Woman Faces Jail for Dirty Underwear

— -- A N D E R S O N, S.C. — Airing your dirty laundry is one thing. A South Carolina woman is learning the hard way that selling it is quite another.

Christine Vetter, 21, of Central, S.C., pleaded guilty last week to federal charges of mailing used underwear and worse over a Web site catering to perverse fetishes.

Vetter admitted in federal court to selling her soiled underthings, used feminine hygiene products, used condoms, sex aids and food items covered with bodily fluids to customers over the Internet. Vetter sold the items on her Web site "blondestrippergirl.com" from November 2000 to March 2002 while she was a Clemson University student, prosecutors said. The site has been shut down.

South Carolina U.S. Attorney Strom Thurmond Jr., filed charges against Vetter under a rarely used federal law that prohibits "mailing indecent and filthy substances."

"I don't know of anyone that has been prosecuted under this statute before," said Thurmond's spokesman Scott Schools.

Vetter faces up to five years in prison and/or a $250,000 fine.

Vetter's site came to the attention of authorities when U.S. Postal Service agents spotted a letter addressed to her with a label saying it contained child pornography.

Inspectors found that the envelope did not actually contain child porn, and determined that the sender was a disgruntled customer of Vetter's Web site.

Postal service agents obtained records showing Vetter made 225 Web site sales averaging about $40 each from customers throughout the United States.

Cops: Pizzeria Offered Pot Pies

S O U T H L E B A N O N, Ohio — For a Chubby's Pizza in South Lebanon, requesting "special seasonings" meant more than just getting some extra garlic and oregano — it meant getting some pot with your pie.

David Kilpatrick was arrested July 2 for allegedly running a marijuana operation from the pizzeria, where he has worked for 17 years.

Officials from the Warren County Drug Task Force said Kilpatrick was arrested following an undercover investigation that last more than six months.

"The investigation began after there had been several complaints about drug trafficking," said John Burke, Warren County Drug Task Force commander. "People in the neighborhood knew about the drug sales for several years, and we started getting anonymous complaints."

According to police, customers who specifically requested "special seasonings" for their pizza were sold marijuana along with their slices and pies. The marijuana would be placed inside hoagie bags and given to the customer after they uttered the alleged password for pot.

Authorities say Kilpatrick sold marijuana to undercover agents on at least three different occasions. Burke said it was hard to say how much money Kilpatrick's operation generated but estimated that he sold one or two ounces of marijuana a day.

Kilpatrick was released after posting bail and could face a maximum of one year in prison.

Authorities are still investigating whether Kilpatrick had help in the alleged marijuana sales and whether his employers knew about or were involved in his activities.

The owner of Chubby's Pizza has denied any previous awareness of the pot pie operation.

Cops: 911 Caller Demands Cash, Gets Cuffs

G A I N E S V I L L E, Fla., — A man who called Alachua County's 911 system more than 1,000 times didn't exactly have an emergency, but he did apparently have a desperate need for $15 million, or at least a new car, police said.

Michael Holmes, 21, allegedly started bombarding emergency dispatchers with calls on the afternoon of June 30 and didn't stop for more than eight hours, racking up more 800 calls, sometimes using several cell phones at once.

The county dispatchers usually receive only 190 calls in 24 hours, said Sgt. Keith Faulk an Alachua County Sheriff's Office spokesman.

Operators at the emergency line said they tried to reason with the caller, but he wouldn't listen.

"We were trying to explain to him that we only have a certain number of 911 lines," operator Allison Marler told ABCNEWS affiliate WCJB. "And, when those lines are tied-up for non-emergency calls or prank calls, that endangers people that are calling us for help."

He finally stopped plaguing the emergency dispatchers the evening of June 30, but began again the next day, and after a while, Faulk said, the man began demanding money to stop the calls.

"Detectives told him that the 911 calls were illegal," Faulk said. "The demands went from $15 million to a new automobile."

Detectives from the sheriff's office worked with local telephone company to track the calls by locating the tower that was picking up the cell phone signals and getting the man to reveal details about himself.

When Holmes was arrested, Faulk said, he had several deactivated cell phones, which can still be used to make emergency calls but are difficult to trace.

"We were able to convince him that he was going to have to settle for a pair of handcuffs," Faulk said.

Holmes was charged with extortion, and he could also face numerous misdemeanor charges of misuse of 911 emergency communications.

Crime Blotter, a weekly feature of ABCNEWS.com, is compiled by Oliver Libaw.