Banksy artwork self-destructs just after $1.4 million sale

Banksy artwork self-destructs just after $1.4 million sale

LONDON

Art prankster Banksy has struck again.

A work by the elusive street artist self-destructed in front of startled auctiongoers Friday, moments after being sold for $1.4 million. In an Instagram post Saturday, Banksy claimed the dramatic artistic payoff had been years in the making.

The spray-painted canvas “Girl With Balloon” went under the hammer at Sotheby’s in London, fetching more than three times its pre-sale estimate and equaling a record price for the artist.

Then, as an alarm sounded, it ran through a shredder embedded in the frame, leaving half the canvas hanging from the bottom in strips.

A post on Banksy’s official Instagram account showed the moment – and the shocked reaction of those in the room – with the words “Going, going, gone...”

Melania Trump puts on happier face during Africa tour

CAIRO

It took Melania Trump’s first big solo international trip for her to show a different side of herself – a playful, less serious one.

And while she generously dished out warm smiles and happy waves, the first lady also used her four-nation tour of Africa to draw some firmer boundaries between her own views and those of her husband the president.

“I don’t always agree with what he says, and I tell him that,” the first lady told reporters Saturday against the backdrop of the Great Sphinx before she headed back to Washington. “But I have my own voice and my own opinions, and it’s very important for me that I express what I feel.”

The U.S. first lady hopscotched across Africa without President Donald Trump, commanding a spotlight that was hers alone. In doing her own thing, the very private first lady essentially peeled back the curtain ever so slightly as she wiped away the serious face she wears around Washington.

She demonstrated her independence from her husband in ways large and small – like talking up U.S. foreign aid that he’s tried to slash and ignoring the Fox-only edict that the president imposes on TV screens when he’s aboard Air Force One.

Police: Driving teacher rear-ends another car while drunk

RIDGE, N.Y.

Police say a Long Island driving instructor has been arrested on drunken-driving charges after he drove off without his students and rear-ended another car.

Suffolk County police say 58-year-old Russell Cohen was instructing four students from Suffolk Auto Driving School on Saturday when they grew suspicious that he was intoxicated.

The students asked Cohen to stop at a McDonald’s at about 11 a.m. They got out and called 911.

Police say Cohen drove away without the students and rear-ended another car on Route 25 in Ridge.

The driver of the car Cohen hit was treated for nonlife-threatening injuries.

Cohen was arrested on charges of aggravated driving while intoxicated and endangering the welfare of a child. It’s not clear if he has an attorney who can speak for him.

Church near border plans welcome statue to immigrants

SAN DIEGO

A California church near the U.S.-Mexico border is planning to erect a hilltop welcome statue to send a message of hope to immigrants.

The Los Angeles Times reports Saturday that a 40-foot-tall monument of Mary, mother of Jesus, that was inspired by the Statue of Liberty is planned for the parking lot of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in San Ysidro.

The statue will be named “Welcome the Stranger.” Supporters are trying to raise $1 million to build it by early next year.

Bishop Robert McElroy of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego says the monument will serve as a reminder of immigrants’ contributions to the United States.

Artist Jim Bliesner says he drew inspiration for the design from community members.

Florida officer charged with selling drugs out of squad car

BONIFAY, Fla.

Authorities say a police officer from a small town in the Florida Panhandle faces charges he sold opioids out of his squad car while in uniform.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement said Saturday agents arrested Officer Dwayne White at the Bonifay Police Department.

The FDLE says it began an investigation last month at the request of the Holmes County Sheriff’s Office.

Agents say they made a controlled purchase of opioid tablets from White, who was selling the drugs out of his marked patrol car while in uniform.

Agents also say he used his personal cell phone for sales.

White is charged with selling a controlled substance and unlawful use of a two-way communications device.

How many squirrels in Central Park? Count aims to find out

NEW YORK

It’s one of the enduring mysteries of life in New York City: Just how many squirrels live in Central Park?

There could soon be an answer.

Counters started roaming the 840-acre park on Saturday for its first ever Squirrel Census.

Organizers of the two-week count tell The New York Times they’re looking to learn more about squirrel behavior and urban green space.

Jamie Allen led similar censuses of Atlanta’s Inman Park in 2012 and 2016. He says the projects are filling a data void on squirrels and exposing patterns in how they live.

The Atlanta results helped inform a paper on the spread of the West Nile virus.

The Central Park counters are tracking squirrels’ activities, such as running and foraging, coat color and sounds they make.

Their findings will be made public in the spring.

Fearing exposure, some funeral homes stock overdose antidote

BALTIMORE

Funeral directors in Maryland are increasingly concerned their employees could be exposed to opioids. That’s why some are stocking naloxone, the medication the reverses the effects of an overdose.

The Baltimore Sun reported Friday that funeral directors are calling themselves the “last responders” to the opioid epidemic. The concern is that employees could come into contact with opioids on a dead person’s body or the clothes of a mourner.

Synthetic opioids such as fentanyl and carfentanyl can be deadly, even in quantities as small as a grain of salt when inhaled or absorbed through the skin.

The National Funeral Directors Association is recommending members to prepare for the possibility that someone could suffer from exposure. The association has said that members should recognize overdose symptoms and train staff to administer naloxone

Intelligence officers, business owner accused of bid scheme

DENVER

Two U.S. intelligence officers and a business owner have been indicted on charges of attempting to rig a government contract worth nearly $1.5 million.

The Denver Post reports the indictments were handed up Friday against National Security Agency employee Randolph Stimac, Air Force Maj. Kevin Kuciapinski and Mykhael Kuciapinski, owner of a business called Company G.

No phone numbers could be found for them.

The indictment claims the intelligence officers conspired to give bidding information to Mykhael Kuciapinski that helped her company get contracts with the NSA. Prosecutors say the work involved collecting and disseminating foreign communications.

Associated Press