WEST

HILTON BUYS BRITISH HILTON, CREATING WORLD’S BIGGEST HOTEL COMPANY

LOS ANGELES – Hilton Hotels Corporation said yesterday it will buy the hotel assets of Britain’s Hilton Group PLC for $5.7 billion cash, creating the world’s biggest hotel company by revenue.

The deal reunites two brands that split in the 1960s, allowing Hilton to instantly overtake rivals such as Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Incorporated and Marriott International Incorporated. It also makes Hilton, which had been limited in scope to America and Canada, a global player, allowing the company to expand some of its well-known domestic brands, such as Hampton Inn, to India, China and other markets.

Under the terms of the deal, Beverly Hills, Calif.-based Hilton Hotel will acquire only the British company’s lodging operations. Hilton Group will change its name to Ladbrokes PLC and focus on its online and in-store betting operation, which has hundreds of locations in Europe.

The deal, which had been expected since October, sent shares of Hilton up nearly 8% to $24 at the end of regular trading on the New York Stock Exchange, close to a 52-week high of $25.81.

– Associated Press

NORTHEAST

AFTER 350 YEARS, A BOULDER IS RETURNED TO MOHEGAN TRIBE

MONTVILLE, Conn. – The biggest boulder in New England – a spot used for dirt bike riding and Boy Scout camping trips – may soon return to its ages-old function as the site of Indian tribal councils. The Boy Scouts’ governing council in Connecticut wants to give Cochegan Rock back to the Mohegans more than 350 years after it was claimed by European settlers. All that is needed to transfer the 50-foot-high rock, plus 92 acres, is approval from Connecticut’s attorney general, who is reviewing the paperwork.

– Associated Press

MIDWEST

ILLINOIS BANK ROBBER TURNED IN BY SONS GETS 40 YEARS

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – A family man once regarded as a pillar of the community was sentenced to 40 years in prison yesterday for a string of bank robberies after being turned in by his own sons, who recognized him in a surveillance photo.

The judge imposed the minimum sentence on 64-year-old William Alfred “Al” Ginglen. Ginglen, who pleaded guilty in July to pulling seven bank robberies in 2003 and 2004, was also ordered to pay $56,382 in restitution.

U.S. District Judge Jeanne Scott called Ginglen’s sons “the greatest credit of your life.”

“They acted in an exemplary fashion under circumstances that must have been incredibly difficult,” she said. “Someone taught them right from wrong, even when you didn’t. Their actions perhaps saved your life.”

– Associated Press

SOUTHWEST

RESIDENTS OF FIRE-SWEPT TEXAS, OKLAHOMA MOURN LOSSES

CROSS PLAINS, Texas – Linda and Kenneth Dixson recently turned down an offer to buy their quaint renovated farmhouse, deciding instead to stay put and fill it with new furniture.

But after wildfires charred nearly 200 homes and killed four people in Texas and Oklahoma, the Dixsons inspected the only thing left of their dream home: a charred, smoldering heap.

“We didn’t take any clothes, and now it’s all gone,” Kenneth Dixson said Wednesday night while eating at First Baptist Church, where the Red Cross set up a shelter. “I didn’t want to go back out there today. I just didn’t want to see it again.”

Severe drought, wind gusts of 40 mph and temperatures reaching the low 80s earlier this week set the stage for the fires in Texas and Oklahoma. Authorities believe they were mostly set by people ignoring fire bans and burning trash, shooting fireworks, or throwing out cigarettes. The flames ripped across nearly 20,000 acres in the two states. At least 73 blazes were reported in Texas over two days, and dozens more broke out in Oklahoma.

While the wind and high temperatures eased after the outbreak of fires Tuesday, the National Weather Service predicted a return of hazardous conditions on Saturday – prompting fears that New Year’s fireworks could spark another round of fires.

– Associated Press

MILITARY

NUMBER OF DETAINEES ON HUNGER STRIKE DOUBLES

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The number of detainees on hunger strike at the U.S. military detention facility in Guantanamo Bay has more than doubled in the last week to 84, an official said yesterday.

Forty-six detainees joined 38 already on strike on December 25, said Guantanamo spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Jeremy Martin, who added that the number of fasting detainees “routinely fluctuates.”

– Associated Press