SANTIAGO (Reuters) - A Chilean man tried to steal $80,000 from his 82-year-old grandmother by disguising his 21-year-old girlfriend as the elderly woman and having her withdraw money from the bank, but the plot was foiled. The man falsified his grandmother's identity card and his girlfriend wore a latex mask. They might have gotten away with it if it weren't for a bank worker who called the grandmother's home and learned she was visiting relatives in Venezuela.

Cat laps up new role on TV weather forecast

BERLIN (Reuters) - A cat wandered onto the set of a live weather forecast by Germany's leading meteorologist Joerg Kachelmann and waved its tail in front of the camera as it rubbed up against his leg. Kachelmann had just started his two-minute forecast after the news on Tuesday when the cat appeared. Without missing a beat, he scooped Lupin up and finished his forecast while the cat pointed a paw at the weather map.

Panda with attitude bites zoo trespasser

BEIJING (Reuters) - A panda with a record of aggressive behavior attacked a man who jumped into its enclosure at a Beijing zoo to pick up a toy, local media said on Thursday. The nine-year-old panda, Gugu, bit the man on his legs but was driven away by a zoo worker brandishing a broom, the Beijing Youth Daily said.

Capsized yachtsman has to be rescued again

SANTIAGO (Reuters) - Less than 36 hours after a dramatic rescue after capsizing in treacherous waters off Cape Horn, French round-the-world yachtsman Jean Le Cam had to be rescued again. Le Cam was sailing to Ushuaia in southern Argentina on Wednesday aboard the yacht of fellow-Frenchman Vincent Riou, who rescued him after he was trapped in his upturned hull for hours, when the mast snapped and the engine failed.

Police seek blow-up doll sex bandit

SYDNEY (Reuters) - An Australian man broke into three adult shops, had sex with blow up dolls named "Jungle Jane" and then dumped his plastic conquests in a nearby alley, local media reported Wednesday. "It's totally bizarre. It's a real concern that someone like that is out on the street," said one of the owners of the adult sex shops in Cairns in northern Queensland state.

Bikers wear fruit shells to avoid helmet law

KANO, Nigeria (Reuters) - Police in Nigeria have arrested scores of motorcycle taxi riders with dried fruit shells, paint pots or pieces of rubber tire tied to their heads with string to avoid a new law requiring them to wear helmets. The regulations have caused chaos around Africa's most populous nation, with motorcyclists complaining helmets are too expensive and some passengers refusing to wear them fearing they will catch skin disease or be put under a black magic spell.

Policeman attacked using own patrol car

CANBERRA (Reuters) - An Australian outback policeman was pelted with rocks and beer bottles and his stolen patrol car was used to try and run him down, police said Wednesday. The officer was attacked by five people Tuesday night at an Aboriginal camp near the desert town of Alice Springs.

Anti-graft squad nabs fake policeman

LAGOS (Reuters) - Nigeria's anti-corruption police said on Tuesday it had arrested a man who posed as one of its own officials to extort money from members of the public when they tried to report cases of graft. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) said it had arrested Chief Egbe Akparakwu, 41, after discovering he had been pretending to be one of its agents and charging people for registering anti-corruption complaints.