Police minister reports himself for tweeting sheep photo while driving

March 21 (UPI) -- A government official in Australia reported himself to police after tweeting out a photo of a sheep while driving.

New South Wales Minister for Police Troy Grant tweeted a photo of a sheep sitting in the back seat of a car while driving home.

"Heading home on the Newell stopped at upgrade works and then saw this. A ewe in the back out on a Saturday drive!" Grant wrote.

He was later informed what he had done was illegal, turned himself in to police and paid a $325 fine.

"This serves as a massive reminder, nobody is above the law even if you are the Police Minister, even if you have to ring up and dob yourself in to get a ticket," Grant said. "If that is what it takes to continue to ram home the message, then that is what I am prepared to do."

Grant said he was unaware it was illegal to hold his cellphone while sitting in the driver's seat of his car.

"I did not know that what I was doing was against the law," he said. "This is a great lesson for me, and I hope it is something that the community takes a lesson from as well."

Grant said the fine for the crime was "significant" but necessary to prevent drivers from using their phones on the road.

"It's a significant penalty, as it should be, to put in context I wasn't driving physically or wasn't distracted from being on the road," he said. "It doesn't matter, it's still an offense and the simple rule is don't use your mobile phones for any purpose when you're behind the wheel, whether you are stationary or moving."