JOLIET, Ill. (AP) – About 11,000 patrons of Harrah’s Joliet Casino got a big surprise in the mail – a coupon for $525 in wagering.

Perhaps most surprised were casino officials.

The casino’s direct marketing vendor mistakenly made the coupons for an amount much higher than the usual $15 to $20, the casino said.

The company will honor the coupons, which were sent out last week, said Harrah’s Illinois regional president Joe Domenico. The announcement came after the Illinois Gaming Board was deluged by complaints from people who said they were told by casino workers the coupons were no good, said gaming board spokesman Gene O’Shea.

“There were a lot of customers who went to Harrah’s expecting to be paid,” O’Shea said. “There were a lot of angry patrons.”

The casino, owned by Las Vegas-based Harrah’s Entertainment Inc., has not said how much money it could lose from the coupon error. The coupons’ total value is about $5.8 million.

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KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) – A 17-foot poisonous king cobra hiding in the bushes at a juvenile delinquent center eluded firefighters for more than an hour, so officials called in an expert: a snake charmer.

Mohamad Shaiful Abdul Aziz, 21, caught the snake in just 10 minutes, using only his hands.

“I have never come across such a big king cobra,” he told the Star newspaper.

The snake, which weighed 33 pounds, was handed over to the wildlife officials. A ranger at a Penang national park declined comment and would not reveal the snake’s fate.

Dwindling habitat and deforestation in Malaysia can force wild animals to venture into areas populated by humans, environmentalists warn.

About two months ago, a 16-foot-long king cobra was discovered draped around a statue at a Hindu temple in a Kuala Lumpur suburb. Thousands who considered the spectacle sacred brought offerings of milk, eggs and cash.

The king cobra is depicted as powerful in Hindu scriptures. It is the longest venomous snake in the world, growing up to 18 feet in length, and can rear itself upright to about a third of its body length – about the height of a grown man.

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BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) – Thailand’s Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra says he won’t answer questions from reporters until next year because the alignment of the planets is not in his favor.

“Right now Mercury … is in a corner perfectly aligned with my star. Mercury is no good, so if it’s not good, I am going to request not to speak,” Thaksin told reporters Sunday.

Mercury moves slowly and will not steer clear of his star until next year, he said.

Thaksin has shown hostility toward the media since taking office in 2001, and critics accuse him of trying to restrict press freedoms by manipulating coverage, canceling TV and radio shows, and using media takeovers by his political and business allies.

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CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) – Competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi swallowed 67 hamburgers in eight minutes to win $10,000 and retain his title as Krystal Square Off World Hamburger Eating Champion.

The Japanese contender fended off San Diego State University engineering student Joey Chestnut, who was tied with Kobayashi at 60 burgers with 37 seconds left.

“If I didn’t have Chestnut pushing me, I wouldn’t have eaten so much this year,” the 172-pound Kobayashi said through a translator. “My arms weren’t moving as fast as I wanted them to.”

Chestnut, 21, said his failure to dunk one of the 2.5-square-inch burgers in water slowed him.

“His experience carried him,” Chestnut said of his rival.

Kobayashi finished 69 Krystals in the 2004 contest. He also holds the title of hot dog-eating champion, after eating 49 hot dogs in 12 minutes at the Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog-Eating Contest at Coney Island, N.Y.

Saturday’s event was sanctioned by the International Federation of Competitive Eating.

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On the Net:

International Federation of Competitive Eating: http://www.ifoce.com/