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A 19-year-old has been arrested and booked in Iowa for what cops say was a phony charity scam that raked in tens of thousands ... all from people who believed she had cancer.

The Eldridge Police Department rang up Madison Russo on a first-degree theft charge this week, which carries a maximum sentence of up to 10 years in prison if convicted. She was arrested on Jan. 23, but has since bonded out ... and is due back in court on March 2.

Cops allege Russo lied about 3 different diagnoses that she'd publicly been touting for at least a year ... including leukemia, pancreatic cancer and a tumor "the size of a football."

Throughout much of 2022, Russo went viral on TikTok while documenting her health journey -- which the authorities are now saying was completely made-up ... and which entered criminal territory after she raised upwards of $37k on GoFundMe from 439 donors.

On social media, she was often seen adorned in hospital-like paraphernalia ... IV bags, tubes that ran through her nose and medical tape/gauze -- suggesting she was undergoing treatment. All of that, however, was phony and just an act -- so alleges Eldridge PD.

Court docs reportedly lay out what police say they found at Russo's apartment ... in addition to some of the medical supplies listed above, they allege they discovered a wig, pills for nausea in a relative's name and more. In other words, they're claiming these were all props.

In addition, Eldridge PD says they subpoenaed Russo's medical records ... and allege she'd never been diagnosed with cancer at any nearby hospitals. The cops say she got on their radar after people wrote in saying some of what they saw on social media seemed fishy.

Two primates at the Dallas Zoo have allegedly been ape-napped -- at least that's what the zoo is saying ... just the latest in a string of bizarre animal-related disappearances.

Zoo officials notified Dallas PD Monday that a couple of their emperor tamarin monkeys were missing from their habitats ... and worse, they claim there's evidence of tampering in the restricted areas that house the creatures -- so they believe monkeys were taken.

The cops are already looking into it, and because it's an open investigation ... not many other details are available.

You'll recall ... this is the same zoo where a clouded leopard somehow escaped its own enclosure just earlier this month, prompting a shutdown of the place and a massive search.

The leopard ended up being found on the grounds soon after, but zoo officials claimed afterward that its habitat had been cut through ... suggesting someone let the big cat out intentionally.

There are two other strange animal incidents that have occurred at the Dallas Zoo of late -- including another alleged breach in an enclosure housing langur monkeys ... as well as an endangered vulture being found dead at the facility, which cops called suspicious.

The bigger the sex toy, the bigger the score for an alleged shoplifter -- or at least that appears to be what this person was thinking, attempting the ol' 5-finger discount on a 30-inch tall dildo!

Surveillance footage at famed adult store Circus of Books in West Hollywood shows the not-so-smooth shopper snatch the giant sex toy off a display table, tuck it under their arm and walk right out the front door.

We gotta imagine this bad boy is only for show, and not so much functional because it's more than 2' tall and retails for almost $700.

In the video -- obtained by WEHO Times -- you see the cashier spring into action as soon as they notice the phallus heist going down.

The cashier runs out from behind the counter and goes after the person. The video then cuts to the cashier carrying the 30" dildo back into the store, returning it to the display table ... opposite yet another oversized toy. Caper foiled!!!

We've seen similar incidents before ... during the pandemic, cops got involved after a man was seen on video swiping a 3-foot dildo from a sex shop in Las Vegas.

Amy Winehouse fans who got PO'd seeing Marisa Abela in costume for the biopic probably aren't gonna be happy with this latest update, 'cause it's still looking a little ... off.

TMZ obtained photos that were taken out in London Sunday afternoon, where the actress was in full costume portraying the late singer. As you probably know by now, Marisa was tapped to play Amy -- but people online are crying foul, saying it's a complete miscast.

Considering the massive amount of criticism early set photos received in the past few weeks, you might've thought the studio would make a tweak or two to Marisa's makeup or something -- but alas, as seen in these pics, they're forging ahead with what they got here.

Unclear what sort of scene they were shooting exactly -- but eyewitnesses tell us it looked like Amy's onscreen dad, Eddie Marsan, was dropping her off at a rehab center. That would make sense ... this film is focusing on Amy's rise to fame in the early aughts, when she was still living in London. By then, she'd already been using substances, alcohol and otherwise.

