Global Oddities

A would-be Japanese robber armed with a wooden stick was arrested after being confronted by an angry shopkeeper, apologising and calling the police to confess his crime, an official said Wednesday.

Takashi Owada, a 54-year-old unemployed man, demanded money from the 59-year-old female cashier at a convenience store in the northern city of Fukushima on Tuesday, according to a local police spokesman.
But she told him, “Don’t be silly!”, Owada immediately changed his mind and said: “I’m sorry.”
He called the police at the store exit with his own mobile telephone and was arrested within minutes on the spot for attempted robbery.
Japan has a strict control on firearms and most gun violence is linked to gangs.
Even so police do not recommend scolding robbers, the spokesman said.
Source: AFP, September 30, 2009

A US woman has stunned doctors by achieving a rare medical marvel – falling pregnant while pregnant.
Julia Grovenburg and her husband Todd were shocked to learn she would be giving birth to two babies, but not twins.
The couple attended an ultrasound appointment believing Mrs Grovenburg was just over eight weeks pregnant.
But the scan showed two babies, separated by two-and-a-half weeks – with one clearly more developed than the other.
“[When] she said, ‘and baby number two has got a healthy little heartbeat,’ – I just started gagging,” Mrs Grovenburg told broadcaster KFSM-TV in Arkansas.
“[We were] both in shock,” her husband added.
He went on: “We were trying to put the timelines together and everything.
“We had known she had had a migraine and been at the hospital and actually had a pregnancy test at the time that one would’ve been conceived…”
His wife continued: “We feel blessed to have something so rare and as of this point they’re perfectly healthy.”
Doctors suspect an extraordinarily uncommon situation called superfetation, which means conceiving when already pregnant.
Patrick O’Brien, consulting obstetrician and spokesman for Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG), told Sky News Online only one case a year is reported worldwide.
“It’s a rare thing because when you conceive, your hormones change dramatically,” he said.
“Those changes stop you ovulating and they stop you conceiving.”
Tests will be performed when the babies are born to ascertain what happened.
But Dr O’Brien added that the Grovenburg’s may not ever know for sure, because in their case the tests could not rule out twins.
“It’s hard to be certain sometimes because a woman could be having non-identical twins that are markedly different in size from early in a pregnancy,” he said.
“If there’s a big size difference between the twins, the first suspicion is that one is not developing as well.”
Superfetation became a more accurate suspicion when the babies appeared to be more than two weeks apart, he added.
If the family’s situation was not astonishing enough, the babies are officially due in different years – at the end of 2009 and start of 2010.
However, the pair – already named as Jillian and Hudson – were expected to be born together, either naturally or by caesarean section, in December.
Source: Sky news online, September 25, 2009

The wife of a ‘penniless’ property tycoon in a £400million divorce case today said her estranged husband should ‘hear the clang of the prison gates’ behind him if he continues to claim he is broke .
Michelle Young’s lawyer told a court her husband Scot should ‘experience what it’s like’ behind bars.
Mr Young, 47, was told by Mrs Justice Parker in June to come clean about his finances or face six months in prison.
He pleaded with a High Court judge that he should be spared jail because he suffers from mental health problems.
Legal battle: Michelle Young arriving at the High Court today where she is suing husband Scot (right) for divorce and maintenance. Her lawyer claims he is feigning mental illness and should be jailed
But lawyers for Mrs Young told the court she believes he could be feigning his symptoms and ‘pulling the wool over doctors’ eyes’.
Young, who has been described as a ‘fixer’ for Russian oligarchs and British billionaires, claims he is penniless but his wife, who is suing for divorce and maintenance, has put his wealth at £400million.
She is facing eviction from her Regent’s Park home because her husband has failed to pay the £10,000-a-month rent – even though she suspects he owns the property.
He has also failed to pay the £36,000-a-year school fees for their children aged 16 and 14 the court heard.
The couple married at Chelsea register office in 1995. Mr Young and his wife later moved to America. They last lived together in Miami, Florida, before she returned to the UK in 2006.
Today his lawyers admitted he was in default of the court order but stressed that he apologised, having realised his failings, and promised to comply in future.
Young has said his property empire has collapsed and he is being pursued for £27million by creditors.
He expects to be made bankrupt and says that, far from having £400 million, he is worth ‘minus £27million’.
Young says he can only afford legal representation thanks to a £50,000 loan from his friend, the restaurateur Richard Caring.
Since August he has been treated by a psychiatrist and undergone hospital treatment.
But David Balcombe QC, representing Mrs Young, claimed Young’s contrition was ‘cynically contrived’.
He said: ‘Mr Young should be conveyed from this court to prison. This husband ought to hear the clang of the prison gates and find out what it is like not to comply with a court order.
‘The effect of prison can alter behaviour once it has been sampled. The court must impress on him his duty to comply with court orders so he cannot simply flout them and ignore them as this litigant has chosen to do.
‘He is somebody who has enjoyed a massive fortune but now says it’s all gone, but hasn’t provided any worthwhile information to enable his wife to understand where it has all gone and how it has all gone’.
Mr Balcombe said there was a paucity of information about Young’s ‘mental health problems’ and called for an independent doctor to examine him.
‘We cannot say this court must find that this was feigned and he was pulling the wool over the doctor’s eyes because we don’t have the evidence’, he said.
The judge is expected to make her decision on whether to jail Young later today. She renewed the passport confiscation order.
Young, who owned several multi-million-pound properties, sold a £19million family home on Wentworth Park Estate, Surrey, to oligarch Boris Berezovsky.
He is also said to be a close friend of billionaire entrepreneur Sir Tom Hunter and Sir Philip Green.
The case continues.

