Hard Boiled News

True Crime and News of the Weird from around the Globe

Two People Arrested In Alabama Crab Leg Buffet Brawl

By HardBoiledNews Staff

Chequita Jenkins (l) and John Chapman were busted in the crab-driven clash

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama — The claws really came out in this one.

Two people were arrested after an argument over crab legs at a Chinese all-you-can-eat buffet boiled over into a full-scale rumble, police said.

“There’s a woman who’s beating a man. People are moving around, plates are shattering everywhere,” Huntsville police officer Gerald Johnson who was eating at the restaurant at the time told WHNT-TV.

He said people had been waiting for up to 20 minutes for more crab legs to be brought out at the Meteor Buffet and that all hell broke out once they arrived, with people accusing each other of cutting the line.

“Everyone was saying, ‘They cut me in line. She cut me in line. He cut me in line. I was here first,'” Johnson said.

He added that people began sparring using the buffet table tongs.

“It’s not something you typically hear, if you can imagine a fencing match,” Johnson said.

Police arrested John Chapman and Chequita Jenkins who was eating at the buffet with her kids.

“They’d been waiting there for the crab legs for a good 10, 20 minutes. When they finally came out, it’s very heated. Especially if someone is taking more than their fair share,” Johnson recounted.

Chapman is facing disorderly conduct, Jenkins is charged with third-degree assault. Both people could end up paying a few hundred dollars in fines, well above the $10.58 per plate charge at Meteor Buffet.

 

Speeding Driver Killed in Collision With Elephant on Thailand Road

By HardBoiledNews Staff

The elephant was unmoved after being hit by the car and then stomped the driver to death

NAKHON RATCHASIMA, Thailand — A speeding driver was killed after he hit an elephant that then stomped his pickup flat, police said.

Officials in northeast Thailand said the vehicle plowed into the wild pachyderm’s hind legs as sun set at the edge of the Khao Yai National Park, police said.

The angry animal then reared up and crushed the vehicle, killing the driver, 58-year-old Nakharin Boonchai, the Bangkok Post reported.

“Elephants don’t come out during the day but they start coming out when it gets dark,” said Lt. Col. Kemchat Paedkaew, of the Thai police. He said up to two people a year are killed by elephants in areas surrounding the park.

The accident happened on Wednesday on a small road with signs telling drivers to be aware of wild animals that sometimes stray from the park. Locals reported that two elephants had been crossing the road at the time and that they tried to warn Boonchai — who was not from the area — to slow down, but he hit the rear animal as darkness fell.

This was all that was left of the truck after the elephant was done with it

Officials tracked the stricken elephant, which was bleeding from one of its legs but still able to walk, and were monitoring its condition.

Reward Offered for Capture Of Gunman Who Shot Dolphin in California

By HardBoiledNews Staff

Officials say a necropsy showed the dolphin had been shot to death

MANHATTAN BEACH, California — A dolphin was found shot dead on a California beach, and an animal rescue group has offered a reward for information leading to the killer.

The dolphin’s remains were found on Manhattan Beach about 20 miles south of Los Angeles, El Segundo-based Marine Animal Rescue wrote on Facebook on Friday.

A necropsy later revealed that the sea mammal had been killed by a gunshot wound, the group said.

“There is NO excuse for such brutality against these beautiful animals,” the group wrote.

The organization said it is offering a reward of $5,000 to anyone with information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person who shot the dolphin.

Earlier this year, authorities say an animal shot and killed a pregnant bottlenose dolphin in Mississippi.

At least 24 dolphins have died as a result of being shot with a gun, an arrow or impaled by some sort of object since 2002, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Dolphins are protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972. This prohibits harassing, harming, killing or feeding these animals. Violators can face up to $100,000 in fines and 1 year in jail for each offense.

Cops Apprehend Two Drunk and Disorderly Raccoons in West Virginia

By HardBoiledNews Staff

Turns out the rambunctious raccoons had been hitting the fermented crabapples a bit too hard

MILTON, West Virginia — These critters got drunk as a skunk … well almost.