The backlash over Marisa's casting is likely to continue as the movie moves along in production -- frankly, MA looks nothing like Amy ... and while the real Amy Winehouse's own father says it's not a big deal at all, that's likely not gonna appease the diehard fanbase.

It's a bit weird everyone's so riled up over the fact Marisa's not a dead ringer for Amy. Truth be told, Hollywood's been in the habit of casting actors who don't necessarily look exactly like the iconic musicians they play, especially of late. Austin Butler excluded, of course.

Plus, ya gotta imagine that the producers -- who are working on this with a blessing from Amy's estate -- want to do her legacy justice ... so a little trust goes a long way for this sort of thing. As they say, it's not always about the look -- but, more so, the essence.

Bottom line ... Marisa still has the potential to wow everybody, so we'll just have to wait and see what comes of the performance when 'Back to Black' eventually hits theaters.

Zachary Levi said something that Twitter's taking as an anti-vax stance -- which could spell trouble for Warner Bros. Discovery ... 'cause he's got a blockbuster movie to promote.

The actor -- who plays the lead in the "Shazam!" franchise -- replied to a question posed on the bird app by Lyndon Wood, who asked ... "Do you agree or not, that Pfizer is a real danger to the world?" ZL's response made no bones about how he feels, "Hardcore agree."

There's not much more context beyond that, and right away ... Twitter users started bashing the dude and labeling him as a right-winger spewing anti-vax rhetoric. This also prompted people to pull up old clips of Zach that they view as problematic -- including a Joe Rogan interview he did a few years ago, where they talked about Elliot Page and Jordan Peterson.

Of course, the jokes also started to fly in regards to WBD and how the execs there might be reacting to this news ... on its face, it comes across as a PR nightmare -- especially with "Shazam! Fury of the Gods" on the horizon and a press tour that'll undoubtedly come with it.

Welp, Zach caught wind of all the hubbub and attempted to clarify ... tweeting a link to a 2009 DOJ press release touching on a fraud case Pfizer was involved in at the time, when they agreed to pay a $2.3 billion settlement. He says this is what he was referring to.

In other words, he's now trying to make it seem like he was expressing a view against corruption in big pharma -- but, frankly, Twitter isn't really buying it ... especially amid the latest Project Veritas drop, which has been top of mind in much of conservative media.

Time will tell how this might affect things with the water tower team. One could argue WBD had a way bigger scandal on its hands with Ezra Miller ... and they ended up salvaging that pretty nicely. Their movie isn't canceled -- it's actually due to come out later this year.

Of course, it all comes down to what James Gunn and Peter Safran wanna do with "Shazam!". They're at the helm of DC now, and they've scrapped A LOT in recent months.

The special task force to which all 5 officers involved in Tyre Nichols' death belonged is being dismantled for good ... an about-face after the top dog said she wouldn't do it.

The Memphis Police Department announced Saturday they were deactivating the SCORPION Unit effective immediately ... this in the wake of public outcry following the release of body cam footage that showed 5 cops detaining and brutally beating Nichols on Jan. 7.

The department says Police Chief Cerelyn "C.J." Davis met with the remaining officers that were part of SCORPION (Street Crimes Operations to Restore Peace in Our Neighborhoods) and mutually came to the decision it'd be best to disband the unit in light of everything.

MPD says they've made this decision after listening to the family of Tyre, community leaders and the public at large -- noting that the officers who are part of SCORPION, and who do fine work normally, "agree unreservedly with this next step."

They add, "While the heinous actions of a few casts a cloud of dishonor on the title SCORPION, it is imperative that we, the Memphis Police Department, take proactive steps in the healing process for all impacted." MPD also says they want to restore trust ASAP.

Interestingly, Chief Davis on Friday said she wouldn't be shutting down SCORPION ... telling AP, "The whole idea that the Scorpion unit is a bad unit, I just have a problem with that."

There's been a lot of digging into what this unit was/why officers who were in it had any reason to come into contact with Tyre on the night in question. SCORPION was formed in October 2021 and launched the following month ... so it's been around for just over a year.

According to a MPD description of SCORPION at the time ... the whole idea of it was to get about 40 officers split into 4 teams to patrol "high crime hotspots" all throughout Memphis.

