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Wacky News Stories

Police suspect 'Barefoot Burglar' is stealing, crashing planes
By Patrick Oppmann
CNN

SEATTLE, Washington (CNN) -- Who is stealing -- and crashing -- airplanes in Washington state?

art.colt.jpg
Police say they found this self-portrait of Colton Harris-Moore in the deleted file of a stolen digital camera.

The18-year-old man police call the prime suspect does not have a pilot'slicense. But he does have a nickname -- "The Barefoot Burglar" -- and aFacebook fan club, which compares him to Jesse James "without themurders" and exhorts: "Fly, Colt, Fly." Police say Colton "Colt"Harris-Moore has been linked to crimes in five counties involvingplanes, luxury cars and boats. He's known to alternate betweensquatting in vacant vacation homes, which he allegedly burglarizes, androughing it in the woods.

Since November, police say, at leastthree small, private planes have been stolen and flown away. The latestto go missing crash-landed last week in a clearing in Granite Falls,Washington, after running out of fuel, police said.

The roughlanding damaged the Cessna 182, which along with its instruments isworth more than $500,000. But authorities said the plane's pilotappears to have walked away unhurt.

Harris-Moore has not beencharged in any of the plane thefts. But authorities are testing vomitfound in the cockpit of one plane to see whether they can place theteen inside.

Harris-Moore has been on authorities' radar foryears. "Colt," as he is called, was first arrested for burglary at age12, said Detective Ed Wallace, a spokesman for the Island CountySheriff's Office. The break-in at a local school earned Colton a fewweeks in a juvenile facility, Wallace said.

Local media reportstally nine arrests for Harris-Moore before the age of 15. Now police infive counties in Washington state are looking for him.

Harris-Moore dropped out of high school and, according to Wallace,police believe he spent his teens burglarizing unoccupied homes onCamano Island, a vacation community of about 15,000 people off theWashington state coast. He became known as "the Barefoot Burglar,"because, investigators say, he preferred to prowl shoeless.

Gradually, Wallace alleges, Harris-Moore moved onto more sophisticated crimes.

"He will typically break into a home or vehicle and copy down thecredit card numbers," Wallace said. "He then leaves the credit cardsbehind so people don't realize they have been stolen."

Wallacesaid Harris-Moore has charged thousands of dollars worth of videogames, GPS devices and police scanners online, using stolen creditcards.

When Harris-Moore wasn't squatting in homes, he took tothe woods with survival gear to elude police. He's been known to hidein the trees. "He's almost like a feral child," Wallace said.

Harris-Moore's days of running from authorities on the 40-square-mileisland appeared to end in 2007 when he was arrested and pleaded guiltyto three counts of burglary. Wallace said some of the charges weredismissed as part of the guilty plea.

Less than a year later, Wallace said, Harris-Moore allegedly walked away from a juvenile halfway house.

Police on Camano Island again began receiving reports of thefts thatfit Harris-Moore's profile, Wallace said. In 2008, a deputy said hespotted Harris-Moore in a stolen Mercedes-Benz, but he lost the suspectwhen he allegedly dove from the moving vehicle.

After the chase,police recovered a stolen digital camera from the car. Wallace said hefound a deleted self-portrait of Harris-Moore, who posed in a shirtwith a telltale Mercedes-Benz insignia. The shirt also belonged to thevehicle's owner.

Harris-Moore faces 10 counts in that case, aswell as other thefts, Internet crimes and burglaries, Wallace said.Charges are expected soon in a dozen more cases.

Harris-Mooredropped from sight for a while when wanted posters of him went uparound Camano Island. Soon, though, authorities in the San Juan Islandsnoticed a series of break-ins and wondered whether Harris-Moore wasisland-hopping.

The theft of a Cessna 182 from the San JuanIslands in November jogged Wallace's memory. He recalled what he hadfound on a computer he said Harris-Moore used. "He had looked at flightmanuals and how to fly a plane," he said.

Another theft of asmall experimental plane had been reported in September. John Zerby,undersheriff of San Juan County, said police don't think the two theftsare a coincidence. "This doesn't happen here, that's why we think theygo together," he said.

Police consider Harris-Moore to be afugitive. Even though Harris-Moore has no known flight training, Zerbysaid police are certain he is their mystery pilot.

Harris-Moore's mother doubts her son learned to fly on his own.

"Any time anything is stolen, they blame it on Colt," Pam Kohler toldthe Everett Herald newspaper. "Let's say you're the smartest person inthe world. Wouldn't you need a little bit of training in flying aplane? They're not easy."

