Dateline: RwandaAfrican soccer officials have been forced to outlaw the use of witchcraft over fears that players have been using it to gain an unfair advantage in recent soccer matches. In a December game between Rwandan Premier League teams Mukura Victory and Rayon Sports, a player apparently performed a ritual in the middle of the game and within minutes scored a goal. Video footage of the match appears to show Rayon’s striker Moussa Camara, whose team was losing 1 to 0, missing a goal by hitting the bar. He then races up to the goal and leans a small object—believed to be a magical talisman—against the goal post. He is then chased away by an angry goalkeeper from Mukura. But when the game restarts, Camara scores a goal, evening up the score. Any player who now takes part in witchcraft during a game will be fined 100,000 Rwandan Francs (about $122) and be suspended for three matches. If a team is found to be involved in the spellcasting, it could lose three points and be fined 500,000 RWF ($600). “In FERWAFA [Federation Rwandaise de Football Association] statutes we don’t have any law punishing the use of witchcraft because there is nowhere in the world where it has been proven that it can influence the outcome of a game,” FERWAFA Vice President Vedaste Kayiranga told the U.K.’s Mirror newspaper. “However, with the violence between players because of allegations that one team is using it, we have decided to enact laws.” Despite the alleged use of witchcraft, the game between Muruka Victory and Rayon Sports ended in a 1-1 tie. Dateline: CanadaA man from Regina, Saskatchewan has been sent to jail after stealing a wheelbarrow full of potato chips. According to the Telegraph Sun, 54-year-old Wayne Robert Curle was caught on camera on Aug. 17 taking large boxes of chips from a truck at a warehouse and loading them into a wheelbarrow. Curle reportedly took the wheelbarrow back to his home where police “found chips all over the residence.” In addition to the stolen snacks, Curle also faced unrelated mischief and shoplifting charges when confronted in court. Seems that Curle stole earrings from a local department store and was busted by police after he was found inside an apartment building suite. Curle told police he was living at the property and paying rent, but the landlord disagreed. Curle now faces a sentence of up to six months for his various crimes.Dateline: FloridaA dog named “Scarface” mauled its owners after they tried to put a Christmas sweater on him. According to the Tampa Bay Times, the incident occurred on Friday, Dec. 30, around 2:30pm. Police spokesperson Stephen Hegarty told the newspaper 52-year-old dog owner Brenda Guerrero went outside to put a sweater on the pit bull mix and was attacked. Her husband, 46-year-old Ismael Guerrero tried to pull the dog off of her and was attacked himself. The couple’s 22-year-old son Antoine Harris rushed outside with a knife and stabbed the dog in the head and neck. Naturally, Scarface attacked Harris as well. All three adults were able to escape the house, leaving the dog in the back yard. “Officers responding said the dog was pretty aggressive,” Eddy Durkin with Tampa police told WTFS. Police Tased the dog, but it pulled out the Taser prongs. Animal Control eventually arrived at the residence and shot Scarface with a tranquilizer gun. At that point, the dog somehow got into the house, where two children were stuck in a back room. Tampa Police Department officers deployed a bean bag gun and another Taser to subdue the animal. Finally, it was captured by Animal Control using a “catch pole.” Both Mr. and Mrs. Guerrero were taken to the hospital with non life-threatening injuries. It is unclear at this point if Scarface will have to be euthanized.Dateline: ArkansasA Little Rock woman thought her Amazon account had been hacked—until her 6-year-old daughter confessed to logging on to the online retailer to purchase $250 worth of Pokémon items. Enterprising little Ashlynd Howell used her mother’s thumbprint to unlock the woman’s iPhone while she was napping. The girl then opened the device’s Amazon app and ordered $250 worth of her favorite toys—all Pokémon-related. Mother Bethany Johnson Howell first believed her online account had been broken into. Then her 6-year-old told her the truth. “No, Mommy, I was shopping,” Howell recalled Ashlynd saying. “But don’t worry—everything that I ordered is coming straight to the house.” Howell told the Wall Street Journal, Ashlynd was “really proud of herself.” Howell said she tried to return the merchandise, but most of it was nonrefundable. Ashlynd ended up getting the majority of the haul as her Christmas gifts. “Well, Santa found out and that is what Santa is going to bring you for Christmas,” Howell told her daughter.
Compiled by Devin D. O'Leary. Email your weird news to devin@alibi.com.
