World Briefs

Japan's Supreme Court sentenced a woman to death yesterday for killing four and making more than 60 ill by poisoning a large pot of curry at a summer festival in 1998, a case widely covered in domestic media.

The incident shocked Japan, where crime rates are relatively low and mass killings extremely rare.

Public broadcaster NHK reported the Supreme Court upheld a lower court death sentence on Masumi Hayashi, 47, for the crime that took place in the western Japanese city of Wakayama. The Supreme Court called the crime "cruel and despicable," NHK added.

Prosecutors charged Ms Hayashi became enraged after being shunned by her neighbours and put arsenic in the curry when she was alone in the garage where it was being prepared, Japanese media said. (Reuters)

Pig Brother reality show

Move over Miss Piggy, show business has found its new pink-snouted celebrities - meet Piggy, Lilly, Pauli and Fredi, the stars of Austria's latest reality show Pig Brother.

For the next six weeks, the four little piglets will be followed by live cameras and their private lives splashed across the internet, all part of a marketing ploy by a local food fair.

The town of Helfenberg in northern Austria is organising its third annual Speck (German for bacon) Spectacle in early June and Pig Brother is just the appetiser.

Each week, viewers will get to vote for the "Favourite pig of the week" and each Sunday, the little porkers will have to take part in Pig Olympics to gather the points needed to win.

True to reality-show format, the piglets - philosopher Pauli, diva Piggy, friendly Lilly and courageous Fredi - will be filmed non-stop for a month and a half as they eat, sleep and roll themselves in the mud. And like true stars, they even have their own web-based diaries.

Curious viewers and pork enthusiasts can register at www.pigbrother.at. (AFP)

Wife collects fortune for 'dead' husband

A South Korean woman who held a funeral for her husband after claiming he was lost at sea scammed insurers out of $800,000 before he was found alive and well, police said yesterday.

The fraud in the southeastern town of Tongyeong is part of an increasing trend of bogus claims, insurers say.

It began in March 2006 when she told police that her husband had failed to return from a fishing trip, a police spokesman in the nearby city of Changwon said.

The husband had left his boat adrift and sneaked back ashore on a different boat as a major sea search was launched.

He went to ground for some three years elsewhere in the country as his wife successfully filed claims totalling 1.1 billion won with six insurance firms.

The pair finally came to grief when the husband shared his secret with an acquaintance during a drinking session and the friend reported it to police. (AFP)

Guatemala bans motorbike passengers

Guatemala has banned motorcyclists from carrying passengers in an attempt to crack down on drive-by murders by gunmen perched on the back of moving bikes.

The Central American country is terrorised by violent street gangs who rob car drivers at gunpoint and kill bus drivers, among others, for failing to pay extortion fees. Hitmen often shoot victims from the back of a motorcycle, which lets them make a speedy getaway if traffic is heavy.

The law implemented this month also requires motorcyclists to wear brightly coloured jackets and helmets clearly marked with their vehicle registration number.

Flouting the law will mean a fine of up to $3,000. Police will start charging in May to give people time to comply. (Reuters)

Cartel tells members to shun drugs, drink

A cartel engaged in Mexico's deadly drug wars has told its members to avoid heavy drinking and using narcotics and live a clean family life as it tries to build a well-run criminal organisation, police say.

Rafael Cedeno, a leader of The Family cartel based in the western state of Michoacan, told police after he was arrested at the weekend he had trained several thousand cartel members with courses in ethics and personal improvement.

"The indoctrination of this group consisted of courses they considered to be for personal improvement, values, ethical and moral principles of the criminal gang. The objective was for the subordinates to avoid drugs, hard drinking and maintain family unity," the federal police said in a statement.

Mr Cedeno, 47, was picked up at a family baptism on Saturday with 43 others after a raid by police in helicopters. Accusations against him include ordering the murder of rivals and running prostitution rings of young girls. About 6,300 people died in the bitter war between Mexico's drug cartels last year.

The training courses show the level of organisation of Mexico's cartels, well-armed groups which often control territory and take on federal police and the army. (Reuters)

Ireland offers tips to weather recession

Bring a packed lunch to work, skip the latte and don't miss any debt repayments because the bankers will always catch up with you - are just a few of the tips from Ireland's official Recession Survival Guide.

Ireland's financial regulator advised citizens reeling from a burst property bubble and record recession yesterday that they could save almost €3,000 a year through simple steps like buying fewer magazines and shopping around for cheaper insurance.

"Cut back on the little luxuries," the watchdog told readers, who face higher taxes and curtailed public services after Dublin unveiled a five-year austerity plan earlier this month to deal with the worst public finances in Europe.

"Don't take on more debt than you can afford," the regulator warned in the release on its www.itsyourmoney.ie consumer advice portal. (Reuters)