oddly enough

oddly enough

Romania: Vasile Cepoi wins, loses and loses in mayor’s race

BUCHAREST, Romania

In a Romanian town, Vasile Cepoi defeated Vasile Cepoi and Vasile Cepoi in a mayoral election.

The middle name made all the difference.

The victor told The Associated Press: “I added my middle name and ran as Vasile Lica Cepoi. Anyhow, residents knew about the confusion before the vote.”

He was also the incumbent, who secured his fourth term as mayor of Draguseni.

He said Tuesday that the coincidence of three candidates having the same name was an attempt by political parties to confuse residents in the northeastern town of 2,500 people.

Both names are common in Romania; Cepoi means “big onions.” The mayor won 1,200 votes, Vasile Cepoi won 100 votes, and Vasile Cepoi trailed with 10. The three are not related.

Two other candidates scored even less.

Voice-over recording of man with gun scares office workers

NEWBURGH, N.Y.

An upstate New York production company’s recording of a man threatening people with a gun sent people scurrying for cover at its office building.

Police say office workers in the city of Newburgh reported hearing the voice in their building Monday afternoon.

Police SWAT teams quickly converged on the scene. The surrounding buildings were evacuated. Traffic was blocked.

Police searched the building and discovered that one of the office suites housed a production company that was doing voice-overs by playing recordings of a man threatening people with a gun.

Police say the production company staff had left the building just before police arrived.

Leopard escapes at Utah zoo; visitors take shelter

SALT LAKE CITY

Hundreds of zoo visitors took shelter inside buildings Tuesday morning while Salt Lake City zoo staff searched for a leopard that escaped its enclosure.

The 4-year-old female leopard was spotted by zoo visitors sleeping on a high outdoor ledge in a public area about 1 or 2 feet from its exhibit, said Hogle Zoo spokeswoman Erica Hansen. No visitors were injured. The rare Amur leopard, named Zeya, was tranquilized, Hansen said.

The leopard is safe, said Nancy Carpenter, associate director of animal health at the zoo. The animal fell about 3 feet after getting tranquilized and landed in a padded garden area.

Hansen said they don’t yet know how or when the leopard escaped, but officials are investigating the incident. The animal was put into a crate and transported to a holding area, and the zoo has reopened.

The reports of a wild animal on the loose caused quite a commotion on social media and even spawned a parody Twitter account. The first tweet by the account, HogleZooLeopard, said “I’m finally free!”

But zoo visitors who were inside said the situation played out calmly and orderly.

Associated Press