After a long-running dispute with his cousin, the man - a mechanic in the in the Landes (‎Nouvelle-Aquitaine) - has admitted to creating a false number plate, identical to that on his cousin’s van, a Citroën C15. The mechanic then fitted the false plate to another identical C15 van, and deliberately drove at 82 kph in a 50 kph zone.

When the cousin - a retiree - received the speeding ticket to his home address, he confirmed that the photo did indeed appear to show his van with his number plate. Yet, he said that he had not been on the road in question at the time of the infraction, and had several witnesses who could testify to this.

Upon further inspection of the speeding ticket photo, the cousin noticed that the driver of the van appeared to be the mechanic, and informed the gendarmerie.

The accused has admitted to the charges and is now due in court in Mont-de-Marsan (Landes) this week.

He faces having six points taken off his licence - and may even have his licence revoked - along with a €30,000 fine, up to seven years of prison, and confiscation of his vehicle.