A GERMAN man was detained by police March 13 for driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI) in a joint campaign which took place that night, Shenzhen Evening News reported yesterday.

    The German motorist left home and drove to pick up his wife at the airport at around 9:30 p.m. He was stopped by traffic police at an intersection on Wanghai Road in Nanshan District, where they discovered his blood-alcohol level was 109.9 mg of alcohol per 100 ml of blood.

    “I originally thought that the penalty for a DUI in China was the same as in Germany, where drivers can get their licenses back after having a trial and paying a certain amount of fines,” said the German man, who relocated to China in 2009 and obtained a driver’s license in 2010.

    Drivers with blood-alcohol levels greater than 80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood are considered too intoxicated to drive in China. Drunken drivers face prison terms of one to six months and have their licenses revoked for five years.

    “It was so stupid of me to drive under the influence. I feel very regretful because I can’t manage my company if I have to stay in prison for a month,” said the German man, who owns a telecommunications company in the city. (Luo Songsong)