Neil Hopper, 49, a vascular surgeon from Truro, England, has been the subject of a 2 1/2-year investigation after he allegedly tried to defraud two insurance companies, The Guardian reported on July 23. Devon and Cornwall police said that in 2019 he "made a false representation to insurers, namely the injuries to his legs were the result of sepsis and were not self-inflicted." Hopper is accused of amputating his own legs in the scheme, hoping to gain $320,000 from one company and $314,000 from the other. Before his legal problems, he was shortlisted in the European Space Agency's search for an astronaut with a disability. He was scheduled to reappear in court on Aug. 26. [Guardian, 7/23/2025]

Saw That Coming

Or not. Several victims reported on July 19 that they had been subjected to an involuntary "golden shower" at The Landing in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Smoking Gun reported that 30-year-old Matthew Day "entered the rooftop bar ... and urinated from the balcony onto the sidewalk," according to police, with urine striking people on the ground. Security officers saw the incident and showed Day the door; he was charged with disorderly conduct and released on $500 bond. [The Smoking Gun, 7/21/2025]

The Tech Revolution

The South Florida Water Management District is working with the University of Florida to develop a new strategy for managing invasive pythons in the Everglades, WFLA-TV reported on July 23. Solar-powered toy bunnies that emit heat and are equipped with cameras are alerting staff to python activity, which sends them out to capture and euthanize the snakes. The district said it is "committed to protecting this delicate ecosystem." [WFLA, 7/23/2025]

Clothing Optional

A couple in Oklahoma City were startled by a "big, fat, naked, crazy guy" entering their home around 6 p.m. on July 21, KFOR-TV reported. Homeowner Blake Overstreet said the perp, Korey Sisco, was 6-feet-2 and 400 pounds. When Overstreet and his wife pointed a gun at him, Sisco exited through the back door and skipped to the neighborhood pond, where he jumped in. "It was very strange," Overstreet said. He noted the pond is full of snakes and snapping turtles. Sisco lingered in the pond for about an hour until police coaxed him out. [KFOR, 7/23/2025]

Fashion Faux Paw

For more than a year, Natasha Lavoie of British Columbia has been receiving phone calls about her missing cat, Torbo, United Press International reported. Problem is, her cat's name is Mauser and is very much not missing. The mix-up mystery was finally traced to a T-shirt sold by Wisdumb NY, which features a lost cat poster that includes Lavoie's phone number. Wisdumb NY said the shirt is no longer available and the "use of a real number within the art created was not intentional." But Lavoie doesn't want to change her number. "I've had my number for 20 years," she said. "I'll just keep not answering." [UPI, 7/18/2025]

News You Can Use

-- For five days every summer, a flotilla of rowboats is unleashed on the River Thames in London, where carefully selected, scarlet-coated oarsmen are tasked with Swan Upping -- a census of the swans, the Associated Press reported. These swans belong to the Lord of the Swans, otherwise known as King Charles III, and they must be marked and checked for disease or injury. Veteran King's Swan Marker David Barber sees the ritual as more than tradition: "I think it's serving a very useful purpose. It gives us an indication of what's going on throughout the country." The census dates back to the 12th century, when swans were important food sources for royal banquets. [AP, 7/14/2025]

-- The National Police Agency in Japan is urgently warning parents and others about a "Real Gimmick Mini Revolver" found among the prizes in claw machines around the country, Oddity Central reported. The plastic toy, which comes with eight plastic bullets, reportedly can also fire real bullets. Sixteen thousand of the toys have been imported from China since December; the added danger is that shooting a live bullet could cause the plastic firearm to blow up in the shooter's hand. [Oddity Central, 7/23/2025]

Truth Is Stranger Than Netflix

On July 19, 36-year-old Stephen Blasetti allegedly stole a boat and took it for a joyride on the Hudson River in New York, WABC-TV reported. Blasetti, notably, wasn't wearing any clothes when he committed the theft, for which he was charged with grand larceny, criminal possession of stolen property and reckless endangerment. He was admitted to New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia in New York for a psychiatric evaluation, but early on July 23, Blasetti slipped out of his handcuffs as the police officer guarding him slept, borrowed a doctor's lab coat and left the hospital. He was last seen on surveillance video walking down a sidewalk, barefooted. [WABC, 7/23/2025]

It's Come to This

At the Ryde Hotel in California, Fox5 Atlanta reported, peacocks and peahens are part of the appeal as they wander about the property. But on July 20, after a guest reported seeing two men loading one of the birds into a cage in a pickup truck bed, the hotel's general manager, David Nielsen, initiated a count of the flock, realizing that only four of about 15 remained. "We're not sure why anyone would do anything like this," he said -- but the male birds are valued at about $2,000 and the females at $1,000. The colorful birds have become tame and like pets to the staff of the hotel. Police are depending on tips from the public to locate the animals. [Fox5 Atlanta, 7/23/2025]

Ewwwww!