Source: Daily Mail, September 28, 2009

A South African man married four women at the same time during a ceremony attended by hundreds of people.

Milton Mbhele turned up in a white limousine and gave each of his four brides rings and a kiss.
South African law recognises traditional polygamous marriages. Even President Jacob Zuma has three wives.
Yet, while polygamy remains common among several tribes including the Zulus, simutaneous weddings are rare.
44-year-old Mbhele said the joint celebration would save money by combining the festivities

Source: ITN news online, September 27, 2009

A Cambridge University cleric under investigation for sex offences died at home after apparently being asphyxiated, police sources said.
The Reverend Ian Thompson, Dean of Chapel at King’s College, was pronounced dead at his house in Great Shelford, Cambridgeshire.
The clergyman, born in Glasgow, was being investigated for crimes in the Strathclyde area of Scotland.
A spokeswoman for Strathclyde police said: “We can confirm a report was sent to Procurator Fiscal on 3 December 2007 in connection with alleged historical indecencies regarding Revd Ian Thompson.”
Sources close to the inquiry said the alleged offences were of a sexual nature. They said Mr Thompson was thought to have died of a cardiac arrest brought on by asphyxiation. His wife Ann told the Cambridge News: “He was a wonderful man who was well-loved by people of all walks of life.”
An East of England Ambulance Service spokeswoman said they were called to the home in Great Shelford to reports of a cardiac arrest. “Paramedics were unable to resuscitate the man,” said the spokeswoman. “He was pronounced dead at the scene.” Police said the death was not being treated as suspicious and a file had been passed to the coroner.
A university spokesman said: “He died on September 24 and there is no comment at this time.”
The clergyman gave readings at the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, broadcast on television around the world from King’s College Chapel on Christmas Eve, since taking up the post in 2005. A tribute was paid to Rev Thompson on behalf of the members of Cambridge University Combined Boat Clubs, where he was the senior treasurer.
A spokesman said: “Our sympathies are with his wife, Ann, and those close to him. In due course we will pass on details of funeral arrangements and have been asked to say that this will be a small and family event.”
Source: Press Association, September 27, 2009

Poland has approved a law making chemical castration mandatory for paedophiles in some cases, sparking criticism from human rights groups.
Under the law, sponsored by Poland’s centre-right government, paedophiles convicted of raping children under the age of 15 years, or a close relative, would have to undergo chemical therapy on their release from prison.
The government said in a statement: “The purpose of this action is to improve the mental health of the convict, to lower his libido and thereby to reduce the risk of another crime being committed by the same person.”
Prime Minister Donald Tusk said late last year he wanted obligatory castration for paedophiles.
The bill, which also increases prison sentences for rape and incest, must still be approved by the upper chamber of parliament.
However, this is seen as a formality as Tusk’s party holds a majority of the senate’s 100 seats.
Source: ITN news online, September 26, 2009

President Jacob Zuma is among prominent Zulus to have several wives

A South African man is planning to marry four women in a two-day wedding ceremony, starting on Sunday.

Zulu businessman Milton Mbele, 44, is to marry the women aged between 22 and 35 in Ntlane village in Kwa-Zulu Natal and says he loves them all.

The brides are to take their vows together, answering “we do” when asked if they take Mr Mbele as their husband.

