Youth fined R8 000 for 215km/h

2003-02-04 08:42

East London - A 19-year-old Cape Town motorist driving a BMW M3 has been fined R8 000 after he was trapped doing 215km/h on the N9 near Aberdeen. He was arrested after a high-speed chase when he refused to stop.

Muneeb Ahmed, believed to be from Belville and who was travelling to Johannesburg from Oudtshoorn, was arrested after a high-speed chase after he failed to stop.

He was taken to court in Graaff Reinet and fined R8 000 for exceeding the 120km/h speed limit on the N9 by 95km/h.

Tsepho Machaea of the traffic department said: "He was fined an additional R300 for failing to obey a lawful instruction by not stopping after being instructed to do so by a traffic official."

According to Machaea, provincial traffic officer Kobus Nel, who is the acting station commander at Graaff-Reinet, was manning a speed trap about 14km from Aberdeen about 12:25.

"A car approached at high speed and when he saw 215km/h register on the Pro-Lazer speed-trapping device he was using he tried to wave the motorist down.

"Instead of stopping, the motorist ignored the instruction and continued to drive on towards Graaff-Reinet."

Nel gave chase and radioed the municipal traffic department in Graaff-Reinet for assistance.

Machaea said: "A roadblock was set up and the offending motorist was stopped and arrested and then handed over to Nel who arrived on the scene shortly afterwards."

Ahmed was taken to court and released after paying the fine which was apparently set by the public prosecutor.

- SAPA