A Swiss court has fined a multimillionaire a record $290,000 for speeding through a village at 85 mph in his red Ferrari Testarossa, news outlets in Switzerland report.

The fine is based on the unidentified speeder's wealth and his previous fast offenses. Swiss voters approved a penalty system that replaces prison for such crimes as speeding with "day fines" based on wealth — in this case $22.7 million.

The fine is more than double the previous record, doled out to a Porsche driver in Zürich in 2008. Half must be paid upfront, and the rest is linked to good behavior during a two-year suspended sentence.

"The accused ignored elementary traffic rules with a powerful vehicle out of a pure desire for speed," the court said.

The speed limit in St. Gallen, in eastern Switzerland, is 35 mph.

Swiss news media reported that the man owns a villa with five luxury cars, including the Ferrari. The U.K. Guardian says the speeder initially refused to appear in court, claiming that he was a diplomat from Guinea-Bissau and entitled to immunity and that his diplomatic plates had fallen off the car.

The court rejected both claims.

If you read German, here's the original report.

(Posted by Michael Winter)