2004 11:35 AM

A box-cutter wielding Wal-Mart employee was arrested Thursday for slashing three managers who reprimanded him for taking reading material into a bathroom, police said.

Chandler police were called to the 24-hour Wal-Mart at Alma School and Warner roads about 4:30 a.m. in reference to a disgruntled employee who injured several managers after he had been caught taking a map into a restroom. It's a violation of company policy to take any reading material into a restroom, police said.

Three managers confronted the employee, 23-year-old Reymundo Owens, about the breach in a back room. That was when the suspect whipped out a box cutter and began slicing at the men, police said. Officers apprehended the suspect as he was leaving the store. Owens was arrested on three counts of aggravated assault.

All three victims were taken to Chandler Regional Hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Wal-Mart spokesperson Sharon Weber would not confirm the suspect's position at the store, saying she was not "comfortable" discussing personnel issues. She said Wal-Mart is grateful that the employees were not gravely injured.

"Fortunately, they're going to be OK, and that was our first and foremost concern," Weber added.

http://www.azcentral.com/12news/news/articles/0527WalMartStabbing27-ON-CP.html

Although why a map?? Was he afraid he'd get lost?

Emps

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Pasta attack

Man Arrested After Attacking Another With Boiling Water


John Richardson
(WCPO/WCPO.com)


Reported by: 9News
Web produced by: Stacy Puzo
Photographed by: 9News
6/3/04 4:37:20 PM

A horrific crime involving pasta has landed a Covington man in jail.

Police arrested John Richardson with second degree assault after he poured a pot of boiling water and noodles onto a sleeping Taylor Mill man.

They said he left the 40-year-old moaning for help with skin peeling from his scalded face and body.

A passerby heard the moaning inside the 10th Street home in Covington and flagged down police.

They located Richardson a short time later but are not revealing what the motivation was behind the alleged attack.

http://www.wcpo.com/news/2004/local/06/03/pasta.html

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Chalupa assault didn't lack in flavor

By ANNIE SHUPPY
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
06/07/2004

A what?
A chalupa is a boat-shaped, fried tortilla that is filled with meat and garnished with sauce, lettuce, cheese and onions.

Call it assault by chalupa.

The Des Moines Police Department has filed a simple assault charge against a Des Moines man for an alleged Thursday incident at Taco Bell, 1501 E. Euclid Ave.

The weapon? A crispy, chewy concoction called a chalupa.

"I've never had anything quite like that before," said Darren Cornwell, the detective who investigated the case.

Police received a report early Friday alleging that a disgruntled customer threw the snack at a Taco Bell employee just hours before.

Nancy Harrison, a Taco Bell employee, told police she was working the drive-through at 10:45 p.m. Thursday when Christopher Lame, 24, ordered some food. Shortly afterward, Lame parked in front of the store, went inside and stated that he did not get the taco he ordered, records show.

Harrison said she asked if he had a receipt.

"What the (expletive)," he said. "Do I have to bring my receipt, too?" he answered.

Lame allegedly went back to his car, grabbed the bag the tacos were in, and told her, "There's the (expletive) tacos."

Police records show Harrison informed Lame they were closing, and as she turned away, a chalupa hit her in the face near her right eye. Lame ran out, but Harrison followed and took down his license plate number, she said.

A follow-up investigation identified the assailant as Lame, who was issued a criminal citation. He is scheduled to appear in court June 15.

Detective Larry Reynolds, who has been on the job for 31 years, said the case he remembers that most closely resembles the chalupa incident involved thrown milk at a McDonald's. No charges were filed in that case, he said.

http://www.dmregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040607/NEWS01/406070315/1001/NEWS

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

"Joke, joke; its really a bloke"

Posted on Tue, Jun. 08, 2004



Man shocked by date's identity

By Domingo Ramirez Jr.

Star-Telegram Staff Writer



BEDFORD - When a Bedford man brought home his date from a Dallas bar, he thought his companion was a woman.

But she turned out to be a he.

So the Bedford man shot at his date several times, police said.

With a .25-caliber handgun.

No one was hit. Even after a second round when his date returned for a purse.

