Friend teaches drunken driver a lesson

A man charged five times with drunken driving in the United States was tricked into believing he had been in a coma for 10 years as a result of a drunken night behind the wheel. Comedian Tom Mabe from Kentucky set up a fake hospital room and had a fake nurse and doctor talk his friend through the "accident". "I was out drinking. That's all I remember," the friend told the doctor. The doctor replied: "You were in an accident (that) took place in 2013. It is now 2023. You have been in a coma for the past 10 years." Mabe went to the trouble of producing a fake TV news bulletin stating "president Hillary Clinton" was threatening war with Canada. Mabe said he made the video to try to discourage others from drunken driving over the Christmas season.

Steward on drug charges

A former Qantas airline steward charged with importing $200,000 worth of the drug "ice" into Australia faces jail time. Samuel Kaufman, 50, smuggled in the methamphetamine on a business class flight from Los Angeles to Melbourne in March last year, describing the haul as "chocolates" on his crew declaration card. He was later arrested in the car park of his South Yarra, Victoria apartment. Police found eight grams of ice in two packages. Last month the veteran flight attendant was found guilty of importing a marketable quantity of the drug. He was due to be sentenced this weekend.

Paul Walker: Fast to be generous

Hollywood actor Paul Walker, who died in a car crash in Valencia, California on Nov 30, is being remembered as one of Hollywood's true "nice guys". In addition to his good deeds for charitable organizations, for which he sought no publicity, details emerged last week of an incident at a Santa Barbara jewelry store several years ago where Walker anonymously forked out for a $10,000 engagement ring for a soldier and his fiancee who were also in the store at the time. Walker had overheard the soldier, who'd recently returned from his first tour in Iraq, tell his partner that he couldn't afford the ring she had chosen and quietly got the attention of the store manager. The Fast and The Furious actor then told the manager to "put (the ring) on my tab", before leaving the store quietly. When the couple asked who had picked up the tab, the store told them it was an anonymous gift.

Final season for Californication

The US TV show Californication will end after its upcoming season. The Golden Globe-winning comedy-drama show, following the unapologetic hedonistic life of New York author Hank Moody (played by David Duchovny, pictured), returns for its seventh and final season in April, after being pushed back from its regular January debut. This season's guest stars include Michael Imperioli, Roger Howarth and Mercedes Masohn. "With its unique blend of lyricism and excess, Californication has been one of our groundbreaking signature series," Showtime entertainment president David Nevins said. Californication won two Emmy Awards in addition to a Golden Globe awarded to Duchovny in 2008 for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy Series.

Drunken thief's unusual punishment

A thief who stole a nude portrait from a hotel urinal while drunk was ordered by staff to write lines as punishment. The wedding guest was captured on camera walking out of the toilet at the Citizen Hotel in Sacramento, California, with the pricey portrait of a naked lady sitting on a cigar in his bag. Barent Larkin later tracked the inebriated thief down using Google and LinkedIn, and gave him a call. "He sounded legitimately upset about what he did. It was a drunken mistake, one he wished he could take back," Larkin told CBS Sacramento. As punishment, and to avoid police involvement, the thief was ordered to sit down and write over and over: "I will not get drunk at a wedding and go steal the naked picture of a woman on a cigar over the urinal in the Citizen Hotel."

Brothel fears closes Snuggle House

A business in the United States offering clients "therapeutic cuddling" for $60 an hour closed over the weekend, a mere three weeks after opening. Concerns over the legitimacy of the Snuggle House in Madison, Wisconsin, had delayed its official opening for a month. Fears the house could be a front for prostitution re-emerged last week, causing it to close. Alderman Mike Verveer of the 4th District said a number of his constituents approached him with questions about the Snuggle House. Verveer was "a healthy skeptic of their business model. But I was keeping an open mind." He added: "My guess would probably be that they just didn't have the business that they anticipated."

Taxi-taking bandits sentenced

Three members of an armed robbery gang who used taxis to get around London for their heists have been sentenced to jail. Sadiq Bendriss, 20, and Kurrin Bendriss, 19, were sentenced to eight years in jail this week, while Lamin Joof, 21, will serve seven years. A fourth member of the gang is due to be sentenced this week, while a fifth suspect will go on trial early next year for his part in the robberies. Police said the men hailed taxis on three occasions beginning in March of this year to commit gunpoint robberies at hotels and target people on the streets. The men were arrested when a driver contacted police while the men were burglarizing a home.

-Agencies

(China Daily 12/15/2013 page4)