Polygamy is common in parts of Kwa-Zulu Natal but only the first wife is legally recognised.

South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma, an ethnic Zulu, has three wives.

But it is not usual to marry more than one woman at the same time.

The four brides – Thobile Vilakazi, Zanele Langa, Baqinisile Mdlolo and Smangele Cele – all know each other.

Mr Mbele has paid a total of 33 cows in ilobolo, or bride-price, for his soon-to-be-brides.

He paid 10 cows for Ms Vilakazi, seven for Ms Langa and eight each for Ms Mdlolo and Ms Cele, reports the Sowetan newspaper.

“We don’t see anything unusual about our marriage. We agreed to marry him at the same time because we love him,” Miss Cele told the newspaper.

“It does not matter if we have marriage certificates or not, what is important is that he loves us.”

The ceremony begins with a traditional event on Sunday followed by the exchange of vows in a local church.

“Marrying many wives is our culture,” Mr Mbele said.

“However, what is different is to marry all of them at once. I am doing this because I love all these women.”

He said the response he has received to his wedding plans has been amazing.

“Many people are looking forward to see me making history.”

Mr Mbele is said to own about 100 cows and 250 goats, livestock is seen a sign of wealth in rural traditional communities.

The BBC’s Pumza Fihlani in Johannesburg says the first wife is traditionally seen as the wife who “keeps the family together”.

She usually commands more authority than the other wives in the polygamous marriage.

When a man wants to take another wife, the first wife is usually involved in the discussions on who should be married and often needs to give her blessing.

Source: BBC news online, September 24, 2009

An Indonesian woman has given birth to an 8.7-kilogramme (19.2-pound) baby boy, the heaviest newborn ever recorded in the country, a doctor said Wednesday.
The baby, who is still unnamed and is 62 centimetres (24.4 inches) long, was born by caesarean section Monday at a public hospital in North Sumatra province, a gynaecologist who took part in the operation told AFP.
“This heavy baby made the surgery really tough, especially the process of taking him out of his mum’s womb. His legs were so big,” Binsar Sitanggang said.
The boy is in a healthy condition despite having to initially be given oxygen to overcome breathing problems, the gynaecologist said.
“He’s got strong appetite, every minute, it’s almost non-stop feeding,” he said.
“This baby boy is extraordinary, the way he’s crying is not like a usual baby. It’s really loud.”
The boy’s massive size was likely the result of his mother, Ani, 41, having diabetes, Sitanggang said.
She had to be rushed to hospital due to complications with the pregnancy, which had reached nine months. The baby, her fourth, was the only child not delivered by a traditional midwife.
When a diabetic mother’s glucose level is high during pregnancy, the baby can receive too much glucose and grow too large, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.
Indonesia’s previous heaviest baby, weighing in at 6.9 kilos, was born in 2007 on the outskirts of the capital Jakarta, according to the Indonesian Museum of Records website.
Source: AFP, September 23, 2009

A Florida woman was sentenced on Monday to a year and a day in prison for keeping her dead mother’s body in a bedroom for years while collecting more than $230,000 in pension benefits, prosecutors said.

Penelope Sharon Jordan, 61, of Sebastian, Florida, pleaded guilty to theft of government funds in June, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Miami said.

Police said when they found the body in a spare bedroom in March, Jordan told them her mother had been dead for at least six years. During the sentencing hearing, evidence indicated that Jordan told her sister their mother had died before December, 2001.

An autopsy on the body found no signs of foul play.

Jordan told the court she concealed her mother’s death in order to continue collecting her Social Security and military pension benefits. Over a six-year period she received $61,415 in Social Security payments and $176,461 from the military pension.

She was ordered to repay $237,876 to the government

Source: Reuters, September 21, 2009

A Taiwan prison has refused to take in a 96-year-old convict, saying that he could not look after himself behind bars, a report said Saturday.

Sun Hsin-ming, a retired worker at Taiwan Railway Administration, became the island’s oldest convict when he received a three-month jail term for illegally occupying the agency’s dormitory, the Apple Daily reported.
Sun could pay a fine to stay out of prison but he insisted on serving the full term in a protest against what he called “unfair justice,” the report said.
However, his protest plan fell through when the Taipei prison immediately sent him back to the prosecutor’s office on Friday saying he could not take care of himself in jail, it said.
Prosecutors were planning to sent Sun to a prison hospital ward in central Taichung city to serve the sentence, it added.
Source: AFP September 19, 2009