Groom chases thief who grabbed wedding gifts

JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) — A Kansas couple who had just renewed their wedding vows got a rude shock when a man tried to steal wedding gifts from the reception and the groom ran after him shouting "Stop! Thief! Stop!"

Jared Lightle, of Galena, Kansas, was outside during the reception Saturday after renewing his vows with his wife, Stephanie, at the Scottish Rite Temple in downtown Joplin when his mother yelled that someone had taken cards from a gift table in the lobby.

Lightle said he saw a man across the street with wedding cards in his hand and yelled at him to stop. But the suspect began running and Lightle took off after him, yelling "Stop! Thief! Stop."

Police who were investigating a traffic accident nearby eventually caught the suspect, The Joplin Globe reported (http://bit.ly/TzkWyh ). Rosario Caruso, 31, of Lamar, was charged with trespassing, larceny and resisting arrest.

"If we hadn't caught the guy, it would have ended an otherwise perfect celebration on a very bitter note," Lightle said.

The couple was left with the hassle of trying to match recovered gift cards and cash with the gift givers.

Lightle was pleased that police apprehended the suspect, and said it appears justice will be served.

The Lightles were renewing their vows Saturday to mark the one-year anniversary of their wedding at a courthouse near Fort Hood, Texas, just before Jared, a combat engineer with the 1st Cavalry Division, was deployed to Afghanistan. The Joplin ceremony, with 175 guests, was the traditional wedding that the couple planned for when he returned.

"I guess we're going to have a very unique wedding story to tell the rest of our lives," Lightle said.

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Information from: The Joplin (Mo.) Globe, http://www.joplinglobe.com

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Thief makes off with reptiles from Calif. museum

FRESNO, Calif. (AP) — A 7-foot-long boa constrictor, two ball pythons and a monitor lizard were stolen from a Central California science museum by a man who was caught on camera throwing the reptiles into a plastic trash bag.

Workers at the Discovery Center in Fresno discovered the theft Thursday morning, the center's director, Mary Ellen Wright, told the Fresno Bee (http://bit.ly/Yk5G8m). The unidentified suspect apparently broke in overnight, smashing the tanks that held the reptiles.

Surveillance video showed the man putting four reptiles into a garbage bag: the red-tailed boa constrictor, two 3-foot-long pythons and a 3 1/2-foot savannah monitor lizard. The suspect also went into the center's gift shop and took children's toys, the phone system and the security monitor, the Bee reported.

Wright said the reptiles — worth hundreds of dollars — are mortal enemies, and she is worried about their conditions.

"It would be like throwing two pit bulls in a locked room," she said.

Wright said the animals also could injure the thief. The monitor lizard has sharp, 2-inch claws.

Police are looking at the video, according to the Bee. A call to a Fresno police spokesman Friday was not immediately returned.

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Information from: The Fresno Bee, http://www.fresnobee.com

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Thief returns $800 from 1980s Michigan burglary

HASTINGS, Mich. (AP) — A burglar expressing guilt about stealing $800 from a western Michigan store three decades ago has repaid the money, plus some interest.

The anonymous thief sent a note and $1,200 in $100 bills to the Barry County sheriff's department in Hastings, and they arrived Monday, WOOD-TV reported (http://bit.ly/WzFNjS ).

The writer admitted breaking into the Middle Mart on Michigan 37 in Thornapple Township north of Middleville about 30 years ago.

In a letter packed with emotion and spelling errors, the writer asks for "help in locating a man" to whom the writer owes the money.

"Anyways, I did a very bad thing that I am shamed of and have lived with this guilt," the writer said. "I can't begin to say how sorry iam but have lived with this guilt too long," the letter went on to say. "If you do find him, please tell him that I was afoolish stupid man when I did that and iam sorrie."

The letter was unsigned and had no return address.

The $1,200, while it includes some interest, falls short of making up for the loss in the dollar's purchasing power over the intervening years. The stolen $800 would be worth about $1,800 today, based on changes in the consumer price index.

WOOD-TV said the former owner of the store, now called Greg's Get-N-Go, confirmed it was broken into in the 1980s. The store was sold in 1988.

Undersheriff Bob Baker said the letter and cash came as quite a surprise.

"This doesn't happen every day," Baker said. He said the department isn't interested in reopening the case because of the time that has passed.

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Information from: WOOD-TV, http://www.woodtv.com

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Cops: Pocket dial, battery low led to thief Ohio

SIDNEY, Ohio (AP) — authorities in Ohio say that same arrested after her cellphone turned informant has a prowler Pocket-dialing. Twice.

Investigators say that an emergency operator traced accidentally called 911 Tuesday evening in a house in Sidney, about 60 miles northwest of Columbus.
Sheriff's deputies in Shelby County dispatched to check the House found a forced window. They arrested Douglas Wolaver, of Piqua, inside.
The Sheriff's Office says that Wolaver has been found in a bathroom after the battery of his mobile phone led members of his hideout.
Wolaver is accused of breaking and entering. A phone listing for him was disconnected.

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