ODDLY ENOUGH

ODDLY ENOUGH

Mental-health CEO who hired fortuneteller gets prison

BATTLE CREEK, Mich.

The head of a southwestern Michigan mental-health agency has learned his future: at least 32 months in prison for using public money to hire a fortuneteller.

Ervin Brinker was sentenced by a Lansing-area judge Wednesday, two months after pleading guilty to embezzlement and Medicaid fraud conspiracy.

Brinker was CEO at Summit Pointe, a mental health organization in Battle Creek that serves people in five counties. He was accused of spending $510,000 on a palm reader and her husband in Key West, Fla., and concealing it from others.

The attorney general’s office says Brinker will pay double that amount as restitution and a civil penalty. A message seeking comment from his attorney wasn’t returned.

He will be eligible for parole after 32 months.

Police: Burglary suspect returned to get iced-tea bottle

PEMBROKE PINES, Fla.

Authorities in Florida say a suspected burglar was arrested after returning to a crash scene to retrieve a bottle of iced tea, fearing it would be used as evidence.

News outlets report 23-year-old Bryan Lindon is charged with burglary of an unoccupied residence and grand theft.

Authorities say Lindon and another person are suspected of breaking into a Cooper City home Tuesday morning, then trying to break into another residence in Pembroke Pines.

Police arrested a 17-year-old suspect in Pembroke Pines, but say Lindon fled in a stolen car and crashed into a truck.

Broward Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Gina Carter says Lindon was arrested after returning to the scene for the tea, which she says Lindon probably thought was DNA evidence.

It’s unclear whether he has an attorney.

UK police seek burglar who stole $21,500 in 1-pound coins

LONDON

British police are seeking a burglar who may have a heavy conscience – or pockets – after stealing 15,000 pounds ($21,500) in 1-pound ($1.43) coins.

Greater Manchester Police said Friday that three houses in a street in Ashton-Under-Lyne, northwest England were robbed Jan. 1. The culprits stole designer handbags, jewelry, a Range Rover and the trove of coins.

It wasn’t clear why the coins were kept in the house. Constable Dinesh Mistry said the haul weighed “the same as two average-sized women, or almost 10 cases of wine.”

He said police have asked local businesses to keep an eye out for a large number of pound coins. He said “it is hard to miss 15,000 pounds in pound coins, so we believe someone must know something about this crime.”

Associated Press