Public peeing rises in Sweden

STOCKHOLM , Sweden, Aug. 6 (UPI) -- Swedish authorities are turning a profit for their government by collecting $264,000 in public urination fines thus far in 2007, The Local reported Monday.

Fines were handed down to 2,252 people for public urination during the first seven months of this year, placing the country on the road to outdoing last year’s record of 3,328 public peeing citations.

Illegal urination has been on the rise since 2002, when only 900 fines were given out for the act, the Swedish newspaper said.

Police said an increase in the individual fines from $75 to $120 last October has failed to curb the practice.

Public peeing has been reported most frequently in Vastra Gotaland, Stockholm and Ostergotland.