bodgit
13-08-2010, 01:13 PM
A Swedish driver who was caught driving at 290km/h (186mph) in Switzerland could be given a world-record speeding fine of SFr1,080m ($1m; £656,000), prosecutors say.
The 37-year-old, who has not been named, was clocked driving his £150,000 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG sports car at 170km/h over the 120 km/h speed limit. Traffic police pulled him over on the A12 highway between Bern and Lausanne, when he was seen travelling at two-and-a-half-times the speed limit.
Under Swiss law, the level of fine is determined by the wealth of the driver and the speed recorded. It is said that he avoided earlier speed camera because he was travelling too fast for them to work properly. The driver is thought to be blaming a faulty recently installed speedometer.
In January, a Swiss driver was fined $290,000 - the current world record.
Local police spokesman Benoit Dumas said of the latest case that "nothing can justify a speed of 290km/h. It is not controllable. It must have taken 500m to stop," he said.
The Swede's car - a Mercedes SLS AMG - has been impounded and in principle he could be forced to pay a daily fine of SFr3,600 (£2,166) for 300 days, adding up to £650,000 in total.
I would like to live there. Under their reckoning fines by wealth I would only be done for £3.50 for the ride of my life.
The 37-year-old, who has not been named, was clocked driving his £150,000 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG sports car at 170km/h over the 120 km/h speed limit. Traffic police pulled him over on the A12 highway between Bern and Lausanne, when he was seen travelling at two-and-a-half-times the speed limit.
Under Swiss law, the level of fine is determined by the wealth of the driver and the speed recorded. It is said that he avoided earlier speed camera because he was travelling too fast for them to work properly. The driver is thought to be blaming a faulty recently installed speedometer.
In January, a Swiss driver was fined $290,000 - the current world record.
Local police spokesman Benoit Dumas said of the latest case that "nothing can justify a speed of 290km/h. It is not controllable. It must have taken 500m to stop," he said.
The Swede's car - a Mercedes SLS AMG - has been impounded and in principle he could be forced to pay a daily fine of SFr3,600 (£2,166) for 300 days, adding up to £650,000 in total.
I would like to live there. Under their reckoning fines by wealth I would only be done for £3.50 for the ride of my life.