+
popular

Man who kidnapped 11-yr-old girl chased down by heroic citizens who spotted her in the backseat

Man who kidnapped 11-yr-old girl chased down by heroic citizens who spotted her in the backseat

Most of us have few opportunities in our lives to become real-life heroes, but that's exactly what happened to Amanda Disley when she discovered a kidnapped girl in the backseat of a car.

Massachusetts State Police had issued an Amber Alert on January 15, informing citizens that 11-year-old Charlotte Moccia had reportedly been forced into a car shortly after getting off the school bus in the town of Springfield. "Preliminary investigation suggests that a white or Hispanic male was walking behind CHARLOTTE and forced her into the back of an older model (believed to be 2001-2005), dark blue or black Honda, possibly a Civic, with an unknown plate," the alert stated. "The vehicle has distinctive aftermarket rims and a moonroof."


According to TB Daily News, Amber Disley was driving around Springfield when she noticed someone being pushed down in the backseat of a Honda Civic and thought it looked suspicious. She and her husband weren't sure if it was the car described in the Amber Alert, but they had a "gut feeling" based on the rims and "the funny movements in the car." They called the police and started filming themselves following the car. Disley stayed on the phone with the dispatch describing what was happening and where they were.

The car appeared to go behind a building, but then came back around beside Disley's car. At one point, the Civic was reportedly traveling 100mph through the city, blasting through a red light, while Disley and her husband tried to stay behind and keep their eyes on the car.

While dangerous and certainly not recommended to follow a speeding car through red lights, the heroic actions of this couple paid off. State Troopers knew where to look for the car and were able to stop the driver on the Massachusetts Turnpike. Police report that Charlotte Moccia was recovered safely with no apparent physical injuries. The kidnapper, 24-year-old Miguel Rodriguez of Springfield, was arrested and taken into custody.

Family members of the accused told MassLive that Rodriguez has schizophrenia and has often exhibited bizarre behavior. According to police, Rodriguez had threatened to stab Moccia if she screamed or tried to get out of the car, but in a brief court appearance, he pleaded not guilty to aggravated kidnapping, intimidation of a witness, and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

Amber Alerts may be easy to ignore, but this story shows how the system can work when citizens are alerted to reported abductions. Who knows what may have happened to Charlotte Moccia if this couple hadn't spotted the kidnapper's car and followed it. Thankfully, we'll never have to find out.

We'd love to end the story there, but the nature of the internet compels us to add this note: Some scammers have set up a GoFundMe claiming to be raising money for Disley, and she is very clear on the fact that she and her husband did not set it up and don't know who did. She posted an emotional video to Facebook explaining that any GoFundMe is not associated with them, and that they hope whoever is collecting money off of this incident will send the money to the girl who was kidnapped.

Unfortunately, with internet notoriety comes inevitable negativity and opportunists. Don't let it get you down, Amanda. You helped save a girl from who-knows-what kind of trauma, and for that you should be proud.

@penslucero/TikTok

Pency Lucero taking in the Northern Lights

Seeing the northern lights is a common bucket list adventure for many people. After all, it ticks a lot of boxes—being a dazzling light show, rich historical experience and scientific phenomenon all rolled into one. Plus there’s the uncertainty of it all, never quite knowing if you’ll witness a vivid streak of otherworldly colors dance across the sky…or simply see an oddly colored cloud. It’s nature’s slot machine, if you will.

Traveler and content creator Pency Lucero was willing to take that gamble. After thorough research, she stumbled upon an Airbnb in Rörbäck, Sweden with an actual picture of the northern lights shining above the cabin in the listing. With that kind of photo evidence, she felt good about her odds.

However, as soon as she landed, snow began falling so hard that the entire sky was “barely visible,” she told Upworthy. Martin, the Airbnb host, was nonetheless determined to do everything he could to ensure his guests got to see the spectacle, even offering to wake Lucero up in the middle of the night if he saw anything.

Then one night, the knock came.

Keep ReadingShow less
Pop Culture

Daughter shares incredible 3D optical illusions painted by her father, who has aphasia

David Hollowell suffered from a traumatic brain injury in 2021, losing his ability to speak. Remarkably, he is still able to express himself through art.

@david.hollowell/TikTok

David Hollowell pictured with his 3D art

For a little over three decades, David Hollowell’s professional life had been dedicated to art. In addition to working as an art professor, his highly acclaimed 3D illusion paintings were shown in prestigious exhibits. In 2018, the 71-year-old began taking his talents to a larger scale, turning his family barn into an immersive mural.

Then, in May of 2021, Hollowell fell off the roof of his home, resulting in a traumatic brain injury leading to aphasia, a disorder that affects a person’s ability to communicate through speech or written language.

Though Hollowell couldn’t access words the way he used to, his ability to paint detailed, mesmerizing images remained remarkably intact. And his daughter-slash-self-appointed-TikTok manager, Adrienne, is determined to share his work and his journey with as many people as possible.

Keep ReadingShow less
via YouTube

These days, we could all use something to smile about, and few things do a better job at it than watching actor Christopher Walken dance.

A few years back, some genius at HuffPo Entertainment put together a clip featuring Walken dancing in 50 of his films, and it was taken down. But it re-emerged in 2014 and the world has been a better place for it.

Keep ReadingShow less

An Australian woman thinks it's rude that Americans don't say, "You're welcome."

There’s been a growing trend amongst American Gen Zers and millennials to stop saying, “You're welcome,” after being thanked. Older generations may think the change is part of a more significant trend of younger people having more lax manners, but in actuality, younger people believe that giving a simple “OK” or “Mm-hmm” after being thanked is more polite than saying, “You're welcome.”

Recently, Australian TikTok user Tilly Hokianga vented her frustrations with Americans in a viral post entitled, “Things That Send Me as an Australian Living in the US.” A lot of the points she made were pretty typical for someone visiting the United States, such as there's too much sugar in the bread and too many options for cereal.

However, she also noted that Americans have difficulty saying, “You’re welcome.”

Keep ReadingShow less

Meteorologist Matt Laubham prays for the people in the path of a deadly tornado.

Broadcasters who have to report on tragedies as they are happening have a tough job. On the one hand, they have to maintain their professionalism and inform the public of what's happening in a factual way. On the other hand, they're still human and sometimes humanity trumps the traditional perception of what's "professional."

Such was the case for WTVA meteorologist Matt Laubhan, who found himself live on the air staring at a radar scan of a deadly tornado as it moved towards the small town of Amory, Mississippi. He, more than anyone, understood the severity of the situation, and he did his best to convey that to his viewers.

"This is a strong, life-threatening tornado that's going to move either extremely close to Amory or in through the northern part of the city of Amory."

He added, "Y'all trust me too much," explaining that people sometimes take his predictions of where the tornado will go as hard fact, but the reality is that tornados can change directions at any time. "So Amory, we need to be in our tornado safe place," he said.

Keep ReadingShow less

Rick Astley rocking his Foo Fighters 'Everlong' cover.

Rick Astley has to be the luckiest '80s musician on the planet. The whole "Rickrolling" phenomenon has given his hit song "Never Gonna Give You Up" a reach far beyond its natural life span, and kept the guy a household name far longer than he probably would have been.

(For those who are unfamiliar, Rickrolling is when you make someone think they're being sent to a website, but the link goes to Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up" video instead as a joke. It's a silly viral bait-and-switch gag that's been going since 2006.)

But what people may not realize, because his most famous song has become an internet joke, is that Rick Astley is actually a really freaking great musician. The man can saaaang and it seems he's only gotten better with age.

Keep ReadingShow less