Leanna Coy, a flight attendant based in Connecticut, couldn't help but share the yuck factor after she made a discovery on the floor of a plane, the New York Post reported on July 24. "Those are toenails," she captioned a TikTok post. "The passenger clipped their toenails mid-flight and left them." Commenters had no empathy for the long-in-the-toenail flyer: "No-fly list!" said one. "What dirtbag did this?" asked another. [NY Post, 7/24/2025]

Great Art

People magazine reported on July 24 that 33-year-old Jane Labowitch of Maryland is making a living, and a name for herself, with her Etch-a-Sketch art. Labowitch's subjects include Russia's St. Basil's Cathedral and Grant Wood's "American Gothic." She said when she was little, her grandmother wouldn't let her watch TV as much as she wanted, so with her Etch-a-Sketch, she just "started from staircases." She hopes the classic toy "isn't going anywhere. I think that it's got a lot left to give the world." [People, 7/24/2025]

Suspicions Confirmed

On July 23 in Tallahassee, Florida, police took a famous mouse into custody: Chuck E. Cheese. The Tallahassee Democrat reported that Mr. Cheese, aka Jermell Jones, had been fingered as the person who stole a patron's credit card in June and made fraudulent purchases with it. When police arrived at the famous restaurant, Jones, wearing his giant costume mouse head, was handcuffed and escorted out the front door in front of patrons young and old. Officers found the stolen credit card in his possession. [Tallahassee Democrat, 7/24/2025]

Former Texan Derek Huffman, along with his wife, DeAnna, and three children, moved to Russia earlier this year looking for "traditional values," the Kyiv Post reported on July 15. Derek was hoping for a job with the Russian military as a welder, but with no prior military experience and after just a few weeks of training, he's being sent to the front lines in Russia's war with Ukraine. The Huffmans don't speak or understand Russian, either. "I don't want anyone here in Russia to say that we don't belong here, so if I go put my body on the line for Russia ... I've earned our place here," Derek said on the family's YouTube channel. "Now we are just believing in God that everything is going to work out as it is supposed to," DeAnna added. She also said Derek had to "donate" 10,000 rubles for his supplies and that he hasn't received any pay or bonuses after one month. [Kyiv Post, 7/15/2025]

The Continuing Crisis

Carlos Abundez, 35, of San Ysidro, California, couldn't really explain to a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agent on June 25 how 14 keel-billed toucans got into the dashboard of his Volkswagen Passat, The New York Times reported. Customs and Border Protection officers were alerted to the strange cargo when one of their dogs picked up a scent; the threatened birds appeared to be sedated, and some of them were injured. Abundez said he had left his temporary home in Tijuana, Mexico, to get McDonald's in the U.S. He claimed his car had been parked and locked in his driveway overnight. On July 7, he was charged with smuggling and illegal importation and was released on $10,000 bond. [NY Times, 7/11/2025]

No Good Deed

A 21-year-old man suffered non-life-threatening injuries on July 6 when he tried to direct a shark back into the sea in Nantucket, Massachusetts. According to the Nantucket Current, the man had been fishing and caught the sandbar shark, which he and others were trying to pull by its tail back into deeper waters. But when he released the animal, it turned and bit him on the leg before swimming away. Beachgoers watched and recorded video as the incident unfolded. A friend took the injured man to the hospital, and he was later transported by helicopter to a mainland hospital. [Nantucket Current, 7/6/2025]

The Weirdo-American Community

Big Country News reported on July 15 that the Ada County (Idaho) Sheriff's Office is asking for the public's help in identifying a rogue booty-slapper in and around south Boise. The perp, who rides an electric dirt bike, typically approaches women and slaps or grabs their buttocks as he rides by. He's described as a white male wearing dark clothing, a ski mask and gloves. [Big Country News, 7/15/2025]

Is That Wrong?

Soccer player Lamine Yamal, forward for Barcelona, hosted a party to celebrate his 18th birthday on July 13 at a rented country house in Olivella, Spain, The Athletic reported. Media gathered outside caught glimpses not only of celebrity guests, but also of a group of people with dwarfism who were seen entering the house, which sparked an investigation by Spain's Ministry of Social Rights and condemnation from the Association of People With Achondroplasia and Other Skeletal Dysplasias (ADEE). But on July 14, Catalan radio station RAC1 aired an interview with one of the people from the party, who downplayed the controversy. "We are only asking they let us work," they said. "We are normal people, self-employed and do everything legally. ... In the show that we offer, we go to the place and dance with the people, we deliver shots and drinks ... we do magic tricks. ... I've never experienced a lack of respect ... while working so far. With all this criticism what (the ADEE is) doing is screwing with our jobs." [The Athletic, 7/14/2025]

