Ok, gas prices are prohibitively high, but some people will stop at nothing to get out of paying to fill up.

One young woman from Saxony told a cashier at a gas station in Münchberg, Bavaria, that, oops, she didn't seem to have any cash on her. In a display of forbearance unusual in a country where people like to stick to the rules, the girl allowed her to head off to the nearest bank, accepting the motorist's friend as surety.

No show

But two hours later, she'd failed to return. Her faith in human nature no doubt dashed forever, the luckless cashier called the cops.

As for the "friend" - police investigations suggest she was probably an unwitting victim of a mean-minded hoax rather than a willing accomplice. Apparently, it wasn't the first time this tight-fisted trickster had pulled off the stunt -- she's been bamboozling gas stations and girl-friends across the country.

And while she drove off into the sunset, her long-suffering human deposit had no choice but to take the train home.