CNN attempted to contact Kohler, buther phone was disconnected. CNN also tried to reach a former attorneyfor Harris-Moore but the lawyer has not returned calls requestingcomment.

Experts said that teaching oneself to fly is difficult but not impossible.

"It's been heard of," said flight instructor Devin Tolentino. "Let'sface it, the Wright brothers were able to teach themselves. Landingwould be the hardest part, but if you weren't too concerned about usingthe plane again, it could be done."

Meanwhile, authorities inWhatcom County are investigating whether Harris-Moore stole a boat andused it to reach Point Roberts, where burglaries at three vacationhomes have recently been reported, Deputy Jeff Roberts said. PointRoberts, a small peninsula, is U.S. territory but is accessible onlyfrom the water or through Canada. From parts of Point Roberts, enteringCanada is just a matter of crossing the street.

Last week, lawenforcement agencies got a new lead when a private plane was stolen inBonner's Ferry, Idaho, just across the border from Canada. Residentsnoticed a plane flying at an altitude of 100 feet as it left the areaon Tuesday, said Detective Dave McClelland.

The plane was foundThursday, crashed and out of fuel in a patch of cleared forest inGranite Falls, Washington. On Sunday, authorities say they received areport of a burglary. "Blankets, shoes and food [were] taken instead ofbig-ticket items like TVs," said sheriff's spokeswoman Rebecca Hover.

A gunshot rang out as deputies searched the woods and came across someof the stolen items, Hover said. No one was injured, but the SWAT teamwas called in.

Police searched the area, using a helicopter withan infrared heat detection scanner and another Blackhawk helicopterprovided by the Department of Homeland Security.

Low-tech police work led to Harris-Moore's arrest in 2005. Policestaked out his mother's house, waiting until someone inside ordered apizza. Police rode in the delivery car to the house and waited forHarris-Moore to come to them.
 
Police: Man attacked roomie with harmonica

BROKEN ARROW, Okla., Oct. 12 (UPI) -- Policein Oklahoma said they arrested a man who allegedly beat his roommatewith a harmonica, causing cuts to his face and elsewhere on his head.

Investigators allege Decai Liu, 52, burst into the bathroom of hisBroken Arrow home Oct. 4 while his roommate was preparing for work andhit him on the head with a harmonica, the Tulsa (Okla.) World reportedMonday.

Police said the roommate was covered in blood when they arrived andLiu resisted arrest by head-butting an officer. Liu was subdued byofficers with pepper spray, police said.

Liu's roommate told investigators he did not know what set off the attack.

The suspect was charged with assault with a dangerous weapon,resisting an officer and assaulting an officer, court records showed.He held at the Tulsa Jail in lieu of $6,500 bail.
 
Police: Intoxicated man took ambulance

LAWRENCE, Kan., Oct. 12 (UPI) -- Police inKansas said they arrested an intoxicated 21-year-old man who attemptedto drive home in an ambulance left parked by paramedics on a call.

Lawrence Police Sgt. Susan Hadl said the man entered theLawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical ambulance that had been leftparked downtown by a crew responding to a medical call shortly after 2a.m. Sunday, the Lawrence Journal-World reported Monday.

The man led police on a brief low-speed chase that ended whenofficers surrounded the ambulance with cruisers. He was taken intocustody without incident and charged with theft over $100,000 anddriving under the influence.

The suspect, who told police he took the ambulance because he lacked transportation home, was jailed in lieu of $5,000 bond.
 
Animal interference: 7-year-old Ohio boy attacked by male deer during backyard football game

 WINTERSVILLE, Ohio (AP) -- A 7-year-old Ohio boy playing a game of backyard football was tackled by a deer.

BrandonHiles says he encountered the buck when the ball rolled into woodswhile he was playing with friends Saturday in Wintersville, about 125miles east of Columbus. The boy says the buck ran at him and flippedhim with its antlers, leaving bruises and a gash.

His 9-year-old friend Wyatt Pugh (pyoo) beat the deer with a stick to make it go away.

WintersvillePolice Officer Art Fowler Jr. says there were actually two bucks in thearea gearing for a fight, and Brandon was attacked when heinadvertently got between them.

 
Cowboy complains about no hitching posts after being cited after horse wanders away from bar

WORLAND, Wyo. (AP) -- A northwestern Wyoming man received a citationfor letting his horse wander in Worland, but not before he complainedto town law enforcement officials about the absence of a hitching postin front of the local saloon. William Schellinger was cited by WashakieCounty law enforcement officers for allowing his horse to run at largein this city along the Big Horn River.