Police arrested Braulio C. Hernandez, 30, shortly after the shooting occurred at about 6:15 a.m. Sunday in the 1500 block of Shady Lane. He remained in the Bedford Jail on Monday with bail set at ,000. He is expected to be charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

Hernandez became furious Sunday morning after discovering that the person he had in his apartment was a man, Bedford police Lt. Biff Schuessler said. The date was dressed as a woman in a tank top. His long hair was kept in a hair clip.

"He believed she was a woman all through the night except when he took her to his apartment for drinks," Schuessler said.

Hernandez is accused of shooting at the 30-year-old Dallas man at least three times as he ran out of the apartment.

When his date ran back into the apartment to retrieve his purse, Hernandez shot again, investigators said.

The victim ran to a nearby convenience store where he called police. Authorities also got 911 calls from nearby residents who reported gunfire.

Requires (free) registration:

http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/news/loc...ilemail.com&KRD_RM=5rmmuqtmpupumqopllllllllmt|The|Y

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Duffing up Buddhist monks is neither big nor clever:

Monks beaten up in parliament row

By Amal Jayasinghe
BBC correspondent in Colombo

Two Buddhist monks who are members of Sri Lanka's parliament have been hospitalised after being beaten up inside the country's national assembly.

The unprecedented violence follows arguments over President Chandrika Kumaratunga's government's struggle to muster a simple majority in parliament.

The monks' emerged as a powerful force after April's general elections.

They won a crucial bloc of nine seats that could make or break President Kumaratunga's leftist government.

Changing support

The parliament opened its regular session on Tuesday in uproar. President Chandrika Kumaratunga's Freedom Alliance protested loudly against the swearing-in of a Buddhist monk, Akmeemana Dayaratne.

He was replacing a fellow monk who resigned as an MP after transferring his support from the government to the opposition.

Ruling party MP's tried to prevent Akmeemana Dayaratne from being sworn-in as an opposition legislator.

The protests degenerated into physical violence and the new monk MP received a beating in scenes of unprecedented violence on the floor of the red-carpeted assembly.

He and his fellow clergyman Kolonnawe Sri Sumangala were admitted to hospital with concussion after the swearing-in ceremony was over.

Ruling party MPs ran away with the mace, the symbol of the speaker's authority, holding up further sessions of parliament which have been postponed until 20 July.

However, government spokesman Jeyaraj Fernandopulle denied that ruling party members beat up the monks and said there had only been "a heated exchange of words."

The swearing-in of Akmeemana Dayaratne is a blow to the government. Its strength has been reduced by one vote at a time when the ruling Freedom Alliance is struggling to get opposition MP to defect.

Five seats short

The government has been trying to reach the half-way mark of 113 seats in the 225-member assembly, but with little success.

President Kumaratunga's party is still five seats short of a simple majority and unable to press ahead with its legislative agenda.

The monks' National Heritage Party condemned Tuesday's attack, but said they were not surprised as government MPs had a history of targeting the monk MPs.

A spokesman for the monks, Udaya Gammanpila, said that even ruling party supporters would not accept the physical assaults against monks in a country where nearly 70% of the 19 million population are followers of the conservative Theravada branch of Buddhism.

Monks argue that voters fed up with mainstream political parties voted for them for a change. But the monks are increasingly finding themselves dragged into the sort of dirty politics they vowed to change.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/south_asia/3787331.stm

Published: 2004/06/08 13:02:15 GMT

© BBC MMIV

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Put a fork in me I'm done. Urmmmmm OK then.

Woman put fork in lover, cops say

Friday, June 11, 2004
By DOUG AUER
ADVANCE STAFF WRITER

A playful lunchtime jest between lovers turned ugly yesterday when a woman repeatedly jabbed her boy friend with a fork, said police.

Nora Dattilo, 39, was arrested by officers from the Mid-Island's 122nd Precinct inside 293 Poultney St., Midland Beach, and charged with second-degree assault, said police.

"She stuck a fork in me and said, 'You're done,'" said the boy friend, William Sohmer. The attack took place inside his residence.

A police spokesman said the man's injuries were minor.

Sohmer, 48, insisted the two were joking around while eating lunch, but things escalated out of control, with Ms. Dattilo jabbing him four times with a fork.

"One thing led to another," he said, refusing to divulge further details.

