HÀ NỘI — A young man who posted photos of his high-speed motorbike journey across the country has admitted to police that it was a hoax, the Traffic Police Department announced on Tuesday.

On December 18, he posted photos on social media claiming he had driven a Yamaha Exciter 150 from HCM City to Hà Nội, over a distance of more than 1,700km, in a little more than 19 hours, including stops for rest and refuelling.

After the post received significant public attention and raised concerns about traffic safety, the National Traffic Safety Committee sent a letter asking the Traffic Police Department under the Ministry of Public Security to issue the motorcyclist with a warning and appropriate punishment.

While working with the police, the young man admitted that the post was an attention-seeking hoax. The trip had in fact taken around two days and the young man was driving mostly within the speed limit. 

He said that he started his journey from HCM City to Hà Nội on December 17, arriving on the 18th. In remote areas, he admitted exceeding the limit by 10-20kph. 

He also admitted to officers that he did not legally own the motorbike.

The man received a fine of more than VNĐ1 million for the traffic violations. — VNS