Melinda Frye Toney, 44, of Oak Hill, West Virginia, was charged with wanton endangerment on Aug. 22 for brandishing a pistol in the parking lot of the New Life Apostolic Church on May 11. It seems Melinda, wife of Pastor Earl Toney, and Lori Haywood, 29, wife of Youth Pastor David Haywood, had an ongoing conflict, according to a police spokesman. Fayette County Sheriff's Detective Kevin Willis told the Register-Herald of Beckley, West Virginia, that the "straw that broke the camel's back" was an argument over a T-shirt Lori Haywood wore to a church event. The two couples met at the church that day to try to hash out the wives' differences, but, said Willis, "(I)t just made it worse, I think." Melinda Toney left the meeting and went to her car, where she retrieved her firearm. When Pastor Earl moved to stop his wife, the gun discharged. Det. Willis confirmed that Melinda Toney had a concealed weapon permit. [Register-Herald, 8/28/2019]

Serving the Public

The Sharonville, Ohio, police department found a way to turn a resident's misconceptions about marijuana laws in Hamilton County into a teaching moment on Sept. 3. The department posted on its Facebook page a recording of a call received on Aug. 25 from "Mr. Marilyn Manson," who complained that "two Sharonville cops ... stole my f-ing weed last night." The angry man insisted that anything "under 100 grams is cool, right?" but was, in fact, wrong. (It is legal to possess up to 100 grams of marijuana in the city of Cincinnati, but that law does not cover the entire county -- including Sharonville.) The officers who confiscated the weed were arresting the man's wife, whom he identified as Marilyn Manson during the call, when they found the contraband in her purse. In a second call to police, the caller also complained that the officers had taken his carryout order from Red Lobster. "It was a fresh meal of Cajun f-ing pasta!" he ranted. Fox19 reported that a police supervisor later met with the man to clarify the laws about marijuana and explain what had happened to his dinner. [Fox19, 9/7/2019]

Repeat Offender

Police in Wilton, Connecticut, told WVIT they scored a two-fer on Sept. 7, thanks to 64-year-old Ellen Needleman-O'Neill. The woman was arrested that afternoon after a caller alerted police of a driver who hit a parked car in a parking lot. Officers conducted field sobriety tests, which they said Needleman-O'Neill failed, and she was charged with operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, along with possession of a controlled substance (for the Tylenol 3 found in her bag). Police released her, but hours later she was seen driving away from a liquor store in her car. Officers stopped her again and found her to still be under the influence, they said. Police also said they learned Needleman-O'Neill didn't have a valid driver's license, hadn't registered her vehicle, and had lost her right to drive after the first offense earlier in the day. She was charged with additional crimes and is scheduled for two court appearances on Sept. 17. [WVIT, 9/9/2019]

Police Report

A Texas motorcyclist with the memorable nickname "Baby Jesus" taunted Blue Mound police on Aug. 10 as they tried to pull him over. Police posted dashcam video of Jesus Sebastian Gomez doing wheelies and standing on his motorcycle while weaving in and out of traffic, eventually getting away from officers. Fox News reported that witnesses viewing the video helped identify the rider, and police issued a statement urging Gomez to turn himself in. "(Y)ou need to come speak with us regarding this incident or we can come to you. (We could have a come to 'Baby Jesus' meeting)," they offered. Gomez surrendered to the Tarrant County Sheriff's Office on Sept. 4 and was charged with evading arrest. [Fox News, 9/6/2019]

What's in a Name?

Rep. Raul Ruiz, 47, a California Democrat representing the 36th Congressional District, may face an unusual opponent in the November 2020 election: GOP candidate Raul Ruiz, 57, a construction contractor. "I want to give the citizens another option," challenger Ruiz told Politico. "I'll say this. I had the name first." [Politico, 9/5/2019]

Least Competent Criminal

Gary Lambe, 54, made the job of the Toronto (Canada) Police Service easier on Aug. 23 when he allegedly made a photocopy of his face during a break-in at a commercial property there. Police said the suspect "ate some food items" and created the picture of his face -- which he left behind. Fox News reported that police eventually arrested Lambe, who was already in custody for an unrelated incident, and charged him with breaking and entering and failing to comply with probation. [Fox News, 9/9/2019]

