Nation in brief: Inspectors claim false data forced

Six customs inspectors have told federal officials that superiors instructed them to enter false data indicating airline passengers had been stopped and inspected for plant and animal contraband.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers allege that in 2005, supervisors at Orlando Sanford International Airport told them to falsify information typically gathered during direct interviews and inspections of international passengers or crew members, according to a report by the U.S. Office of Special Counsel.

The six officers were agricultural specialists, employed to detect and stop introduction of animal and plant pests into the United States.

The inspectors told the special counsel’s office that they were instructed to enter the false data because the airport was busy.

Customs and Border Protection spokesman Zachary Mann declined to discuss the case but said the agency takes all allegations of wrongdoing seriously.

CALUMET CITY, Ill.

4-year-old killed while mom in Iraq

A man beat his girlfriend’s 4-year-old son to death after she left the boy in his care while she was deployed to Iraq, police said.

A judge denied bond on Saturday for Donell Parker, 23, who is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Cameron Smith. Parker was charged Friday, a day after the boy was found dead in his bed in a suburb south of Chicago.

Judge Frank Castiglione said at Saturday’s bail hearing that Parker showed a “wanton disrespect for human life.” Prosecutors told the court the boy suffered multiple rib fractures, damaged internal organs and swelling around his brain.

The boy’s 7-year-old sister and 8-year-old brother had also been in Parker’s care, and they were unhurt, O’Meara said. They were put in the custody of their maternal grandparents after Cameron was found dead.

Cameron’s mother, Sgt. Lavada Smith, 28, was headed back to Illinois on Friday after spending only ten hours at her new duty station in Iraq.

Family members said Cameron’s father, Gary Smith Jr., 27, had been deployed to Iraq last August and last saw his three children on a brief leave in January. O’Meara said the children’s parents were separated.

DALLAS

Man presumed dead in Texas rains

Rescuers suspended their search Saturday for a man now presumed to be the sixth person killed by rising waters in central Texas, and forecasters warned that recurring rain could cause more flooding across the Plains.

Forecasters issued flash flood warnings and said the storms, which have dumped more than 10 inches of rain in some areas, likely would continue through at least today.

Roadways were washed out and some intersections remained closed Saturday after two days of rain pounded the area. Gov. Rick Perry activated National Guard troops to be deployed in Waco, Austin and San Antonio for the holiday weekend.

NEW YORK

Saks shoe store gets its own ZIP

Saks Fifth Avenue says its new shoe department is so big that it’s getting its own ZIP code.

The Manhattan store is revamping its shoe department, and when it moves from the fourth floor to an 8,500-square-foot space on the eighth floor in August, customers will be able to send mail to 10022-SHOE.

The retailer worked with the U.S. Postal Service on the new ZIP code – but only the last four characters, which aren’t necessary when mailing something, are specialized. The rest of the neighborhood shares 10022.