Police in West Virginia made their strangest drunk and disorderly arrests yet when they picked up two suspected rabid raccoons who turned out just to be drunk.

“Turns out they appear to be drunk on crabapples,” the Milton police department said in a post on its Facebook page.

The masked bandits were apprehended a day apart and in both cases, were later released into the woods unharmed after they’d slept it off. Officers named the second raccoon Dallas.

Cops said residents should exercise caution if their spot wobbly wildlife.

“If you see a staggering and disoriented raccoon please do not approach it. It could be sick so call us and we’ll take care of it,” the department said. “Welcome to Milton Dallas.”

Runaway Elephant Leaves Cops With Big Rescue Job in Tiny New York Town

By HardBoiledNews Staff

Fritha the elephant just wanted to take a little midnight stroll

WESTTOWN, New York — An elephant never forgets … except maybe its way home.

Police in a small town outside of New York City were surprised to receive a call about a plodding pachyderm wandering around the streets late Sunday.

“Never a dull moment in Troop F,” the unit of the New York State Police posted on its Facebook page.

The elephant, a 46-year-old female named Fritha, had escaped from a nearby animal sanctuary where it has lived much of her life. The owners of the Sanctuary for Animals say Fritha hails from Vietnam and came to the U.S. after the Vietnamese War where she suffered burns from a napalm bomb.

The sanctuary says Fritha got away simply because an employee forgot to turn on the electric fence that keeps her in at night.

Other animals at the sanctuary include camels, zebras, horses and cows.

 

78-Year-Old Punches Out Bear in Terrifying Back Yard Attack

By HardBoiledNews Staff

Sonny Pumphrey wasn’t going to take no guff from some bear

WHITE OAK, North Carolina — Really, don’t mess with this guy.

A tough-as-nails 78-year-old punched out a bear that attacked him outside his North Carolina home, suffering only some cuts and bruises before driving the beast off.

Sonny Pumphrey said he was walking down his driveway in White Oak, when the mother beat wandered by with her two cubs. The cubs bolted, but the mother was ready to fight.

“She made a charging dead run at me. That sucker was eyeball-to-eyeball to me,” he told WLOS-TV.

But before it could get to him, Pumphrey says he punched the bear in the nose, casing the creature to duck down and bite his hip.

“She kind of shook me a little bit, and I’m still … I’m hitting her steady on the top of the head just as hard as I could swing, man, for dear life,” he said. “I just continue pounding and pounding and pounding and she’s continuing trying to bite me.

“And like I said, she got a hold of me and then shook me a little bit, then she let go and she took a swat at me. And when she took a swat at me she knocked me about eight feet over on the concrete,” he continued.

Hearing screams, his wife Betty ran outside with their Yorkshire Terrier and was shocked to see her husband trading blows with the angry beast.

“I saw her stand up and rear her paw back and all I seen was a mouthful of teeth,” she said. “And I just knew he was going to be gone.”

But between their dog barking and the two of them yelling, the bear got scared and ran off. Betty then got a shotgun and fired a shot in the woods to make sure the animal didn’t decide to return.

Wildlife officers tracked the bear but were unable to locate it. They say food has been scarce at higher elevations, so bears have been foraging lower.

Pumphrey had to get rabies shots, but was otherwise okay.

“I could have been dead. I could have been really cut up bad,” he said.

“We have a lot to be thankful for because we were both very, very lucky,” Betty said.

4 Hospitalized, Dozens Flee After Pitbull Goes on House Party Rampage

By HardBoiledNews Staff

The prickly pitbull had just been adopted

COLWOOD, Canada — This dog wasn’t in the mood to party.

A Canadian house party ended with four people in the hospital and 13 people having to barricade themselves for safety after a newly-adopted pitbull went berserk, police said.

The pissed off pooch lost its cool after drunken men began rough housing at a British Columbia rager and bumped into the animal, causing it to become aggressive, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said.

Before police could come and restrain the 140-pound beast, 13 people — including children — had to barricade themselves inside a home to get away from the marauding mutt.

Even the dog’s owners sustained serious injuries as they attempted to corral the animal into a bedroom.