Most Competent Criminal

Yusuke Taniguchi, 34, a shopping mall clerk in Koto City, Japan, was arrested earlier this year for using his superpower -- a photographic memory -- for apparent evil. According to police, Taniguchi was able to memorize more than 1,300 numbers from credit cards as people used them at his shop register, SoraNews reported. He admitted to investigators that he would remember the name, card number, expiration date and security code, then write the information down as the customer walked away, later using the accounts to make online purchases of items he would then sell. Police, who tracked him to his address by using orders for two expensive handbags, found a notebook with hundreds of accounts listed. [SoraNews, 9/7/2019]

Weird Science

-- In the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, 74-year-old Mangayamma Yaramati gave birth to twin girls on Sept. 5. Yaramati and her 82-year-old husband had wanted children for years, but they had been unable to conceive. "We tried many times and saw numerous doctors," Yaramati said. "So this is the happiest time of my life." The Washington Post reported that Yaramati had already gone through menopause, so a donor's egg was fertilized with her husband's sperm, then implanted in her uterus. Her doctors, who claimed she is the oldest person in the world to give birth, delivered the twins via cesarean section. [Washington Post, 9/6/2019]

-- Residents of Kaysville, Utah, have reported two incidents when a drone has approached them, identified itself as belonging to the Kaysville Police Department and issued directions to them. On Sept. 8, a drone told people walking on the campus of Davis Technical College to evacuate, although it didn't specify why. Earlier, a couple walking their dog were followed by a drone that told them to take their dog inside, Kaysville police officer Alexis Benson told Fox 13. Benson said even if the department owned a drone (which it doesn't), it wouldn't use it to issue evacuations or make commands. She also warned that impersonating the police is a crime. [Fox 13, 9/9/2019]

Wait, What?

New for 2019, Mattel is releasing a Dia de los Muertos Barbie. That's right, Day of the Dead Barbie, celebrating the traditional Mexican holiday honoring ancestors. She arrives wearing a full-length embroidered dress and traditional skull-like face-painting representing the dead. Dia de los Muertos is celebrated from Oct. 31 through Nov. 2, and the doll's designer told ABC7 he wants to expand awareness about the holiday. [ABC7, 9/10/2019]

The Continuing Crisis

The SC-Club, a nightclub in Nantes, France, is celebrating its fifth anniversary with a new attraction -- robot pole dancers. The bots will wear high heels and sport a CCTV camera for a head, along with mannequin parts overlaid on their robot bodies, reported Sky News on Sept. 1. The camera/head is designed to "play with the notion of voyeurism," designer Giles Walker explained. Club owner Laurent Roue assured patrons the robots won't replace his 10 human dancers. [Sky News, 9/1/2019]

Bright Idea

The town of Porthcawl, Wales, is fighting back against the misuse of its public toilets by installing high-tech loos with water jets that will spray users who are smoking or taking drugs -- or having sex. Sky News reported on Aug. 17 that the new stalls will have weight-sensitive floors to make sure only one person is using the facilities at a time, and the walls will be graffiti-resistant. There will also be a time limit to discourage overnight campers. [Sky News, 8/17/2019]

A Whataburger location in Bastrop, Texas, was the scene of a gruesome plunge to an oily demise on Aug. 31. As customers waited in line at the counter, the Austin American-Statesman reported, kitchen workers tried to catch a mouse scampering across the food prep counter. A customer captured the scene on video as the mouse, fleeing a person trying to trap it, leapt into a fryer full of hot grease. On the video, an employee can be heard asking, "Who else needs a refund?" The video was posted to Facebook, prompting Whataburger to comment that the location had been closed and "the entire restaurant has since been cleaned and sanitized." [Austin American-Statesman, 9/3/2019]

Mysterious

Police in Hamilton Township, New Jersey, say an unnamed 80-year-old woman snoozed right through an apparent carjacking on Aug. 28 -- even though she was in the car. The victim told police she had fallen asleep in her car, parked in her driveway, around 9 p.m. that evening. She called police around 4 a.m. to say she woke up on the driveway and her car was gone, but she had no recollection of how she got there, the New York Daily News reported. Police observed a fresh abrasion and bruise on her face. The car was recovered later that day in Trenton, but the search is still on for suspects. [Daily News, 8/30/2019]