Police Report

On July 12, Los Angeles County Sheriff's officers were responding to a call when an assault rifle and 150 rounds of ammunition apparently fell out of their car's trunk, KTLA-TV reported. Officers searched and retraced the car's route but were unable to locate the weapon and ammo. But on July 14, a resident of Lennox, California, returned the items to the South Los Angeles Station after having found them the same evening. "Their actions are a powerful reminder of the vital role our residents play in helping keep our neighborhoods safe," said Capt. Nicole Palomino. [KTLA, 7/14/2025]

That Bugs Me

Restoration workers at the 1,000-year-old Pannonhalma Archabbey in Hungary are busy removing 100,000 books from the abbey's library in an effort to save them from beetles, the Associated Press reported. The drugstore or bread beetle feasts on the gelatin and starch-based adhesives found in books. "This is an advanced infestation," said Zsofia Edit Hajdu, chief restorer on the project. "We've never encountered such a degree of infection before." [AP, 7/13/2025]

Awesome!

Workers digging a 2-inch-wide, 750-foot-deep hole in a parking lot at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science hit a "hole in one from the moon," said James Hagadorn, the curator of geology. The Associated Press reported on July 10 that the bore was intended to help them study geothermal heating potential for the museum, but what the core revealed was a dinosaur bone fossil -- probably from an ornithopod, which lived in the Cretaceous period. "I would love to dig a 763-foot hole in the parking lot to excavate that dinosaur, the rest of it," said Hagadorn. "But I don't think that's going to fly because we really need parking." [AP, 7/10/2025]

Bright Ideas

-- Client Services in Japan provides many conveniences, Oddity Central reported on July 15, but one of the most popular is "OK Grandma." Through this service, people can "rent" a woman between the ages of 60 and 94 for 3,300 yen per hour. Some of the grannies cook for their clients, while others babysit or employ their beautiful handwriting skills. "I want to break up with my boyfriend," said one client, "but I can't tell him clearly, so I want my grandmother to come with me." Another client hired a grandmother to fill out their family's side of a wedding. [Oddity Central, 7/15/2025]

-- The poor Brits, sizzling in summer heat and desperately looking for solutions. The BBC reported on July 12 that two scientists from Loughborough University in England had tested a hypothesis: Will yogurt smeared on the windows of a home help it stay cooler? "We've started to look at shading solutions, stopping sun getting into your house during the day," said Ben Roberts. Evidently they've not heard of blinds and shades, but it turns out their experiment was successful: The indoor temperature of the house with yogurt spread on the windows was up to 3.5 degrees Celsius cooler than the control home. Roberts said the yogurt stinks for "30 minutes while drying" but the smell dissipates. He said the results surprised him. "It shows the importance of treating windows and heat shielding solutions for windows to reduce overheating," he said. [BBC, 7/12/2025]

Max McKinney, 15, of Spooner, Wisconsin, thought he was "working hard and doing the right thing" when he built a charming fishing bait stand on his family's farmland, AgWeb reported on July 8. From the wooden 6-by-15-foot shed, McKinney sold bait, sodas and candy to anglers heading to Spooner Lake nearby. But Washburn County zoning officials shut him down after the second weekend of sales with a cease-and-desist order. McKinney's grandfather, Tom Foss, gave him his blessing to build the stand. "We encouraged Max. My grandson ... is the kind of kid this country needs more of. Who threatens a 15-year-old over selling ice cream, worms and T-shirts?" he said. "The answer is bullies and bureaucrats." McKinney has three other jobs; "I want to be a doctor in the future, and I'm willing to work hard and save money any way I can." County zoning administrator Dale Beers said no officials visited the stand or spoke with McKinney before or after the violation was issued. "Age does not matter to our ordinances," he said. Foss filed a formal complaint in person but said "officials were defensive right away. Their response was, 'Our decision is final.' People should be disgusted by this because it doesn't pass the smell test." [AgWeb, 7/8/2025]

Bright Idea

Looking to get a little more classical music in your life? Just wander over the line while driving in Fujairah in the UAE and listen to the stirring sounds of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, courtesy of the Fujairah Fine Arts Academy. The Associated Press reported on July 7 that when drivers hit the grooves in the road, the best-known parts of the composition are played -- especially at 60mph, when the tune is just right. Academy director Ali Obaid Al Hefaiti said the project is "focused on spreading the art culture. The combination of music in our lives and our normal lives," he said. He believes it is the first "singing shoulder" in the Arab world. [AP, 7/7/2025]

Latest Religious Messages

After Trista Lawson of St. Louis rear-ended a pickup truck on July 8, she allegedly told Spring Township, Pennsylvania, police that she was "listening to the voice of God," WJAC-TV reported. Lawson was driving her Mazda sedan in Pleasant Gap at 100mph when she hit the truck, which sent it crashing into the front of a local smoke shop. Lawson had reportedly also hit multiple other vehicles before the truck. She was charged with accidents involving occupied vehicles or structures and drug-related charges, and bail was set at $25,000. [WJAC, 7/8/2025]