Tyre's traffic stop-turned-chase occurred at the intersection of East Raines Road and Ross Road -- near the Autumn Ridge neighborhood ... which appears to be one of the areas SCORPION was assigned to cover. The fact five of its cops were there is no coincidence.

The Chief has since said no evidence has surfaced for why Tyre was pulled over in the first place. Reckless driving was cited, but proof of probable cause for that is nonexistent.

A top U.S. Air Force official sent a stunning confession to his subordinates this week that warns of a looming war with China that he believes will manifest in the next couple years.

General Mike Minihan -- a four-star officer -- fired off an internal memo Friday to the rank and file that reports to him within the Air Mobility Command ... a unit that encompasses roughly 50,000 service members and oversees 500 planes for transport/refueling purposes.

While AMC doesn't sound like a combat-ready entity, Minihan reportedly told his guys to prepare for battle ... this according to NBC News, which says it obtained a copy of his note.

According to the outlet, Gen. Minihan writes ... "I hope I am wrong. My gut tells me will fight in 2025," while going on to describe what he says he believes China will do during the 2024 general election cycle -- namely, use that volatility here in the States to move on Taiwan.

In the event this comes to pass, Minihan reportedly laid out a very detailed defense and attack plan ... which includes building up a "Joint Force Maneuver Team" that can mobilize quickly to "fight and win inside the first island chain." He's ordering all airwing commanders and AF operational commanders to report on their progress for this by the end of February.

There's more ... Minihan reportedly has goals in mind for February and March, which entail his boys firing clips at 7-meter targets -- while noting, "unrepentant lethality matters most. Aim for the head." In March, he wants the AMC team to "consider their personal affairs and whether a visit should be scheduled with their servicing base legal office to ensure they are legally ready and prepared." Also, he tells them to update their emergency contacts.

In addition to this, Minihan's memo talks of risk/reward in training ... reportedly saying, "Run deliberately, not recklessly," and later adding, "If you are comfortable in your approach to training, then you are not taking enough risk." NBC News also says he discusses the possible use of commercial drone swarms as a tactic the U.S. might use against China.

In other words, this guy is rounding up the cavalry in very real terms ... not hypotheticals. And yet, a DoD rep went on record to say Minihan's concerns don't reflect the department's view on China ... distancing themselves from what sounds like legit wartime preparations.

Move over Yogi, there's a new bear influencer in the game -- this furry fella in Colorado is striking hundreds of poses, turning a trail camera into its personal glam cam.

The motion-detection cameras at Open Space and Mountain Parks system (OSMP) were placed in the Boulder area to passively observe wildlife activity ... capturing photos and videos of animals as they passed by the lens, but this bear couldn't get enough, and kept coming back for more headshots.

The agency says it found about 400 shots of the bear-turned-model on just one of their 9 cameras.

Will Keeley, senior wildlife ecologist for OSMP reportedly said, "The motion-detecting cameras provide us a unique opportunity to learn more about how local species use the landscape around us while minimizing our presence in sensitive habitats".

Apparently, the wildlife cameras snap still photographs in the park, when an animal steps in front of it. At night, they use infrared light to minimally disturb nocturnal wildlife.

Keeley said, "We are fortunate to live in an area with a rich diversity of wildlife species, and these cameras help us to learn what animals are really out there, and what they are up to over the course of a day, a week, or even years.”

The supermodel gone viral for taking a tumble at the Valentino Fashion Show in Paris is saying the blame is all on her ... after people online started pointing fingers at the company for the way they design their shoes.

Kristen McMenamy took to Instagram Thursday, after a clip of her taking the hard fall -- then ripping her high heels off -- picked up steam online. She thanked the luxury brand and fashion designer Pierpaolo Piccioli for the opportunity, before adding "I f***ed up."

For those unaware, many put the blame on Valentino, not Kristen, for the slip up ... saying it appeared the shoes she wore looked too small for her to walk in, or that she was given the wrong size. .

Kristen later returned to the runway without the heels, but many pointed out she still seemed to be walking awkwardly.

A rep for Valentino tells TMZ ... the company values the safety and well-being of its models hired to walk in its shows -- adding they were able to practice ahead of time in their shoes, and had the option to wear different ones if needed.

