Pleading guilty as charged to stinky breath. You could be forgiven thinking the only criminal, or penalizable, offence might be alcohol breath, a feature for which drivers everywhere are screened through breathalizer tests. (-Ed)

"According to the policeman's citation, the driver admitted that he had a bad mouth smell."

A driver in Kuwait was fined by a traffic policeman for having bad smell, a local daily reported.

The unprecedented citation waded into controversy and a police source told Al Anba daily that the "very strange incident" was problematic.

"Will the motorist be fined? If so, on what ground and how much will he have to pay? If his car is impounded, will it remain in the police garage for two months? Is there a possibility to reach a reconciliation deal?" the source asked.

According to the policeman's citation, the driver admitted that he had a bad mouth smell.

By Habib Toumi