Two Chinese street motorbike racers may get death penalty

Two street motorbike racers in China's Shanghai city who were detained and charged with dangerous driving may face the death penalty in line with new guidelines, say police.

Earlier, racers faced less than 15 days in jail in case their activities had no untoward consequences, the Shanghai Daily reported.

According to the city police, the two men -- identified as Jin and Zhang -- met at about 8 p.m. in a garage on Leyuan Road in Pudong New Area, and drove out a Yamaha and a
Honda, both powerful motorcycles with 1,000cc engines.

The street bike racing occurred on the night of Feb 3.

Police noticed the duo on the surveillance cameras, speeding on the road and repeatedly jumping traffic signals.

Patrolling officers tried to stop the two but they did not slow down and escaped, police said.
Jin and Zhang were later identified by the police from surveillance camera footage and detained and their motorcycles confiscated.

Jin's Yamaha was unlicensed while Zhang was using another person's licence plates on his Honda, police found.