PGA Tour star, Max Homa's mind was off of birdies and onto bees during his round on Thursday -- at least momentarily -- 'cause one of the winged insects landed right on his ball ... and didn't want to move!!!

The funny scene all happened on the ninth green at Torrey Pines at the Farmers Insurance Open ... when Homa went to line up his birdie putt.

Broadcast video shows as the 32-year-old golfer reached down to examine his ball, a bee was parked on it ... and seemed rather cozy.

Homa tried -- carefully, we might add -- to get the little guy to move, but he wasn't budging.

"He's tyring to get rid of a frequent flyer there," one of the event's broadcaster's joked.

Eventually, Homa got it to fly away -- avoiding the stinger in the process.

Benjamin Button's got nothing on this guy ... a software developer well into his 40s claims he's aging backwards, but the catch is it costs him 7 figures annually to do it!!!

45-year-old Bryan Johnson says his bio-hack is costing him $2 million per year -- and with a team of 30 doctors, he maintains a strict regimen which apparently gives him the heart of a 37-year-old, the skin of a 28-year-old and the fitness of an 18-year-old.

He says his daily routine includes waking at 5 AM, and taking 2 dozen supplements, following a vegan diet with a high-intensity exercise routine ... and he goes to bed at the same time every night.

Bryan says his doctors closely monitor his vital signs and he does a ton of monthly tests ...  including blood tests, ultrasounds, MRIs and colonoscopies.

He also tracks things like his body fat and weight each day... while sleeping with a machine that tracks his nightly erections. Umm ... TMI, Mr. Johnson!

He told Bloomberg, "What I do may sound extreme, but I’m trying to prove that self-harm and decay are not inevitable.”

Bryan reportedly racked up a ton of cash in his 30s by selling his payment processing company Payment Solutions to EBay for $8M, and decided to spend his fortune finding the fountain of youth.

He calls his initiative "Project Blueprint" and he hopes to eventually have all major organs working as they did when he was in his late teens -- including his brain, liver, kidneys, teeth, skin, hair, penis and rectum.

It looks like Jamahal Hill's going to get his wish -- the newly crowned UFC champ tells TMZ Sports he wants Jiri Prochazka next -- and the 31-year-old fighter says Dana White's on board!

We spoke to Hill days after he thoroughly beat the legendary Glover Teixeira, during the main event at UFC 283, where he captured the vacant light heavyweight title ... And, while he's still reveling in his victory, now Jamahal wants Jiri.

"100% [Prochazka]. I'm hoping he can be back by July, August and we can get a fight set up 'cause that's the one I've wanted for a long time," Hill told us.

Of course, Prochazka, the former champion, suffered a severe shoulder injury in late 2022 (it was called the "worst shoulder injury in UFC history"), forcing him out of UFC 282 only days before he was set to step in the Octagon.

But, despite how bad it initially looked, Jiri says his healing is ahead of schedule ... and even sent a message to Hill.

"Congratulations. I'm coming."

And, that's just what Jamahal wants ... and apparently, Dana does too.

"That's the fight that they would like to have happen. So, obviously, when he's ready. I want him to heal up, I don't want any excuses whatsoever. Well, there'll probably still be some. But still, as long as he's ready to go and he feels healthy, I want us to be able to get that done," Hill told us.

There's much more.

We also talked to Hill about the viral video of him from in between rounds ... when his cornerman poured water on his head, sending blood -- lots of blood -- streaming down his face.

In the moment, Jamahal thought it was his blood ... but it wasn't.

"That was Glover's blood. Whenever [my corner] did that I had to look down, if you actually read my lips, I said 'where's that coming from? Where's that coming from? I'm bleeding? I asked him.'"

Hill -- who grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan -- was doubted by so many along the way, and Jamahal was incredibly emotional after the fight.

We asked him for his message to anyone, especially kids, who were watching.

"Go after your dreams. Anything is possible. Whatever you want, you can literally speak it, and make it happen."

Against what many considered all odds, Nadya Suleman, aka Octomom, and her octuplets are celebrating their 14th birthday ... and they are happy, healthy and thriving!

Check out the photo and video we got of Noah, Maliyah, Isaiah, Nariyah, Jonah, Makai, Josiah and Jeremiah all singing happy birthday before diving into some vegan donuts in honor of their big day.  BTW ... all 8 are vegans.

