'Serial stickup man' cuffed in ice-cream, yogurt store robberies

The Fro-Yo bandit is on ice.

Cops nabbed an alleged serial robber, who held-up at least 10 businesses throughout Brooklyn — including hitting the same Tasti-D-Lite in Park Slope three times, authorities said yesterday.

Robert Coston, 47, was arrested Friday afternoon at the Linden Motor Inn in East New York Friday.

Cops tracked down him down after getting a tip from Crimestoppers.

Coston, who is homeless and has 16 prior arrests dating back to 1985, confessed to robbing 10 stores, cops said.

Charges are pending. It was not immediately clear if the gun he allegedly used during the stick-ups was recovered.

Coston’s spree began on Oct. 17 when he first robbed the Tasti-D-Lite on Seventh Avenue, cops said.

He next allegedly struck the Blue Marble Ice Cream Restaurant on Court Street in Cobble Hill on Oct. 22.

Coston also robbed two different Subway restaurants, cops said.

Besides hitting the same places multiple times, Coston's modus operandi also included apologizing to his victims.

Tasti D-Lite owner Mayer Levy earlier said Coston was “very calm” during the gunpoint robberies.

“He said, ‘I’m sorry. I hate to do this. I have a family to feed,’ ” Levy said.

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For Miami, new cruise ships a cause for celebration

Miami’s ship has come in. And it looks more like a fleet.

The Carnival Breeze, which starts regular sailings from its new year-round home Saturday, will be joined Thursday by Oceania Cruises’ Riviera and Dec. 1 by Celebrity Reflection. All three launched earlier this year in Europe and make their U.S. debut in Miami.

After a three-year dry stretch that saw no shiny new vessels mooring in Miami’s waters — and years of efforts to draw new operators coupled with millions spent on upgrades — the port is touting its biggest expansion ever with the three new ships as well as three new cruise lines signing on for this season and next.

“You want your newest ships to have the newest facilities, and that’s what Miami has done,” said Miami cruise expert Stewart Chiron, CEO of CruiseGuy.com.

Regent Seven Seas Cruises moved its ships from Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale to Miami, and Disney Cruise Line will sail for the first time from Miami starting in late December. Next year, MSC will bring its newest ship, Divina, to Miami after previously sailing from Fort Lauderdale.

And Miami-based Norwegian Cruise Line, which reignited the parade of new ships in 2010 with the Norwegian Epic, is bringing the 4,000-passenger Norwegian Getaway in January 2014 to Miami, where it will sail year-round.

“I never, ever would have considered going anywhere else, because we are a Miami company and we really believe that means something,” said Kevin Sheehan, Norwegian’s president and CEO.

That hasn’t always been the universal sentiment. Nearly six years ago, the port was under fire for a history of inefficiency and sub-par facilities. In late 2007, Royal Caribbean chose Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale as homeport for Oasis and Allure of the Seas, the world’s largest cruise ships — despite having a Miami headquarters.

The presence of those giant ships has meant some other cruise lines felt the squeeze, and a couple, like Regent Seven Seas Cruises and MSC Cruises, have opted to move south.

“Once upon a time, Port Everglades was known as the boutique cruise ship port,” said Frank Del Rio, chairman and CEO of Prestige Cruise Holdings, parent company of Oceania and the luxury Regent Seven Seas. “Now Port Everglades is the megaship port. We’re the antithesis of megaships.”

But Chiron said the moves aren’t necessarily a negative for Fort Lauderdale’s port.

“These ship movements and repositionings, all it’s really doing is opening up both ports for really bright future opportunities,” he said.

Port Everglades has grown its multiday cruise passenger numbers from about 2.6 million in fiscal 2008 to an expected more than 3.6 million on 45 ships in fiscal year 2012. By comparison, PortMiami’s passenger numbers have grown from about 3.8 million in 2008 to what is expected to be more than 4 million with 26 ships at the peak for the current fiscal year.

For its part, Port Everglades continues to invest in upgrades, recently finishing the $54 million reconstruction of four cruise terminals under a 2010 agreement with Carnival Corp. for brands including Holland America Line, Seabourn and Princess Cruises.

