SIDELINES...

WASHOUT

Burglar Terry Huntley, 45, stole a laptop and other items from a neighbour while they quarantined elsewhere, but on return they noticed furniture had been moved and that there were clothes in the washing machine. DNA on the clothes led police to Huntley who was also charged with the burglary of a second empty house. Sun, 2 July 2021.

OWN GOAL

Daniel Burrell complained to police about a foul smell in his flat and on investigation they found Barrington Davis dead in the flat below, where he had clearly been lying for some weeks. Forensic investigation revealed that Davis had been stabbed 16 times and DNA found under his fingernails was identified as belonging to Burrell, who was charged with Davis’s murder. Sun, 15 July 2021.

POSSESSED

Truck driver Mohinder Singh claimed he was possessed after being arrested for mowing down four police officers in Melbourne, Australia. Singh, who also admitted to being sleep deprived, said that, prior to the accident, he had also smoked a variety of methamphetamine known as ice with a woman called Glenys Nannup, who claimed to be a “good witch”, and had been possessed as a result. Queensland Courier Mail, 21 May 2021.

PREDESTINED

In Florida, police arrested a woman for drink-driving after she slammed her car into a Taco Bell sign, then fled. Once they caught up with her, the name of the miscreant turned out to be Tanisha Booze. D.Mirror, 3 July 2021.

TITANIC DISASTER

Three visitors to an attraction in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, which claims to be the world’s largest Titanic museum, were taken to hospital with serious injuries after an iceberg collapsed and fell on them. The attraction, which contains over 400 artefacts from the shipwreck, including some of the ship’s china and a battered deckchair, closed immediately after the incident and said it would take “at least four weeks” to rebuild the iceberg, which was made of real ice. belfastlive.co.uk, 3 Aug 2021.