Schellingerwas apparently in a bar early Sunday when his horse wandered away,prompting police to follow it to make sure it didn't cause an accidentwith a car.

After being confronted byofficers, Schellinger contended the city didn't have any hitching postsand told them they should spend their time arresting real criminals,not bothering cowboys with wayward horses.

 
Stallion said:
Police: Intoxicated man took ambulance

LAWRENCE, Kan., Oct. 12 (UPI) -- Police inKansas said they arrested an intoxicated 21-year-old man who attemptedto drive home in an ambulance left parked by paramedics on a call.

He was taken intocustody without incident and charged with theft over $100,000 anddriving under the influence.
Click to expand...
Explain where/how he found the keys.

Then give that paramedic a formal reprimand.

And another to the attending police officer(s) for lack of attentiveness.
 
Pa. police: 'Pothead' with bag of marijuana stuck to forehead charged with drug possession

LEBANON, Pa. (AP) -- Police in central Pennsylvania say they've nabbeda real pothead. They said an officer spotted 29-year-old Cesar Lopezinside a convenience store with a bag of marijuana stuck to hisforehead. Investigators said Lopez was seen peering inside his baseballcap early Saturday morning in Lebanon, about 75 miles northwest ofPhiladelphia. When Lopez looked up, the officer noticed a small plasticbag appearing to contain marijuana stuck to his forehead.

Policesaid the officer peeled the bag off Lopez's forehead and placed himunder arrest. He has been charged with drug possession. Police do notknow whether Lopez has an attorney.

Authorities say the sweatband of a baseball cap is a frequent hiding place for drugs.

© 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. :razz

Talk about usin' yer head. :urgh
 
Escaped horses tear up soccer complex

DES MOINES, Iowa, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- Officialsin Des Moines, Iowa, said a group of runaway horses tore up a soccercomplex on the city's south side, causing nearly $100,000 in damage.

Doug Romig of the Des Moines Parks and Recreation Department saidthe horses, which apparently escaped from owner Charles Blakley'sproperty through a break in the fence line, ripped up the James W.Cownie Soccer Park, where officials were completing nearly $1.8 millionin improvements and repairs following flooding last year, The DesMoines Register reported Friday.

"The problem ... is that these are brand-new fields," Romig said. "We haven't even played on them yet."

City officials said they are working with Blakley an his insurance company to cover the cost of the damage.

Romig said escaped horses were found on the field previously severalyears ago, but on that occasion officials only needed to pick up a fewdroppings to restore the field.

Guess nobody told them the landscaping was already done. xD:
 
Gone in 11 minutes: Swiss police stop driver after frantic series of traffic violations
GOSSAU, Switzerland (AP) -- Authorities say an Italian man tookreckless driving to new heights in 11 frantic minutes of trafficviolations in eastern Switzerland. They said they first spotted the47-year-old driver as he sped his jeep past an unmarked police car at160 kph (100 mph) in a rainstorm Sunday.

Drivingdangerously close to other cars on the autobahn, he then allegedlyignored police attempts to pull him over - first with a stop sign, andthen with flashing lights and sirens.

Police say the man drove through a construction zone at 140 kmh (87 mph), nearly twice the speed limit, before being stopped.

They seized the man's driver's license, and a judge ordered him tested for medications and illegal drugs.

Police said Monday the man racked up 15 traffic violations in 11 minutes.

 
Stallion said:
Escaped horses tear up soccer complex

DES MOINES, Iowa, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- Officialsin Des Moines, Iowa, said a group of runaway horses tore up a soccercomplex on the city's south side, causing nearly $100,000 in damage.

Doug Romig of the Des Moines Parks and Recreation Department saidthe horses, which apparently escaped from owner Charles Blakley'sproperty through a break in the fence line, ripped up the James W.Cownie Soccer Park, where officials were completing nearly $1.8 millionin improvements and repairs following flooding last year, The DesMoines Register reported Friday.

"The problem ... is that these are brand-new fields," Romig said. "We haven't even played on them yet."

City officials said they are working with Blakley an his insurance company to cover the cost of the damage.

Romig said escaped horses were found on the field previously severalyears ago, but on that occasion officials only needed to pick up a fewdroppings to restore the field.

Guess nobody told them the landscaping was already done. xD:
Click to expand...

xD:
 
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