GODFREY, Ill. - James Ross isn’t an appliance repairman, a firefighter or a policeman. But he’s about to become a prisoner - again.

Ross, 25, has a history of impersonating officials and has been in prison at least four times.

The Illinois Department of Corrections said Ross violated terms of his parole when he was arrested Sunday for posing as an appliance repairman.

He approached two women at an apartment complex and said he was there to check on their washers and dryers, according to police.

In October, Ross was sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty to making a false report of murder.

He was released in March and put on parole for a year.

Ross also has posed as a Marine, a paramedic, a firefighter, a police officer, a federal agent, an evangelist and a funeral director trainee, authorities said.

The world’s largest flower? That stinks

MADISON, Wis. - Big Bucky’s back.

The rare, big and extremely stinky flower that caused a sensation at the University of Wisconsin-Madison when it last bloomed in 2001 could become the world’s largest flower when it blooms again next week.

The titan arum stood at 6 feet, 4 inches Thursday in a UW-Madison greenhouse, on pace to rival the world record for cultivated flowers when it blooms and releases its trademark roadkill scent in the coming days.

Botanists hope it will surpass the record of nearly 9 feet set by a titan arum in Germany two years ago.

The university is bracing for thousands of curious visitors hoping to catch a glimpse and even a whiff of the rock star of the botanical world.

He isn’t too

old to get his kicks

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - A man who pedaled from California to Chicago along Route 66 to celebrate his 66th birthday says that’s just the beginning.

Doug Waterman wants to ride California’s Highway 101 on his 101st birthday - in 35 years.

Waterman says the 2,448-mile cross-country ride he completed last month isn’t something he’d ever want to do again. But he says it’s something he’ll always remember.

The Illinois Route 66 Heritage Foundation thanked Waterman for his ride - saying it’s just the type of thing the route needs to bring it back to life.

Waterman says he started the trip to see his brothers in New Mexico and Oklahoma and his son in Springfield. He planned to take a train back to California.