Dateline: ChinaVisitors to a zoo in Henan, China, were outraged to find that the zoo’s special “African lion” exhibit consisted of nothing more than a shaved dog. According to Agence France-Presse, the dog—a Tibetan mastiff—spoiled it all by barking at guests. The People’s Park Zoo charged 15 yuan ($2.45) to see the exhibit, which allegedly featured several other ordinary animals in exotically labeled cages. A zoo official told a reporter from the Oriental Daily that, “The African lions will be back. They went to another zoo to breed.” According to the South China Morning Post, “The practice of dyeing pets’ fur to make them look like other animals, such as painting dogs black and white to make them look like pandas, has been a trend reported on the mainland before.”Dateline: GermanyA German company is pulling a toilet freshening product after complaints that the blue and yellow urinal cake too-closely resembles the Ukrainian flag. Consumer goods company Henkel said its Bref Duo Stripes will no longer be sold in the Ukraine after complaints about a television commercial surfaced. “We are sorry if people feel offended by the design of our new Bref Duo Stripes. The color blue, intended to stand for water and hygiene, and the yellow color for lemon scent are common for this type of product,” Henkel said on its Facebook page. “We respect our consumers’ feelings and have therefore taken the appropriate steps to immediately discontinue the distribution of the product in its current color design. We have also canceled the respective TV ad. We apologize for any irritation our product many have caused.” Dateline: CaliforniaA trio of Bay area teens are accused of trolling the social dating network Badoo.com looking for men with a particular sexual fetish and then robbing them. The trio—two 19-year-old men and a female juvenile—posed as a young woman name “Geraldine” whose fantasy was to “have sex while rolling around in cold hard cash.” Unbelievably at least three men showed up for their blind date, cash in hand. The victims were robbed by the suspects—one of whom is believed to have been armed with a pellet gun. CBS San Francisco reports that one of the victims allegedly stole $2,000 from his job in order to fulfill his fictional partner’s fantasy. Police in Mountain View, just south of San Francisco, are hoping that more victims will come forth now that the perpetrators have been caught.Dateline: OhioA firearms instructor teaching a class on gun safety accidentally shot one of his students earlier this month. Terry J. Dunlap Sr., 73, runs a shooting range and training center near the town of Lancaster. On Saturday, Aug. 10, he was teaching a safety class for people wanting to carry concealed weapons. Dunlap was showing the class a .38-caliber handgun when it went off, ricocheted off a desk and struck student Michael Piemonte in the right arm between his elbow and armpit. “I am thankful that it only ended up being in my arm, and didn’t hit my wife or individuals sitting at the desk behind me,” Piemonte told the Columbus Dispatch. Luckily several nurses were among the 29 students in class. They helped stabilize Piemonte until a medic squad could take him to the OhioHealth Grant Medical Center in Columbus. No charges have been filed, and the local sheriff’s office called the incident an “accidental shooting.”Dateline: IllinoisA Chicago restaurant owner cleverly foiled a robbery attempt by two very stupid thieves by telling them he was too busy to help them. Police and prosecutors say Mario Garcia, 39, and Domingo Garcia-Hernandez, 28, entered the restaurant, located about a block from their house in the West Rogers Park neighborhood, on the night of Sunday, Aug. 11. Garcia-Hernandez alleged told the restaurant owner he had a gun and would kill him if he did not comply. The owner said he was too busy and asked the two men to return in an hour. They did, around 12:30 a.m. Monday morning—at which point police were waiting to arrest them. Garcia allegedly had a metal baseball bat with him when he was taken into custody. Garcia-Hernandez was allegedly in possession of a squirt gun.
Compiled by Devin D. O'Leary. Email your weird news to devin@alibi.com.
