dwatkins

SYDNEY, Australia (AP) -- Hundreds of Australian drivers have come up with a way to weasel out of tickets: Blame it on a dead guy.

More than 200 motorists have avoided parking and speeding fines by accusing either a dead man or an out-of-state resident for their errors, police said Saturday.

Under New South Wales state law, if car owners sign a sworn statement that they were not driving the vehicle when an offense was committed, they can avoid paying speed camera fines that arrive by mail and parking tickets left under windshield wipers.

A recent government audit of the excuses given in those sworn statements revealed that 238 motorists had blamed one of two people: a dead man and a person living in neighboring South Australia state, Police Superintendent Daryl Donnolly said in a statement.

Police say a 53-year-old businessman from South Australia has been unfairly flooded with traffic fines. He believes the scam started after he rented a sports car in Sydney.

Some $61,000 of fines have been avoided this way in the past three years, Donnolly said. He said car owners charged with swearing false statements face up to five years' imprisonment if convicted.

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