Lifting up the left sleeve of his shirt, Sohmer revealed four tiny puncture wounds, each sealed with stitches. He said there were others, but did not show them.

In a twist, Sohmer said it was Ms. Dattilo who called the police to check on the extent of her boy friend's injuries. Once cops arrived and heard the bizarre tale, she was placed under arrest, he added.

"She's a good girl and we were just fooling around," Sohmer said.

Police identified Ms. Dattilo as a teacher at Susan Wagner High School, with Sohmer adding that she teaches math.

A records search revealed that she resides on Grymes Hill.

http://silive.com/news/advance/index.ssf?/base/news/1086961685200470.xml

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Man 'fired harpoon in boy's face'

A man fired a harpoon gun into a 15-year-old boy's face as he was attacked with a baseball bat by a gang, a court has been told.

Nathan Kirk, 25, fired the harpoon after being stabbed just short of his heart, Reading Crown Court heard.

The youth's injury was so serious that he lost an eye and paramedics had to use bolt-cutters to remove the three-pronged harpoon from his face.

Mr Kirk denies causing GBH with intent and having an offensive weapon.

Prosecutor Julian Baughan QC told the court that the incident happened after a confrontation.

Survival 'a miracle'

That was said to have been sparked by Mr Kirk's alleged warning to the teenager not to vandalise a phone box near his girlfriend's home in Thatcham, Berkshire.

Mr Kirk told the police in a statement that the teenager was "kicking and swinging" on it and an argument broke out between the two.

Later, Mr Baughan said, the teenager returned with two men and attacked Mr Kirk, who was dressed only in boxer shorts, punching, kicking and stabbing him.

But Mr Kirk, who is alleged to have left the harpoon gun by the front door, fired it in the face of the teenager, he said.

Mr Baughan told the court it was "little short of a miracle" that the teenager survived and added: "Although he was injured, Kirk reacted violently and deliberately."

Mr Kirk told police in a statement that he had cocked the gun to keep his attackers at bay and, as he lifted it, was hit in the face with a baseball bat, causing the trigger to go off.

His lawyers argue that he was acting in self-defence but the prosecution say that the violence had already stopped and that it was a revenge attack.

The trial continues.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/england/berkshire/3813115.stm

Published: 2004/06/16 15:30:37 GMT

© BBC MMIV

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

I get the suspicion that this might be related to the bum fighting phenomena and realted stupidity:

Homeless Man Set Ablaze while Sleeping on Bench

LAST UPDATE: 6/17/2004 10:33:50 PM

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (AP) - A homeless man was set ablaze while he was sleeping on a bench in an attack caught on videotape.

Lucas Adama Wiser remained hospitalized early Thursday with third-degree burns.

Police were looking for up to eight men in connection with the attack Tuesday outside an agency that helps the homeless.

A surveillance videotape at Corpus Christi Metro Ministries showed the men setting the victim ablaze. Wiser, 21, was screaming and holding his right arm when police arrived about 3:45 a.m. Tuesday, police Capt. John Moseley said.

The police investigations supervisor said a dark sport utility vehicle and a smaller vehicle were videotaped pulling up to the homeless man, but it was unclear whether his attackers doused him with a flammable liquid.

"Then you see the fire and they ran off," Moseley told the Corpus Christi Caller-Times in Thursday's editions.

Police could not identify license plate numbers from the video, said Moseley.

Wizer was taken to Christus Spohn Hospital Memorial with swelling and burn marks on his right arm, third-degree burns on the forearm and minor burns on his thighs.

"It's shocking and violent," said Moseley, adding that investigators planned to talk with the victim as he recovers from the attack.

http://www.woai.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=FCB85756-1163-402D-98CE-0A3FDF420856

http://www.click2houston.com/news/3428920/detail.html

Emps

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Pair Shot and Beaten for Public Urination

Thu Jun 17,10:17 AM ET


PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (Reuters) - A little late night relief proved costly for two drunk Cambodians who were shot and beaten by security guards for urinating against a garage wall.




Police said Sun Sophat, 23, the son of a provincial governor, and Mao Visalvan, 31, incurred the wrath of the guards when they mistook the garage for a public toilet on the way home from a party on Monday night.

Phnom Penh district police chief Yim Simony said the guards probably feared the pair might damage some of the luxury cars in the garage. But he thought they had over-reacted.

