At a glance

Costliest beetle soldTOKYO: A giant stag beetle measuring 80 millimeters long has been sold for a record 10 million yen 90,000 dollars ...

Costliest beetle sold

TOKYO: A giant stag beetle measuring 80 millimeters long has been sold for a record 10 million yen 90,000 dollars at a Tokyo store specialising in insects, store representatives said on Thursday. The price is said to be the highest ever paid for a giant stag beetle, whose scientific name is dorcus hopei. According to the representatives at the Tokyo store, a 36-year-old company president bought the male insect. The insects are distinguished by a large set of pincer-like jaws. Last year, a beetle 79 millimeters long reportedly sold for 5 million yen.

Mom found guilty CALIFORNIA: A 35-year-old woman was convicted by a jury for murdering her four sons. She killed them to strike out at the men in her life. The San Diego county jury, which deliberated for about two hours on Wednesday before convicting Susan Eubanks of four counts of murder, is due to return next week to decide if she should face the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole. Eubanks wascharged with fatally shooting her four sons, aged 4 to 14, in October 1997 after an argument with her boyfriend. She then shot herself in the stomach, but eventually recovered from that wound. Prosecutors said she killed the boys to torment her two former husbands and her boyfriend.

Artefacts returned

KATHMANDU: Four ancient Nepali sculptures smuggled to the United States have been returned to the Himalayan kingdom, a government official said on Thursday. The art pieces recovered from a private collector in Los Angeles include an eighth century statue of a standing Buddha and three sculptures of different Hindu gods and goddesses from the 10th and 14th centuries. quot;This is a big achievement,quot; said Prakash Darnal, an archaeologist with the government8217;s Department of Archaeology. quot;Historically and archaeologically they are highly valuable,quot; he said. Department officials did not say how the pieces were recovered nor how they were smuggled out.