The Passing Parade

Patrick Winslow of Big Torch Key, Florida, celebrated his 57th birthday on July 4 in style, WPLG-TV reported. Around 11:30 a.m., Winslow drove to the Conch Tour Train Depot in Key West and left his car running, with rock music blaring from the radio. He told employees there that he used to work for the company and asked for a tour of the train. But then he got into one of the trains and took off; the employees were "confused," thinking maybe he had permission to drive the train. They were able to track Winslow with GPS; police found him at Southernmost Point Buoy, where they said he "exhibited rapid speech and appeared excited." Winslow said he just "borrowed" the train because it was his birthday. Then they found a methamphetamine pipe in his pocket and charged him with burglary, grand theft auto and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was held on $60,000 bond. [WPLG, 7/7/2025]

Unclear on the Concept

Here's a little tip for Jesse Laurence Hale, 46, of Hyrum, Utah: Don't make a kiddie porn pic your lock screen. Hale was a patient at Logan Regional Hospital last week; when he checked out, he forgot his mobile phone, the Cache Valley Daily reported. On July 3, staff at the hospital contacted Logan City Police to say that they'd seen a pornographic photo of a young child on the screen. On July 7, Hale went to the police to inquire about the phone; he said the photo had been sent to him and he hadn't deleted it. Hale told officers it would be "nice to pay a fine or take a class" rather than going to jail, where he claimed he wouldn't survive. With a search warrant, police found 19 more child sexual abuse photos in the phone and arrested him on felony charges.He asked them not to tell his mom. He's being held without bail. [Cache Valley Daily, 7/8/2025]

It's Come to This

Changchun Xidu FC, a soccer club in China's League Two, was fined $4,100 for an incident on June 28, The New York Times reported. The Chinese Professional Football League said the team had "placed a number of feudal superstitious items in the away team's dressing room" before its match with Shanxi Chongde Ronghai. The paper charms were printed with such threats as "By decree, Shanxi Chongde Ronghai must be defeated." And evidently, it worked: Changchun Xidu won the match 2-0. [New York Times, 7/6/2025]

Pawesome!

An unnamed man hiking the Fee Glacier in Switzerland on July 4 suddenly broke through a snow bridge and fell 26 feet into a narrow crevasse, the Associated Press reported. He had a walkie-talkie and reached someone nearby, who alerted emergency responders, but his exact location was unknown. Luckily for him, his companion was his long-haired Chihuahua, who paced patiently near the edge of the hole, where rescuers eventually saw him. They were able to rappel down the crevasse and bring the man out; he and his canine savior were flown to a hospital. "The dog is a four-legged hero who may have saved his master's life in a life-threatening situation," gushed a statement from Air Zermatt, the rescue company. [AP, 7/8/2025]

Smooth Reaction

A crafty Canadian wasn't going to let a damaged vehicle strand him in Strathcona Provincial Park in British Columbia, Canada, the Times Colonist reported. The unnamed man had started his hike on June 30, but he took a wrong turn in his 2000 Chevrolet Cavalier, and it became stuck. But using his problem-solving skills (and various car parts), he built a two-wheeled wagon to carry his gear as he hiked for four days to a trailhead. From there, he caught a water taxi and got a lift to the Alberni Valley Rescue Squad headquarters on July 7. Search manager Richard Johns said he was impressed with the hiker's "perseverance and survival mentality," then ticked off the things he did wrong: no GPS or satellite phone, no 4-wheel-drive. Still, the squad found his appearance a "welcome surprise." [Times Colonist, 7/9/2025]

The Tech Revolution

At U.S. Army bases, there's a new tool in warding off problematic wildlife, such as birds, KPVI-TV reported on July 10. The Army's Engineer Research and Development Center has created an unmanned ground system: large plastic coyotes mounted to wheeled bases. "It all comes down to scare tactics," said ERDC. Research continues to incorporate artificial intelligence and machine learning. What could go wrong? Roadrunner is watching. [KPVI, 7/10/2025]

Saw That Coming

On July 5, a family from Paris left on holiday, headed to Morocco, Oddity Central reported. But during a 4:30 a.m. stop at a gas station, the 62-year-old man drove off without his wife -- and didn't realize it until about 190 miles later. The unnamed Parisian called emergency services but couldn't remember which gas station he had stopped at. The couple's 22-year-old daughter couldn't help, as she'd been sleeping the whole time. Fortunately, by tracking her phone, police were able to locate the woman, who hadn't left the gas station since being abandoned. They were reunited and continued on their trip with a good story to tell. [Oddity Central, 7/9/2025]