"THE LOUDMOUTH YOU LOVE TO HATE!"
Twenty-five-year-old Chinese office worker Tufei says her boyfriend has everything she could ask for in a romantic partner: he's kind, empathetic, and sometimes they talk for hours. Except he isn't real. Her "boyfriend" is a chatbot on an app called "Glow," an artificial intelligence platform created by Shanghai start-up MiniMax that is part of a blossoming industry in China offering friendly-even romantic-human-robot relations. "He knows how to talk to women better than a real man," said Tufei, from Xi'an in northern China, who declined to give her full name. "He comforts me when I have period pain. I confide in him about my problems at work," she told AFP. "I feel like I'm in a romantic relationship." The app is free-the company has other paid content-and Chinese trade publications have reported daily downloads of Glow's app in the thousands in recent weeks. Some Chinese tech companies have run into trouble in the past for the illegal use of users' data but, despite the risks, users say they are driven by a desire for companionship because China's fast pace of life and urban isolation make loneliness an issue for many. (TechXplore)
After an Uber Eats driver was arrested in Florham Park last month, an officer decided to complete the food delivery -- but was surprised at the customer who was behind the door. Officer Mike Zvolensky was on routine patrol on Jan. 21 when he stopped a car around 8:30 p.m. on Felch Road. Police say a random plate inquiry showed the driver had an outstanding warrant. The 60-year-old driver was arrested when it was determined she had a $1,000 bail traffic warrant out of Denville Municipal Court. Officer Alex Tredy didn't want the Uber Eats customers to go hungry, so decided to complete the McDonald's food delivery. Tredy didn't know it at the time, but it turns out that customer waiting for the food ended up being Nicole Snooki Polizzi's husband Jionni LaValle. "He was definitely surprised but he understood the situation, and was very thankful of the kind act that we did," Tredy said. After officers arrested the Uber Eats driver, they parked her car at the Florham Park Memorial First Aid Squad so it wouldn't get towed. "If we can take that extra step and give them that sense of peace and dignity and respect, we're always going to take that," Zvolensky said. (ABC 7)
Tesla owners have been reminded to keep their eyes on the road after videos of drivers wearing Apple's virtual reality headset have gone viral. US Secretary for Transport Pete Buttigieg posted on X (formerly Twitter) to say that all current vehicles require the driver to be engaged "at all times." However, one driver admitted his video was a prank. Videos posted online show people in the drivers seats of cars which have an autonomous mode, while wearing the Apple headset over their eyes. Another video, posted on the day the Apple Vision Pro became publicly available, showed a man appearing to get pulled over by the police while wearing the headset in a Tesla. However, Gizmodo reports that he said it was a "skit" he made with friends, reporting that he "drove with the headset for 30-40 seconds." Apple's user guide warns against using its headset while driving, while Tesla says drivers should always "maintain control and responsibility for your vehicle," even when it is in autonomous mode. (BBC)
Police in Missouri shared body camera footage from the moment officers investigating a possible home invasion came face-to-face with the perpetrator -- a squirrel. The Liberty Police Department posted body camera footage to Facebook showing officers entering a home where an intrusion alarm was triggered. "Noises could be heard coming from inside of the home," the post said. "Officers entered the house. Noises continued." The video shows an officer with his gun drawn locating the suspect. "Oh, it's right there, it's a squirrel," the officer said. The officer lets out a loud scream when the squirrel startles him by breaking into a run. A wanted poster at the end of the video states "Rocky the squirrel" remains at large. "Approach with extreme caution," the poster states. (UPI)