"They should not have sprayed bullets at them just because they have bad morality," he told Reuters.

Sun Sophat, who was shot in the leg, sustained serious but not life-threatening injuries. His friend Mao Visalvan is recovering after being beaten around the head, the police chief said.

Urinating in public is common in the deeply impoverished Southeast Asian nation because it lacks amenities.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=573&ncid=757&e=2&u=/nm/20040617/od_nm/urination_dc

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

TEACHER MONITORED FOR 'BIZARRE' ATTACK


09:30 - 16 June 2004

A Music teacher who attacked his neighbour's grandson in "bizarre" circumstances is to have his behaviour monitored by the probation service.

Paul Lord (34) believed the man was purposely tormenting him by tapping on the wall whenever he went upstairs to the toilet in his terraced home in Park Drive, Ilkeston.

He claimed to have been persecuted in this way for a year until his obsession with John Savage led him to make a weapon out of an iron bar, Derby Crown Court heard yesterday.

Lord then followed Mr Savage for five minutes on February 25 and hit him over the head, leaving him needing four stitches to a cut on his right eyebrow.

He then informed Mr Savage's grandmother and handed the weapon to the police, the court heard.

Lord, who had no previous convictions, admitted wounding Mr Savage last month, when sentence was adjourned for him to see a psychiatrist.

Judge Andrew Hamilton described the case as "most bizarre".

Richard Jones, mitigating, said the psychiatrist could not rule out a "delusional disorder" but he was not suitable for psychiatric treatment.

Judge Hamilton told Lord he was putting him on a three-year community rehabilitation order as the psychiatrist had concluded it was a way of monitoring his future conduct.

Lord, who is now living with his parents in Kirk Hallam, must also pay £300 compensation.

http://www.thisisderbyshire.co.uk/d...ayContent&sourceNode=63914&contentPK=10322869

 

[MrRING]

German 'Samurai' on the Loose in Woods Near Berlin

BERLIN (Reuters) - A camouflage-clad German man wielding a samurai sword attacked at least seven hikers in forests west of Berlin, performing sword tricks before ordering them to leave the woods, police said Friday.

They suspect a 46-year-old local man who trained in martial arts and survival skills in camps in Papua New Guinea and Vietnam to be the attacker. "He's dangerous and has been hard to find because he wears camouflage," said Catrin Feistauer, spokeswoman for the Nauen police department. Police have used infrared cameras mounted on helicopters to try and track him down.

The man pushed two elderly people off their bikes and, flashing his sword, shouted at them to leave the forest. He later tried to drive a young couple out of the woods. No one was seriously hurt. "It's frightening because the violence level has increased each time," Feistauer said.


STORY

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

I get the suspicion that this might be related to the bum fighting phenomena and realted stupidity:

Homeless Man Set Ablaze while Sleeping on Bench

LAST UPDATE: 6/17/2004 10:33:50 PM

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (AP) - A homeless man was set ablaze while he was sleeping on a bench in an attack caught on videotape.

http://www.woai.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=FCB85756-1163-402D-98CE-0A3FDF420856

http://www.click2houston.com/news/3428920/detail.html

Emps

a follow up:

Video shows homeless man being set ablaze

Thursday, June 17, 2004 Posted: 2124 GMT (0524 HKT)



CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (AP) -- Police asked local TV stations to air a surveillance video showing a homeless man who was set ablaze flailing his arms and running in a circle as he tried to extinguish the flames.

Police were looking for up to eight men who participated in the attack outside an agency that helps the homeless. The victim, Lucas Adama Wiser, 21, was sleeping on a bench when he was set on fire Tuesday, and remained hospitalized Thursday with third-degree burns.

"I don't know if this was a joke that they thought they were playing on somebody or what their mindset was, but it was a pretty sick joke," Police Lt. Rocky Vipond said. "We're hoping someone might recognize that vehicle and possibly the group of guys."

The surveillance video at Corpus Christi Metro Ministries showed a dark sport utility vehicle and a smaller vehicle pulling up to Wiser and setting him on fire.

Police could not identify license plate numbers from the video.

http://edition.cnn.com/2004/US/Southwest/06/17/man.set.ablaze.ap/index.html

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Bus driver is shot with nail gun

A female bus driver was shot in the stomach with a nail gun in what police said was a racially motivated attack.

