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'Darth Vader' spared jail after attack

HOLYHEAD, Wales, May 16 (UPI) -- A Welsh judge has spared a man who dressed as "Star Wars" villain Darth Vader and attacked two fans of the iconic film series a stay in jail.

Arwel Wynne Hughes, 27, was sentenced to two months in jail, suspended for a year, after his lawyer told the court he is an alcoholic who does not remember the incident and is undergoing treatment for his addiction, Sky News reported.

Hughes donned a black cape and a black trash bag before attacking Barney Jones, founder of the first British Jedi church, and his cousin while they were filming themselves battling with lightsabers in Jones' yard. Hughes struck Jones with a metal crutch and punched the other man in the thigh.

The defendant's lawyer, Frances Jones, told the court his client had no recollection of the incident because of his alcohol addiction.

"He is very sorry for coming before the courts," the lawyer said. "He knows his behavior was wrong and didn't want it to happen but he has no recollection of it."

Hughes was also ordered to pay $200 to each of his victims.

Farmer: Vandals spray-painted goats

CLEARFIELD, Pa., May 16 (UPI) -- A Clearfield County, Pa., farmer said vandals snuck onto his property under cover of night and spray-painted obscenities on three of his goats.

Evan Bellin said the crime, which took place during the weekend, could set him back hundreds of dollars as the goats' wool is used to make cashmere and the paint could take months to grow out, WPXI-TV, Pittsburgh, reported.

"It's really bad to think they would do that to innocent animals. I mean if they have a problem with me, to come to me. I mean, I have all of my vehicles up here and they didn't touch anything," Bellin said.

He said he plans to keep the goats closer to his house for the foreseeable future.

Boy Scouts find voodoo dolls

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., May 16 (UPI) -- Members of a Boy Scout troop that agreed to help clean a historic cemetery in St. Petersburg, Fla., found three voodoo dolls hanging from a tree.

The dolls, which were hung in a vertical line on the tree's bark, had rusty pins stuck in their faceless heads, arms and legs, the St. Petersburg Times reported Thursday.

"They were kind of like ugly creatures that would eat you alive," said 10-year-old Kevin McDonough, a Webelos Cub Scout.

The Greenwood Cemetery, where the dolls were found, has buried on its grounds dozens of Civil War veterans, Union and Confederate, buried on opposite sides of the grounds.

University of South Florida religion Professor Mozella Mitchell, who studies Caribbean faiths, said the dolls are associated with many African-derived religions. They're common among people of Haitian, Cuban and Caribbean descent, she said.

Believers often use the dolls as sacred objects to connect with the supernatural, not typically for evil purposes, Mitchell was quoted as saying.

"I'd say certain sects might work a trick on somebody," she added. "But that's a very minor aspect of the religion."

Beetles found in package from Taiwan

MOHNTON, Pa., May 16 (UPI) -- Postal officials in Mohnton, Pa., said a Philadelphia-bound package was found to contain numerous beetles that could have proven harmful to the environment.

The officials said 26 insects -- including Hercules, Rhinoceros and Goliath beetles -- were found in smaller containers within the package, which was shipped from Taiwan, WPVI-TV, Philadelphia, reported.

The package had been labeled "toys, gifts and jellies."

"The specimens were some oft the largest of their kind, and some of the largest I've ever seen, averaging five to six inches in diameter," said John Plummer, an agriculture specialist with U.S. Customs and Border Protection. "They are highly destructive insect pests that can cause extensive damage to fruit and vegetable crops, trees, shrubs and turf grasses."

The intended recipient of the package told authorities he is a wildlife photographer and needed the specimens for staged photos. He denied any involvement in illegal beetle breeding.