News of the Weird: Week of May 12

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They're Lovin' It

Rob and Grace Jones wanted to replace a built-in toilet paper holder in their home in Crystal Lake, Illinois, on April 16, which required them to cut into the wall of their bathroom, NBC New York reported. That's when they came across a most unusual find: a towel containing two McDonald's hamburger wrappers and a full order of french fries inside. Vintage 1959. "We were expecting the worst," Grace said. "I was shielding my kids in case there was any dried blood." More like dried ketchup. "Not a cold case, just some cold fries," she said. "They were very well preserved." Must not be many mice in Crystal Lake.

Questionable Judgment

An American family returning to the United States from a trip to Israel on April 28 set off a chaotic bomb scare at Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv when they tried to take an unexploded artillery shell through a security check, the BBC reported. They had found the shell in the Golan Heights and picked it up as a souvenir; at the airport, a family member pulled it from a backpack and asked if it could be put in a suitcase. The security official called for her immediate area to be cleared, but someone misheard her, and panic ensued. The family members were later questioned and allowed to board their flight.

That's One Way To Do It

As his United Airlines flight taxied to its gate at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport on May 5, one passenger apparently couldn't wait to deplane, WLS-TV reported. So he opened the emergency exit and walked onto the wing, then slid down the wing and onto the runway. The ground crew stopped the man, and he was turned over to law enforcement officers.

Seeing Double ... and More

The Mansfield Independent School District in Texas will celebrate an unusual graduation this year, feting 35 pairs of twins in its senior class, along with one set of triplets. Anthony and Angela Morka are among the twins who will graduate at the end of May, CBS News reported. "Knowing that it's almost over is exciting, but it's also kind of sad," Angela said. "It will definitely be a change because we're not going to be together like we've always been," Anthony added. The district held a special event for the multiples on April 29 at Vernon Newsom Stadium.

Bright Ideas

• Five students at Ponte Vedra High School in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, have been accused in a "senior prank" in which a probable sandbar shark (prohibited from recreational and commercial harvest in Florida state waters, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission) was hoisted over a staircase at the school on May 5, News4Jax reported. "I was going to first period, and there was this massive shark hanging from the ceiling, and it smelled really bad," said Cooper Gottfried, a sophomore at the school. The shark is the school's mascot. The responsible parties may face charges of trespassing, wildlife violations and criminal mischief.
• An unnamed man in Detroit was arrested in late April for illegally possessing guns, but the federal agents who arrived at his home with a search warrant were more interested in how he made a living: He sold marijuana from a vending machine attached to his house, clearing $2,000 a day, he told them. The Associated Press reported that agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives made purchases from the machine to collect evidence before the bust. The man was released on bond.

'Scuse Me

As Pinellas County (Florida) Sheriff's Deputy Todd Brien drove away from St. Pete Beach to check on a 911 hang-up call on May 4, he inadvertently drove over Robin Diffenderfer, a 23-year-old woman sunbathing on her back in the sand, ClickOrlando.com reported. He struck her right side and mid- to upper back area. She was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, and an investigation is ongoing.

Recent Alarming Headline

During a funeral in Lambayeque, Peru, on April 26, pallbearers were stunned to hear knocking coming from within the coffin of Rosa Isabel Cespedes Callaca as they carried it, Metro News reported. They lowered the box to the ground and opened the lid to find that Callaca was weak, but alive, following a serious car accident. Cemetery caretaker Juan Segundo Cajo said that Callaca "opened her eyes and was sweating." She was rushed to a hospital, where she was shown to have faint signs of life, but sadly, she expired a few hours later. Her family members suspect she may have been in a coma following the accident, rather than deceased. Police are now investigating the incident.

Florida OG

Even the retirees are getting crazy in the Sunshine State. On April 24, as Herbert Merritt, 64, walked his dog near the Kings Point golf course in Delray Beach, Robert Levine, 74, drove up in his golf cart and confronted him about walking too close to the course. Next, the victim said, Levine pulled out a handgun and started shooting as Merritt ran away. CBS12-TV reported that Merritt was shot in the ankle, causing him to fall, but Levine couldn't leave it there; he kicked Merritt in the head, then retrieved a golf club from his cart and hit him with it several times. Levine is being held on attempted first-degree murder charges along with aggravated battery and discharging a firearm in public.

Welcome Home!

After a trip to Sacramento, Gary and Patti Reitemeyer returned to their home in Redding, California, on April 22 to a most unwelcome surprise: hundreds of swallows that had apparently entered their home through the chimney, KRCR-TV reported. A neighbor had noticed a few birds earlier when he stopped by to feed the cat, but the numbers had increased dramatically by the time the couple got home. "We open the door and it's like an Alfred Hitchcock movie," Gary said. "It was crazy. We were ducking and dodging." They called a restoration company to help clean the house, as it was uninhabitable. "All of the furniture is gone, all of the carpet is gone, the blinds are gone," Gary said. Sadly, their homeowner's insurance won't cover the damage from the bizarre incident.

Don't Make Me Dance

Police who arrested Amy Ann Harrington, 38, after she rear-ended a car on April 28 in Madeira Beach, Florida, suspected she was driving under the influence, so they attempted to do field sobriety tests with her, The Smoking Gun reported. They asked her to do a one-leg stand and walk and turn, but instead, Harrington broke into "multiple ballet and Irish folk dance moves," according to the arrest report. Harrington also refused to take a breath test; she was charged with DUI and booked into the county jail.

Creme de la Weird

Harry Matadeen, 34, from Hampshire, England, has a wellness tip to share with the world: He drinks his own urine, and what's more, he rubs it on his face. Metro News reported that Matadeen claims his habit, begun in 2016, keeps him looking young and has cured his depression. "I felt a new sense of peace, calm and determination," he said of his 200ml-per-day dose. The skin therapy keeps his face "young, soft and glowing." Matadeen calls urine an "acquired taste," but says that "fresh urine is never as bad as you imagine -- it is neutral-smelling and not a bad taste unless you are really toxic." His family doesn't approve, and his sister has ceased talking to him.

Send your weird news items with subject line WEIRD NEWS to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com.

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