News Of The Weird

Compiled and Ridiculed by Joel Frady

Sleeping shooter
A 24-year-old man in Northport, Ala., took home safety to the extreme - he would sleep with his 40-caliber pistol. But the habit turned painful on Wednesday, April 29, when the pistol discharged and the bullet hit him in the shoulder during his sleep.

Authorities said that the wound was not life-threatening and that the shooting has been ruled an accident. They offered advice to the man, however, saying that he should "consider leaving the firearm on his nightstand, switching to a baton or simply being less paranoid."

Jellybean burglar
Police in North East, Pa., are having a tough time understanding the motive behind a recent breaking and entering that occurred on Friday, May 1. Police said that a burglar broke a front door window, entered the house and stole jellybeans from the dining room table. But according to the homeowner, nothing else was missing.

Sgt, Mark Zaleski said that they are not sure whether the thief only wanted the jellybeans, but noted that it wouldn't be the first time that the desire for buttered popcorn-flavored Jelly Bellies has led to a felony.

Raider's blunder
A thief in Oakland, Calif., thought he was just stealing the two passenger-side tires off a state-owned Toyota Camry hybrid last week. California Attorney General Jerry Brown made a statement about the incident - on his Facebook page.

"Even though I am California's 'top cop,' 2 of my tires were stolen. No matter. I got 2 new ones and I'm rolling again!" he wrote.

Oakland Police Sgt. Rich Vierra said no arrests have been made in the case. Many are also wondering whether or not Brown is worried about the case at all, especially after his last Facebook post: We're going 2 town hall 2 jump in the fountain. Who's with me?

Disappearing act
Officials in the township of Winfield, Penn., were faced with an odd problem in early April after a few signs began disappearing. It started on April 6, and within 48 hours all of the towns 40 road signs were missing.

Township supervisor Glenn Nagle said that he assumes the thefts were a prank since the signs aren't worth much on the scrap metal market. The incident cost the town approximately $4,000, or about $100 for each aluminum sign.

Nagle noted that the motive behind the theft is still a mystery.

"I understand going after a sign with your name, favorite sports club or a Beatles song title on it," he said. "But South Third Street? Nobody wants that sign!"

Pudding vandal
Police in Bethlehem, Penn., arrested a man accused of three apartment burglaries. In each case, the man reportedly entered the apartments and vandalized them with spray paint, chocolate pudding and chocolate syrup.

It wasn't hard for the police to identify the suspect, either: they found him with silver spray paint and chocolate syrup on his hands and clothes. The man admitted to the burglaries, in which he spray painted graffiti on the walls and smeared the pudding on syrup on the floors. He added that he didn't break into the apartments, but was helped by another man who broke into the apartments to let him in.

One officer said they don't expect to find an accomplice in the case, however, "because it's highly improbable there's more than one person with the urge to smear chocolate on other people's rug like a two-year-old."