Man held for stealing toes from dead body exhibit
A New Zealand man stole human toes from a dead body exhibition, officials said. The incident occurred last month when a 28-year-old man visited the Body Worlds Vital exhibition in Auckland on May 4 and allegedly swiped the toes, which were valued at $5,500 each. The man’s name was not released by authorities.
The man has remained in custody and will appear in court on July 2. He faces seven years in prison for stealing the toes and two years for interfering with a dead body.
According to the New Zealand Herald, the Body Worlds Vital exhibition came to New Zealand in April — the first time the long-running exhibition was shown in the country.
(UPI)
Artist emerges alive from three-day burial under road
An Australian performance artist who was buried in a steel container under a busy road for 72 hours as part of a so-called dark arts festival was released from his self-imposed prison on Sunday.
Mike Parr, a 73-year-old performance artist whose creative endeavors typically explore physical limits, was entombed in the mini-shipping container late on Thursday and the road was resealed above him.
Oxygen was pumped into the container where Parr had access to water, reading and writing material, a heater and a distress button in case anything went wrong — but no food. He was equipped with a bucket for sanitary use. The burial act was part of the Dark Mofo Festival on the island state of Tasmania. It was designed to highlight violence perpetrated by colonialists against Aboriginal communities, the festival said on its website.
Dark arts festivals showcase artwork and performances that often celebrate ancient rituals. The festival has attracted controversy for placing inverted red crosses across Hobart, Tasmania’s capital, prompting some Christian groups to denounce the installations as satanic. Parr’s previous performance art included wrapping himself up in fusewire, then setting it alight, and sewing up his face.
(Reuters)
Achilles the cat to predict Russian World Cup results
A deaf white cat named as the official soothsayer of the 2018 World Cup in Russia has predicted the winner of the tournament’s first game on Thursday: Russia, of course. The cat, named Achilles, made the prediction using bowls marked with the competing countries’ flags after some hesitation, ABC News Moscow reported.
Achilles is a blue-eyed resident at the world-famous Hermitage museum for cats in St. Petersburg, Russia. Inside Edition reported the cat makes up for his inability to hear with his psychic perception and intuition. The feline went through intense training at the Cats Republic, a cafe that is part of the museum.
Hermitage veterinarian Anna Kondratyeva told Time Achilles “loves his motherland and couldn’t vote otherwise.” Achilles was also the psychic predictor for last summer’s FIFA Confederations Cup, and showed off his skills by correctly guessing three out of four major matches, including the final match.
Animal psychics have become a traditional feature of World Cup tournaments, with Achilles following Paul the “psychic octopus,” who predicted all eight results of Germany’s national team successfully in a 2010 tournament in South Africa. Paul, who died in 2014, similarly signaled his predictions by choosing between boxes of food lowered in his tank with flags of the opposing teams.
(UPI)
Baby born on French train gets 25 years of free rides
A newborn was granted free train rides for more than two decades after his unexpected birth delayed commuters in France on Monday. France’s RER A line announced the baby boy would be entitled to free transportation throughout its network until his 25th birthday after his mother gave birth on one of its trains.The birth took place around 11 a.m. and disrupted travel on the line for about an hour.
After the baby was safely delivered the mother and child were cared for by paramedics and transferred to the nearest hospital where they were reported to be doing well. “The whole team of the line has addressed her sincere congratulations to the mother and welcomes her little boy,” RER A’s Twitter account stated.
(UPI)
Czech president torches underpants
A fiery stunt by the Czech president has really stunned journalists this time. Milos Zeman announced a press conference for Thursday, but instead of briefing reporters, he had two firefighters in protective gear burn a huge pair of red underpants in front of them.
Czech media said the boxer shorts in question had been hoisted by activists in 2015, replacing the official presidential flag on Prague Castle. The red underwear was meant to symbolise Zeman’s close relationships with Russia and China and has since become a symbol for criticism of his presidency. After the incineration, Zeman told reporters: “I’m sorry to make you look like little idiots, you really don’t deserve it.” Zeman, 72, has often clashed with the press, even waving a fake machine gun at reporters last year.
(AP)