A Swiss man caught speeding on a Canadian highway has blamed his actions on the absence of goats on the roads.

The man was caught doing at 100mph in a 60mph zone. The traffic officer who caught him said the Swiss driver had said he was taking advantage “of the ability to go faster without risking hitting a goat”.

Canadian police spokesman Joel Doiron said he had never found a goat on the highways of eastern Ontario in his 20 years of service. “Nobody’s ever used the lack of goats here as an excuse for speeding,” he said. “I’ve never been to Switzerland, but I guess there must be a lot of goats there.”

The driver was ordered to pay a fine of C$360 (£175) for speeding. It’s not known whether Swiss satellite navigation systems include news of goats ahead, or whether Swiss cars have goat-ometers.

It’s a great excuse though, and you can imagine it being used in a number of different crimes. “Sorry officer, I didn’t mean to rob the bank, but there weren’t any goats to stop me…”Read the story on BBC news