The investments go on at PortMiami as well, where director Bill Johnson, who took the job in 2006, listened to criticism that Miami hadn’t done enough to support the cruise industry. In the last few years, the port built a pair of terminals for Carnival for about $100 million. Since those terminals opened about four years ago, the port will have spent and continues to spend $70 million more in improvements, Johnson said.

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Small plane makes emergency landing in Southwest Ranches

A small, ultralight airplane made an emergency landing onto an open cow pasture in Southwest Ranches on Friday. No one was injured, Broward Sheriff’s Office reported, and the airplane did not suffer any significant damage.

Two people were aboard the plane, said Dani Moschella, a BSO spokeswoman. An investigation into the cause of the emergency landing will be conducted by the Federal Aviation Administration.

The plane went down in the area of Griffin and Hancock roads.

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Worn Out? Stars Step Out in Same Style

Kim Kardashian vs. Pink

Who knew Kim Kardashian and Pink had similar tastes in formal wear? Kardashian was spotted wearing a purple-blue, floor-length Catherine Deane gown in Miami this past month, while Pink chose the same style for her red-carpet appearance at the 2012 American Music Awards. Who rocked the chic style best?

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Dow Jones Industrial Average closes above 13,000 for first time since Election Day

Stocks rallied in an abbreviated session on Wall Street.

The Dow Jones industrial average shot up 172 points to 13,009. That's the first close above 13,000 for the Dow since Election Day.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 18 points to 1,409. The S&P also racked up its biggest weekly point gain of the year. The Nasdaq composite index climbed 40 to 2,966.

Traders were encouraged by economic signals out of Germany and China. It's also the first day of the traditional holiday shopping season.

Trading on Wall Street was thin, about 1.4 billion shares, in a holiday-shortened session. Advancing stocks beat decliners 5-to-1.

REUTERS

A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange today as a little girl watches.

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For Miami, new ships a cause for celebration

Miami’s ship has come in. And it looks more like a fleet.

The Carnival Breeze, which starts regular sailings from its new year-round home Saturday, will be joined Thursday by Oceania Cruises’ Riviera and Dec. 1 by Celebrity Reflection. All three launched earlier this year in Europe and make their U.S. debut in Miami. After a three-year dry stretch that saw no shiny new vessels mooring in Miami’s waters — and years of efforts to draw new operators coupled with millions spent on upgrades — the port is touting its biggest expansion ever with the three new ships as well as three new cruise lines signing on for this season and next.

“You want your newest ships to have the newest facilities, and that’s what Miami has done,” said Miami cruise expert Stewart Chiron, CEO of CruiseGuy.com.

Regent Seven Seas Cruises moved its ships from Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale to Miami, and Disney Cruise Line will sail for the first time from Miami starting in late December. Next year, MSC will bring its newest ship, Divina, to Miami after previously sailing from Fort Lauderdale.

And Miami-based Norwegian Cruise Line, which reignited the parade of new ships in 2010 with the Norwegian Epic, is bringing the 4,000-passenger Norwegian Getaway in January 2014 to Miami, where it will sail year-round.

“I never, ever would have considered going anywhere else, because we are a Miami company and we really believe that means something,” said Kevin Sheehan, Norwegian’s president and CEO. That hasn’t always been the universal sentiment. Nearly six years ago, the port was under fire for a history of inefficiency and sub-par facilities. In late 2007, Royal Caribbean chose Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale as homeport for Oasis and Allure of the Seas, the world’s largest cruise ships — despite having a Miami headquarters.

The presence of those giant ships has meant some other cruise lines felt the squeeze, and a couple, like Regent Seven Seas Cruises and MSC Cruises, have opted to move south.

“Once upon a time, Port Everglades was known as the boutique cruise ship port,” said Frank Del Rio, chairman and CEO of Prestige Cruise Holdings, parent company of Oceania and the luxury Regent Seven Seas. “Now Port Everglades is the megaship port. We’re the antithesis of megaships.”

But Chiron said the moves aren’t necessarily a negative for Fort Lauderdale’s port.