Bright Ideas

-- In the Mexican state of Tlaxcala, high school instructor Luis Juarez Texis inflamed the ire of parents when he made students wear cardboard boxes (with cut-out eye holes) on their heads as they took an exam in order to deter cheating. Parents are calling for Texis' removal, OddityCentral reported, saying the boxes amounted to "acts of humiliation, physical, emotional and psychological violence." Others, however, applauded Texis' idea, with one saying the boxes "teach them a great lesson." Texis told reporters the students consented to the anti-cheating method. [OddityCentral, 9/2/2019]

-- A graffiti artist in Frankston, Australia, has been painting the Melbourne suburb purple with a message to someone named Chris, saying "u need 2 talk 2 me B4 baby is born, or don't bother after," according to a July 30 report from the Australian Broadcasting Corp. The messages have appeared on several public spaces, such as sidewalks and the sides of buildings. Frankston Mayor Michael O'Reilly said the city council "would encourage those involved to consider more constructive, and less illegal ways of communicating in the future. ... I hope Chris and this mystery person can work through their issues." [ABC, 7/30/2019]

Inexplicable

Uber driver Yasser Hadi of Atlanta was going about his business, dropping off a fare on Aug. 25, when a woman "came out of nowhere, threatened to kill him, and then violently bit him," Fox5 News reported. Hadi told the station: "She's acting weird, she's acting wild, and she's on the car hitting it, telling me I need to die...." Next the woman climbed inside the car, and scratched and bit Hadi as he tried to pull her out. "I said, 'God, just let her take my flesh, I don't care.' I want her to go away from me," Hadi said. Later, Atlanta police arrested 26-year-old Tasheena Campbell, who already had a warrant for an assault charge, for battery and criminal trespass. But Hadi is left with a damaged car, medical expenses and no insurance. "She's hit me in my job, my health and my financial pocket money. It's hard," he explained. [Fox5, 9/1/2019]

Awesome!

For her Aug. 10 wedding in Omaha, Nebraska, Deanna Adams, 40, told her bridesmaids, including her sister and maid of honor, Christina Meador, they could wear "anything" they'd be comfortable in. So after carefully considering several options, Meador chose her outfit: an inflatable T. rex costume. As the bride and her groom took their vows, Meador towered over them, delicately clutching her bouquet of sunflowers and, no doubt, shedding a few dinosaur tears. Meador, 38, told Adams ahead of time that she would wear the costume, according to the Omaha World-Herald, giving Adams a chance to shut the idea down, but her sister didn't balk. In fact, Adams defended the choice on Facebook: "It's a giant middle finger at spending thousands of dollars and putting ungodly amounts of pressure on ourselves ... The point was to get married to the man who treats me like I hung the moon, and we did that part." [Omaha World-Herald, 9/5/2019]

Crime Report

Izaebela Kolano, 49, of Nutley, New Jersey, pulled a fast one on Costco employees in two stores on Sept. 1, police said. Kolano first visited a Costco in Wayne, New Jersey, where she allegedly stole a $2,000 diamond ring. Then, authorities say, she went to a store in nearby Clifton, where she asked to see a $28,000 diamond ring -- and handed back the $2,000 ring, which was similar. Costco employees didn't notice the switcharoo until Kolano was out of the building, the Associated Press reported. Police found Kolano at home, and eventually recovered the ring. Kolano was charged with theft. [Associated Press, 9/4/2019]

News You Can Use

In Jacksonville, Florida, as Hurricane Dorian approached on Sept. 3, Patrick Eldridge became concerned that his Smart car would "blow away." So he proposed to his wife, Jessica, that he park it in their kitchen. (Her car was already in the garage.) She doubted he could do it, but "he opened the double doors and had it in. I was amazed that it could fit," Jessica told the Associated Press. She said there was still room to move around and cook, but "my dogs are confused by it." Dorian narrowly missed Jacksonville as it moved up the East Coast. [Associated Press, 9/5/2019]

Least Competent Criminals

If you're going to commit a crime, go all in, we always say. But two unidentified crooks in the Bronx, New York, went to great lengths Sept. 2 to rob a Little Caesar's pizza shop and took ... a pizza, police said. Video shows one thief holding open the drive-through window, the New York Post reported, as the other crawled in on his belly, but workers rushed to push him back out. Changing tactics, the two then entered through the front door, threatened workers with a knife, and made off with a $23 pizza order. "They did all that just for pizza?" a police source told the paper. Chances are, the evidence is long gone. [NY Post, 9/5/2019]