A US Customs and Border Protection dog sniffed out something unusual in luggage from a traveler returning from Africa-mummified monkeys. After the K9 directed his handler to a specific piece of luggage, the passenger, who was returning from a visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo, reported the luggage contained dried fish. An X-ray didn't reveal anything unusual, but a physical inspection at Boston Logan Airport revealed dead and dehydrated bodies of four monkeys, agents said. The traveler said he brought the monkeys into the US for his own consumption. Raw or minimally processed meat from wild animals, sometimes referred to as "bushmeat," is banned in the US because of the threat of disease. "The potential dangers posed by bringing bushmeat into the United States are real. Bushmeat can carry germs that can cause illness, including the Ebola virus," said Julio Caravia, local port director for Customs and Border Protection. The incident happened last month but was made public on Friday. Bissette said Sunday that no charges were filed but all of the luggage was seized and the nearly 9 pounds of bushmeat were marked for destruction by US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Newser)
In a late-night defensive action, a homeowner used a muzzleloader rifle to critically wound an intruder during an attempted break-in. The incident took place just after 11:30 p.m., when the homeowner encountered three armed individuals attempting to force entry into his residence through a locked door. Reacting to the imminent threat, the homeowner opened the door and fired his muzzleloader rifle at one of the intruders, effectively stopping the attempted break-in. The wounded suspect was found in a neighboring yard and subsequently transported to a medical center, where he was listed in critical condition. The other two suspects fled the scene before law enforcement arrived. Vermont State Police have been actively investigating the case, executing a search warrant at the residence, conducting interviews, and following various leads. The homeowner has been cooperating with the investigation. As of now, no arrests have been made in connection with the incident. This event underscores the critical importance of home security and the potential role of firearms in protecting yourself and loved ones. Muzzleloader rifles, often associated with historical reenactments or hunting, are not commonly cited in modern home defense scenarios, making this incident particularly noteworthy. It also highlights the unpredictable nature of home invasions and the split-second decisions homeowners may be forced to make in the face of danger. (USA Carry)
A new owner renovating a home in White Settlement, Texas was shocked to discover a hand grenade inside the walls. White Settlement police, White Settlement fire and Fort Worth fire were called to the home. Streets were blocked off as crews came to investigate. The Fort Worth Fire Department eventually determined the device did not contain any explosive material. (Fox 4)
A man in New Zealand who burnt down his house by attempting to cook a steak in a toaster is unsatisfied with the insurance payout he received - and is also upset the Insurance and Financial Services Ombudsman (IFSO) didn't uphold his complaint. The man decided he wanted steak and chips for dinner and made the unusual decision to put his steak in the toaster. He left it to cook while he went down the road to buy some chips from the local fish-and-chip shop. A fire broke out, causing significant damage to the home he and his partner shared. Despite their insurer accepting their claim and offering $418,000 - the maximum amount that could be paid under the couple's policy - the couple felt the sum was not not sufficient and would not be enough to replace their home. (NewsHub)
A reporter who was fired for his standup comedy has been reinstated to his job at a Philadelphia-based public radio station through an arbitrator, who agreed that his jokes were, in some part, funny.Jad Sleiman, 34, is to be fully reinstated to his position with WHYY, a Philadelphia-based NPR station, after an arbitrator determined that, while the bits posted to social media could be interpreted as "inflammatory," the organization "rushed to judgment" in its decision to terminate him.In a phone call Friday, Sleiman said he felt vindicated by the decision and plans to return to work. "When a news organization says you're a racist, bigot, whatever, people believe them," he said. "So it was a lot of abuse from a lot of people who have never met me, who've never seen my stand-up just saw what WHYY said about me, which is not great." (ABC News)
