MIRACLE? Mother's cuddle brings dead baby 'back to life'

An Australian woman has told how she apparently brought her premature baby son back to life with two hours of cuddles after doctors had declared him dead. Jamie Ogg showed no signs of life when he was delivered along with a twin sister at just 27 weeks gestation and weighing 2lb at a hospital in Sydney.

Doctors said they had lost him and he was given to his mother, Kate, who unwrapped his blankets and placed him on her chest so she and her husband, David, could say their goodbyes.

Following two hours of cuddling and being spoken to by his parents, Jamie began to gasp. Doctors initially claimed it was a "reflex" but the baby began gasping more often and then opened his eyes.

The family have spoken of their experience for the first time since Jamie was born five months ago. They told of the importance of "skin-to-skin" bonding between mother and baby in a technique also known as the "kangaroo touch" in Australia because of the way the animals held their newborns close to the skin in their pouch.

Mrs Ogg said: "I thought, 'Oh my God, what's going on?' A short time later he opened his eyes. It was a miracle. I told my mum, who was there, that he was still alive. Then he held out his hand and grabbed my finger. He opened his eyes and moved his head from side to side."

The survival of Jamie, whose twin was named Emily, has baffled doctors. Mr Ogg said: "Luckily, I've got a very strong, very smart wife. She instinctively did what she did. If she hadn't have done that, then Jamie probably wouldn't be here."

Customs officers in Thailand find tiger cub hidden in bag of cuddly toys

A Thai woman has been detained by airport authorities in Bangkok after they found a drugged tiger cub stashed alongside a stuffed toy in her luggage.

The 31-year-old, who was booked to fly to Iran, had checked in with an overweight suitcase, so it was sent away to be X-rayed by officials.

According to wildlife trade monitoring group Traffic, a live animal was detected and, when the bag was opened, a sedated baby tiger was discovered.

The cub, estimated to be about three months old, was sent on to a wildlife conservation centre in Bangkok.

Chaiyaporn Chareesaeng, head of the centre's wildlife health unit, said the animal has been under close supervision.

"He appeared exhausted, dehydrated and couldn't walk, so we had to give him oxygen, water and lactation," he said.

"We have monitored him closely. As of today, he looks better and can walk a little now."

The woman, identified as Piyawan Palasarn, was charged with wildlife smuggling. If found guilty, she faces up to four years in prison and a 40,000 baht (�824) fine.

She has denied the suitcase was hers, telling authorities another passenger had asked her to carry it for them.

The cub could have fetched about 100,000 baht (�2,060) on the black market in Iran, where it is popular to have exotic pets.

But Nirath Nipanant, chief of the airport's wildlife checkpoint, said the baby tiger may not have even made the journey.

"I was a bit shocked because an animal isn't supposed to be treated like this," he said.

"Had the animal passed the oversize baggage check and gone through four to five hours of travel, its chances of survival would have been slim."

A DNA test was expected to provide details about the baby tiger's origin, wildlife officials added.

Zurich Switzerland planning drive-in sex-boxes

Police chiefs in Switzerland are planning to build a series of drive-in sex-boxes to enable prostitutes to conduct their business without disturbing the neighborhood.

The idea - imported from German cities like Essen and Cologne - is being proposed by Zurich police chief Daniel Leupi as a way to let prostitutes work in a more discrete way.

The idea comes after thousands of complaints by householders whose homes overlook the thriving red light district in Zurich.

'They get up to all sorts in broad daylight - and we're sick to death of looking at it,' said one.

Police spokesman Reto Casanova (his actual name) said: 'We can't get rid of prostitution, so have to learn how to control it.'

Man kept as slave for six months

An Australian man was held captive for six months, forced to work as a slave and repeatedly bashed at the hands of the couple he lodged with, a court heard yesterday.

The 26-year-old, who was in a serious condition in Sydney's Westmead Hospital last night, is dehydrated and emaciated, suffering spinal fractures, a punctured lung, several broken ribs and a fractured jaw.

His weight was just 88 pounds, according to police.

Police yesterday charged Mervyn John Ferry, 41, and Paula Diane Morrison, 46, with a total of 27 offences, alleging the pair not only repeatedly assaulted their young boarder but also denied him medical treatment after bashing him with a baseball bat on Monday, August 9.

Police claimed that, instead of allowing him to see a doctor, Ferry and Morrison locked the man in a children's cubby house in the loungeroom of the home until the next day.