Irony

The former Spearmint Rhino Gentleman's Club in Trenton, Wisconsin, has found an unlikely new life as the Ozaukee Christian School, opening on Sept. 16, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. Kris Austin, the school's administrator, said the stripper pole had been removed, along with the leopard-print carpet, but the stage and bar are still there, and the building is still owned by the Spearmint Rhino chain, based in California. It's an arrangement school leaders have had to come to terms with. "Our take on it is that people are people," said school board president David Swartz. "We're sinners, too. Even though we don't agree with their business model per se. ... Now we're going to transfer that place into a place where boys and girls are raised to be our next leaders with character." [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 3/29/2019]

Ow! Ow! Ow!

Jamie Quinlan, 12, of Louth, Lincolnshire, England, was bouncing on a trampoline in his friend's backyard in early September when a spring broke off and lodged in the boy's back. Jamie's dad, Ian, rushed him to Sheffield Children's Hospital, where surgeons removed the spring. "It took them about 10 minutes to actually get the spring out of my back," Jamie told Sky News. "The doctors said they had never heard of something like this happening with a trampoline." He said he didn't realize the piece of metal had entered his back, but "All my friends looked shocked." [Sky News, 9/5/2019]

Jacob Pina, 20, of Westport, Massachusetts, can't explain his physical oddity, but that's not stopping him from firmly grasping his 15 minutes of fame. Pina, recently dubbed "Thumb Boy," unveiled his unusually long (5 inches) right thumb on the TikTok app on Aug. 24, reported Metro News. "There's no reason it's so big just an anomaly," Pina posted. "I feel great about it. It's always great to be different and embrace your own essence." Pina has gained 145,000 followers on the app -- and he's never lost a thumb war. [Metro News, 8/29/2019]

Desperate Housewife

The Botox RN MD Spa in Sugar Land, Texas, was the scene of a breaking-and-entering caught on camera on Aug. 23, but police are still looking for the slim, youthful-looking culprit. Surveillance video shows a woman testing the locked doors of the spa that evening, the Associated Press reported, then returning in a Mercedes SUV with a battery-powered grinding saw. After cutting through the clinic's front door, she took an undisclosed amount of anti-aging products and drove away.

Weird Science

A day of fishing on Lake Champlain became more memorable than most when Debbie Geddes of Plattsburgh, New York, reeled in a trout worthy of a social media storm: It had two mouths. Geddes and her husband were fishing in mid-August when the unusual catch took the bait, WPTZ reported. Geddes' co-worker Adam Facteau posted pictures to Facebook and said he's heard many theories about what caused the fish's deformity -- including that it's an offspring of the lake's famed monster, Champy. Geddes threw the trout back after snapping some photos. [WPTZ, 8/21/2019]

Cuteness Overload

About a dozen service dogs in Ontario, Canada, took in a performance of "Billy Elliot: The Musical" in August as part of their training through the K-9 Country Inn Working Service Dogs organization. When the actors took their curtain call, nary a whimper or a quiet woof could be heard -- music to the ears of head trainer Laura MacKenzie. During such a performance, dogs are trained to sit under the seat or at their handler's feet, but MacKenzie told CNN that a few of the dogs peeked over the seats to see the action on stage. Dogs are also exposed to subways, zoos and crowded fairs during their training. [CNN, 8/20/2019]

Ewwwww!