“These ship movements and repositionings, all it’s really doing is opening up both ports for really bright future opportunities,” he said.

Port Everglades has grown its multiday cruise passenger numbers from about 2.6 million in fiscal 2008 to an expected more than 3.6 million on 45 ships in fiscal year 2012. By comparison, PortMiami’s passenger numbers have grown from about 3.8 million in 2008 to what is expected to be more than 4 million with 26 ships at the peak for the current fiscal year.

For its part, Port Everglades continues to invest in upgrades, recently finishing the $54 million reconstruction of four cruise terminals under a 2010 agreement with Carnival Corp. for brands including Holland America Line, Seabourn and Princess Cruises.

The investments go on at PortMiami as well, where director Bill Johnson, who took the job in 2006, listened to criticism that Miami hadn’t done enough to support the cruise industry. In the last few years, the port built a pair of terminals for Carnival for about $100 million. Since those terminals opened about four years ago, the port will have spent and continues to spend $70 million more in improvements, Johnson said.

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Texting and driving ban bill filed — again — in Tallahassee

TALLAHASSEE --
Drivers would be banned from manually typing or reading texts, emails or other electronic messages while operating a car under legislation filed in the Senate Tuesday.

The measure (SB 52), filed by Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, calls for the offense to be what is known as a “secondary offense,” meaning officers could only ticket people for texting while driving if they’ve stopped them for some other traffic violation. That is, if a police officer sees someone texting they wouldn’t be able to pull them over – but if they see someone speeding and texting, they could tack on extra charges for texting in addition to the speeding penalty.

Drivers would still be able to read navigational devices or electronic maps without incurring a penalty under the proposal. Reading weather alerts or other safety-related information would also be exempt, as would using a hands-free voice-recognition application.

Texting while driving would be a nonmoving violation, punishable by a $30 fine, under the bill.

Lawmakers will be in full session in March, but bills can be filed now and committee meetings on proposed legislation start Dec. 3. Detert’s was among the first measures in the Senate to emerge from bill drafting for the coming year.

The National Transportation Safety Board has urged Florida and other states to ban the use of cell phones for texting or talking while driving. The NTSB said last year that distracted driving, some of it due to cell phone use, contributed to nearly 4,000 highway deaths a year, citing National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data. About a quarter of American drivers admit they sometimes text and drive. The issue is on the NTSB’s “most wanted” list for changes in transportation safety nationwide.

According to the National Conference on State Legislatures, Florida is one of only five states without some sort of ban on texting while driving. The others are Montana, South Dakota, Arizona, and South Carolina.

Detert has sponsored the proposal in at least the past two previous years with no success, despite generally bipartisan support.

The idea has generally been met with opposition from Libertarian-leaning lawmakers from rural areas who have a philosophical aversion to government imposing additional safety laws. It has also been opposed by some minority legislators, who fear giving police additional reasons to target drivers because of concerns about racial profiling – though Detert’s bill wouldn’t allow police to proactively pull drivers over just for texting.

Two legislators who in the past have held the legislation up in committee – former Sen. Ellyn Bogdanoff in the Senate and former Rep. Brad Drake in the House – are no longer in the Legislature.

Ten states — California, Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and West Virginia — and the District of Columbia have banned hand-held phone use by all drivers.

Several other states, including Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Massachusetts and Florida’s neighboring states of Alabama and Georgia, have a primary enforcement ban on texting while driving. Some states, such as Texas, have a texting ban just for younger drivers.

Detert’s bill has not yet been referred to committee.

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Gabriel Aubry and Olivier Martinez Involved in Brawl

Halle Berry's ex-boyfriend Gabriel Aubry and her fiancé Olivier Martinez were involved in a Thanksgiving altercation that turned physical, with one man having to be transported by ambulance due to injuries, ET confirms.

Cops responded to a 9-1-1 call at 10 a.m. at Berry’s house, and one individual has been detained by police. According to People.com, the fight broke out when Aubry was dropping off his daughter with Berry, Nahla, 4, to her house for Thanksgiving.

Related: Halle Berry & Gabriel Aubry's Custody Battle Heats Up

The investigation is currently ongoing.

