Subscribe | UPI Odd Newsletter Subscribe Arson suspect carried from courtroom SCRANTON, Pa., Oct. 30 (UPI) -- Authorities in Pennsylvania said a man who allegedly set fire to his van intentionally hit his head on a courtroom door and threw himself on the floor. Advertisement John Walton, 58, of Scranton, who was arrested Tuesday, hit his head on the door to District Judge Diana Malast's courtroom and threw himself on the floor after he was charged with four counts of arson, The (Wilkes-Barre, Pa.) Times Leader reported. Walton was carried out of the courtroom in shackles and taken to the Luzerne County Correctional Facility in lieu of $75,000 bail. Police said Walton took his Ford van to Coccia Ford Lincoln Mercury, where he purchased the vehicle, to complain about transmission troubles. He took an employee for a ride in the van to listen to the engine and allegedly threatened the employee for saying he couldn't hear any problems. Advertisement Walton ordered the employee out of his van then allegedly set fire to the vehicle outside of the dealership's showroom. $1,000 'guyPhone' costumes functional PALM HARBOR, Fla., Oct. 30 (UPI) -- A pair of Florida men who spent $1,000 each turning themselves into "guyPhones" for Halloween said they are making the money back in costume contests. John Savio, 24, and Reko Rivera, 23, of Palm Harbor, who created their man-sized iPhone costumes out of 42-inch flatscreen TVs, battery packs, actual iPhones with their displays connected to the TVs and plenty of chrome vinyl, said they have already won $500 and a Hard Rock Hotel & Casino gift card from a costume contest at Skipper's Smokehouse in Tampa, Fla., the St. Petersburg (Fla.) Times reported. The two men, who are entering their second costume contest Saturday at Tampa's Guavaween and Holiday's Slim & Chubbies Bar and Grill, said the fully functional costumes have also become a hit online, with a YouTube video of the "guyPhones" dancing has been viewed by more than 320,000 visitors. "We do what makes us happy," Rivera said. "And this makes us happy." Inventor seeks market for bra mask CHICAGO, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- A Chicago researcher said she is seeking a commercial release for her award-winning invention: a bra that can be converted into a pair of protective face masks. Advertisement Dr. Elena Bodnar, director of the non-profit Trauma Risk Management Research Institute, said the pink bra with black lace trim can be quickly converted into two face masks perfect for protection during fires, terrorist attacks, dust storms or an H1N1 outbreak, the Chicago Tribune reported. The bra mask was recognized this month with the Ig Noble Prize, which the Annals of Improbable Research magazine gives out for achievements that "first make people laugh and then make them think." "The brilliance of my idea is that it's very simple," Bodnar said. She said women are the target consumers for the product but they are not the only ones who would benefit during a disaster. "Isn't it wonderful that women have two breasts, not just one? We can save not only our own lives, but also a man of our choice next to us," she said. Police: Suspect claimed 'mission from God' LEXINGTON, Ky., Oct. 30 (UPI) -- A Kentucky man who allegedly told police he attempted to steal a car because he was on a "mission from God" pleaded innocent. Lexington police said David Silva, 36, broke a window at the Freedom Dodge dealership early Wednesday and told a security guard who confronted him he was planning to steal a Dodge Charger as part of a "mission from God," WLEX-TV, Lexington, reported. Advertisement Police said Silva told arriving officers a similar story and initially gave his name as "Seven." Silva pleaded innocent Wednesday to multiple charges, including criminal mischief.
