Bus driver returns suitcase full of money, and more

Bus driver returns suitcase full of money

Alberto Rios, a bus driver in Argentina’s San Juan province, returned a suitcase containing 1.8 million pesos—about $460,000—to a passenger who had left it on Rios’ bus. Rios found the money while inspecting the vehicle at the end of his shift. He retraced his route and found the owner, a businessman who’d been carrying the money for his company. He rewarded Rios with $80. “There are things that test you,” said Rios. “My father always told me, What belongs to you is yours, and what does not is not yours.”

Law & Order fan helps nab suspected robber

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A Manhattan receptionist helped nab a suspected robber with skills she’d learned by watching Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Justine Faeth of City Lights Media was suspicious of a stranger who wandered in to her office. After he left, a co-worker’s wallet, iPod, and cell phone were missing. Remembering her favorite show, Faeth figured that the stranger had left DNA on a paper cup and tissue he had used and discarded. Police tied the forensic evidence to Kevin Moore, an ex-convict whom they arrested. Later, Faeth got a phone call from SVU star Mariska Hargitay. “I am impressed!” said Hargitay. “I better watch out for my job!”

Police chief challenges unit to shed weight

Cathy Lanier, chief of police in Washington, D.C., thought that members of her department were eating too many doughnuts. Inspired by the reality show The Biggest Loser, she challenged them to slim down. This summer, nearly 800 cops and civilian employees jogged, worked out, and dieted to lose a collective total of 1,100 pounds, competing against one another in teams with names like “The Phat and the Furious” and “Half a Ton of Fun.” “The challenge gave me the motivation,” said one participant, Betty Gene Williams, who lost 13 pounds.