Manama: Car drifters in Saudi Arabia will face jail sentences of at least six months and minimum fine of 10,000 Saudi Riyals (Dh9,793) for their first offence, under a new plan to intensify the drive against this growing phenomenon.

The punishments were included in a report prepared by the security commission of the Shura Council, the consultative body in Saudi Arabia, ahead of a legal draft on how to deal with drifters.

Under the recommendations by the commission, and in addition to the jail term and the fine for the first offence, the drifter will also have his car impounded for one month.

The jail sentence is increased to five years and the fine to 40,000 Saudi Riyals when the drifter is caught a third time. The car will be confiscated, Saudi news site Al Marsad reported.

Accomplices who assist the drifter in any way, including offering financial rewards or encouraging violations, will also be liable for half of the sentences pronounced against the drifters.

On Tuesday, a video clip of drivers drifting on a busy highway near the Saudi capital Riyadh went viral on the internet, particularly one that showed a car carrying two young women leaning out of the windows.

Drifting, or “tafheet” as is known in Saudi Arabia, is banned in the kingdom and the local authorities have regularly launched campaigns to arrest thrill-seeking drifters who, with little regard for traffic, attempt to outdo each other in taking their cars to the limits and drifting at high speeds. The practice has at times caused casualties among curious spectators.

The authorities, as a form of deterrence, have been treating all deaths related to drifting as homicides resulting from criminal negligence.

In February, three onlookers were injured when a show-off drifter reversed into them during a drifting display in Asir in southwestern Saudi Arabia.

The three were taken to a local hospital for treatment, but claimed they were injured as they fell off their motorbikes.

However, traffic police, alerted about the drifting accident posted on social media, launched an investigation and were able to identify those involved and eventually able to arrest the drifter despite non-cooperation of the three injured.

The police said they were referring the drifter to the legal authorities to take punitive action.

In another drifting incident in February, the police in the Eastern Province said they were able to identify and arrest a drifter who used a rented car to show off on a public road.

The drifter reportedly used a car he took from a friend who had rented it and removed the licence plates to avoid being identified by the police.

However, he was caught after a video of his reckless driving was posted online and triggered a wave of criticism.

The police said the drifter was later sentenced to six months in jail.