UPI NewsTrack Quirks in the News

Man sentenced for carrot in his pants

MARSKE BY-THE-SEA, England, Dec. 7 (UPI) -- A British driving instructor who secreted a carrot in his pants to give female students the idea he was sexually aroused was sentenced to 18 months in jail.

Stephen Cooney, 51, was accused of sexually assaulting three female students during their driving lessons. One woman testified that he grabbed her hand and forced her to touch him before unzipping his fly and revealing the vegetable, The Daily Telegraph reported Friday.

Cooney denied placing the woman's hand on his groin but admitted hiding the vegetable in his pocket.

Cooney, of Marske by-the-Sea, told the court he regretted the carrot incident, which he admitted was "unprofessional."

"I just thought maybe I would play a practical joke, but obviously it was stupid," he said.

Council gives litterbugs 'boarding' pass

BRIDGEPORT, Ohio, Dec. 7 (UPI) -- If jail time or fines don't deter littering, perhaps marching around the streets decked out in a sandwich board will, officials in one Ohio village say.

As part of an anti-littering push in Bridgeport, Ohio, ticketed litterbugs can either wear a sign that spells out the evils of making the streets one big trash can -- or be subject to jail time, community service or a $500 fine, KTOV-TV, Steubenville, Ohio, reported.

The first offender to take advantage of the sandwich board option, cigarette butt-tosser Tommy Lashare, wore the sign and walked Bridgeport's streets for a total of 16 hours.

NYC mayor's wheels stolen -- again

NEW YORK, Dec. 7 (UPI) -- New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg may want to rethink his ride after his 2001 Lexus was boosted for the second time in about a year.

Officials say the Lexus LS430, snatched from a parking garage, was found Thursday, the New York Post reported Friday.

Missing, though, were two shopping bags of holiday cheer. There were, however, two tickets on the windshield.

Sources told the Post the car, also stolen on Oct. 18, 2006, is used mainly by the mayor's former wife, Susan Brown Bloomberg. The mayor, who has six vehicles registered in his name, reportedly said he hadn't used that particular vehicle in years.

Employees said the car was stolen while the attendant was getting someone else's vehicle. The thief allegedly sneaked into the office, took an electronic key and pressed it until it opened the door of a car -- which just happened to belong to Bloomberg, the employees said.

Activists: Pachyderm's sperm may be bad

CAMBRIDGE, Ontario, Dec. 7 (UPI) -- The impregnation of an elephant in a U.S. zoo with semen from an elephant at a Canadian zoo is still on, despite a group's saying the semen is bad.

An animal rights advocacy group has asked the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to reject the Canadian elephant's semen at the border, saying his seed could spread a deadly herpes virus, Canwest News Service reported Friday.

Woodland Park Zoo biologists in Seattle sought the sperm from 39-year-old Rex -- a resident at the African Lion Safari in Cambridge, Ont. -- to impregnate 29-year-old Chai, who recently lost her 6-year-old daughter Hansa to the herpes virus.

Critics called the move a "potentially deadly game of Russian roulette," unless the zoo can verify that Rex's semen is virus-free.

Officials at both zoos say the insemination is still scheduled.

Charlie Gray, superintendent of elephants at the African Lion Safari, told CanWest News Service it is nearly impossible for herpes virus to be transmitted via artificial insemination and "there has never been a correlation between an insemination and a herpes death."