European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 28, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 6 a a the stars and stripes sunday october 28,1990 lawyer Pilot Root agrees to plea bargain for fraud Nashville . A Thomas Root the lawyer who was found with a gunshot wound following an air plane crash in the Atlantic pleaded no contest Friday to 364 counts of securities fraud conspiracy and related charges. Mkipp Pupp under a plea bargain Root agreed to a 15-year prison sentence and a $5,000 Fine which will not be imposed until january. He also agreed to testify against others indicted in an alleged securities scam. The state dismissed 91 other charges against Root. Root who faced up to i 1,812 years in prison if convicted of All 455 charges against him Root called the agreement an a offer so attractive to me that i could not refuse  a i continue to suspect that my name was included in the indictment not because of my culpability but rather because my notoriety from my ill Fate air plane flight in july 1989 ensured the prosecution of getting plenty of press attention for the indictments a he said. Root 37, who is a Washington lawyer allegedly passed out in the cockpit of his single engine plane during a flight from Washington to Rocky mount . The plane which was followed by military planes eventually crashed in the Ocean off the coast of Florida. Root was pulled from the Ocean after the crash and rescuers discovered he had been shot in the Abdomen. Root has insisted that a pistol he kept in the plane discharged during the crash but experts have questioned his explanation of the wound. A fifteen years is a pretty Good sentence a said North Carolina Secretary of state Rufus Edmisten whose office was investigating Root and Sunrise management services at the time of roots Aerial Odyssey. A it indicates we re not going to tolerate securities fraud in this  a Nash county grand jury in june returned 24 indictments containing 2,695 counts against Root and other officials of Sunrise management and Elemedia inc. Sunrise helped form partnerships to Federal licenses for Low Power pm radio stations. Edmisten said Only a handful of son Rise a 1,600 investors Ever received a License. A in All 1,018 people in North Carolina contributed More than $8 million to this organization a Edmisten said. A nationally More than $16 million was invested by people from 25  Root also pleaded guilty to five Federal securities charges in june and is awaiting sentencing. Raking leaves More rewarding with a giant stuff a pumpkin Stamford Conn. Apr not All the pumpkins decorating Homes this fall were scooped out and carved into Jack of lanterns. Some Are 5 feet High 4 /2 feet wide and stuffed with leaves. Giant stuff a pumpkins 260-gallon plastic Leaf bags with Black pumpkin faces Are the rage this halloween season Orna menting millions of lawns across America. A we done to have any Trees in our Yard so we went out one night and robbed the leaves of the people next door a said Betty Brown a West Hartford Mother of three whose family of stuff a pumpkins peer Down from her front porch roof. A it was fun filling them a said her 11-year-old daughter Jennifer. A kids on the bus see them on the roof and they ask me a where a you get pm a a the bags Are made by Stamford based Sun Hill industries inc. Sun Hill gave the world those tiny stick on digital clocks plastic banana ears and Cool sounds a Beach cooler with a radio built into the lid along with mostly seasonal novelties such As floating ghosts pumpkin lampshade covers and easter egg decorating kits. The giant stuff a pumpkin is its biggest seller Ever said Benson Zinbarg president of the company. A a it a a self advertising product a he said a when people see it on their neighbors Lawn they want to have it in their  one of Sun Hills executives dreamed up the idea in late 198s, during one of its brainstorming sessions. Zinbarg  get Bank financing to develop and Market the pumpkin bags. He ended up gambling All his savings and persuading friends to invest. The bags were in stores last fall but did no to take off until this year. They Are now sold in nearly every major retail Chain said Zinbarg a former plastics Engineer. Anita Dembiczak and Benson Zinbarg president of Sun Hill industries display the giant stuff a pumpkin. Theft smells like Monkey business Wichita Kan. Apr thieves May have thought they were getting cute House pets when they broke into a zoo and made off with two Squirrel monkeys wrong. Squirrel monkeys weigh a few pounds each and look adorable. But they have a habit humans May find hard to stomach a they rub their urine onto their hands and feet and tails so that while they run around they re marking territory every time they touch something a said Ken Rud Man general curator of the Sedgwick county zoo a they really do smell awful at times. Actually that s most of the time a Rudman said. They re also aggressive he added. Many zoo visitors think the South american monkeys would make great pets Rudman said. A a in a guess that whoever stole these was planning on having a neat pet to impress the friends  whoever took Spock and Mowgli by cutting through a Security Fence and crossing a Moat in the zoo on monday night has since reconsidered. On thursday someone checking into a Motel about two Miles from the zoo found an Odd smelling Box in his room. Inside were Spock and Mowgli. A zoo monkeys a read the Label on the Box. A return to the  stateside Man Dies from injuries caused in turbulent flight West Palm Beach Fla. A an 84-year-old Man has died of injuries from a turbulent flight aboard a commercial jetliner authorities said. Philip Romerstein died a was a result of trauma suffered during the turbulence a said Wayne Arbaczawski chief investigator for the Puim Beach county medical examiners office. Romerstein from West Palm Beach had just left his seat to visit the lavatory oct. 3 on Eastern airlines flight 791 when the turbulence hit airlines spokeswoman Karen Ceremsak said. It was not Clear if Romerstein a injuries wore caused by falling Luggage being struck by other passengers or just simply being tossed Bocc. Romerstein had been in intensive care until his death. The Clear air turbulence struck at 31,000 feet when the dc-9 was approaching Palm Beach International Airport for a Landing. Thirteen people required medical assistance. Four of them were seriously injured. Romerstein a wife Rose suffered Back injuries. The couple were returning from a visit to Washington for the birth of a great grandchild. 2 Young Sisters Send $ 1 to Aid children in Kuwait Zionsville ind. Apr two Grade school girls touched by the plight of children in Kuwait sent $1 to the kuwaiti embassy in Washington but it was returned with the ambassadors thanks. Melissa Davidson 7, and her 6-year-old sister Jessica sent their Dollar to the embassy hoping to help children affected by the iraqi invasion of Kuwait. A i would like to express my profound gratitude for your generous gesture which i must decline a wrote ambassador Saud Nasir Al Shabah. Al Shabah went on to explain he was returning the Dollar because a no fund has been set up for this  nevertheless he wrote a it is your support that strengthens our Hope and Faith in regaining  the girls chipped in 50 cents each Melissa said. Officers mealtime sends drug dealers out to lunch Oklahoma City a a couple of police officers exasperated by drug dealing in their patrol area came up an idea they said closed some drug operations a at least during the lunch hour officers Mike Sharp and Brian Blosmo started the a lunch Bunche last summer in neighbourhoods where residents complained of drug dealing. The uniformed officers pulled out Lawn chairs and had picnic lunches on front lawns. A your first intent was for the drug dealers to see us a Sharp said. Sharp Blosmo and other officers honoured by the City Council for the idea said suspected drug dealers did see them and closed up shop. A they shut the doors and closed the windows a Sharp said. The officers said the lunches also provided a Chance for neighbourhood residents to interact with police. Japanese students report being racially harassed Denver apr japanese students at Tei Kyo Loretto Heights University say they have been racially harassed by Denver residents. Twelve students reported such harassment As racial taunting and egg throwing to people urinating in front of them. Two incidents involved students who were beaten and robbed. Earlier this year a fake bomb was sent to the school with a note Reading a japs go Home a authorities said. The University was formed As a cooperative Effort Between Regis College and Teiko University in Tokyo. About 350 students All japanese began classes last april. The school is limited to japanese students but Hopes to expand to include . Students next year. J