Speedster's wrath... machineguns camera car, kills driver

An armed man apparently infuriated by accumulating traffic fines waited for a vehicle carrying a police speed camera to park off the road to hunt for speedsters, hid behind a small hill and opened fire, killing the driver instantly.

The man with a machine gun appeared to have been stalking the vehicle as its driver picked the right place and parked near the hill overlooking a motorway between the capital Riyadh and the western town of Taif.

Just after the Saudi driver turned the engine off and began operating the speed camera, dubbed Saher, the man loaded his gun and opened fire.“The vehicle caught fire after its engine was hit…the driver who was inside was charred to death…police are looking for the attacker,” 'Ajel' daily said.

Saudi Arabia, with a population of about 27 million, introduced the advanced Saher camera system two years ago in a bid to curb soaring road accidents.

Saudi traffic police have come under fire by the public and some officials over the deployment of such cameras on the grounds they involve heavy fines that could exceed $500.

Newspapers have reported several incidents involving attacks on Saher cameras over the past few months.

In statements early this year, a Saudi parliament member launched a virulent attack on Saher system, saying it amounts to usury which is prohibited in Islam.Talal Al-Bakri, who heads the social and family committee at the Shura (appointed parliament), made the attack during a Shura session to become the latest official in Saudi Arabia to criticsze the system.

Bakri said Saher has been approved by what he described an “unqualified committee”, adding that the system has not been ratified by the Monarch. “There should be a royal decree to install this system…streets even do not have the right infrastructure for this system as there are no signboards guiding drivers…citizens are receiving SMS on their mobile phones about a traffic offence but they never know where and when,” he said.

“This system does not distinguish between real offenders and emergency cases and there are no special courts for settling disputes arising from this system…I think it has been introduced to collect money and for this reason I join the grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al Shaikh in his description of the system as usury.”

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