The 328 bus had stopped on the Great Western Road in Maida Hill, west London, when a motorcyclist fired a nail gun at the driver's window.

The woman, in her 40s, underwent surgery to remove the 6cm long nail.

Police said she received only minor injuries but that the incident, which happened at 1715 BST on 21 June, has caused her "unimaginable distress".

Westminster's Community Safety Unit, which is investigating the shooting, described it as racially motivated.

Detective Inspector Aidan Beck said: "I am appealing to anyone who was travelling on the number 328 bus that Monday afternoon, at this time the bus would have been busy with people travelling home from school and work and I want to speak to them.

"Also, I would like to speak to anyone who was driving along the Great Western Road at this time and may have seen the motorcyclist before or after this incident.

"Luckily the victim only received relatively minor injuries but the distress this incident has caused her is unimaginable."

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/england/london/3830677.stm

Published: 2004/06/22 16:31:14 GMT

© BBC MMIV

Its a funny old world but surely people aren't riding around on their motorbikes with nail guns on the off chance they can see someone to have a go at? It sounds to me like it was planned.

Emps

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Man held in blinding-for-hire case

STACEY MULICK; The News Tribune

A Tacoma man is suspected of trying to hire someone to use cigars to burn the eyes out of a teen he thought stole his car earlier this month, the Pierce County Sheriff's Department reported Thursday.

Local and federal law enforcement officials arrested 44-year-old Scott Wright on Wednesday after he gave another man 0 and offered more money, marijuana and free work on his car if he'd blind the intended victim, sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said.

Wright, who owns an auto body shop in Edgewood, was booked into Pierce County Jail on suspicion of solicitation to commit first-degree assault. He pleaded not guilty to the charge Thursday and was ordered held in lieu of ,000 bail.

An attorney representing Wright could not be reached for comment.

According to sheriff's deputies, Wright's 1971 Chevrolet Camaro was stolen in front of his Tacoma home June 6. He posted a sign in his yard offering

Man held in blinding-for-hire case

STACEY MULICK; The News Tribune

A Tacoma man is suspected of trying to hire someone to use cigars to burn the eyes out of a teen he thought stole his car earlier this month, the Pierce County Sheriff's Department reported Thursday.

Local and federal law enforcement officials arrested 44-year-old Scott Wright on Wednesday after he gave another man $300 and offered more money, marijuana and free work on his car if he'd blind the intended victim, sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said.

Wright, who owns an auto body shop in Edgewood, was booked into Pierce County Jail on suspicion of solicitation to commit first-degree assault. He pleaded not guilty to the charge Thursday and was ordered held in lieu of $75,000 bail.

An attorney representing Wright could not be reached for comment.

According to sheriff's deputies, Wright's 1971 Chevrolet Camaro was stolen in front of his Tacoma home June 6. He posted a sign in his yard offering $1,000 for the thief's identity, Troyer said.

Wright contacted a customer in his shop and offered him $1,000 to recover the stolen car and find the person who took it, Troyer said.

Before that happened, Federal Way police found the Camaro dismantled in a suspected chop shop. No arrests were made at the time.

Afterward, Wright again contacted the customer and offered him money and marijuana to blind or kill a 19-year-old man the owner thought had stolen the car, Troyer said.

"He suspected the 19-year-old kid by word on the street by posting the sign in his yard," he said.

The customer told deputies about the offer and agreed to work with them as a witness. Investigators put a recording device on the customer before a meeting Wednesday night with Wright, Troyer said.

During the meeting, Wright gave the customer cash and offered him more money and drugs, Troyer said.

"Wright stated he wanted the victim's eyes burned out with cigars so he could not steal any more cars," the spokesman said.

Investigators heard the offer and arrested Wright after the meeting.

"We were able to place him into custody before anything could occur," Troyer said.

Troyer said investigators don't have enough information to make an arrest in the stolen car case.

,000 for the thief's identity, Troyer said.

Wright contacted a customer in his shop and offered him

Man held in blinding-for-hire case

STACEY MULICK; The News Tribune

A Tacoma man is suspected of trying to hire someone to use cigars to burn the eyes out of a teen he thought stole his car earlier this month, the Pierce County Sheriff's Department reported Thursday.

