LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – A woman who says she was hurt by her thong panties when a metal clip flew off and hit her in the eye has sued Victoria’s Secret, saying in a TV interview on Thursday that the injury caused her “excruciating pain.”

Macrida Patterson, a 52-year-old Los Angeles traffic officer, told NBC’s “Today” show that she suffered cuts to her cornea from the small piece of metal that had been used to secure a rhinestone heart onto the blue thong.

“I was putting on my underwear from Victoria’s Secret and the metal popped in my eye. It happened really quickly. I was in excruciating pain. I screamed. That’s what happened,” Patterson told NBC.

Patterson’s lawyer Jason Buccat, who also appeared on the “Today” show, said the metal staple causes “severe damage” to her cornea that required a topical steroid.

The product liability lawsuit, which was filed on June 9 in Los Angeles Superior Court and first reported on the Smoking Gun Web site, seeks unspecified damages.

A spokeswoman for Victoria’s Secret, which is operated by Limited Brands Inc, could not immediately be reached for comment

ARVADA, Colo. – Police in a Colorado town say they’ve caught two “thong bandits” who used women’s underwear to disguise themselves during a convenience store robbery.

Nineteen-year-old Joaquin Rico turned himself in Friday, two days after 24-year-old alleged accomplice Joseph R. Espinoza turned himself in.

A surveillance video released last week by police in Arvada, Colo., shows two unarmed men inside the convenience store. They stole an undisclosed amount of cash and cigarettes in the May 16 robbery.

One man wore a green thong and the other wore blue. Each thong barely covered the man’s nose, mouth and chin and left the rest of his face exposed. One also wore a pink backpack in which he stuffed the stolen items.

Not quite my idea of sexy thongs.

SAO PAULO (Reuters) – Thousands of Brazilians clamoured for a piece of gangster chic on Tuesday, jostling their way into a sale of goods ranging from flat-screen TVs to designer underwear confiscated from a convicted Colombian drug lord.

Police, overwhelmed by the size of the crowd at the gates of Sao Paulo’s posh Jockey Club, fired pepper spray and pushed some people to the ground as the first bargain-hunters snapped up items, including a collection of Hello Kitty toys, for as little as 1 real (30 pence).

“I’m interested in seeing various items and I’m curious to see what the life of a drug trafficker was like, how ostentatious it was,” said Thiana Souza, an interior designer who was waiting in line with about 5,000 others.

Juan Carlos Ramirez Abadia, who the United States says was one of the most powerful leaders of Colombia’s cocaine cartels, was arrested in Brazil last year and last week received a 30-year prison sentence. His wife, a fan of the Japanese cartoon character Hello Kitty, was also jailed.

Washington wants Brazil to extradite the 44-year-old Ramirez Abadia, also known as “Lollipop,” to face racketeering and other charges.

Three luxurious houses belonging to Ramirez Abadia had already been sold off under a new initiative putting criminals’ goods up for sale and giving some of the proceeds to charity.

On Tuesday, it was the turn of the houses’ contents, ranging from vast collections of shoes and vintage port to plush sofas, fishing gear and brand-name clothes.

One room full of pink Hello Kitty items gave an insight into Ramirez Abadia’s methods. Brazilian media has said he hid messages about drug operations in e-mail images of the cute cat.

“Everyone wants to know why we are receiving from drug dealers,” said Lucien Belmonte, president of a foundation that helps poor children that was benefiting from the sale.

“It’s not from dealers, it’s from justice.”

For Brazilians already caught up in a consumer credit boom, it was too good a chance to miss. Several journalists for a local television network walked off with a huge plasma TV before the horde descended.

Karina Ferreira, a 21-year-old sales assistant, said she did not feel bad about taking over the possessions of a convicted drug runner, in her case about $80 worth of clothes.

“If you think about it, it’s going to a good cause so I don’t mind,” she said.

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – A diamond thong worth S$168,000 (61,000 pounds) was the highlight of a lingerie fashion show in Singapore on Thursday.

The Triumph Luxurious Diamond Thong had 518 brilliant-cut diamonds, totaling 30 carats, studded into the front of a black lace thong in a floral pattern. The skimpy underwear that left little to the imagination also had 27 white gold tassels hanging off it.

Danielle Luminita, a brunette model from Romania, was carried down the runway on the shoulders of two male models wearing only the diamond thong.

“It is very comfortable, it’s not heavy or scratchy or anything,” Luminita told Reuters backstage.

A spokeswoman for Triumph International, the lingerie company that commissioned the thong, said that the thong would be dry cleaned before going on display.

“It’s a signature piece, obviously we aren’t going to sell it,” she said.