The 8 kiddos -- who are all vegan -- will celebrate the big 1-4 Thursday, but clearly, celebrations have already kicked off ... and there are 8 big smiles to mark the occasion.

It was way back in 2009 when Nadya was artificially inseminated in a BIG way. Doctors told her delivering 8 babies would be too much to handle, but Nadya was insistent.

Of course, there were doubters and haters ... many didn't believe she'd have the time or resources to handle 14 kids -- she had 6 of her own before the octuplets -- but she's made it work!!!

Angry Drake fans are calling out the NYPD for what felt like electronic surveillance at his sold-out Apollo Theater show -- and after a clip of officers recording ticketholders went viral, the cops say it's not what it seems.

NYPD law enforcement sources tell TMZ Hip Hop the video shows officers outside the Apollo recording concertgoers as they exited the theater. We're told that video was shot for a social media post to show how police work with venue security to keep concerts safe for fans.

For angry fans, it felt like blatant profiling and surveillance intended to capture and save images of Drake's fans -- but NYPD's scoffing at that notion. Our sources say the community affairs officers seen with the video cameras are not affiliated with the detective bureau, and do not investigate serious crimes.

There are also dozens of city surveillance cameras around the Apollo ... and the whole city, for that matter. The reality of life in the 21st century is we're all being recorded throughout the day without ever knowing it.

Drake was uptown for 2 nights, and inside the venue, a brief but tense moment occurred during the second show when a fan fell over the mezzanine balcony ... onto the crowd below.

The show was briefly paused for about 15 minutes when a spokesperson announced the fan wasn't terribly injured, and that the show would go on.

Hometown heroes Cam'ron, Jim Jones and Juelz Santana of Dipset were brought out and a tour with his "Her Loss" costar 21 Savage was teased.

M&M's jumped on the culture war over its green spokesperson ... and Tucker Carlson played right into the candy's hand!

The hubbub is over the green spokescandy, formally Miss Green. Back in the day, she was the sexy piece of candy, but last year the company decided to recreate Miss Green, and turn her more "inclusive." They put her in tennis shoes, toned down her eyelashes and took away references to gender.

The company also changed up the orange M&M ... to actually make it look even more anxious, embracing its true self.

It didn't sit well with Carlson, who accused the company of being too woke, adding he no longer was attracted to M&M's.

Whatever floats his boat, right?

So now, the company says it's 86'ing the spokescandies ... Maya Rudolph will now do the honors of representing the delicious chocolates.

If this smells tastes like M&M/Mars doing some brilliant marketing -- making lemonade outta Carlson's lemon of a rant -- that's because it is. Maya confirms it's all leading up to a Super Bowl ad.

Chrisean Rock got into a physical altercation shortly after announcing she was pregnant with Blueface's child -- this while trying to get to her alleged soon-to-be baby daddy.

TMZ has obtained video that was taken early Saturday morning in Chatsworth, near Blueface's home. We're told this fight you see here on camera followed what eyewitnesses claim was a bum rush attempt by Chrisean on Blue ... dropping in on him at his house.

You see, we're told Blueface was throwing a party at his crib to ring in his 26th birthday (Friday) ... and that Chrisean crashed the shindig in an effort to pull him away.

What you see here is what we're told happened shortly thereafter ... it seems Blueface was trying to get away in his own vehicle -- with a gaggle of people following him, including Chrisean -- and it all erupted in a massive brawl on the street down the block from his pad.

In the clip, you see Chrisean -- wearing the same pink track suit from earlier in the day -- getting Blueface to herself on one side of a car (presumably hers). We're told she was trying to get him inside to leave with her. Instead, she threw hands with 2 ladies on the scene.

Chrisean finds a way to her feet -- and in the end, eyewitnesses tell us she and Blue left in different vehicles. Unclear if they met up somewhere after, or went their separate ways.

Of course, this is disturbing on many levels. For one, it's another instance of violence between Blueface, Chrisean and/or people in their orbit. More sad, though, is the fact that Chrisean says she's got a bun in the oven -- so this is super dangerous in that regard.

Remember, Blueface has denied the kid is his ... and also said he and Chrisean were done. It seems she might've wanted to patch things up -- which doesn't seem to have ended well.