The young lodger reportedly moved in with the couple in February this year in a suburban Housing NSW home on the outskirts of Bathurst, NSW.

Police allege that his mobile phone was confiscated, he was detained against his will and was repeatedly assaulted.

He was also allegedly forced to perform all the cleaning duties, while being starved.

Police said the man had lost almost half his body weight in the six months he was detained at the house.

The young man was taken to Bathurst Police Station on August 10 suffering black eyes, a split lip and severe bruising.

He was then rushed to Bathurst Base Hospital, from where he was taken by helicopter to Westmead Hospital.

It was there an extensive number of new and old serious injuries and fractures that had been inflicted over a long period of time, in one case with an iron bar, were identified.

Neighbours were last night in shock, saying Ferry and Morrison had lived in the property for several years.

"It's very, very sad to see things like that happen here," one neighbour, who did not wish to be named, said.

Ferry and Morrison faced Bathurst Local Court yesterday afternoon in a 1 1/2 hour session during which they applied for bail.

That application was denied. No pleas were entered and they were remanded in custody to reappear on October 11.

Detectives attached to Strike Force Bukari arrested them about 9.15am yesterday.

Ferry was charged with 14 offences including five counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, two counts of detain in company with intent to get advantage occasioning actual bodily harm and four counts of common assault.

Morrison was charged with 13 offences including four counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, two counts of detaining in company with intent to get advantage occasioning actual bodily harm as well as six counts of common assault.

VIDEO: Dancing Skeleton Man

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JOKE: A petty thief, a teacher and a lawyer die in a plane crash

A petty thief, a teacher and a lawyer die in a plane crash and go up to Heaven's gates together.

When they get there they are stopped by St. Peter, who says: "Sorry, it's crowded up here, you need to answer a question correctly, or else you can't get in."

He looks at the teacher, and asks her: "What was the name of the famous ocean-liner that sank after hitting an iceberg?"

"Oh, that's easy," the teacher replies, "the Titanic"
So St. Peter lets her into Heaven.

Next he turns to the petty thief.
"How many people died on that ship?" St. Peter asks.
"Oooh, that's tough, but I saw the movie, and I think it was 1,500."

St. Peter steps away and the thief walks into Heaven.

Finally, St. Peter turns to the lawyer and says: "Name them."

GOT CAPTION? 8/28

Saudi couple hammered 24 nails into Sri Lankan maid

A Saudi couple tortured their Sri Lankan maid by hammering 24 nails into her hands, legs and forehead, after she complained of a too heavy workload, officials said yesterday.

Nearly 2 million Sri Lankans sought employment overseas last year and around 1.4 million, mostly maids, were employed in the Middle East. Many have complained of physical abuse or harassment. LT Ariyawathi, a 49-year old mother of three, returned home on Friday after five months in Saudi Arabia.

Her family only realised what had happened to her when she complained of pain and they took her to see the doctor, Foreign Employment Bureau officials said.

"The landlord and the wife of the landlord hammered 24 nails into her when she complained of the heavy workload," Kalyana Priya Ramanayake, media secretary of the Foreign Employment Bureau, said.

Ariyawathi has been taken to hospital for surgery to remove the nails, which according to the maid were hammered in when they were hot.

X-rays showed one-to two-inch nails in her hands and legs, with one over her eyes, officials said. The Foreign Employment Bureau is consulting the attorney-general while the Sri Lankan External Affairs Ministry is to take the matter up with the Saudi government, officials said.

