WEIRD NEWS


Eat a Banana in a Video? Go Directly to Jail!

If this had been MTV, singer Shyma probably wouldn't be going to jail. But it's not MTV and it's not America. Shyma lives in Egypt and made the grave mistake of stripping down to her skivvies and provocatively eating a banana in her latest music video. As a result, she was arrested last month and just sentenced to two years in prison on charges of debauchery and publishing an indecent film. Mohamed Gamal, the director of the video, called "I Have Issues," was also sentenced to two years in prison in absentia. In the video, the 20-year-old Shyma appears in her underwear, then noshes on a milk-drizzled banana, licks an apple, and samples cake icing in front of a classroom of mesmerized men. The video got her more than 1 million followers, but then came her arrest. She noted before her arrest in a Facebook post that's since disappeared that she was sorry for her "inappropriate" behavior and "didn't imagine ... that I would be subjected to such a strong attack from everyone." (Newser)

Kim Jong Un is Making a Fortune Off Bitcoin

You've probably heard about Bitcoin's recent meteoric rise in value. What you may not know is that North Korea is a big benefactor - because North Korean hackers have been targeting the successful digital currency in a bid to circumvent the sanctions placed on the country as a result of its nuclear weapons program. Lee Dong-geun, a director with South Korea's internet and security agency, said: "We don't know how much North Korea has stolen so far, but we do know that the police have confirmed the regime's hacking attempts." According to police, North Korean hackers have targeted at least four different exchanges that trade bitcoin and other digital currencies in July and August. Bitcoins are often held in accounts with online exchanges and hackers can easily swap them into more obscure cryptocurrencies before eventually withdrawing them in traditional currencies like dollars. (South China Daily)

Welcome to Anchorage

Last year, police in Anchorage said they were troubled by a mysterious spike in murders. This year has been even worse with a record 35 homicides for the year so far. That's far beyond the usual range of 12 to 24 killings per year. Before 2016, the year with the most homicides in Anchorage was 1995, with 29. Last year it was 34. Anchorage Police Chief Justin Doll said most of the cases involved victims and suspects who knew each other, and were often "involved in criminal activity together." Some 23 of the cases have been closed, meaning a suspect has been charged or the killing was deemed justified. The Anchorage Daily News reports that this year's tally includes two triple killings. In February, an apartment fire that killed three people was determined to be caused by arson. In September, a man who got into an argument with a gold shop owner shot and killed three people. (KTOO)

Matt Lauer Made at Least One Top Ten List
Well Matt Lauer made at least one year-end top ten list. Fast Company has released the top ten of Google's annual "Year in Search" results for the United States. Per the site, the results were culled "based on search terms that had a high spike in traffic in 2017 as compared to 2016." Lauer came in second for the year, beaten only by searches for Hurricane Irma. Here's the top ten:
  1. Hurricane Irma 
  2. Matt Lauer 
  3. Tom Petty 
  4. Super Bowl 
  5. Las Vegas shooting 
  6. Mayweather vs. McGregor fight 
  7. Solar eclipse 
  8. Hurricane Harvey 
  9. Aaron Hernandez 
  10. Fidget spinner 

(Fast Company)

Wanna Go Out to the Shootin' Range?

The problem with shooting ranges is with all those guns around, there's always the chance you'll get shot. In Cypress, Texas, 36-year-old Joshua Cummings had just gotten out of his vehicle and was walking across the parking toward Hot Wells Shooting Range when he was fatally shot. Police say a gun range employee in his early 20s had been cleaning a high-caliber hunting rifle when the gun accidentally discharged and a bullet exited the chamber. The bullet went through the wall of the small range house and struck Cummings. He was flown to a nearby hospital in a helicopter but later died. Homicide detectives are questioning employees but the shooting appears to be accidental. A range employee told reporters, "It's just a terrible tragedy. We simply do not have the words to express the sorrow in our hearts." (KHOU)

Look What Taylor Swift Made Me Do

In Portland, Oregon, 43-year-old Brent Shannon Thicksten stands accused of trying to stab someone with scissors in the downtown area-and he told police that Taylor Swift made him do it. Witnesses told police that Thicksten was acting menacingly toward people in the area. The victim said he feared for his safety and started running away, which is when Thicksten allegedly chased him. The victim ended up with a cut to his lower back but did not need to go to the hospital for treatment. A probable cause affidavit states that Thicksten told officers his wife, Taylor Swift, "told me to kill him." When asked where his wife was, officers said that Thicksten replied "we are one." Based on officer reports, he later stopped answering questions and said he had "top secret clearance." (KATU)


What the What?

In Reading, Pennsylvania, 42-year-old dad Patrick Jason Rossi says he just forgot about his son left in a baby carrier on the sidewalk. But police say when he came back in the cold came back to find the baby, he was under the influence of alcohol. Rossi told police he forgot the baby as he was loading items into a vehicle at his home. Police found the baby left alone and canvassed the neighborhood looking for the parent. About half an hour later, Rossi came back to pick up his son, under the influence of alcohol. He was arrested and charged with endangering the welfare of a child. (Penn Live)

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