Local and federal law enforcement officials arrested 44-year-old Scott Wright on Wednesday after he gave another man $300 and offered more money, marijuana and free work on his car if he'd blind the intended victim, sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said.

Wright, who owns an auto body shop in Edgewood, was booked into Pierce County Jail on suspicion of solicitation to commit first-degree assault. He pleaded not guilty to the charge Thursday and was ordered held in lieu of $75,000 bail.

An attorney representing Wright could not be reached for comment.

According to sheriff's deputies, Wright's 1971 Chevrolet Camaro was stolen in front of his Tacoma home June 6. He posted a sign in his yard offering $1,000 for the thief's identity, Troyer said.

Wright contacted a customer in his shop and offered him $1,000 to recover the stolen car and find the person who took it, Troyer said.

Before that happened, Federal Way police found the Camaro dismantled in a suspected chop shop. No arrests were made at the time.

Afterward, Wright again contacted the customer and offered him money and marijuana to blind or kill a 19-year-old man the owner thought had stolen the car, Troyer said.

"He suspected the 19-year-old kid by word on the street by posting the sign in his yard," he said.

The customer told deputies about the offer and agreed to work with them as a witness. Investigators put a recording device on the customer before a meeting Wednesday night with Wright, Troyer said.

During the meeting, Wright gave the customer cash and offered him more money and drugs, Troyer said.

"Wright stated he wanted the victim's eyes burned out with cigars so he could not steal any more cars," the spokesman said.

Investigators heard the offer and arrested Wright after the meeting.

"We were able to place him into custody before anything could occur," Troyer said.

Troyer said investigators don't have enough information to make an arrest in the stolen car case.

,000 to recover the stolen car and find the person who took it, Troyer said.

Before that happened, Federal Way police found the Camaro dismantled in a suspected chop shop. No arrests were made at the time.

Afterward, Wright again contacted the customer and offered him money and marijuana to blind or kill a 19-year-old man the owner thought had stolen the car, Troyer said.

"He suspected the 19-year-old kid by word on the street by posting the sign in his yard," he said.

The customer told deputies about the offer and agreed to work with them as a witness. Investigators put a recording device on the customer before a meeting Wednesday night with Wright, Troyer said.

During the meeting, Wright gave the customer cash and offered him more money and drugs, Troyer said.

"Wright stated he wanted the victim's eyes burned out with cigars so he could not steal any more cars," the spokesman said.

Investigators heard the offer and arrested Wright after the meeting.

"We were able to place him into custody before anything could occur," Troyer said.

Troyer said investigators don't have enough information to make an arrest in the stolen car case.

http://www.tribnet.com/news/crime_safety/story/5205205p-5138064c.html

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Venice puzzled by hammer attacks

The authorities in Venice are investigating a series of attacks on religious statues at some of the city's most famous landmarks.

Witnesses reported seeing a man with a hammer climb a decorated column at the Doge's Palace in the Piazza San Marco and smash the hands of a statue.

Similar damage has recently been found on religious statues at other historic buildings around the city.

Mayor Paolo Costa said the attacks were the work of an isolated lunatic.

But there have been calls for additional security to protect the city's many treasures.

Officials have asked tourists who may have witnessed acts of violence to get in touch with the police.

"All residents and tourists must at once report abnormal situations, damage, or the presence of anyone trying to do damage to cultural property," said cultural property manager Giorgio Rossini.

Security difficulties

The BBC's David Willey in Rome says police are still unsure whether they are dealing with a single attacker of a wave of anti-religious vandalism.

Last Sunday night, eyewitnesses in St Mark's Square said they saw a man of about 30 with a hammer smash the hands of God and Moses, on a motif depicting the handover of the Ten Commandments.

New damage has also been caused to at least three other sites in Venice in recent days:

Two statues of St Francis and St Mark on the façade of the Church of the Redeemer A sculpted 14th Century motif representing St Peter at the Church of San Pietro di Castello A statuette representing the Virgin, also near the same church.

The authorities stress that it is impossible to keep a security check on a whole city that is covered with works of art.

