120 || August• 2017
Taxidermy Thief Dodges Jail Time
UK burglar Jason Hopwood broke into
the warehouse of a South West London
taxidermist last year and made off with 18 stuffed animals
and other antiques worth more than £100,000. The loot –
which included stuffed lions, a rhinoceros, a crocodile, sloth,
zebra, penguin, scarlet ibis, giraffe and a chimpanzee in a top
hat and tie – was later found abandoned in a van after police
issued a nationwide appeal for information. “Cataloguing and
exhibiting the stolen items was a truly unique and memorable
experience,” Detective Constable Stuart Goss said in a
statement. “This is certainly an investigation that will stay
with me for years to come.” Hopwood, who pleaded guilty
to the theft, was given a 21-month suspended sentence and
ordered to perform 200 hours of community service.
Source: ReutersTULIP FEVER Drama, RomanceSet in 17th-century Amsterdam, Sophia
(Alicia Vikander, above), an orphan,
is forced to marry the much older,
rich and powerful merchant Cornelis
Sandvoort (Christoph Waltz) in an
unhappy ‘arrangement’ that saves
her from poverty.
When Sophia’s husband commissions
young artist Jan Van Loos (Dane
DeHaan) to paint her portrait, the two
are immediately attracted to one
another, and so begins a passionate
affair. In a desperate attempt to be
together, Sophia switches identities
with her maid to escape her husband
and begin a new life. The lovers enter
the frenzied tulip bulb market with
what little money they have in the hope
that the right bulb will make a fortune
and buy their freedom. Victoria PolzotPHOTO: (CROCODILE) iSTOCK