It may be the season of loving and giving, but doctors have warned against embracing this spirit too enthusiastically - at least where sexual relations are concerned. They have discovered that the Christmas period is associated with a significantly increased risk of penile fractures - a medical emergency in which the erection-producing regions of the penis snap, usually as a result of forceful bending during over-enthusiastic intimacy. The fractures are often heralded by an audible crack, followed by severe pain, rapid loss of erection and severe swelling and bruising. Suspecting that the intimacy and euphoria of the festive season might be a risk factor for this type of injury, researchers examined hospital data for 3,421 men who sustained penile fractures in Germany between 2005 and 2021. The study - the first to explore seasonal patterns for this type of injury - found that such injuries were indeed more common over Christmas. In fact, the lead author stated, if every day was like Christmas, 43 percent more penile fractures would have occurred in Germany from 2005 on. (The Guardian)
A pair of multicolored briefs peeking out above a robbery suspect's low-slung trousers helped police arrest him more than a year later, federal authorities in New York said Wednesday. The robbery happened at a tobacco shop in Queens on Sept. 14, 2022. Three masked men got out of a Mazda and entered the store, according to a complaint filed in federal court last week. Two of the men pointed guns at employees and customers while the third emptied the cash register and grabbed merchandise and employees' cellphones. Surveillance videos that were disseminated through the media showed the third robber wearing brightly colored briefs with a large letter R in white and the year 1990 in yellow. An anonymous tipster passed along the Instagram handle of the suspect with the colorful underwear, the complaint said. The caller also told police that the robbers had tried to sell their stolen merchandise at another Queens location. Detectives reviewed video footage from the sale location and spotted the man with the colorful underwear, now easily identifiable because he was no longer wearing a mask. Police identified the suspect based on his Instagram account, the video from the merchandise sale spot and photos from prior arrests. (AP News)
Riverdale, Georgia, police are looking for a woman who they say pretended to be a Waffle House employee and got away with cash. Investigators say the woman worked two hours at the restaurant before opening the cash register and stealing an undetermined amount of money. Officials shared a surveillance photo of the woman, who was seen wearing the chain's trademark hat. (Fox 5)
A man caused an explosion at his home in the southern Japanese city of Kumamoto after spraying a large amount of insecticide to kill a cockroach. A balcony window broke as a result, and the man suffered some minor injuries. Investigations revealed burn marks near a "kotatsu" heating table, which is a low table with a special futon placed over it. An electric heater is usually attached underneath. They are believed to be ignited by sprayed insecticides coming into contact with electrical outlets or other sources. Spraying pesticides at electrical outlets can damage them and consequently injure people, according to several pest removal companies. Many sprays contain flammable ingredients, including alcohol. They also contain propellants such as propane and butane, which help push the liquid insecticide out of the can and into the air. If a room contains the right mixture of these propellant gases and oxygen, an explosion might occur. (Straits Times)
A man who reportedly confessed to robbing a bank in Canton, Ohio, miswrote his demand note to the tellers because he was too high. Charging documents filed Monday by an FBI agent accused him of giving the bank teller a note with the words "give me the" with the word "gun" written below it. Hampton then pointed to his waistband several times while telling the employee to hurry up. The bank teller handed over $723 in cash plus a tracking device. Police used that tracker to arrest Hampton and recover the cash. Hampton, the agent wrote, confessed on a video-recorded interview to robbing the bank after smoking crack. Hampton reportedly said he forgot to write the word "money" after writing "give me the" because he was high. The getaway driver was someone he met at the grocery store and promised to pay $50 to drive him just before he robbed the bank. According to court documents, police said, "the vehicle was casually driving away without rush, including stopping at traffic lights." The FBI agent noted that Hampton did not wear a mask or try to conceal his identity. (WCHS TV)