Firefighters near Estacada, Oregon, rescued a woman on Aug. 20 who had been trapped in a septic tank on her rural property, possibly for two or three days. The unidentified woman, who lives alone, couldn't alert neighbors of her predicament because they live out of shouting range. Her daughter found her after becoming concerned when she was unable to reach her mother for four days. Firefighters told KATU that work appeared to be being done on the tank -- a hole had been dug exposing the tank, which had a rusted 2-by-2-foot hole in its lid. The woman had apparently fallen through the hole and was lying in sewage, with her face just above the surface, when rescuers got to her. They did not see any visible injuries on her, but she was transported to a hospital in Portland. [KATU, 8/22/2019]

Crime Report

-- Nicholas Redmond, 32, of Philadelphia, had a productive August as an employee of Macy's at the King of Prussia Mall in Pennsylvania. Not because he sold a lot of merchandise, but because, according to police, he told them he stole about $12,000 in cash from the retailer. His run came to a halt on Aug. 25 when a security system alerted police to an intruder in the store. Around 4:30 a.m., authorities found Redmond hiding in the first-floor ceiling, clutching $7,000. Upper Merion Township police Lt. Brendan Brazunas told WPVI his officers "were very shocked ... they just couldn't believe somebody had gone up to that length to hide from them." Redmond was arraigned and held in jail, failing to post a $10,000 cash bond. [WPVI, 8/26/2019]

-- A Pennsylvania state appellate court has ruled against Stephen Kirchner, who was convicted in a lower court for disorderly conduct in 2018 for pointing his finger like a gun at a neighbor. In June of that year, KDKA reported, Kirchner was walking past a neighbor's home in Manor, Pennsylvania, when the neighbor made an obscene gesture with his hand. Kirchner responded by making a shooting gun gesture with his own hand. A witness called 911, and the unnamed neighbor told police he felt "extremely threatened." Kirchner argued that his gesture was not a hazard, but the appeals court disagreed. [KDKA, 8/29/2019]

Weird Fetish

Sebring, Florida, resident Gary Van Ryswyk, 74, has been charged with practicing medicine without a license following a bizarre incident at his home. According to the arrest report, Highlands County Sheriff's deputies responding to a 911 hang-up call on Aug. 18 were told by Van Ryswyk he had just removed the testicles of a man he'd met on a "website for those who have a fetish for castration." Officers found a 53-year-old man from the Tampa area lying on a bed, holding a towel to his groin, with said body parts in a jar nearby, BuzzFeed reported. The victim was flown to Tampa for medical treatment. Police also found a surgery room set up in the house with medical equipment and a camera to record the procedures. Investigators said Van Ryswyk told them he had bought painkillers from England and admitted to performing the surgery on at least one other man and on bulls and other animals while living on a farm growing up. He also said he removed one of his own testicles in 2012. But his most recent procedure went wrong when the "patient" bled profusely, making it difficult for Van Ryswyk to suture the wounds. For now, he's facing second-degree felony charges and a $250,000 bond. [BuzzFeed, 8/20/2019]

Anger Management

In Hudson, Florida, Pasco County deputies arrested 46-year-old Keith Mounts on a felony aggravated assault charge after he allegedly threatened an unnamed man with a machete. A sheriff's office spokesperson said the two men were at the victim's home on Aug. 24 when Mounts used the bathroom and "didn't flush, and when the victim called him on it, the suspect threatened" to "chop" him, according to Newsweek. The arrest report said officers found the machete in the yard, and Mounts told them he was using it to defend himself, but he couldn't say from what. He did provide a written statement saying simply, "S--t happened." Touche! [Newsweek, 8/27/2019]

Bright Idea

If you've experienced one (or more) flat tires in Sherburne County, Minnesota, over the last few weeks, News of the Weird is now able to tell you why. Jeffrey Scot Caouette, 63, of Elk River admitted to authorities in late August that he had purchased 55 pounds of sheetrock screws (that's more than 12,000 screws) and scattered them on local roads to "slow down" a person he believed was in a relationship with his ex-girlfriend. Specifically, KSTP reported, he put the screws on the road where he believed the man lived and on the roads between that house and the ex-girlfriend's house, among others. The arrest complaint notes that Big Lake police have received more than 100 reports of damage from the screws, including to three of their own vehicles. Caouette was charged with first-degree property damage. [KSTP, 8/28/2019]

Great Art!

In downtown Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, someone left a plate of macaroni and cheese, complete with fork, sitting atop a steel road barrier on Aug. 27, which caught the interest of a Reddit poster. No one knew where it came from or if someone would be back to retrieve it, but a day later an anonymous citizen made it into an art installation, reported CTV News, by adding a museum-like tag beside it. "Abandoned Snack (2019) -- Macaroni and sundried tomato on ceramic -- Unknown Artist," reads the placard. Christie's, are you listening? [CTV, 8/28/2019]