Related: Berry -- My Love for Olivier Was 'Gradual'

Just Wednesday afternoon, Aubry, Berry, Martinez and Nahla were all seen together attending a pre-Thanksgiving party in Los Angeles.

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Not so happy family: Halle Berry's ex arrested after brawling with beauty's fiance

Halle Berry’s former husband was arrested today at her California home after he triggered a furious fight with her fiancé, French actor Olivier Martinez.

Gabriel Aubry was dropping off their daughter, Nah¬la, 4, when fists started flying, TMZ reported.

Aubry, a Canadian model, blew up when Martinez, told him, “We have to move on.” Aubry, 36, swung at and pushed Martinez, 46, but wound up unconscious and pinned to the ground before cops showed up to cart him off on battery charges, law-enforcement sources said.

Berry, who broke up with Aubry in 2010, was there when “Gabriel went nuts,” sources told the Web site.

MUNAWAR HOSAIN /startraksphoto.c

Halle Berry

Both men were treated in the same emergency room about an hour apart, Aubry for a broken rib and a potentially serious head injury, Martinez for a possibly broken hand.

Berry, 46, later obtained an emergency order of protection to keep Aubry away from her, their daughter and Martinez.

Tension between the two reportedly soared after Halle tried to take Nahla to France to live with her and Martinez. Aubry went to court and got an order preventing the move.

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Holiday hiring peps up a sluggish job market

At least the holidays are hiring.

Temporary jobs tied to the shopping season could be the consolation prize to South Florida’s recent stretch of lackluster hiring reports. Retailers expect to hire about 600,000 seasonal workers nationwide to keep up with demand during the Christmas rush, and the temp jobs can be a trial run for landing a permanent position.

“If you do a great job, we will reward you,’’ said Tyre Sperling, a spokesman for UPS, which plans to hire about 900 temporary workers this year in the South Florida area, with most jobs starting at about $8.50 an hour.

The UPS target of 900 local holiday workers is only about 20 more workers than it hired last year, reflecting a general trend of flat seasonal hiring in 2012.

The National Retail Federation expects stores and online merchandisers to bring on between 585,000 and 625,000 temporary workers nationwide this shopping season, roughly the same as the 607,500 hired last year. In South Florida, Macy’s and sister store Bloomingdale’s plans to hire 3,600 seasonal workers, and its national goal of 80,000 workers is up slightly from last year’s tally of 78,000 holiday hires.

One reason that retailers aren’t going all-out on seasonal workers is that they have been on a hiring streak since 2010. Retail payrolls in Broward and Miami-Dade grew 7 percent in the last two years compared to 3 percent for hiring overall. And though the 2012 seasonal hiring numbers are comparable to last year, they still amount to a post-recession high as consumers return to their free-spending ways.

Landing a holiday job at UPS or with any other employer is no guarantee for a permanent position, and companies expect to keep only a small fraction of their temporary workers this winter. Target, the nation’s third-largest retailer, recently said only 30 percent of 2011’s holiday hires became full-time employees.

But managers and others noted that they are reluctant to let outstanding temporary workers go once their assignment ends, particularly at the entry-level wages that typically come with holiday work. Should holiday sales come in strong and retailers start to feel confident about 2013, stores will be more eager to hold onto their staff once the “return” season ends in January.

“This is a good time to get your foot in the door,’’ said Ellen Davis, a senior vice president of the National Retail Federation. When searching for new employees, “the first place where many retailers look is who worked for them during the holidays and did a great job.”

Adrian Rodriguez tried for a month to land a job at JC Penney, but he didn’t hear back until the holidays arrived. “I’m a student. I needed a job,’’ he said. The Miami Dade College student spent a recent morning getting a tutorial on the department store’s watch department, one of thousands of workers cramming in as much Retail 101 before Friday and the official launch of the holiday shopping season.

While retailers wanted as many jobs filled as possible before “Black Friday,’’ the holiday hiring rush continues. Many of the back-end jobs, such as warehouse workers and package handlers, will see their rush periods in the days before Christmas. To land a seasonal job, recruiters, retail experts and others offered this advice:

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