A car thief put a damper on the plans of three robbery suspects in Commerce City, Colorado, Saturday after stealing the trio's getaway car. The three masked suspects are accused of robbing Hi Lo Check Cashing in the 7200 block of Monaco Street just before 11 a.m. But when they came outside to make a clean getaway, their vehicle was nowhere to be found. Police said a fourth criminal stole the vehicle while the suspects were inside. Police believe the getaway car was a stolen vehicle before it was stolen by the fourth perpetrator. Two of the three robbery suspects were apprehended shortly after the incident, police said. The third suspect remains on the run. The fourth criminal is also at large. (Denver 7)
A man arrested for murder a week before he was to graduate high school in 2011, and later convicted of the crime, has had that conviction thrown out after the eyewitness who testified against him turned out to be legally blind. Darien Harris was just 18 when he was taken into custody, accused in the shooting death of Rondell Moore in Chicago. He was convicted in a 2014 bench trial that largely centered around the testimony of Dexter Saffold, who claimed to have seen Harris shoot Moore at a gas station. When he appeared on the stand, Saffold denied having vision problems. "I was trying to tell the people all this time, he's lying, he's lying," Harris, now 30, tells CBS News. In 2019, Harris alerted CBS to medical records attached to a 2003 federal disability lawsuit filed by Saffold that stated he is legally blind and had been for more than a decade before he claimed to have witnessed the shooting. An attached doctor's note said he had markedly reduced vision, especially at night. Interviewed in 2019, Saffold confirmed he had "glaucoma due to an eye disease." "Justice is supposed to be blind. The eyewitness is not supposed to be blind," says Harris' attorney, Lauren Myerscough-Mueller of the Exoneration Project. "The reason that it's such a big deal, I think, is that that was the main evidence against Darien," who was sentenced to 76 years in prison, she adds, per CBS. "There was never any forensics tying him to the crime." Saffold told CBS that authorities never knew he was legally blind so "they didn't do anything wrong." But in an interview before the 2014 trial, Saffold told an assistant Cook County state's attorney that he had glaucoma. A Cook County judge granted Harris' request to vacate his conviction last week. He was transferred out of Menard Correctional Center but remains in custody at Cook County Jail as prosecutors plan to retry the case. Harris' family maintains that he was at home watching the NBA playoffs at the time of the shooting. (Newser)
An Atlanta man says he had to pay more than $1,100 in ransom to get his dog back after he used the popular app, Rover, to hire a pet sitter. After he paid the ransom, Rover then kicked the dog owner off the platform and refused to refund his money until Channel 2 consumer investigator Justin Gray got involved. Garcia booked a pet sitter through Rover in October for his energetic rescue dog Boi while he was going to be out of town on a Caribbean cruise. But after the first day, the sitter claimed Boi bit a family member and demanded money for medical bills. Garcia said while Boi has never been aggressive, he was willing to pay, but he asked for proof of medical bills and invoices. "When I asked for the invoices, he started getting very defensive and saying that if he's going to provide them, that the rate is going to double," Garcia said. The pet sitter never provided any documents or bills. He just sent a text message with a tally of charges including questionable numbers like a $104 ambulance ride. Garcia said the pet sitter demanded money be paid through CashApp. Garcia instead paid the ransom through the Rover portal, after he said he got no help from Rover customer support. Garcia told Gray that Rover would not help, and instead kicked him off the platform for what it called violations of its terms of use. That's when he called Channel 2 Action News. After the investigative reporter contacted Rover, they returned all of the $1,100 Garcia had paid the pet sitter and removed the pet sitter from the Rover platform. Rover told Channel 2 Action News in a statement: "We're happy that Boi is home with Mr. Garcia Barreto. We understand what a difficult experience he had and are issuing him a full refund. While extremely rare, when a safety incident occurs, we will take appropriate actions including removing users from our platform." A Rover spokesperson said that "this experience is truly unusual." Rover said over 500,000 services have been booked in the Atlanta area, with over 97 percent of reviews receiving 5 stars. (WSB-TV)
