Gerard Depardieu fined for drunk driving, loses license

PARIS, June 21 (UPI) -- French film star Gerard Depardieu has been fined $5,294 and his was license revoked for six months for driving his motor-scooter while drunk, officials say.

The 64-year-old actor was not in a Paris court to hear his sentence this week, the BBC reported.

The penalties stem from a November 2012 incident in which police said Depardieu fell off his scooter because his blood-alcohol content was more than three times the legal limit.

Depardieu moved to Belgium months ago and obtained Russian citizenship in protest of the French government's plans to impose a 75 percent tax rate on its wealthiest citizens.