Four injured people were taken to hospital for treatment.

One injured and heavily intoxicated man was arrested after removing his shirt and attempting to fight with officers.

Police say the pitbull had been recently adopted by the family as a rescue animal and that a review of the attack and the dog’s history of aggression will be conducted before any decision is made about the animal’s future.

The Ministry of Children and Families were also contacted to review the safety of the children who were at the party but were unharmed in the attack.

 

Drunken Reveler Steals Horse and Nearly Rides Onto Track at Breeders’ Cup

By HardBoiledNews Staff

Saturday’s Breeders’ Cup narrowly avoided an extra horse in the race

LOUISVILLE, Kentucky — And they’re off to jail!

A blustering drunk stumblebum was busted after he climbed onto a horse at Churchill Downs race track and nearly rode on to the track for the Breeders’ Cup.

Cops say Michael Wells-Rody, 24, managed to get into a restricted area on Saturday and rode it out of the tunnel towards the entrance to the track, the Louisville Courier Journal reported.

But before he could get out to the gate, officers spotted him and placed him under arrest

According to the arrest citation, Wells-Rody was “under the influence of alcohol” and was “loud and disorderly” to Churchill Downs staff.

He was charged with alcohol intoxication in a public place and disorderly conduct. He has since been released from Metro Corrections and is scheduled to be arraigned Monday morning.

Michael Wells-Rody

More than 112,000 people attended the Breeders’ Cup World Championships over the weekend, with around 70,000 showing up on Saturday.

Accelerate won the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic.

Elderly Villager Stoned to Death by Rogue Monkeys in India

By HardBoiledNews Staff

The vicious pack of monkeys rained bricks down on the 72-year-old villager

BAGHPAT, India — Monkey see, monkey do, monkey kill!

An elderly villager in India was stoned to death by a pack of furious monkeys who rained bricks down on him from a tree as he collected firewood, authorities said.

Dharampal Singh, 72, was hit on the head and chest by the bricks which the animals had gathered from a nearby dilapidated building. He later died at a hospital.

Family members had filed a formal complaint with police, naming the beasts as Singh’s killers, although, authorities have so far ruled the death an accident.

“Monkeys threw more than 20 bricks at Dharampal on Thursday. He was hit on the head, chest and legs. Thrown from quite a height, the bricks were enough to kill him,” Singh’s brother, Krishnapal Singh, told the Times of India.

“These rogue monkeys are the real culprits and must pay for it. We have written a complaint against the monkeys but police don’t seem to be convinced,” he said.

Villagers say the gang of monkeys have been terrorizing residents for some time, and Singh’s death was not a surprise.

“The attack on Dharampal could be the worst case, but monkeys have made life difficult for villagers here and there doesn’t seem to be any solution in sight,” villager Bheema Kashyap said.

Police say they are aware of the situation, but couldn’t see how it would be possible to charge the creatures with murder.

“How can we register the case against monkeys? This will make us a laughingstock. I don’t think it is a logical demand,” said Officer Chitwan Singh. “We were definitely informed of the bizarre accident and we registered it in our case diary after which a post-mortem was also conducted.”

 

Cow Suit-Wearing Shoplifter Offers to Let Cop Suck Udder to Avoid Arrest

By HardBoiledNews Staff

UDDER MADNESS: Ashley Curry tried to use her teats to get out of a shoplifting bust

PINE BLUFF, Arkansas — Sounds like a case of mad cow disease.

A woman dressed in a black and white cow costume was busted for shoplifting at an Arkansas Walmart and then told the arresting officer he could suck one of the pink udders hanging from the front of her suit.

Pine Bluff police say Ashley Curry, 27, tried to walk off with a pack of Flonase, but was spotted by security officers monitoring the store’s surveillance cameras, because of her not-so inconspicuous outfit, KATV-TV reported.

After being detained, Curry told a cop searching her, that he could “suck a pink cow udder,” as she thrust the nipples dangling from the front of her costume in the officer’s face.

It was unclear if the offer was meant as an insult or a bribe.

Either way, cops charged Curry with shoplifting and resisting arrest.