A Texas high school basketball player, upset that he was benched and facing suspension, allegedly pummeled his coach during a postgame parking lot beatdown, officials said Tuesday. The 17-year-old player and his 22-year-old brother were booked on suspicion of assaulting a public servant before each posted a $20,000 bond and being released. Hours before the alleged Dec. 5 assault, about 50 miles north of Houston, the player had been taken out of Willis' game at Conroe High School for arguing with an opponent and referees, according to his coach. Clark, 37, said he wanted the 17-year-old to cool off but the player angrily told an assistant coach and his teammates not to speak to him, leading to the benching. The team returned to its campus and got dressed in their locker room before Clark was confronted by the player and his brother in the parking lot. When the player was told he'd be suspended, that's when he and his brother started punching. The alleged assault stunned Clark, who said he had a good relationship with the player. "I've had this kid over to my house, I've mentored this kid, I've reached out to love this kid," Clark said. "And just because I took a disciplinary action - because I try to run this program with integrity, dignity and respect - you turn on me like that?" The attack left Clark with a black eye and scratches on his face, neck shoulder and elbow. Clark said he doesn't regret any of his actions. (NBC News)
A Taiwanese man was arrested at Thailand's Suvarnabhumi Airport on Dec. 5 after he was caught by customs officers trying to smuggle two otters and a prairie dog onto a Taipei-bound flight. The 22-year-old man reportedly first put the small animals into his pantyhose and secured the bound pouches around his waist with packing tape. His odd behavior and visible bulges in his pants caught the attention of officers as he was walking through an X-ray machine at a security checkpoint. (Taiwan News)
A Florida woman who earned the sympathy of her community after reporting that her kids' Christmas gifts were stolen out of her home has been arrested for falsely reporting that crime. 39-year-old Shana Hudson, according to a Facebook post by the Lee County Sheriff's Office, had called in a supposed burglary at her Lehigh Acres home on Nov. 19. The detectives who were investigating the case felt especially sorry that, in addition to other items, Hudson's gifts to her kids had apparently been taken, and so they took the time to reach out to the American Legion and the sheriff's office's "Shop With a Cop" program to arrange for new gifts for Hudson's children. However, an anonymous tip to the local Crime Stoppers busted Hudson-information received in that call led cops to uncover that she'd lied about what had happened, and the "stolen" gifts were soon found stashed at a relative's home, per the Facebook post. Hudson was charged with fraud in the form of a false report to law enforcement. "This Grinch will have plenty of time to think twice about stealing Christmas," the sheriff's office notes in its post, which shows a video of someone dressed in a Grinch costume at the scene of Hudson's arrest. (Newser)
The Forsyth, Georgia, County Sheriff's Office arrested the 'Grinch', who stole more than just packages. According to the sheriff's office, several residents reported that packages were stolen from their front porches. On Thursday, deputies conducted a traffic stop on a car matching the alleged porch pirate in the same location where a theft had just occurred and been reported. Dashcam video shows the moment, deputies arrested 20-year-old Tanaka Mangadze of Cumming. The video also shows where open boxes from addresses across Forsyth County and surrounding counties were found in the back seat. Merchandise worth hundreds of dollars was recovered in the car's trunk, authorities said. Before he could steal all the holiday spirit, Mangadze was taken to the Forsyth County Jail. "To all the Grinches (criminal individuals) that think their cute little masks will obstruct their identity, we see you. Sheriff Freeman says, if you are planning to be a porch pirate in Forsyth County, be prepared to walk our plank right into the Freeman Hotel! We have ZERO tolerance for your foolishness," the sheriff's office wrote.