A single closed-circuit television camera in St Marks Square is of little use in tracking this sort of hit-and-run vandalism, and the authorities are counting on members of the public to raise the alert if vandals armed with hammers start to run amok in this city of open-air art treasures.

Attacks on well-known works of art in Italy have occurred infrequently in the past.

Both Michelangelo's marble sculpture the Pieta in the Vatican and his three times life-size David in Florence were damaged a decade ago in unrelated attacks by mentally-impaired people.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/3851991.stm

Published: 2004/06/30 08:55:07 GMT

© BBC MMIV

Italian police solve "Vandal of Venice" mystery

Thu July 1, 2004 6:58 PM GMT+05:30

VENICE, Italy (Reuters) - The vandal of Venice mystery was solved on Thursday when police named a deranged man armed with a shopping trolley and a sledgehammer as the author of a string of attacks on religious statues in the lagoon city.

Antonio Benacchio, 38, smashed the arms of statues in six different churches and palaces between last Saturday and Monday, police said. He has been taken to a local psychiatric ward.

Benacchio's attacks -- denounced as the work of an "isolated lunatic" by Venice's mayor -- targeted some of Venice's best-known monuments, including the Doge's Palace in St. Mark's Square and the Church of the Redeemer on the island of Giudecca.

"We quickly realised that these were abnormal actions which weren't carried out with the intention of stealing," Francesco Saverio Pavone, the magistrate who led the inquiry, told a news conference.

"The pieces were destroyed and this strange behaviour was what led us to think these were the actions of a mentally disturbed person," he added.

Investigators said Benacchio, detained after his house in the centre of Venice was searched, acted alone.

The assaults have raised questions about security in Venice, which has no closed-circuit video system to monitor its works of art and protect them from the millions of tourists who swamp the city each year.

Benacchio smashed the arms and beard of a 15th century statue of Moses on the facade of the Doge's Palace on Sunday night while tourists milled around him, working undisturbed until a group of Italian holidaymakers alerted the police.

The night before he chipped off the hands of statues of St. Mark and St. Francis outside the Church of the Redeemer and battered a statue of the Madonna tucked in an archway.

Benacchio's actions recall geologist Laszlo Toth's attack on Michelangelo's Pieta in the Vatican in 1972. Hungarian-born Toth lunged at the statue with a sledgehammer, shouting, "I am Jesus Christ!"

http://www.reuters.com/locales/c_ne...rtainmentNews&localeKey=en_IN&storyID=5565617

Emps

 

[Mighty_Emperor]

Tuesday, July 6, 2004

Mother jailed after stabbing of daughter, 11


By EDWARD D. MURPHY, Portland Press Herald Writer


A Portland woman stabbed and seriously wounded her 11-year-old daughter as the girl slept early Monday morning, police said.

Portland police Lt. Ted Ross said Paula Tarbox, 40, of 288 State St. was being held on a charge of elevated aggravated assault following the incident at 6 a.m.

Tarbox's daughter was in guarded condition at Maine Medical Center, Ross said. Her injuries were not considered life-threatening.

Police Chief Michael Chitwood said there were signs that the stabbing was "ritualistic."

"This could have been pre-planned and there was a Bible open and the Bible had highlighted passages in it," Chitwood said. He declined to say which passages were highlighted or to what they referred.

Chitwood said another daughter, a 16-year-old who was sleeping alongside the 11-year-old, "wrestled" a knife away from her mother. The mother then called 911 to report a stabbing, he said.

Also in the apartment when police arrived were Tarbox's two other children, ages 5 and 22 months. Chitwood said the state Department of Human Services was caring for the children Monday. No one other than the 11-year-old was hurt, he said.

"We're very lucky today that we're not looking at a more serious tragedy with four kids being stabbed," he said.

Ross said Tarbox stabbed her daughter twice on her upper back and once on her right arm. Tarbox then called 911 and when police arrived, they recovered the weapon they believe she used on her daughter and arrested Tarbox.

Chitwood said police have been to the apartment before.

"We've had calls where (Tarbox) has been the victim of either assault or domestic violence over the years," Chitwood said. There also have been calls "on some type of mental health issue," he said.

Tarbox was being held in the Cumberland County Jail in lieu of ,000 cash bail.

http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/news/local/040706stabbing.shtml

Tarbox??

Emps