Roommate: Teen set off minibombs in Pa.

Roommate: Teen set off minibombs in Pa.

ALTOONA, pa.

The roommate of a Penn State student from Russia charged with building a suspected bomb in his bedroom said the 18-year-old recently set off three “mini-bombs” outside their apartment.

Andrew Leff told the Altoona Mirror that he had advised Vladislav Miftakhov to get rid of the bomb-making materials. He called Miftakhov a “dumb” and “crazy” kid who was bored and impulsive, but not dangerous.

Miftakhov, a student at Penn State’s satellite campus in Altoona, was in jail Sunday after being arrested Friday and charged with possessing a weapon of mass destruction, risking a catastrophe and several other drug and weapons counts, according to court records. Miftakhov is being held on $500,000 bail.

In the affidavit, police said they were investigating a reported marijuana growing operation at Miftakhov’s apartment reported by the landlord when they found a suitcase holding two containers with exposed fuses and other explosives-related materials. The devices were later dismantled by Pennsylvania State Police troopers.

21 die as tourist boat sinks in India

NEW DELHI

A boat carrying local tourists capsized Sunday in India’s Andaman Sea in the Bay of Bengal, killing 21 people, officials said.

Thirteen were rescued, said top Administrator P. Jawahar. Rescuers were looking for an additional 11 people believed to be missing, she said. The boat sank off the eastern Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and police official Shahji said the tourists were all Indians.

Sneezing for science

BETHESDA, MD.

Forget being sneezed on: Government scientists are deliberately giving dozens of volunteers the flu by squirting the live virus straight up their noses.

It may sound bizarre, but the rare type of research is a step in the quest for better flu vaccines. It turns out that how the body fends off influenza is still a mystery.

“Vaccines are working, but we could do better,” said Dr. Matthew Memoli of the National Institutes of Health, who is leading the study that aims to infect up to 100 adults over the next year.

It’s not an experiment to be taken lightly. After all, the flu kills thousands of Americans a year. For safety, DR. Memoli chose a dose that produces mild to moderate symptoms — and accepts only volunteers who are healthy and no older than 50.

Law proposed for autistic boy who died

NEW YORK

The federal government would pay for GPS tracking devices for autistic children under legislation proposed Sunday by Sen. Chuck Schumer and named for a New York City boy who wandered away from his school three months ago and was found dead in a city river.

“Avonte’s Law,” named for 14-year-old Avonte Oquendo, would provide $10 million to pay for the high-tech device that could be worn on the wrist, kept in a wallet or sewn into clothing.

Avonte walked away from his Queens school in October and his body was found in the East River this month.

Birds attack peace doves near pope

VATICAN CITY

Two white doves that were released by children standing by Pope Francis as a peace gesture have been attacked by other birds.

As tens of thousands of people watched in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, a seagull and a large black crow swept down on the doves right after they were set free from an open window of the Apostolic Palace.

One dove lost feathers as it broke free from the gull. But the crow pecked repeatedly at the other dove.It was not clear what happened to the doves as they flew off.

Associated Press