Hours before a massive explosion destroyed a duplex and shook a Virginia suburb of Washington, DC, a suspect inside his home fired a flare gun 30 to 40 times into the neighborhood, drawing a large police response. The preliminary investigation showed that a suspect discharged the flare gun from inside his home, but no property damage or injuries were reported. While police investigated, they obtained a search warrant for the home and tried to make contact with the suspect by telephone and loudspeakers, but he remained inside without responding, police said. As officers tried to execute the warrant, police said the suspect discharged several rounds from what's believed to be a firearm inside the home and, subsequently, around 8:30pm, there was an explosion, shooting flames and debris into the air. All officers escaped serious injury, but it was unclear what happened to the suspect, who was inside when it was leveled by the explosion Monday night. Police don't have any evidence that others were in the duplex but can't rule out the possibility. (Newser)
An influencer who staged a California plane crash to make a YouTube video of himself parachuting to safety was sentenced Monday to six months in federal prison for obstructing the investigation by destroying the wreckage, according to the US Justice Department. Trevor Daniel Jacob, 30, an experienced pilot and skydiver, pleaded guilty in June to one count of destruction and concealment with the intent to obstruct a federal investigation. The video titled "I Crashed My Airplane" appeared in December 2021 and purported to show Jacob's small plane have engine failure over the mountainous Los Padres National Forest in Santa Barbara County. Already wearing a parachute, he jumped out with a selfie stick camera in hand. His jump and the aircraft's plunge were recorded by cameras mounted on the plane's wing and tail and by the camera he carried. After landing, he hiked to the crash site and recovered video from the onboard cameras. Jacob and a friend flew to the site in a helicopter that was used to lift the wreckage and fly it to a trailer attached to his pickup truck. The plane was later cut up, and the parts were disposed of in trash bins. (Newser)
Police in the small Italian village of Vastogirardi were stumped-someone kept slashing the tires of cars parked near the village center. Undercover officers failed to spot the culprit, but newly installed cameras managed to do so last week: The slasher is a dog named Billy. "It has been very puzzling, as we couldn't work out who could possibly be going around cutting tires, or what the motive would be," said deputy mayor Remo Scocchera. Police have not speculated about the aforementioned motive, but vets say Billy might have some kind of mouth ailment that caused him to chomp tires to relieve discomfort. No details were provided on what type of dog Billy is, but his owner will likely have to pay for the damage. (Newser)
A Paraguayan government official has been replaced after it was revealed that he signed a memorandum of understanding with representatives of a fugitive Indian guru's fictional country, who also appear to have duped several other officials in the South American country. Arnaldo Chamorro was replaced as chief of staff for Paraguay's agriculture ministry on Wednesday shortly after it was revealed that he signed a "proclamation" with representatives of the United States of Kailasa. On Kailasa's website, the fictional country is described as the "revival of the ancient enlightened Hindu civilizational nation which is being revived by displaced Hindus from around the world." It is led by a self-styled guru, Nithyananda, who is wanted in India on several charges, including sexual assault. His whereabouts are unknown. (The Guardian)
Visitors to Red Lobster this summer and fall might have wondered how the chain was able to sell all-you-can eat shrimp for $20 every day and still turn a profit. It turns out that they couldn't. Red Lobster made "Ultimate Endless Shrimp," which used to be a Monday-only deal, a permanent menu fixture in June but it was more popular than the chain expected, leading to an $11 million third-quarter loss. The plan was to boost traffic to the chain's restaurants during the second half of the year, when they tend to be quieter. It worked to some extent-traffic was up 4% year-on-year-but the 670-restaurant chain hoped more customers would pick different menu items. Red Lobster didn't take the promotion off the menu after its unexpected popularity, but it raised the price to $22, then $25. (Newser)
Barton Lewis Seltmann, 84, has been arrested for the homicide of his wife, 85-year-old Margaret Seltmann, as stated in court documents. Mr. Seltmann called 911 call to report "an unresponsive female. He added that the woman was "bleeding from the head" and their home was "ransacked," according to the criminal complaint. The police arrived to find Mr. Seltmann "on the rear porch, with blood on his hands, face and clothing," as stated in the release. Mrs. Seltmann was found dead on the kitchen floor, the DA explained. Shards of broken glass from a candle jar were found near her body and a small black kitchen knife was found under her. Mr. Seltmann was taken to Pottstown Hospital with a hand injury. An autopsy revealed Mrs. Seltmann died of blunt force traumas to her head and the manner was ruled a homicide by the Montgomery County Coroner's Office. Detectives found that Margaret and Barton Seltmann were arguing about money for veterinary care of their cat when the fight turned physical. Evidence found on scene indicated that the victim was struck multiple times in the head while lying on the kitchen floor. After Barton Seltmann was released from the hospital he was arrested by Pottsgrove Township police. He's been remanded to the Montgomery County Correctional Facility as homicide is a non-bailable offense according to Pennsylvania state law. (Daily Voice)