VIDEO: DOG SWIMS WITH DOLPHIN

Nightmarish Hospital Visit Capped by Beating, Accident Victim Says

A man who was hurt in a car crash but was misidentified as a cancer patient claims security guards at Prince George's Hospital beat him up when he tried to leave the hospital to avoid chest surgery he didn't need - "to have a potentially cancerous mass removed from his chest." He adds that one guard repeatedly called him "bitch" as he roughed him up.
Joseph Wheeler says a June 23 car accident put him in the hospital, which is owned by Dimensions Health Corporation. When he woke up hungry on June 24 and asked a nurse for food, she told him he couldn't eat because he was scheduled for surgery, Wheeler claims in Prince George's County Court.
Wheeler says the nurse checked his identification bracelet and told him the surgery was "to have a potentially cancerous mass removed from his chest."
Wheeler says his ID bracelet "contained a name that was different from Mr. Wheeler's, appeared to be that of a woman, and had a birth date that was 13 years prior to his own."
The complaint continues: "Mr. Wheeler, still in serious pain from the car accident and subsequent treatment from injuries sustained, was starting to fear for his safety as the hospital had misidentified him and he was being prepped to go into a surgery that he knew nothing about.
"At this point, Mr. Wheeler's wife, Felicia Ann Wheeler, came into the room to see her husband. Mr. Wheeler immediately told Mrs. Wheeler about what was taking place. The Wheelers decided that it was in their best interest to leave Prince George's Hospital Center and seek medical care for Mr. Wheeler elsewhere."
Mrs. Wheeler confirmed with nurses outside her husband's room that he was scheduled for cancer surgery, and when she told the nurses that she and her husband were leaving, "an argument ensued."
According to the increasingly bizarre complaint, Mr. Wheeler, "hearing the argument, took out his I/V, got out of the hospital bed, put his clothes on, and started to walk out of the room. He was bleeding from the spot on his hand where that I/V had been connected.
"Mrs. Wheeler and the nurse met Mr. Wheeler at the door. The nurse told Mr. Wheeler that he was not allowed to leave. She put a bandage on Mr. Wheeler's hand to stop the bleeding from the I/V spot, and then yelled for security.
"Mr. Wheeler, now bandaged and clothed, began to walk toward the exit of the floor while his wife gathered the rest of his belongings. As he moved toward the exit, two large men in security uniforms moved quickly toward Mr. Wheeler."
These men, defendants William Reese and Donovan Scott, worked for the hospital and/or defendant Broadway Services, according to the complaint. The Wheelers say the two security guards were "immediately hostile."
"Defendant Scott harshly asked, 'Where do you think you're going?' Mr. Wheeler told both Reese and Scott that his business was finished at the hospital and that he was on his way out," the complaint states.
"In the moments immediately following this exchange, defendant Scott began to appear angry and upset with Mr. Wheeler. He began to use profanity directed at Mr. Wheeler about getting back to Wheeler's 'damn room.'
"At this point the two officers put on black padded gloves in front of Mr. Wheeler and defendant Scott started to hit his fist against his own hand and moved closer in proximity to Wheeler's face. Defendant Scott appeared angry and agitated."
Wheeler, "in fear for his safety," tried to reason with the guards.
"He told the officers that he had been in a serious car accident and suffered from multiple injuries to the torso and shoulders. Wheeler also told the officers that he was retired from the St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office and that he knew that the security officers had no right or authority to detain him. Wheeler stated that he wanted to leave."
At that point, Wheeler says, Scott grabbed him and shoved him "hard from behind into the adjacent wall and metal railing," hurting his ribs.
The complaint continues: "Mr. Wheeler, in serious pain and feeling like he was going to black out, fell to floor. Defendant Scott stood over him and yelled, 'Get off the floor bitch! This game is over!'
"Defendant Scott continued, 'I don't care who you think you are, this is my camp, you listen to what I got to say!' The vocal officer then grabbed Mr. Wheeler and pulled him up off of the ground as Wheeler pleaded with the officer to stop hurting him.
"At this point the defendant Reese said to the vocal officer, 'Man, ease up on him. He might really be hurt.' Defendant Scott replied, 'Hell no, he don't come up in here and be telling us what the fuck to do!'"
As the two guards "escorted" him back to his room, "Scott accused Wheeler of attempting to push the second officer down a flight of stairs," and "continued to shout expletives at Wheeler," according to the complaint.
Wheeler says the men took him to the hospital security office, where an unidentified lieutenant questioned him.
"After Mr. Wheeler explained what had happened, the lieutenant looked at Wheeler's hospital-provided identification bracelet and acknowledged that Wheeler had been misidentified," Wheeler says.
But that was not the end of the conflict. Wheeler says the lieutenant became agitated when he would not return the incorrect bracelet, and ordered the security guards to stop him from leaving.
He says a plainclothes hospital employee, a woman he identifies as an "administrator ... intervened in the conversation" and after he explained the situation, said she would make sure he "would have his own private room and any type of drug he wanted, just to name the pain killer."
Wheeler says he and his wife chose to leave the hospital, but when he tried to leave with the incorrect ID bracelet, one of the security guards "charged Wheeler, again calling Wheeler 'bitch,' and shoved him against the wall."
"Mr. Wheeler spent the next three days at St. Mary's Hospital and was diagnosed with four broken ribs, a sprained shoulder, a ruptured spleen, and a concussion," he says.